"'Tunes for Child ballads' mostly don't exist as Prof FJC couldn't be arsed to collect them together"

In fear and trembling at the idea of being shouted down by the author of the above words, and boy, can she shout well without having to put things in capitals, two people have, I believe, mentioned 'The Traditional Tunes to the Child Ballads' by Bronson. These were collected from a large number of sources throughout the UK and North America.

Buying them is out of the question for most people, but they should be available through libraries. I would suggest getting just one at a time, finding versions that you like the tunes/words to, then work on finding out which chords to use without necessarily depending on what someone else has already written down. That way, you might find unusual versions, and make them very much your own.

Going through those books can be a wonderful voyage of discovery. Have fun!

Barbara