The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #32490   Message #430352
Posted By: GUEST,Bruce O.
31-Mar-01 - 11:21 PM
Thread Name: May Song
Subject: RE: May Song
The tune for the broadside "Bellman" text was "O man in desperation", which was popular from 1585 to nearly 1600. See "Jerusalem, my happie home", 1587, in the Scarce Songs 1 file on my website for that song and some possible tunes for it. There's nothing to suggest that 19th and 20th century tunes for it are of any great antiquity. [Extracts of it are still in some current hymnals]