Live Music
Recorded on 20 December 2013 at Cornerstone Didcot, Oxforshire, England - Eliza Carthy with her dad Martin Carthy and the other members of the Gift Band, except her mom Norma Waterson who was not well and unfortunately could not attend. Everyone's thoughts and good vibes were with Norma hoping she makes a speedy recovery. Touring in the winter pounding the streets of Britain is no fun so we look forward to seeing all of the Gift Band together again in the Spring. Meanwhile here is Eliza's solo rendition of the ballad 'Go And Leave Me' a traditional song collected from Suffolk pub in the 1970s and recorded by Peta Webb on the Fellside compilation Voices: English Traditional Songs (FECD 87.) released on CD in 1992. Peta is a folk singer and until 2011 she was Assistant Librarian of the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library at Cecil Sharp House, headquarters of the English Folk Dance and Song Society in London. The words of this song also appear in the chorus of a Country and Western ballad made during the 1930s by Kentucky yodeler Cliff Carlisle....“if you think I’m so unworthy, never let me cross your mind”.Refrains from British/Irish traditional songs appear in a number of Country and Western ballads as the music spread across the English speaking world.
Thanks AA. There is something so enriching about the folk sound that a violin can produce. It is a staple of the American Bluegrass sound and a direct gift of the musical traditions of Britain and Ireland. The fact that so many great American songs have roots that date back for centuries is a testament to the enduring power, passion and genuine authenticity of this music. Thanks again for recording and sharing the Carthy family.
ReplyDeleteCheers Doug. The fiddle is such a portable instrument in the big family of string instruments I always think it punches well above its weight. Like guitars mandolins and banjos you could take fiddles from Bristol across the sea and on horseback up the Appalachians in the way that transporting a cello or a harp would be more problematic for the solitary traveller. The history of C&W ballads like Streets of Loredo the Cowboy's Lament when the expiring cowpuncher sings the chorus line ""Oh, beat the drum slowly and play the fife lowly, And play the dead march as you carry me along;Take me to the valley, and lay the sod o'er me,For I'm a young cowboy and I know I've done wrong."
ReplyDeleteSince when did cowboys play fifes lowly? The words have been transplanted as indeed was the tune too from English folk ballad family of at least 20 versions known as the "The Unfortunate Rake" a.k.a."St James Hospital." The original song was about a soldier dying of syphylis demanding a military funeral of the sort he would have had if he'd fallen in battle. There is a later version when the afflicted is female called "The Young Girl Cut Down in Her Prime" but neither young girls nor cowboys were entitled to the military honours they were demanding from their death beds as victims of injustice. All good stuff Doug thanks for your comments.
I love this ! I used to hate the violin (fiddle) and then my middle daughter took up playing and I grew to love all string instruments. I actually learned to pick out the different ones by sound which is amazing to me since I am not musically talented at all. This is a pretty song, thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you liked the song Lia and I'm also glad you have come to love the violin, a very good choice of instrument your middle daughter made in my opinion. Great to hear from you Lia, hugs from AA
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