Get all 15 Bella Hardy releases available on Bandcamp and save 25%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Love Songs, Among These Stars (Black Lives Matter) (Single), Postcards & Pocketbooks: The Best of Bella Hardy, Colorado (single), The Same Mistakes (single), Hey Sammy, Eternal Spring, With The Dawn, and 7 more.
1. |
Labyrinth
04:42
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Labyrinth
Bella Hardy
From shore to shore 'cross all terrain
Five hundred times round this house and back again
Through hours and days and joy and shame
In hearts pure love and times cruel pain
We walked that single winding road
Two joined as one to share the load
To keep the dead men off our backs
To catch the spirits in these spiral traps
I tied you with a silent clue
I clung on tight and saw it through
Oh darling I loved only you
I lost you in the labyrinth
I lost you in the labyrinth
Just when we thought we were reaching the end
We found ourselves back at the start again
This slow turning progress just lets you begin
There's no ending to this place we're in
And I lost you in the Labyrinth
From here to there so preordained
Five hundred times round my mind and back again
Through months and years and all in vain
I lost you in the labyrinth
Seven for the seven stars in the sky
Seven for the seven stars in the sky
Seven for the seven stars in the sky
Seven for the seven stars in the sky
I should have let you walk alone
My Theseus through the Tavros throne
Now I'm left here on this Island on my own
I lost you in the Labyrinth
And all that time we wondered
I was watching you leave
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2. |
Flowers Of May
03:08
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Flowers of May
Bella Hardy
"Wake, oh wake my dearest Jeanie
And accept these flowers of May
The sun breaks with my love for you
And I beg you come away"
"Oh my father will not have you
And my mother she says no
They say you must earn wealth and rank
Before they let me go"
"Then my ship shall sail the ocean
On a tide of velvet blue
And I shall rides the waves love
As the stars watch over you"
Well he's boarded on the Trenby
And not far gone from the strand
When the cruel south wind so wickedly
Pushed that ship back to land
On the rocks by Bishop Corner
In the night she's caught and done
And there's neither sight nor sound left
With the breaking of the sun
"Oh your ship lies in the ocean
In a grave of velvet blue
And I shall curse the stars love
As the waves wash over you"
Seven hours she's lost in weeping
'Till to the cliff's edge she has gone
But as she closed her eyes
There came a whisper soft and strong
"I would swim a thousand oceans
To bring you the flowers of May
And I've fought the freezing waters grasp
To beg you come away"
In a cottage by the ocean
There's a song of velvet blue
May you love, may you be loved
And may the stars watch over you
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3. |
Walk It With You
04:22
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Walk It With You
Bella Hardy
Blue morning sun
Come over the gate
The night's lost behind
The day's come to late
Love came like a shadow
Love came like a storm
Love left here in silence
Love left with the dawn
This isn't your story
It's just a subplot
These things try to catch us
If we're ready or not
On life's lonely road
Happy endings are few
Let go of your fears
I'll walk it with you
Cold evening sun
Why won't you die
On this burnt out
Endless grey empty sky
Oh say Mr. Blackbird
Sat silent alone
With eyes fixed on nowhere
Won't you fly, fly away home
This isn't your story
It's just a subplot
These things try to catch us
If we're ready or not
On life's lonely road
Happy endings are few
Let go of your fears
I'll walk it with you
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4. |
Bridge of Dean
03:01
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Bridge of Dean
Bella Hardy
Leith Waters run, Leith Waters flow
And time's washed down as melted snow
There sleeps the unnamed girl laid low
Weed tangled hair pulled to and fro
Her life dragged to the undertow
Down by the Bridge of Dean
All Hallow's Eve left ghosts there
In Bonfire Night's chill wood smoked air
Her same old path to home seemed strange
That friendly way so rearranged
Each well known tree took evil shape
Down by the Bridge of Dean
She's crossed Dean Bridge and dropped down right
And left behind safe city's lights
Gone wandering home quite out of sight
Each bang and flash of firework bright
Left her shaking by the riverside
Down by the Bridge of Dean
So scared she runs for Saunders Street
In tripping steps and heart skip beat
While man made thunder splits the sky
Hygieia cries as she runs by
But the roaring river spurs her own
Down by the Bridge of Dean
That creeping feeling something's wrong
She's glancing back and running on
Down to the arch and almost there
A hand grabs out behind the stair
Why can no-one hear her screaming there
Down by the Bridge of Dean?
The healing draughts of St. Bernard's Well
They could not help her as she fell
Down in the water still she lies
With reaching arms and pleading eyes
But no-one knows as they walk by
Down by the Bridge of Dean
No sign to mark the place
Save a lonely pink glove half buried in mud
Oh sing on high you church bells toll
An hourly mass for the unnamed girl
For her lonely lost forgotten soul
Down by the Bridge of Dean
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5. |
The Herring Girl
04:15
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The Herring Girl
Bella Hardy
All you who look down on me with that judgement in your eyes
While the jury picks its fate for me I'd have you save your sighs
As a child with no family I was begging on the street
When great fortune came and made me a herring girl
I don't come from these islands, from England I have roamed
And born in Great Yarmouth, that is my native home
In Autumn when the girls all chased the fish down from the north
How I longed that I would one day be a herring girl
A young girl down from Aberdeen took sick and to her bed
I asked if there was work and down to Rhona I was led
Oh she smiled at the height of me, and said that I would do
And as a Packer I was joined to be a herring girl
This season started up in Scotland, I'd just turned sixteen
And Rhona she's the greatest gutter Stornoway has seen
At eighty fish a minute, and with Mary not much less
We three, we're famed as the best crew of herring girls
Last Saturday was dancing day, and the boys were in the town
We were packing up and cleaning up and heading for our room
When a stranger crept behind us in an ally round the back
Out to catch himself a couple of fresh herring girls
Oh so suddenly he's on us and he's knocked me to the ground
And he's pinned our Rhona by the throat so she couldn't make a sound
But from her apron pocket fell a knife so keen and sharp
I've taught that man the price of fishing for a herring girl
All you who look down on me with that judgement in your eyes
While the jury picks its fate for me I'd have you save your sighs
For I'd gladly do the same again to any man that tries
Test his luck, and take advantage of a herring girl
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6. |
Full Moon Over Amsterdam
04:47
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Full Moon Over Amsterdam
Bella Hardy
A sea of tiny sparkling lights
Wait patiently to welcome you tonight
The sleeping city lingers near
While dreamers night walkers and ghosts drift here
The clocks dance back and forward as time shifts so recklessly
Just dusty grey and neon bright to count for company
And the full moon over Amsterdam
The full moon over Amsterdam
Above the throng of Tokyo
A man of clouds stood with arms outstretched
Held back the tide and gave my mind some rest
How fast adventure you're come and gone
And Christmas cheer comes early to a floor of green and red
It always seems there's one more flight till you can rest that heavy head
But there's a full moon over Amsterdam
A full moon over Amsterdam
As we arrive in light we end in dark
The choking cough of the singing lark
Coming back to winter for you love is coming home
And we're all travelling travelling travelling
But we're not alone, we're not alone
There's a full moon over Amsterdam
A full moon over Amsterdam
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7. |
Written In Green
02:19
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Written in Green
Bella Hardy
Bye bye cold winter
It's written in green 'cross the town
When I left here seven days ago
My mind and my heart were both sleeping
Bye bye to the loneliness
I felt when I lay in your arms
It was safe but now I'm sorry
You'll see me no more come the morning
In my mind, the winter fades the pink of the magnolia to white
In my mind, it's him not you that's kissing me goodnight
Bye bye to the TV nights
I'll dance on the beach until dawn
And we'll knock back the tequila
And sing back the dark from the day
So bye bye false love forever
Who just liked the sweet parts of me
Well it's time to be young free and easy
It's time to forgive our shortcomings
In my mind, I'm staying out, I'm shouting out, I'm seeing things anew
In my mind, I'm never never coming home to you
Bye bye cold winter
I'll paint it in red 'cross the town
Let each stranger be my friend again
Let this long road of life be our home
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8. |
Jenny Wren
02:53
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Jenny Wren
Bella Hardy
Think hard on what you're saying
We're victims all of our circumstances
Third, forth and fifth chances
Just one or two bad choices
And lady luck forgets that you exist
How long would you be missed?
Down a dark lane off Broadway
She warms her fingers by the fires glow
At Bowery Mission Mainhouse
She tells her tales of who she used to be
Her life on broken dreams
It all comes round again, it all comes round again
It all comes round again, who's keeping score now Jenny Wren?
If two strong towers can crumble down
Then it's the same the world around
The dust may fall by Sunday
On Monday she'll be on her own again
Another ode to men
It all comes round again, it all comes round again
It all comes round again, who's keeping score now Jenny Wren?
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9. |
Promises
03:06
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Promises
Bella Hardy
Hello Mary Jo
You're the reason it's all falling to pieces
Seems the treason's in the cracks and the creases
Our promises fell through
Around the running track
We walked for hours talking Godot and Steinbeck
The April showers left us dizzy and soul wrecked
And yearning for more
All the pretty girls are waiting for the summer
Sulking in dark science labs and picking skirts from glossy mags
And praying for the day they take the train, they ride the train
They fill the train with overlapping chatter
Summer breeze of giddy laughter
Dearest Mary Jo
We splashed away the hours in bright light and pale green
We were oh so high, or low, but never in between
And we said we'd save the world
But turned and turned again
What's left is time and plans and so much reality
There's just no winning and no losing anymore you see
We're grown up and worn out
All the pretty girls are waiting for the summer
Sulking in dark science labs and picking skirts from glossy mags
And praying for the day they take the train, they ride the train
They fill the train with overlapping chatter
Summer breeze of giddy laughter
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10. |
Rosabel
04:36
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Rosabel
Bella Hardy
Beware of your heart, it's cruel and it's careless
More dangerous by far than the beasts in the wood
Beware wicked thoughts that come creeping and crawling
The shadow of dreams that can never come good
She's the talk of the town, the pride of the valley
Comes out with the sun and pours gold on the day
She knows all your names and smiles warm on your faces
But Rosabel's wild as the briar in May
When each house lay asleep she's dropped from her window
In a blanket of darkness crept out of the town
And she' skipped up to Faelen Woods picking Dog Roses
No fear of the shadows that watched all around
She's plucked up her fill, and laughed in the moonshine
In warm summer's evening she's danced 'cross the moor
First twisting and turning, then tripping an falling
And lifeless she's lain on the heather bed floor
When she's woke up, a fire's hot glowing
She's tucked in silk sheets with Lord John watching there
Saying "Sleep, beauty sleep, lose your mind in warm dreaming
You're safe in my house and well mending with care"
In fever she's burned, but time's proved in healing
Made ready to leave but been blocked on the way
"Oh you thief you were wrong to go picking my roses!
And for stealing from me it's right he that you'll stay"
"Oh John you're so proud, and silent, and stubborn!
You're bigger than most and unkempt it is true
But I've grown fond of your ways and your quiet woodland keeping
And be I thief or no, I will stay here with you"
It's seven years gone, and seven years married
And seven slow years she's been counting the hours
"Oh my husband's uncomely and will not look on me
I long rue the day I went picking his flowers"
Now take heed young girls, here's Rosa's undoing;
There's a diary she keeps of her sorrows and cares
If you write yourself down then you're asking for trouble
It's the nature of words to be read and be shared
One grey summer's morning she slipped into town
With excuses of shopping but for fresh company
Oh and who should be there but some boys from the army
And James the most charming in every degree
It isn't by chance he's strolled past her window
Nor by chance she's met him out walking alone
And they've tied up there love in the long July grasses
'Till with the steal dawn she's gone tiptoeing home
She's gone to the kitchen, but Lord John's crept after
He's found her at writing and read just a few lines
Oh he rants and he rages and tears up the pages
And in the grief of betrayal she's fled from his cries
She's run for the woods, and he's tried to call after
But the chill death of heartbreak has stolen his moan
And she caught in the thorns of his wild Dog Roses
And there James has found her cold dead as the stone
Beware of your heart, it's cruel and it's careless
More dangerous by far than the beasts in the wood
Beware wicked thoughts that come creeping and crawling
The shadow of dreams that can never come good
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11. |
Good Friday
02:58
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Good Friday
Bella Hardy
Golden light shines silver on the water
You sit and sip your shandies by the harbour
In the twilight night birds cry
And time sails slowly by
As bobbing boats like floating candles gleam
What a merry crew you are
You, the brothers and the lovers
You, who touched the tide
Who watched the waves collide
Who talk in warm embrace and cosy dream
The perfect summer's day is early come
Where sunshine's daffodils have been and gone
If the city lights can't find you
And you can leave all that behind you
From a sea of groaning grasses
The dandelion poke their smiling faces
Oh you sigh sun weary
Blood content in theory
As the last light fades a world of blue to grey
But still cold thoughts of city lurk behind
Though you boxed them they creep forward in your mind
Far away in that urban home
Life stores on your answer phone
Such distances are only time away
The perfect summers day is early come
Where sunshine's daffodils have been and gone
If the city lights can't find you
And you can leave all that behind you
Then the perfect summers day is early come
Where sunshine's daffodils have been and gone
If the city lights can't find you
You can leave all that behind you
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12. |
Broken Mirror
02:10
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Broken Mirror
Bella Hardy
At once I'm blinding in the sun
Then in your shadow I am gone
The shattered shards of life long lost
A sharp revenge in years to come
In this blood blessing we are tied
But turn and see another side
A thousand lives are lived in one
Reflections keep what's dead and done
And if I'm seven years, bad luck
Perfection always comes unstuck
See only what you choose to see
You won't know love and you won't know me
At once I'm blinding in the sun
Then nothing when the light in gone
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Bella Hardy UK
“Brit folk's finest” Mojo Magazine • “Enduringly seductive” The Telegraph • “A fine, no-nonsense interpreter of traditional music and an excellent songwriter” The Guardian • “An aura of sophisti-cation that will win over listeners who never set foot in a folk club” The Sunday Times • “…a shining star in the folk scene’s firmament” fRoots Magazine • “A triumph of folk art-pop” Songlines Magazine ... more
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