Poems

[Maddy Prior]

In early Steeleye Span line ups, during breaks needed for retuning, Maddy Prior used to recite silly poems written for her by Tim Hart. For example, she recited these two poems at the BBC radio programme “Peel’s Sunday Concert” on 15 September 1971:

Lyrics

Maddy Prior recites Fred Had a Most Luxuriant Head

Fred had a most luxuriant head,
It grew through the top of his hair.
And most of the day he wore a large Stetson hat;
Otherwise people would stare.
Now Fred worked all day in a newspaper shop
And he hoped one day to make big
But he knew that successfuls had good heads of hair
And he couldn’t afford a wig.
But lucky for Fred, a friend of a friend
Knew a most obliging greek.
So Fred bought a wig on the Never-Never
With a little to pay each week.

Maddy Prior recites The Afro-Dizzy-Yak

On the wild domain of the African plain
Lives a rare and quite unknown yak,
With baleful eyes and horns twice his size,
And a long woolly mane down his back.
Now this African yak with the long woolly back
Was subject to fainting and fits.
But if while in a trance you should kill him per chance
You should cut him up small into bits.
Now if these are stewed, a love potion is brewed;
Once taken there’s no turning back.
’Tis a love potion famed, and the beast is thus named
The Afro-Dizzy-Yak.