Master Kilby In the heat of the day When the sun shines so freely There I met Master Kilby So fine and so gay I pulled off my hat And I bowed to the ground And I said 'Master Kilby Oh, where are you bound?' 'I'm bound for the west In hope to find rest In the arms of my dear Nancy I'll build a new nest And if I was the master Of ten thousand pounds In bright gold and silver Or in King William's crown |
 I would part with it all With my own heart so freely It's all for the sake Of my charming Nancy She's the fairest of girls She's the choice of my heart And her skin shines like silver In every part Oh, I gave her some kisses It was down on the sea shore But still she lay asking Lay asking for more' |
| My mother, who teaches singing, has taught "Master Kilby" to her pupils, but to hear the subtle difference between what she teaches and what Nic sings is to understand why his versions of these traditional songs are so original. Each verse, rather than resolving the melody, leaves you hanging and wanting more, just like Nancy (another Nancy!) in the last verse.
In this very sexy love song, the familiar folk character, the
narrator, pops up and meets Master Kilby. He asks him where he's
going and Kilby tells him that he is going to meet his girlfriend.
Kilby becomes lost in memories of her beauty. I don't know whether
the original version of this song stops at the same moment or
resolves quaintly like the other melody. From the moment I heard this
song, on a very poor audio tape travelling around in a touring van, I
was hooked on its unfulfilled mystery. Our version just fades in and
out to suit this mood. The song is originally found on From The Devil
To A Stranger. |
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