The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #24391   Message #280739
Posted By: Malcolm Douglas
19-Aug-00 - 10:35 AM
Thread Name: Tune Add: missing tunes wanted - Part II
Subject: RE: Tune Add: missing tunes wanted - Part II
Sent to Alan so far:

JBARLEY2, John Barleycorn (2).  DT text is unattributed; this version of the tune is from Kennedy's "Folksongs of Britain & Ireland", and was collected by Bob Copper from John Attrill of Fittleworth in Sussex, in 1954.

BISTRING, "La Bastringue". The "a" part of the dance tune, to which words are sung.  Also a separate midi of the whole dance tune.

HEXHMLAS, "The Hexhamshire Lass".  Two midis; the tune as sung nowadays, and the tune as first published in "Northumbrian Minstrelsy" (Bruce & Stokoe, 1882)

BELLRING, "The Bell-Ringing".  Tune and text were collected by Sabine Baring Gould from William George Kerswell of Two Bridges, Dartmoor, and published in "Songs of the West" (1889-91).

BRSKWIDW, "Brisk Young Widow".  Tune and text were collected by Cecil Sharp from George Radford at Bridgwater Union, Somerset, in 1905.

COPSHAW, "Copshawholme Fair".  Tune from "Northumbrian Minstrelsy" (Bruce & Stokoe, 1882).

GENTAYLR, "General Taylor".  I've adapted the tune given in A.L. Lloyd's "Folk Song in England" (collected by Cecil Sharp from the shantyman John Short) to bring it closer to the version of the tune most usually sung nowadays, and to fit it to the text in DT (Lou Killen's version, which I've never heard).  In order to fit in some of the triplets, I had to double the note values and set the midi to play at double speed, but it will sound as it's supposed to, though anybody printing it out may be confused!

JIMRAEBN, "Jimmy Raeburn". Tune and text from Willie Scott ("The Border Shepherd") of Hawick.  The tune was notated in Ailie Munro's "The Folk Music Revival in Scotland" (1984).

All midis have lyrics embedded where appropriate.  More to follow as I get them sorted out.  Since so many people have posted lyrics without giving any indication where they got them, it's obviously a hell of a job trying to match the right tune; I expect that a lot will end up with completely different tunes from other versions, but it's a start!  For example, none of my versions of "The Barley Mow" match the text on the DT: it's the version most commonly found on the Web, though, so presumably somebody well-known recorded it.  I'll have to make that one from scratch.

A question: did somebody really sing "The King of the Faeries" to the set-dance tune "King of the Fairies"?  They'd have needed a large shoe-horn.  The text in the DT is described as "Irish Traditional", but it's really an extract from the well-known poem by Allingham, "The Fairies"...

Malcolm