G'day Mark,

My source for the existence of the folk-processed verses is a remark about songs going in and out of a living tradition, made by Ewan MacColl when he took some master classes here in Sydney. I'm a long way from the right place to see if they still live in tradition ... but it would be a very good project for some British based folklorist.

Perhaps it would end like the legendary event when Cecil Sharp set out to collect ALL of The Ball of Kerriemuir. He sat down with pad and pencil around the campfire with a troop of Scottish Highlanders ... around 3.00 am he ran out of paper, patience and writing capability.

Regards,

Bob Bolton (not guesting on this computer)