Lunar Spell

Lunar Spell At harvest-home, when the barns were full and the moon hung bright in the September sky, country folk marked the turning of the year with food, music and a touch of old magic. Among the quieter customs were little spells for love and marriage — charms set beneath the pillow to prompt a dream of a future husband. This new song, Lunar Spell, grows out of that tradition. It has a rousing chorus for you to sing along with, as many folk-club songs do — join your voice to the spell. In my song we meet the signs of this folk ritual. A twig of heather brings luck and blessing, while a sprig of willow hints at love’s sadness and loss. The Book of Common Prayer with a latchkey bound inside was turned to reveal a name, a vow, or a fate; a lost ring symbolises the marriage bond itself. A crust of new-baked bread and a crumb of cake are the dreaming tokens set by the head at night. And four playing cards foretell fortune: • Nine of hearts — love fulfilled • Ten of clubs (clovers) — steady endeavour • Ace of diamonds — prosperity • Ace of spades — a shadow of trouble ahead The arrangement is played on guitar, fiddle, accordion, harp, and flute, with a female lead singer and female harmony voices lifting the choruses. The mood is hushed, eerie, and ritualistic — yet singable, like an old charm reawakened. Lunar Spell stands beside many famous folk songs that draw on enchantment and spells: • The Two Magicians (shape-shifting and seduction) • The Broomfield Hill (a sleeping spell) • Willie’s Lady (witchcraft preventing childbirth) • Young Orphy — Child 19 (a magic harp rescue) • The Bold Astrologer (fortune telling) These charms sit in the wider world of British folk customs: the Padstow ‘Obby ‘Oss of May Day, St Agnes Eve’s dumb cake for marriage-dreams, and the Hop-tu-Naa charms on the Isle of Man. The lyrics: By the Harvest Moon’s bright glare, pluck a twig of heather. Find within The Book of Prayer vows which bind together. Lift a latchkey from its hook, and a ring forsaken, place all three inside The Book, chanting ere you waken: CHORUS Lady Lunar weave and wend your shapes of shifting light. Let the eerie moonlight send visions to my sight. Lay a crust of new-baked bread, underneath your pillow. Place a cake crumb by your head. Hide a sprig of willow. From a deck of cards draw four: nine of hearts; ten clovers, ace of diamonds, ace of spades. chant this spell thrice over: CHORUS In the crack where dreamscapes swirl, visions, too, are born-ing, futures waiting for a girl, fading with the morning. So the rhyme may serve you well, not in sleep or waking, chant from heart this Lunar Spell, as the dawn is breaking: Lady Lunar weave and wend your shapes of shifting light. Let the eerie moonlight send visions to my sight.