Harvest 2024

(Photo: Simon Meeds)

Last week at the Dragon Folk Club our Harvest themed session bore fruit. We started off strongly with the theme with plenty of bucolic ballads and songs, migrating to songs of the harvest of the sea, and from there to poaching and eventually to the harvest of mineral deposits. You know how it goes.

Colin sowed the seed with John Barleycorn (roud 164) to the tune Wir Pflügen (We plough the fields and scatter). Denny followed him in the same furrow with Hey John Barleycorn (roud 2141) and Simon, not one to go against the grain, sang Windmills (Alan Bell). You'll be pleased to know I can't keep this up beyond the first (crop) rotation.

It wasn't the first time Colin had sung Linstead Market (roud 16397), but it's worth a mention as something a bit different, being in the mento style.

Both songs from the evening not found on YouTube and therefore not included in the playlist linked from "a selection" below, were sung by Colin and from the pen of Chris Sugden: All things dark and dangerous, and The stick of rhubarb.

At risk of monopoly, Colin sang both songs of the evening not previously recorded in the Dragon database, though quite possibly previously sung at the club: Our Sarah (roud 16652) and The harvest supper song (roud 1379) - the linked recording of Sheepshearing sung by The Watersons is the same song though the words may not be identical.

Possibly the first to break from country pursuits and head for the fishing grounds was Denny with John Conolly's Fiddlers Green. Hot on her heels was Simon with Candlelight fisherman (roud 1852).

Colin threw in a curve ball with Forever Autumn (Jeff Wayne, Gary Osborne, Paul Vigrass). Too late for the playlist, but I have now found the original Osborne and Vigrass recording of Forever Autumn from their 1972 album Queues. Actually, the real original was Jeff Wayne's jingle for a Lego advert before the words were added by Osborne and Vigrass.

Simon was the champion of poaching with The Lincolnshire poacher (roud 299) and Geordie (roud 90, child 209). Denny's Cadgwith anthem (roud 3314) may also just qualify.

Colin's tenuous link at this stage was Goin' Home (William Arms Fisher) set to that part of Antonín Dvořák's New World Symphony later used to advertise bread in Hovis commercials.

Denny was first to take us harvesting the black stuff with I can hew boys (Dave Dodds), but Simon soon followed her down the mine winging Dark as a dungeon (Merle Travis).

It fell to Simon to bring in the sheaves with When all men sing (Keith Scowcroft, Derek Gifford).

Now listen to a selection of songs sung during this session.

(Number of people present - 3 of whom 3 performed)

Harvest 2022

(Photo: Simon Meeds)

Last week's Dragon Folk Club session had our annual Harvest theme. The theme is no longer compulsory as it once was and wasn't this year accompanied by a feast and a vegetable auction, but harvest and autumn songs were in evidence from at least two of our singers.

Colin, MC as usual, started us off with All of a row (roud 1474). Geoff declared himself off-topic and sang Keith's hit song, 98.6 (George Fischoff, Tony Powers). Simon followed that with Alan Bell's Windmills.

We had at least three songs from the singing of The Yetties: Colin sang Dorset is Beautiful (Bob Gale) and All the good things (Bonny Sartin), and Simon sang Buttercup Joe (roud 1635).

Simon pointed out that the closest Geoff came to a harvest song may have been Golden Brown (Hugh Cornwell, Jean-Jacques Burnel, Dave Greenfield, Jet Black), which is about heroin (not cocaine as suggested on the night).

By that time Simon himself had moved temporarily into the "harvest of the sea" with The Candlelight fisherman (roud 1852) and The Bergen (Jez Lowe).

Colin sang two versions of John Barleycorn: Steeleye Span's version of (roud 164) and later roud 2141.

It seemed that Simon had peaked too early, singing his usual finishing-off song When all men sing (Keith Scowcroft, Derek Gifford), but he kept one in the bag for the end of the evening: Wild mountain thyme (Francis McPeake - roud 541).

Now listen to a selection of songs sung during this session.

(Number of people present - 3 of whom 3 performed)

The dream of Napoleon

The Emperor Napoleon in His Study at the Tuileries
(by Jacques-Louis David, 1812)

Last week's session attracted five people to a themeless evening of music and song. This week, 24 November, will also have no theme.

Colin was MC as usual and he kicked us off with At The Boarding House. Derek was a bit late for the anniversary of the Blantyre Explosion (Roud 1014), which took place on 22 October 1877 but he suggested people might like to follow a theme of songs about Blantyre, the birthplace of David Livingstone - some chance anyone would follow that!

Steve C gave us The Mountains of Mourne (Percy French, Roud 18229) which Simon followed with Candlelight Fisherman (Roud 1852).

Derek sang The Dream Of Napoleon (Roud 1538) which prompted Mike to attempt Napoleon Bonaparte (Roud 1626). Despite a false start he managed to reprise it later on, instead initially singing Johnson Girls.

Garummph garummph

Coulter's Candy (Photo: alistair fitchett)

In spite of Colin’s suggestion that this week’s title be Scottish Filth, I have chosen the above, to represent the sounds emitted by your Substitute Scribe, who as a result of over-practising for a school musical event (subsequently cancelled) was left with virtually no voice at all.

We welcomed back Tom who at least raised the number of attendees enough for us to be able to make a choice whether to hold a sing-around or a few hands of bridge. Having decided on the former, Colin began with Ian McCalman’s Let’s Recycle, based on events in Midlothian, and hence inadvertently introducing the first Scottish element to the evening.

Tom mercifully continued with Allan Taylor’s Roll on the Day, probably the only song in the canon pitched low enough to allow the suffering SubScribe to join in

A cornucopia of song

Frederic Weatherly, the Englishman
who wrote Maggie's nemesis song, Danny Boy

Before I get started on this week's report I must remind you that due to a private party in our usual venue, there will be no Dragon folk club session this Friday (22 April). We will be back with a belated St Geoge's Day theme next week (29 April), when you may also wish to mark Wthe 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare's death.

Last week's Dragon session was surprisingly well attended given the absence of a couple of regular faces. It's always good to see Tom and Terry H in our midst, and Paul was a surprise visitor. Apparently he was all geared up to go to another club on the night but realised at the last minute it wasn't on, so he made the long journey from home to see us, at least for the first half.

Note that this is the semi-regular Paul and not Paul of Paul and Jenny last week. If they both turn up together I'm going to have to ask for surnames. Oh, the lot of the blog writer is a stressful one. ;-)

Vaguely Glastonbury

The elusive Mick Jagger

Mike sang The Sailboat Malarky which was one of the first songs that the Bristol Shantymen sang. At the time Mike worked for a dairy and one of the group members took to singing a version -  The Milkfloat Starkey.

Lesley gave a big build up to one of her favourite songs of 1970 - The Wonder of You. Mike says it was a UK hit for Elvis Presley in 1972 but Lesley was playing it on a jukebox in Jersey, so we'll give the benefit of the doubt that it was popular earlier in the Channel Isles, as apparently it was worldwide outside the UK. Following on from this, Mike later sang In the Ghetto, a request from Maggie.