Origin: The Roses of Eyam (John Trevor)

Subject: ADD: Eyam Ballad (Carol Evans)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Sep 22 - 02:09 AM

EYAM BALLAD
[Carol Evans (1986)]

The great plague came to Derbyshire
dressed in the finest cloth.
He who stitched and sweated
was first man marked for death.
Marked with a ring of roses;
marked for the greedy earth.

CHORUS
No chants or incantations,
no herbs to charm the sores,
no tincture, balm or ointment;
for plague there is no cure.

The Bradshaw family from the hall
fled in the early light.
Linen, silver, servant, dog,
abandoned in the flight.
Then Mompesson assembled all
to tell them of their plight.

No chants or incantations…
On that first week in September
in sixteen sixty-five
three hundred honest Christians
prayed to stay alive.
Of those who prayed in fear of plague
less than eighty would survive.
No chants or incantations…

From pulpit in every parish
the word was quickly spread:
“Stay away from Eyam!
They are already counting dead.
Ten miners and the carpenter
have caught the infected seed.”
No chants or incantations…

Giant stones were placed at boundaries,
at Cliffe and Cucklet Delp,
at Gebe mine and at Humphries barn,
and there the coins were left.
Coins steeped in bitter vinegar
to pay the price of bread.
No charms or incantations…

By Christmas time no children
Played in the yard at school.
Ten pupils and the teacher gone;
how could He be so cruel,
to steal the heart out of the village,
to watch infection rule?
No charms or incantations…

When mother Hancock saw the mark
on the neck of her small son,
she told Johas (Jonas?) to dig seven graves.
She knew no help would come
to bless them with a remedy,
before they died alone.
No chants or incantations…

No marriage vows in spring that year,
no loved ones left to cherish.
No seed was sown, no crop was grown,
just one pride left to nourish:
“No matter what, we must not spread
this curse outside the village.”
No chants or incantations…

And so the Eyam legend grew.
Read on the parish page
the names of all those people
who kept their vow and stayed.
The village died, but Derbyshire
was never touched by plague.
No chants or incantations…

Be still and quiet in Cucklet Delp
and watch the drifting skies.
Perhaps you will catch the singing,
an echo still survives.
In our imagination
we can live their unfinished lives.
No chants or incantations…

(lyrics by Carol Evans, melody by Mike Lydiat):

The Eyam Ballad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8p2B3H0lqI

---

http://www.barlow-church.org.uk/acrobat/202103ParishMagazine.pdf

Subject: RE: Origin: The Roses of Eyam (John Trevor)
From: GUEST
Date: 23 Jul 21 - 02:24 PM

New song about the Plague in Eyam (lyrics by Carol Evans, melody by Mike Lydiat):

The Eyam Ballad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8p2B3H0lqI

Subject: RE: Origin: The Roses of Eyam (John Trevor)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 21 Mar 20 - 10:46 PM

This is a song for our times. We need a spirit of generosity and concern for others right now. I can't believe the power of this song, and how it struck me.

Subject: RE: Origin: The Roses of Eyam (John Trevor)
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 21 Mar 20 - 06:52 AM

Eyam is now a lovely place and the thought of the villagers selflessness still resounds whenever I visit. The graveyard and museum are obvious reminders but what always gets me is the coolstones where villagers left money soaked in vinegar in exchange for supplies. Very atmospheric village.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: The Roses of Eyam (John Trevor)
From: GUEST,Starship
Date: 18 Mar 20 - 03:58 PM

Eyam plague: The village of the damned
By David McKenna
BBC News

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-35064071

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: The Roses of Eyam (John Trevor)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 18 Mar 20 - 01:26 PM

Interesting song. It really gives me something to think about today. We're trying to isolate ourselves, but my wife went to two grocery stores and still didn't find bread and eggs.

Here's the Roy Bailey recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6f734MDffs

And a video about the plague: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkQTlUKwwgM

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: The Roses of Eyam (John Trevor)
From: GUEST,h
Date: 17 Aug 17 - 04:27 AM

I have been singing this song for many years, here are the chords I use.

THE ROSES OF EYAM      John Trevor    / sung by Roy Bailey 1982
Dm G Dm G A D / Dm G Dm G A Dm / G A Dm G A Dm/ G A Dm G   D / |: G A Dm:|

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: The Roses of Eyam
From: GUEST,Jennifer, Cambridge
Date: 16 Aug 02 - 03:14 PM

Thanks to you as well, Stewie - didn't mean to ignore you! It's a great song, isn't it? My friend was pleased to hear he could have the words in print now, and now I can see the words he's talking about - haven't heard the musical version yet.

J.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: The Roses of Eyam
From: Willa
Date: 15 Aug 02 - 03:53 PM

Jennifer.
Our local libraries all offer public access to the internet. Perhaps there is something similar in your area that your friend could use to share in mudcat.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: The Roses of Eyam
From: GUEST,Jennifer, Cambridge
Date: 14 Aug 02 - 05:37 PM

Wonderful rounded response from you fantastic people! Thanks so much. Willa, it's wonderful to have that quote from the writer to pass on to my friend (sadly computerless & thus unable to share in this 'catter chat'), which he'll be able to add to his intro for his rendition. J.

Subject: ADD: The Roses of Eyam (John Trevor)
From: Stewie
Date: 13 Aug 02 - 11:44 PM

I had a trawl around the net for the lyrics for you, but was surprised not to find them. Here is my transription from Bailey's recording - can't help with the chords.

THE ROSES OF EYAM
(John Trevor)

The earth beneath the surface dust is cold and damp and raw
And, holding but/back? the memory of what has gone before,
Can almost be forgiven for remembering the dream
Of the wall of stones around the homes of the villagers of Eyam
The villagers of Eyam

In August 1665 along the cobbled roads
Between the houses dark and high, the carriers with their loads
Were leaving, for the northern towns, the capital and Crown
And also leaving far behind the plague of London town
The plague of London town

George Vicars was a tailor to the village life of Eyam
And to his house a case of clothes from London town was seen
To be delivered one fine day in September '65
And never more was tailor Vicars ever seen alive
Ever seen alive

The scars upon his face and chest were many to behold
And, lying by his fevered body, now so very cold,
The case from London opened wide, the clothes all neatly hung
And from the bell upon the church the knell of death was rung
The knell of death was rung

There followed sixty scarred and bleeding, buried in their grave
And Thomas Stanley stood above and told them Jesus saved
But Stanley was a Puritan, an enemy to heed
To Mompesson, the Anglican, who held the rector's creed
Who held the rector's creed

The differences between these men, which were so very wide,
Were shattered by their desperate need and rudely cast aside
The voices of these two were joined, their words were not in vain
They told the villagers of Eyam the plague must be contained
The plague must be contained

The village people took their word, agreed to stay and die
They built a wall around the hamlet not so very high
But high enough so they would know that though it mean their lives
The plague must stay behind the wall with children, friends and wives
With children, friends and wives

For six long months the wall did stand and honest to their word
The families died, the Fryths and the Syddals never more were heard
The Thornleys, Hancocks and the Torres were buried in the ground
The Coopers and the Vicars never made another sound
Never made another sound

The dawn that rang the final bell left thirty three alive
From three hundred and sixty in September '65
The villagers rebuilt their lives with those who still remained
The name of Eyam can still be seen, the plague had been contained
The plague had been contained

Source: transcription from Roy Bailey 'Hard Times' Fuse Records LP CF 382 (1982)

I got the name spellings from here:

Click

--Stewie.

---

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6f734MDffs

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: The Roses of Eyam
From: Willa
Date: 13 Aug 02 - 03:56 PM

Sorry for the thread creep, but this info was interesting.
From the Trevor Midgley website
"John Peel and Clive Selwood, my joint-benefactors at Dandelion, put it to me that maybe a name change might help to define the new, harder edge. It seemed like a good idea at the time. So, we took my full name - Christopher John Trevor Midgley - selected the middle two, and agreed that for all future releases I would be 'John Trevor'.
ON FEBRUARY 16th & 17th 1975, I demo'd a new set of fifteen songs at Tractor's studio in Heywood, Lancashire. Amongst these was a ballad called 'The Roses Of Eyam'.
Eyam (rhymes with 'dream') is the plague village of North Derbyshire. Its story dates from the mid-17th century when the bubonic plague took a hold there. In an heroic act of self-sacrifice, the villagers sealed-off the hamlet to make sure the disease couldn't spread to the surrounding areas. Ninety-per-cent of them died (over three hundred), and many of the graves are still there for all to see on a hillside above the town.

Shortly after I wrote this song, San and I went to live in Dronfield, North Derbyshire, and I started doing the rounds of some local folk clubs as John Trevor. Amongst the songs I sang was 'Roses Of Eyam', and amongst the people who heard it was one of the UK's finest folk music interpreters, Roy Bailey. Roy asked if he could use the song, and of course I said yes.

Now, twenty-five years on, Roy has sung 'Roses Of Eyam' on every continent. He included it on his 1985 album 'Hard Times', and re-released it in 1998 on the 'Past Masters' CD (Fuse CFCD 403). It's a recording that I'm particularly proud of (even though most people who know it will tell you that 'Roses Of Eyam' is a Roy Bailey song!)".

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: The Roses of Eyam
From: Willa
Date: 13 Aug 02 - 03:43 PM

Found this ref. on his official website.
Past Masters. New compilation. 18tracks originally recorded between 1975 & 1988. Price £12.00 inc p&p. PASTMASTERS CFCD403 (1998) Streets of London (John Hasted) Punch and Judy Man (John Conolly) The Malvinas (Dave Rogers) Curtains of Old Joe's House (Si Kahn) Rain Forest Falls (Geoff Pearson) Gracias a la Vida ( Violetta Parra) Two Good Arms (Charlie King) In These Hard Times (Weston & Barnes) Song of the Leaders (Brian Pearson) Roses of Eyam (John Trevor) War without Bangs (Geoff Pearson) Green Peace, Really Green (Geoff Pearson) All Used Up (Utah Phillips) Ghost Story (Jim Woodland) Sleep Well/Gravity (Gray & Rosselson/G.Pearson) Maria Diaz (Lenny Galant) The Years Grow Tall (Leon Rosselson) Daughters of the Revolution (Berni Armstrong)

Subject: help needed please
From: GUEST,Jennifer, Cambridge
Date: 13 Aug 02 - 03:06 PM

Here's another request for a friend: Has anyone got the chords and lyrics to Roy Bailey's rendition of The Roses of Eyam, please? Or any knowledge of where the sheet music might be found? J.

Subject: RE: ROSES OF EYAM INFO PLEASE
From: Peter K (Fionn)
Date: 29 Mar 01 - 05:52 PM

I've forgotten the the details of the story, but Mompesson certainly got a bad press for his part in it, somewhere along the line (maybe in a television play?). Does anyone know any more about the suggestion at Noreen's link that he sent his own kids out of the village while the plague was still spreading?

Subject: RE: ROSES OF EYAM INFO PLEASE
From: Hawker
Date: 29 Mar 01 - 04:31 PM

Ian,
I went to visit the village of Eyam in January, it is a beautiful village nestling in the hills of Derbyshire. The story is that of the song. The Eyam link provided by Noreen is good, but you cannot beat goning there and seeing it for yourself.
These peoples self sacrifice, locking themselves into the village, letting no-one in and no-one out to prevent the plague spreading has extra significance to me at the moment, during this Foot & Mouth outbreak
Eyam had a wonderful effect on me, it has a peace about it, I left there feeling at peace with the world, and humbled by these peoples actions.
I bought a book there called Eyam Plague 1665 - 1666 by John Clifford, it is a little paperback pamphlet, You can contact him at the following addres:
John Clifford, Eyam, Derbyshire
Hope this helps!
Lucy

Subject: RE: ROSES OF EYAM INFO PLEASE
From: Grab
Date: 29 Mar 01 - 05:11 AM

Ray, you forgot to mention the Three Stags - not far from Eyam, and a VERY good excuse for hitting the Peaks! Didn't realise there was a music shop in Eyam though, I'll have to check that out next time I'm up there.

Graham.

Subject: RE: ROSES OF EYAM INFO PLEASE
From: Peter K (Fionn)
Date: 28 Mar 01 - 07:11 PM

Mompesson was one of the survivors at Eyam and went from there to become Rector of Bilsthorpe (on which village's parish council yours truly is proud to serve) and Eakring. He achieved even greater notoriety (within his lifetime, anyway) at the later living than he achieved at Eyam - by becoming the focus of a long-running ecclesiatical court that sat in judgment on some affair he got embroiled in.

Just outside Eakring (which, incidentally was at the centre of Britain's only onshore oil wells for 30 years from WW2 onwards) there is a stone cross marking a spot once known as Pulpit Ash. It was from this vantage point that Mompesson had to deliver his sermons to the parishioners of Eakring. They would not let him into the village because of the plague connection. Bilsthorpe and Eakring are worth an hour or two if you're anywhere near (between Mansfield, Newark and Ollerton) - which case PM me when you're on your way, and the beer's on me. (In the Stanton Arms if you're NUM, or the miners' welfare if you're a UDM scab. There's no half-way house!)

Subject: RE: ROSES OF EYAM INFO PLEASE
From: BanjoRay
Date: 28 Mar 01 - 05:42 PM

Eyam is a lovely village, which also has a superb maker of banjos and fixer of fiddles called Helmut Rheingans. His website is here if you want to check him out. He's a German who settled here and plays lovely old time clawhammer, and has a workshop where you can go to talk fiddles, banjos, music etc. In fact its time I went again....its about the only reason for going to the Peak District that hasn't been wrecked by the foot and mouth!

Cheers
Ray

Subject: RE: ROSES OF EYAM INFO PLEASE
From: Snuffy
Date: 28 Mar 01 - 05:23 PM

Mompesson

Subject: RE: ROSES OF EYAM INFO PLEASE
From: Noreen
Date: 28 Mar 01 - 12:54 PM

Eyam has more info about the place and its history. Song sounds very interesting, I don't know it. Let us know how you get on, Ian.

Noreen

Subject: RE: ROSES OF EYAM INFO PLEASE
From: Mrs.Duck
Date: 28 Mar 01 - 12:41 PM

The village is in Derbyshore and there is a museum there which tells of the sacrifice the villagers made by shutting themselves off from the surrounding areas to avoid the plague spreading. Food was delivered to the boundaries by neighbouring villages but at the end most of the people of Eyam died.

Subject: RE: ROSES OF EYAM INFO PLEASE
From: MMario
Date: 28 Mar 01 - 12:36 PM

There was a play of that name and telling the story that dates back to at least 1970 - since it opened at several theatres that year.

John Trevor evidently recorded the ballad on a demo record in 1975.

Quite a lot of info on it out on the web.

Subject: ROSES OF EYAM INFO PLEASE
From: Ian HP
Date: 28 Mar 01 - 12:04 PM

I've just been listening to some old Roy Bailey material and the song 'Roses of Eyam' by John Trevor has just struck me like a thunderbolt. It is from his 1982 'Hard Times' album, reproduced on the collection 'Past Masters'. The song is obviously based on real events, which I would love to find out more about (I plan to sing it), sources, info about the author, etc., if anyone knows.

The story in the song is that in 1665 George Vickers, a tailor in the English village of Eyam, received some material from London which carried the plague. It killed him. The two ministers of religion in the village were Thomas Stanley, a Puritan, and [can't tell name, sounds like "Mompasson"?? - anyone know?], an Anglican, who were theological enemies. In this crisis they worked together, telling the villagers they must build a wall around the village so that all stay and die to contain the plague. They did, leaving 33 out of 360 alive.

It's a very moving song, including a litany of the family names of those who died.

More info? Help, please.