" It seems that you were referring to the deliberate or unconscious development of a song, tale or tune, putting the community's stamp on it, regardless of its origin. Not to be confused with changing the song as a result of Mondegreens or memory failure."
All folk songs started somewhere Ged - in my opinion within these communities
Some were taken and adapted by other communities to suit different conditions, but even those that remained in the areas where they were created can be described as "folk" or "traditional" as they were from a common source and served the same functions
We live in rural West Clare - along the Clare coast we have recorded around sixty song that were created locally within the lifetimes of the singers and have been absorbed into those communities - we have veen able to trace the authorship of only two of those songs, the ones that were published
Furhter researches facve revealed a further 145 simillar songs on the other side of Clare
It now transpires that this took place throughout Ireland - a hidden traditional repertoire
Jim Carroll