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The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke Lyrics
(he's a fairy feller)
The fairy folk had gathered 'round the new moon shine
To see a feller crack a nut a night's noon time
To swing his ax, he swears
As it climbs, he dares
To deliver...
The master stroke
Ploughman, waggoner wheel, and types
Politician with senatorial pipe
He's a dilly dally-o
Pedagogue squinting, wears a frown
And a satyr peers under lady's gown
Dirty fellow
What a dirty laddio
Taterdamaellion and a junketer
There's a thief and a dragonfly trumpeter
He's my hero
Fairy dandy, tickling the fancy of his lady's friend
The nymph in yellow
(can we see the master stroke?)
What a quaere fellow
Soldier, sailor, tinker, tailor, ploughboy
Waiting to hear the sound
And the arch-magician presides, he is the leader
Oberon and Titania, watched by a harridan
Mab is the queen and there's a good apothecary-man
Come to say hello
Fairy dandy, tickling the fancy of his lady's friend
The nymph in yellow
What a quaere fellow
The ostler stands with hands on his knees
"Come on, mister feller, crack it open if you please"
To see a feller crack a nut a night's noon time
To swing his ax, he swears
As it climbs, he dares
To deliver...
The master stroke
Politician with senatorial pipe
He's a dilly dally-o
And a satyr peers under lady's gown
Dirty fellow
What a dirty laddio
There's a thief and a dragonfly trumpeter
He's my hero
The nymph in yellow
(can we see the master stroke?)
What a quaere fellow
Waiting to hear the sound
And the arch-magician presides, he is the leader
Mab is the queen and there's a good apothecary-man
Come to say hello
The nymph in yellow
What a quaere fellow
"Come on, mister feller, crack it open if you please"
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Obviously this is a straightforward description of the painting but I think it functions on another level as well. Fairy feller (fellow)? Quaere (queer)? Crack a nut (slang for an orgasm)? Delivering a master stroke? A fairy dandy tickling the fancy of his lady's friend (not his lady friend, his lady's friend). I think Freddie probably saw the the possible double meaning of the painting's title (fairy feller meaning to fell i.e. slay your opponents) and fairy feller (fairy fellow) and wrote a song that could describe both the painting and a gay orgy. I mean, he did come out shortly after this album. I think march of the black queen has a similar double meaning. Ogre battle doesn't seem to have the multiple meanings... pure genius!
Dadd wrote a commentary on his painting called 'Elimination of a picture and its subject - called the feller's master stroke'. It is from that the characters mentioned in the song are taken - for examples: 'To assist This gandy long legged trumpeter A tatterdemalion & a junketer', 'In soldier and Sailor, tinker or tailor ploughboy Apothecary, thief', 'The Politician next, with senatorial pipe', 'Some fairy dandy. Making a break As sweet as candy. To faery nymph Like him so quaint', 'You’ll not inform that fay, that under the leg Of one of those maids, behind his Back. A satyr...
Dadd wrote a commentary on his painting called 'Elimination of a picture and its subject - called the feller's master stroke'. It is from that the characters mentioned in the song are taken - for examples: 'To assist This gandy long legged trumpeter A tatterdemalion & a junketer', 'In soldier and Sailor, tinker or tailor ploughboy Apothecary, thief', 'The Politician next, with senatorial pipe', 'Some fairy dandy. Making a break As sweet as candy. To faery nymph Like him so quaint', 'You’ll not inform that fay, that under the leg Of one of those maids, behind his Back. A satyr peeps', 'The ostler from the fairy inn Knowing his air, the curate of the trim Hands to his knees and body bent' etc. And yes the purpose of cracking the nut is to make a new carriage for Mab - 'Left to its time & how to do To split for Mab perchance a chariot new'. And there is no double meaning in the lyrics - Freddie was very keen on art.
Dadd wrote a commentary on his painting called 'Elimination of a picture and its subject - called the feller's master stroke'. It is from that the characters mentioned in the song are taken - for examples: 'To assist This gandy long legged trumpeter A tatterdemalion & a junketer', 'In soldier and Sailor, tinker or tailor ploughboy Apothecary, thief', 'The Politician next, with senatorial pipe', 'Some fairy dandy. Making a break As sweet as candy. To faery nymph Like him so quaint', 'You’ll not inform that fay, that under the leg Of one of those maids, behind his Back. A satyr peeps', 'The ostler from the fairy inn Knowing his air, the curate of the trim Hands to his knees and body bent' etc. And yes the purpose of cracking the nut is to make a new carriage for Mab - 'Left to its time & how to do To split for Mab perchance a chariot new'. And there is no double meaning in the lyrics - Freddie was very keen on art.
There is a painting by Richard Dadd called the Fairy Feller's Masterstroke. I suspect there is a link, although I can't think what.
Look at the painting - the song is a straightforward description of what's happening.
The song seems to be about a Faery Ring - mentions of the king and queen of the Faery, etc... probably is a ref to the Early Master.
The picture by Daad (from the late 1850s - early 1860s) can be found at: http://www.beautyandruin.com/findesiecle/earlymasters/daad1.jpg
It is all based on the painting
It IS indeed based on the painting, and it's a loada fun (the song, anyways)! =oD
Yeah its based on Dadd's painting. Awesome song :P I dont see why it isn't just as popular as stuff like The Miracle etc its easily as good.
FREDDIE LIVES
It's probably not as popular as other songs because its on the album Queen II. Most of the stuff before 'A NIght At The Opera' is relativly unknown because they came to the mainstream with ANATO. Still this song rocks, only Queen could produce a song which describes a painting!!!
The words in this song are a literal description of a scene on a painting by Richard Dadd. In my view there's something else behind. I think Freedie is in a way depicting, or even mocking, some ritual held by the members of a secret order, only that these fellows are not people but fairies. "The fairy folk have gathered 'round the new moon shine To see the feller crack a nut at night's noon time..." TO CRACK A NUT....What's the fuss about it??? Yeah....he's definitely mocking all these supersecretive societies whose members are said to be the guardians of an ancient secret that if disclosed it may change the fate of humanity, etc. They may be right. Who knows? Anyway...I just happen to like fairies...so...whatever this song is about, I love it! And Freddie writes and sings perfectly.