A point about MacColl's song-making, especially some of the Radio Ballad ones.
He regularly took actuality recorded from people like Sam Larner and used it directly - "living gales" and "silver darlings" came from Sam, 'Just a Note' was inspired by Sligo man Jack Hamilton, and much of 'Shellback' was taken from recordings of Ben Bright. 'Tenant Farmer' was made after a New Years party at Sandiford after talking to a border farmer who had been evicted from his land for not being able to pay the rent increases. These, in my opinion, were some of his most durable and 'authentic' songs and why, as Susanne said, Sam Larner claimed "I known that song all my life". Travellers we have met have made similar claims of 'Freeborn Man'.
Ewan was regularly accused of 'stealing' songs from the tradition and claiming them as his own, though I am not aware of one song this has been claimed of that has been found prior to the date his having written it.
A mark of his ability to listen to what people said - and how they said it, as far as I'm concerned.
Jim Caroll