Origins: Brigg Fair

Subject: RE: Brigg Fair
From: The Sandman
Date: 10 Aug 21 - 03:29 AM

Personally,I find analysing musical structure useful for working out acompaniments, however on an emotional level it can sometimes spoil my enjoyment,
for me dives and lazarus is a song that i associate with the rev ken loveless.and unfortunately you have unintentionally now spoiled my enjoyment of Brigg Fair, as I had not made that musical association, between dives and lazarus and brigg fair.

Subject: RE: Brigg Fair
From: GUEST,Nick Dow
Date: 09 Aug 21 - 07:01 PM

It's interesting to note that the tune is the B part of Dives and Lazarus, or the Chorus of Star of the County Down if you prefer. Just goes to underline the art of the traditional singer that he or she can reinvent a tune to suit an entirely different song and mood.

Subject: RE: Brigg Fair
From: GeoffLawes
Date: 09 Aug 21 - 06:47 PM


Brigg Fair sung by Joseph Taylor
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdmgUM4LbS4

Subject: RE: Brigg Fair
From: Joe Offer
Date: 09 Aug 21 - 06:32 PM

There's a nice bit of work done on this song at https://mainlynorfolk.info/joseph.taylor/songs/briggfair.html

Here are the lyrics we have in the Digital Tradition:

BRIGG FAIR

It was on the fifth of August
The weather fair and mild
Unto Brigg Fair I did repair
For a love I was inclined

I got up with the lark in the morning
And my heart was full of glee
Expecting there to meet my dear
Long time I'd wished to see

I looked over my left shoulder
To see what I might see
And there I spied my own true love
Come a-tripping down to me

I took hold of her lily-white hand
And merrily sang my heart
For now we are together
We never more shall part

For the green leaves, they will wither
And the roots, they shall decay
Before that I prove false to her
The lass that loves me well

Recorded on wax cylinder in Lincolnshire in
1905 by Percy Grainger Sung by Ian Robb &
'Finest Kind' on "Heart's Delight" and by
Martin Carthy on "Byker Hill"


filename[ BRIGFAIR
TUNE FILE: BRIGFAIR
CLICK TO PLAY
oct99

Popup Midi Player

Music notation (click)

Here's the entry from the Traditional Ballad Index:

Brigg Fair

DESCRIPTION: Singer goes to Brigg Fair expecting to meet his sweetheart; she arrives and he takes her hand, rejoicing, and hopes they will never part.
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1908 (recording, Joseph Taylor); 1905 (collected from Taylor by Grainger, according to OShaughnessy-Yellowbelly1, p. 67)
KEYWORDS: love courting reunion lover
FOUND IN: Britain(England(Lond,South))
REFERENCES (3 citations):
OShaughnessy/Grainger-TwentyOneLincolnshireFolkSongs 3, "Brigg Fair" (1 text, 1 tune)
OShaughnessy-YellowbellyBalladsPart1 8, "Brigg Fair" (1 text, 1 tune)
ADDITIONAL: Journal of the Folk-Lore Society, Vol. II, No. 7 (1905 (available online by JSTOR)), #2 p. 80, "Brigg Fair" (1 fragment, 1 tune)
Roud #1083
RECORDINGS:
Isla Cameron, "Brigg Fair" (on Lomax41, LomaxCD1741)
Joseph Taylor, "Brigg Fair" (cylinder, on HiddenE)
NOTES [9 words]: About as basic a story as can be, but still complete. - PJS
Last updated in version 3.0
File: RcBF

---

Go to the Ballad Search form
Go to the Ballad Index Song List

Go to the Ballad Index Instructions
Go to the Ballad Index Bibliography or Discography

The Ballad Index Copyright 2021 by Robert B. Waltz and David G. Engle.

Subject: RE: Brigg Fair
From: GUEST,GloriaJ
Date: 11 Aug 10 - 07:23 PM

I know what you mean! i do like Vaughan Williams,Butterworth,and Holst in their folksong arrangements, but I find the Delius a bit overwrought for me.he does have the tune in there, but the harmonic structure is quite wayward and adventurous.

Subject: RE: Brigg Fair
From: michaelr
Date: 11 Aug 10 - 07:13 PM

I happened to hear the Frederick Delius piece "Brigg Fair: An English Rhapsofy" on NPR today. Very nice music, but I could not find the tune in it.

Subject: RE: Brigg Fair
From: GUEST,henryp
Date: 06 Aug 10 - 05:58 PM

Well done - I'm sure my Gran would have liked this. She was living in Brigg when Percy Grainger recorded Joseph Taylor.

Subject: RE: Brigg Fair
From: Seayaker
Date: 05 Aug 10 - 06:32 PM

Great! The Frederick Delius adaptation of this is also well worth a listen.

Subject: RE: Brigg Fair
From: The Sandman
Date: 05 Aug 10 - 01:07 PM

excellent.

Subject: Brigg Fair
From: GUEST,GloriaJ
Date: 05 Aug 10 - 12:30 PM

Since today is the 5th of august I took it as a good excuse to post this song on youtube - recorded it last night,just live,straight to mike, so it's not perfect.A great classic - and I still think Joseph Taylor's version has never been bettered.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZG9eTjrtlQ