24 Dec 05 - 11:33 AM (#1634535) Subject: Happy! – Dec 24 (Bad King John) From: Abby Sale Happy Birthday! (Bad) King John of England (1199-1216) was born 12/24/1167 (d.10/18/1216)
First printed about 1672 but Child feels the song's root story is much older - at least back to 6th century Egyptian folklore (and there's a Coptic version from 850 ce.) This version as sung by the superb Vermont balladeer, Margaret MacArthur on her CD Ballads Thrice Twisted. Had I known then about Margaret and the considerable New England ballad tradition, I might have gone there instead of Scotland. Weather's similar but the accent's easier. You can hear her at The Kennedy Center Copyright © 2005, Abby Sale - all rights reserved What are Happy's all about? See Clicky |