Songs to Star of the County Down?

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: Marion
Date: 16 May 01 - 07:25 PM

If you use just the verse melody to Star of the County Down and leave out the chorus, you can sing Robert Service's most famous poem, "The Cremation of Sam McGee."

A bit long for a song, but well written.

(In case you don't recognize the title, it's the one that goes "There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold; the Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold...". Every Canadian in the audience will know it!)

Marion

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: Amergin
Date: 17 May 01 - 02:27 AM

You're right, Marion it does fit rather well!

Well....here I am taking lessons from Larry...this is sung to Star also...

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: SeanM
Date: 17 May 01 - 03:26 AM

I'm amused that PaddyC mentioned the "Fighting 69th" variant - I'm listening to a CD right now by The Fenians that includes a track that does them both back to back without missing a beat...

M

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: GUEST,JB
Date: 17 May 01 - 03:54 PM

I recorded a CD in 1994 featuring "There´s sure to be a row" which has the same air as "Star of Co. Down". I somehow felt the story wasn´t quite complete so I wrote a final verse as a warning to all young men never to marry a nagging wife.

Come all you young unmarried men A warning take by me If you value your life, don´t take a wife That will mean an early grave For she´ll nag you night noon and morning The truth I must avow You can bet your life and I know I´m right There´s sure to be a row

If you wish you can listen in at the MP3 page on my website at:

www.john-barden.de

unfortunately my English page is not yet complete.

Another great song to the same air is "Captain Colston" abot piracy on the high seas.

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: kytrad (Jean Ritchie)
Date: 17 Oct 03 - 09:06 PM

Lorraine-PM: tried to PM you, but 'they' wouldn't accept your name. But if you see this, I just wanted to say that the lyric you printed in your posting, above, is my own reworking of our lovely old 'breast of glass' song, so as to fit the words into the 'Star of the County Down' tune- it's a favorite of mine, and I couldn't ever get the original (?) ones to fit well. My fault I guess...Anyway, I did it especially for the Lee/Nicholson album, to follow their dulcimer instrumentals of the tune- in three different rhythms (maybe not the right word- but as a march, a waltz, etc). The recording is now available as a CD, recently requested by Lorraine Lee Hammond. I think it's listed on my website if anyone is interested in our uses (mis-uses?) of the song.

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: InOBU
Date: 18 Oct 03 - 10:51 AM

There is something about this tune, like the french tune when I lived in the house of my father (Quand j'etais chez mon pere), that just fits a bunch of words. When recording my first CD, (of four now for all you looking for secret santa gifts... ;-) ) I had written the song mentioned in the early post about this, the song about the Underground Railroad... however, becoming distracted by a fire next door, I returned to the studio and sat down and sang my song about the Abanaki Indians coming to the Quaker Settlement at Easton, (The ballad of Ruth Folger) during the revolution, to the tune of Star of the county down by accident. Listened to it, very pleased with the recording, then realized I had used the wrong tune! So, somewhere in the dusty recesses of my computer is another song to this tune.
As to the Toome Eal Fisheries, great song. I was asked to update it by friends who are fishers in Ardbo, and it my new version (not to the tune of Star of the County down) is in the mudcat memory here, under Fishers of Ardbo, or Toome Eal Fishers or something,
Cheers to all
Larry

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 18 Oct 03 - 12:01 PM

It's not exactly the same tune, but Rollin' Down To Old Maui can be done with the exact same chord progression as Star Of The County Down...

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: kytrad (Jean Ritchie)
Date: 18 Oct 03 - 06:58 PM

Ah well, all of us know that "Star of the County Down," is not alone in having been used to bear different messages over the years. I can think of some others- for example, "This Land is Your Land." And as Woody used to say, "If you're going to borrow, borrow from the best!"

Subject: Hymns to Kingsfold
From: Haruo
Date: 22 May 08 - 03:39 PM

A couple days ago I posted a list of more than 30 hymn texts that have been set to KINGSFOLD in hymnals in my collection. I first posted it at the (US/Canada) Hymn Society discussion board, then (with live links, which HSUSCA doesn't support, to the majority of the texts) at BaptistLife.com. It's not the last word (since every time I open a recent hymnal I seem to find a new one, and I haven't looked under STAR OF THE COUNTY DOWN, just under KINGSFOLD) but it is the largest collection of such I've yet seen.

Here's my BL.com post

Haruo

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: Georgiansilver
Date: 22 May 08 - 04:22 PM

Some years back I heard "John Barleycorn" sung to the tune and sung well. Sounded good.

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: GUEST,Bodger
Date: 23 May 08 - 03:37 AM

Pinball Wizard!

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: GUEST,Trialia
Date: 28 Jul 15 - 04:41 AM

This thread is ancient, but I can add another from the British Unitarian hymn book "Sing Your Faith" - "Where my free spirit onward leads".

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: Joe Offer
Date: 28 Jul 15 - 05:22 AM

Thanks for that, Trialia. It's also in the U.S. Unitarian hymnal, Singing the Living Tradition.
As stated above, as a hymn tune, "Star of the County Down" is known as KINGSFOLD.

-Joe-

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: GUEST,Dave
Date: 28 Jul 15 - 07:33 AM

Kingsfold is a set tune to at least 55 hymns:

http://www.hymnary.org/texts?qu=tuneAuthNumber%3Akingsfold_english%20in%3Atexts&sort=matchingInstances


As others have said it is a very old folk tune, the earliest printed version is the Scottish Gilderoy, but it is best known in England as Dives and Lazarus (recorded by Nic Jones amongst others), or The Murder of Maria Marten (recorded by Shirley Collins amongst others). Vaughan Williams arranged it as a hymn tune in the very early 20th century, his custom was to name the tune after the village in which was the pub where he first heard it. Kingsfold is in Sussex, near where he used to live.

Star of the County Down postdates not only Gilderoy and Dives and Lazarus, but also the use of Kingsfold as a hymn tune.

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: GUEST,Dave
Date: 28 Jul 15 - 07:37 AM

Vaughan Williams also of course composed "Five Variations on Dives and Lazarus" based upon this tune, though this was about 30 years later.

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: CupOfTea
Date: 28 Jul 15 - 09:30 AM

I've followed this tune down a number of paths without ever singing the "coaxing elf" storyline, and I do love the melody. It took some concentrating to play it as a waltz at first, since my strongest imprint is of it as a hymn tune - Kingsfold in the hymnal I work out of, with several different texts used. I can really go at it with fervor on the autoharp.

Where I love it best is used for "The Canticle of the Turning" aka "The World is about to turn" - an Annunciation/Magnificat themed text that really resonates. I first encountered this as part of a set of international pieces used for a "World Music Evensong" service, where I played this on concertina along with guitar and bodhran.

I also have an unhealthy enjoyment of parodies, and was fortunate to have a friend of a friend pass on to me the witty "Starbucks of County Down." I did in March, when trying to find something different to sing that still had a familiar flavor, specifically for my favorite open mic at a Starbucks.

I wonder, is there any term besides "popular" or "favorite" for tunes that have a lively career with a huge range of texts (or meter)?

Joanne in Cleveland

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 28 Jul 15 - 08:20 PM

Has nobody mentioned Van Diemen's Land? (Aka Come all ye gallant poachers) . It has been mentioned in other threads. Same tune again!

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: GUEST,Musket in music mode
Date: 29 Jul 15 - 03:10 AM

I sing two songs to the tune.

The Lancashire Lads
Crooked Jack

Sing them in different keys and tempo with different guitar styles and I can cram them in the same set without too many noticing....

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: GUEST,Lighter
Date: 29 Jul 15 - 11:28 AM

The resemblance to "Gilderoy" is subtle enough to suggest coincidence.

Few, I think, would call these the "same" tune.

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: GUEST,Lighter
Date: 29 Jul 15 - 11:39 AM

This thread is especially informative:

http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=35381#3463933

Subject: RE: Songs to Star of the County Down?
From: GUEST,Dave
Date: 29 Jul 15 - 01:15 PM

There is another thread somewhere in which someone points out that although Vaughan Williams heard The Murder of Maria Marten (not Dives and Lazarus) in Kingsfold, Sussex, the arrangement he used for the tune was derived from Dives and Lazarus as collected by Lucy Broadwood, and Vaughan Williams would already have known this tune, as it was published in 1893.