Handed Down

George Collins is a handsome young man with his whole life ahead of him, so why does he die within a few short verses and leave a trail of devastation in his wake?  Today’s episode takes us back to supernatural legends from medieval Northern Europe, in which brave young men are easily seduced. We also travel across the Atlantic to meet a dying hobo who wandered into this song sometime in the late 19th Century. In the end, these legends are a legacy of the things we didn’t properly understand. Nonetheless, if you do meet a beautiful maiden by the riverside it’s best just to back away, jump on your horse and ride home as fast as you can. Music Verses from two different versions of George Collins as recorded in the Folk Song Society Journey 1909: https://archive.org/details/sim_folk-song-society-journal_1909_3_13/page/300/mode/2up [https://archive.org/details/sim_folk-song-society-journal_1909_3_13/page/300/mode/2up]  Traditional Breton Tune Faroese Folk Tune  –  Grímur á Miðjanesi Incidental music – Rosebud in June The historic American recording, and many others, can be found here: https://www.mustrad.org.uk/articles/collins.htm [https://www.mustrad.org.uk/articles/collins.htm]  Final song: This is the version sung by Shirley Collins on The Sweet Primroses, 1967. I’ve slowed it down and recorded it with a guitar accompaniment which is somewhat inspired by Dolly Collins’ beautiful organ arrangement.   References Bluegrass Messengers - George Collins- Barbara M. Cra'ster 1910 [http://www.bluegrassmessengers.com/george-collins--barbara-m-craster-1910-.aspx] https://archive.org/details/englishscottishp22chilrich/page/278/mode/2up?view=theater [https://archive.org/details/englishscottishp22chilrich/page/278/mode/2up?view=theater]  https://www.mustrad.org.uk/articles/collins.htm [https://www.mustrad.org.uk/articles/collins.htm]  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gwerz_an_Aotrou_Nann [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gwerz_an_Aotrou_Nann]  https://balladspot.blogspot.com/2016/03/sir-olof-and-elves.html [https://balladspot.blogspot.com/2016/03/sir-olof-and-elves.html]  https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=xlIJAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA161&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false [https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=xlIJAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA161&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false]  https://archive.org/details/sim_folk-song-society-journal_1909_3_13/page/300/mode/2up [https://archive.org/details/sim_folk-song-society-journal_1909_3_13/page/300/mode/2up]  https://archive.org/details/folksongsofsouth00coxj/page/110/mode/2up [https://archive.org/details/folksongsofsouth00coxj/page/110/mode/2up]

What a time we had, talking about the bones and the spirit of the Wassail. The Lunatraktors, Carli and Clair, get right to the heart of things with their "Broken Folk" which provides an anchor, a refuge and solace, a shamanic art and a collective experience. They are experts at asking questions of our tradition, and passionate about telling the stories that have been hidden or lost. The Wassail is about apples and cider and community and collectivism and so much more, and Lunatraktors' embodied approach to folk turns this an intense experience. We explore both the light and the dark of recent history and ask: what will be left when the apocalypse comes? Folk. The answer is folk, and it can be deeply healing. But in the end you have to laugh. Their music can be dark and tragic but it is also playful and fun and, after we'd unpicked the state of everything, we were all gurning. Content warning: This episode includes a discussion about suicide Music Now The Time Rigs of the Time Unquiet Apple Tree Wassail Songs are all from Lunatraktors, and if you want more please visit their website: https://www.lunatraktors.space/ [https://www.lunatraktors.space/ ] or find all the points of connection on linktr.ee/lunatraktors [https://l.instagram.com/?u=https%3A%2F%2Flinktr.ee%2Flunatraktors&e=AT1sc1qVWnznpkfZwELPLFYQs_0JwG5s7HYxkDtYtw5ezAdfqzyTpysC6JPUHpOBukIDnDA67HXp7-OuBGUqiHkQTP4248AxsjKc5fLyvWF0xi-q]

After all the festivities of Christmas Day are over, what could be better than to run around the village and hunt a tiny little bird with all your neighbours. This special St Stephen's Day episode explores the strange custom of wren hunting in the British Isles. Hang on to your hats, it's going to be a weird one. Music Hunt the Wren, a Manx song Medieval French tune (known to me as 'Dancing Bears' but YMMV) The Cutty Wren, to the tune of Green Bushes (thanks A. L. Lloyd!) References Many thanks go to two websites: Mainly Norfolk [https://mainlynorfolk.info/ian.campbell/songs/thecuttywren.html ] and the Ballad Index [https://balladindex.org/], for such detailed information about this song. Other references include: Mona Melodies: https://www.manxmusic.com/media/History%20photos/MONA%20MELODIES%202020%20full%20transcription.pdf [https://www.manxmusic.com/media/History%20photos/MONA%20MELODIES%202020%20full%20transcription.pdf] Charles Barrow (1820) Mona Melodies https://www.manxmusic.com/media/History%20photos/MONA%20MELODIES%202020%20full%20transcription.pdf [https://www.manxmusic.com/media/History%20photos/MONA%20MELODIES%202020%20full%20transcription.pdf]  A W Moore (1891) The Folklore of the Isle of Man George Waldron (1744) The History and Description of the Isle of Man Vallancy, Charles (1770) Collectanea de rebus hibernicis. T. Ewing, Dublin https://archive.org/details/collectaneadere09vallgoog/page/n1/mode/2up [https://archive.org/details/collectaneadere09vallgoog/page/n1/mode/2up]  https://mainlynorfolk.info/ian.campbell/songs/thecuttywren.html [https://mainlynorfolk.info/ian.campbell/songs/thecuttywren.html]  John Aubrey’s Remaines of Gentilisme and Judaisme https://archive.org/details/remainesgentili01aubrgoog [https://archive.org/details/remainesgentili01aubrgoog] Muller, S. (1996). The Irish Wren Tales and Ritual. To Pay or Not to Pay the Debt of Nature. Béaloideas, 64/65, 131–169. https://doi.org/10.2307/20522463 [https://doi.org/10.2307/20522463]

This little Irish love song has quite a back story. To trace its origins, we have to travel back in time to a very subversive harp festival, dig into the Irish harper tradition and follow the fortunes of some proper characters. There’s a tiff between an Irish and an English poet, a moody watcher on a hillside, and what does Judy Garland have to do with it all?  Find out in our brand new episode! Music The Airy Bachelor, tune collected in Donegal by Herbert Hughes  The Coolin, traditional Irish tune The Pretty Girl tune as arranged by Edward Bunting in A General Collection of the Ancient Music of Ireland, 1796  Dinogad’s Smock, 12th Century Welsh tune Eleanor Plunkett, Turlough O’Carolan Judy Garland sings The Pretty Girl in “Little Nellie Kelly” (1940): Judy Garland: A Pretty Girl Milking Her Cow [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JR0ESUIpmpw] Percy Grainger’s version of The Pretty Girl: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPpQ4h26lBM [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPpQ4h26lBM] Beethoven, "Sweet Linnet": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Zpz94lzCoE [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Zpz94lzCoE]  Song: The Pretty Girl Milking Her Cow / Lament for Owen Roe O’Neill (according to Clannad)   Sources and references A general collection of the ancient Irish music: containing a variety of admired airs never before published, and also the compositions of Conolan and Carolan. Edward Bunting (1796) https://archive.org/details/generalcollectio00bunt/page/n11/mode/2up [https://archive.org/details/generalcollectio00bunt/page/n11/mode/2up] The Song of O'Ruark, Prince of Breffni https://www.musicanet.org/robokopp/eire/thevalle.htm [https://www.musicanet.org/robokopp/eire/thevalle.htm] Thank you to the contributors to the Mudcat Café whose discussions 25 years ago gave me most of the research I needed for this podcast: mudcat.org: Info: Pretty Maid (Girl) Milking a Cow [https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=6543#google_vignette] Thank you to Stones Barn in Cumbria and the Barnstoners who set me on this course and kept me going.

When a Christmas carol is also a folk ballad you know it's not going to be the usual angels/shepherds/kings extravaganza. This one doesn't disappoint, with a lovely garden, a jealous Joseph and a fruit-related miracle. But, as ever, all is not as it seems. Continuing the theme of weird Christianity from last month's episode, we get to explore medieval mystery plays and alternative gospels, and in 5th Century Syria we discover a scholarly and forthright Mary who doesn't need an angel to fight her battles for her. Have a wonderful Christmas! Music Verse from Jean Richie’s recording of The Cherry Tree Carol, Kentucky  The Cherry Tree Carol, collected by Maud Karpeles and Patrick Shuldham-Shaw from John Partridge of Cinderford, Gloucestershire (Verse 1)  Verse from a Jean Richie version, Kentucky, recorded by Joan Baez  Instrumental: Version arranged by D Gilbert and W Sandys (19th Century)  Benedicamus Domino (Plainsong, anon)  The Cherry Tree Carol, version sung by Shirley Collins, 1959  Orthodox Chant and Ney (flute) from FreeSounds  References Royston, Pamela L (1982) "The Cherry-Tree Carol": Its sources and analogues https://scholarworks.iu.edu/dspace/bitstream/handle/2022/1762/15(1)%201-16.pdf?sequence=1 [https://scholarworks.iu.edu/dspace/bitstream/handle/2022/1762/15(1)%201-16.pdf?sequence=1]  https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/post-biblical-period/the-origins-of-the-cherry-tree-carol/ [https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/post-biblical-period/the-origins-of-the-cherry-tree-carol/]  https://d.lib.rochester.edu/teams/text/sugano-n-town-plays-banns-proclamation [https://d.lib.rochester.edu/teams/text/sugano-n-town-plays-banns-proclamation]  https://www.academia.edu/29076122/The_Origins_of_The_Cherry_Tree_Carol_How_a_Christmas_carol_links_the_modern_Middle_East_and_medieval_England [https://www.academia.edu/29076122/The_Origins_of_The_Cherry_Tree_Carol_How_a_Christmas_carol_links_the_modern_Middle_East_and_medieval_England]  https://dokumen.pub/mary-and-joseph-and-other-dialogue-poems-on-mary-9781593338398-2011007425-1593338392.html [https://dokumen.pub/mary-and-joseph-and-other-dialogue-poems-on-mary-9781593338398-2011007425-1593338392.html]  https://mainlynorfolk.info/lloyd/songs/thecherrytreecarol.html [https://mainlynorfolk.info/lloyd/songs/thecherrytreecarol.html]  https://www.hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com/Hymns_and_Carols/Notes_On_Carols/cherry_tree_carol-notes.htm [https://www.hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com/Hymns_and_Carols/Notes_On_Carols/cherry_tree_carol-notes.htm]  https://balladindex.org/Ballads/C054.html [https://balladindex.org/Ballads/C054.html]