Clarification
John Reilly was an illiterate Traveller. He sang 'The Maid and The Palmer', a centuries old ballad which had, it was believed, had disappeared entirely from the tradition. He also sang 'Lord Gregory',
two versions of 'The Gypsy Laddie', 'Lord Bateman', 'Our Goodman', 'Edward' and a number of other rare songs. All these came through his family or from other Travellers. He sang the songs to a collector because he believed they should be passed on. The thought of 'arrangement' never entered his head. Would that we still lived in John Reilly's world where traditional songs were sung to be shared (I can still remember such a world)!
Jim Carroll