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La Folie Tristan

from Spreading Rings by Anne Lister

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Based on another medieval French story, again from the 12th century. It seems to be the penultimate chapter of the story of Tristan and Yseult, or Isolde. Tristan is hopelessly in love with the wife of King Mark of Cornwall, and she is hopelessly in love with him. There are many episodes to this story - in this one he decides after a time apart that he can't live without her and returns to court in the tried and tested disguise of a mad musician. He is able to remain unrecognised for an unfeasible amount of time even after some very obvious clues.

lyrics

The first time we saw him was at the Whitsun feast.
He came inside like a bird from the storm.
His harp wrapped in rags and his clothes all in tatters
The queen said "Come near the fire - keep yourself warm."

He looked like a jester in his outfit of motley
Bells that would jingle everywhere that he'd walk
His eyes bright with something that you could call madness
But his accent was highborn when we heard him talk.

He had a harp and privately he would play songs of a love that was true but betrayed
Songs that caught at the heartstrings inside us all if we caught sound of the songs that he played.

There was a fine feast, the minstrel was summoned
To play before all of the ladies and lords
The queen's eyes were on him as he stood to tune his harp
She caught her breath as he played the first chords.

He sang "Do you remember the nights in the forest?
Do you remember the cave in the wood?
Do you remember the letter wrote on honeysuckle
Do you remember the parting, my love?"

And he sang "It is true then that love knows know masters
A jester may lie in the arms of a queen
And a madman ma tell all the truth that he wishes
And all of the courtiers will think it a dream."

For many days after the queen took harp lessons
Up in her chamber in the tower so high
Sometimes we'd listen and hear two voices singing
And one day the page boy saw the king cry.

Just the queen and the king guessed the truth of the riddle
While the rest of us laid wagers who the jester might be
And the jester and king fought a long and hard duel
And Tristan is wounded and fled to the sea.

credits

from Spreading Rings, released April 30, 2020
Voice and guitar - Anne
Whistle - Steafan Hannigan
Engineered by Liv Elliott.

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Anne Lister Wales, UK

Anne is best known for her song "Icarus", recorded and performed by a number of different singers, including Martin Simpson and Nic Jones. "Astrolabe" is her ninth solo album.

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