Dear Mary, Liland, and anyone else that's wondering,

This is Jon Pickow, Jean's son. We've discussed this thread around the house for the last few days. She is indeed "the real Jean Ritchie." No one that I know of has posted under her name.

Regarding "Brightest and Best," the "Sons" v. "Suns" issue got me to thinking. Clearly the poetry points toward "suns" if taken in context, but still, one wonders about these things. Brightest and Best is a song I've known all of my life, so I've never thought of it in an analytical or scholarly way.

On a whim, I consulted Pope Gregory's legacy; Libre Usualis, the official (now out of print) codification of chant and plainsong used throughout the year in the Catholic Mass (always a great place to start when researching hymnody). Sure enough, in place of the English word "suns" in the chant for lauds at the "Epiphiny of our Lord" is the Latin word: solis, or suns. The Brightest and Best text is surely a transliteration of the text of this chant.

Let me know what you think. Best holiday wishes, Jon Pickow