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Origins: Farewell to Old Bedford

28 Nov 10 - 09:48 PM (#3042438)
Subject: Origins: Farewell to Old Bedford
From: Joe Offer

For his A Folk Song a Day project, Jon Boden chose "Farewell to Old Bedford" as the song for November 28.
The song's in the Digital Tradition (as collected by Frank Warner from Lee Monroe Presnell at Beech Mountain, North Carolina - a long way from Bedford, Massachusetts), but there has been no discussion of this song. Anybody have anything to add?

Here's the Traditional Ballad Index entry for this song:

    Farewell to Old Bedford

    DESCRIPTION: "Farewell to old Bedford, I'm bound for to leave you. Likewise those pretty girls I nevermore shall see." The singer has been forced away by his parents, and intends to "drown away sorrows in a bottle of wine" and ignore his troubles
    AUTHOR: unknown
    EARLIEST DATE: 1951 (Warner)
    KEYWORDS: family drink exile travel rambling
    FOUND IN: US(SE)
    REFERENCES (2 citations):
    Warner 99, "Farewell to Old Bedford" (1 text, 1 tune)
    DT, OLDBDFRD*
    ST Wa099 (Full)
    Roud #16399
    RECORDINGS:
    Lee Monroe Presnell, "Farewell to Old Bedford" (on USWarnerColl01)
    CROSS-REFERENCES:
    cf. "Farewell Lovely Nancy" (meter)
    cf. "Adieu to Bon County" (floating lyrics)
    Notes: I have to suspect that this is a worn-down, possibly reworked, version of something else (e.g. "Farewell, Charming Nancy") -- but I can't identify with any real probability what the original song was. It may well go back to the same ancestor as "Adieu to Bon County," but there has been a lot of drift in between. - RBW
    File: Wa099

    Go to the Ballad Search form
    Go to the Ballad Index Instructions
    Go to the Bibiography
    Go to the Discography

    The Ballad Index Copyright 2009 by Robert B. Waltz and David G. Engle.

Supplement entry: From Anne Warner, Traditional American Folk Songs from the Anne & Frank Warner Collection, #99, pp. 244-245. From the singing of Lee Monroe Presnell of Beech Mountain, North Carolina. Collected 1951. (identical to the lyrics in the Digital Tradition)

Roud Index Search

28 Nov 10 - 10:01 PM (#3042442)
Subject: RE: Origins: Farewell to Old Bedford
From: Leadfingers

A Commercial Vehicle up for Scrap ??



Sorry - Ive GOT My Coat !!

28 Nov 10 - 10:37 PM (#3042467)
Subject: RE: Origins: Farewell to Old Bedford
From: Effsee

My first thoughts exactly Terry!

28 Nov 10 - 11:00 PM (#3042472)
Subject: RE: Origins: Farewell to Old Bedford
From: Lonesome EJ

Tim Eriksen does a version of this on one of his solo efforts, and it will flat knock your socks off!

28 Nov 10 - 11:05 PM (#3042474)
Subject: RE: Origins: Farewell to Old Bedford
From: RTim

Tim generally starts all his concerts by singing this.

Tom Radford

29 Nov 10 - 09:08 AM (#3042721)
Subject: RE: Origins: Farewell to Old Bedford
From: Jeri

Tim Eriksen, singing it in a snowstorm.

29 Nov 10 - 07:51 PM (#3043195)
Subject: RE: Origins: Farewell to Old Bedford
From: Jon Bartlett

It's also recorded by Dyad on their first CD

Jon Bartlett

30 Nov 10 - 06:18 AM (#3043427)
Subject: RE: Origins: Farewell to Old Bedford
From: GUEST,Alan Whittle

Sounds (to me) like a distant cousin of 'Farewell and Adieu to you fine Spanish ladies'.

Great singing Tim, I hope they let you in the house sometimes. My wife can't abide me playing the guitar along to the television, still she's never sent me out to play in a snowstorm - up to now, that is.

10 Jan 22 - 08:14 AM (#4131788)
Subject: RE: Origins: Farewell to Old Bedford
From: Brian Peters

Ignoring the spam post above, I did hear that Tim opened with this song when Cordelia's Dad opened for Nirvana - which would have taken some balls!

Lee Monroe Presnell's singing of it was clearly Tim's inspiration.