Song clusters

Florence iron ore mine, Egremont, Cumbria
(Photo: Simon Meeds)

There weren't hordes at the Dragon Folk Club session last week, but we all had a good time and it was great to see Gabriel join us for the second time. We hadn't frightened him away, which is always a good sign!

We're carrying on the run of themeless sessions, so there is no pressure this Friday, not that there ever is since our themes when they do crop up are always optional.

Colin, in the MC's chair as usual, started us off with Tom Lewis' Tinker, tailor (*#) and was followed by Simon singing Jean Ritchie's The L&N don't stop here anymore. This wasn't the last we'd hear from Tom Lewis, and if you listen to the playlist linked below from "a selection" you will also hear more from Jean Ritchie in the form of her duet with Doc Watson on Pretty Saro (roud 417) which we heard from Denny.

Heather gave us Bob Dylan's Blowing in the wind; another songwriter who will crop up again. This was followed by Denny with Down in your mine (Colin Wilkie), a song written following an iron ore mining accident in Lengede, Germany, in 1963. The subsequent rescue mission was the inspiration for Gerry Anderson's Thunderbirds supermarionation TV series.

Gabriel completed the first rotation with Norman Blake's Last train from poor valley (*), another mining song.

Other songs new to the Dragon database were:

• Gabriel - Colorado girl (* Townes van Zandt)
• Gabriel - Water upon water (*# Gabriel Wynne)
• Gabriel - No more for today (*# Gabriel Wynne)
• Colin - Barnacle Bill the sailor (* roud 4704) - a bawdy version, but not the most extreme
• Gabriel - One more cup of coffee (* Bob Dylan)
• Gabriel - Open up the window Noah (* Phil Rosenthal)
• Gabriel - an instrumental medley of Sage Green (*# Gabriel Wynne) and Old Grimes (*)
• Colin - The mermaid (* a different version of roud 124, child 289 to the one already in the database)

Since I mentioned them, here are the other songs from Bob Dylan and Tom Lewis:

• Gabriel - Buckets of rain (Bob Dylan)
• Denny - Sailor's prayer (Tom Lewis)

Gabriel finished the session off with an unaccompanied version of Lady Franklin's lament (roud 487, laws K09).

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

(Number of people present - 6 of whom 5 performed)

In the above report songs new to the Dragon database (though not always new to the club) are marked with an asterisk (*) and any songs not included in the "a selection" playlist are marked with a hash (#).

A Battling Assortment Box

Field Gun Competition, Portsmouth c1988 (Photo: Simon Meeds)

Last week's Dragon Folk Club session was theme-less and brought together an eclectic mix of songs. The same should apply this Friday, so please come along and show us your performances of any type as long as they are acoustic. Everyone is most certainly welcome, whether you perform or prefer to listen, maybe joining in a chorus and some banter.

Colin was in the MC's chair and asked Roger to start off. Roger often sings us his own songs and so he did with the brand new Apocalypse (*# Roger Stanleigh). Colin himself followed with The battle of Sowerby Bridge.

Denny gave us  Row on (roud 2084) and Paul W debuted Cold coast of Iceland (* Mike Waterson).

Simon added John Bowlin' (* roud 1760) to the Dragon database, though it has definitely been sung at the club before, by Richard Gillion if no one else, but it probably predated the birth of the database.

Paul M introduced us to The Dreadnoughts' tribute to Stan Rogers in the form of Dear old Stan (*).

Sue sang Blowin' in the wind (Bob Dylan) before Bob completed the first rotation with Bear Creek blues (roud 17345 - AP Carter). 

There were two other songs new to the Dragon database:

• Paul M - A ballad of the ranks (* Sir Arthur Conan Doyle) - the linked video is a reading of the original poem. Paul not only had a tune but had also rewritten some verses to include counties close to his heart.
• Denny - Old fid (* Bill Lowndes)

Other songs not found on YouTube and therefore not included in the "a selection" playlist were: 

• Roger - Can't be doing this no more (Roger Stanleigh)
• Roger - Dry your eyes (this may be a Roger Stanleigh original, but I'm not certain)

one further song that needs mentioning is Colin's The Mermaid (roud 9143) which I misidentified on a previous outing as roud 124, which is another song of the same name. Having mentioned that I feel I should also record that Denny sang The forsaken mermaid (roud 466, laws K17).

Paul W finished off the evening with The rose of Allandale (roud 1218 - Charles Jefferys, Sidney Nelson).

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

(Number of people present - 9 of whom 8 performed)

In the above report songs new to the Dragon database (though not always new to the club) are marked with an asterisk (*) and any songs not included in the "a selection" playlist are marked with a hash (#).

The Octogenarian

Bob Dylan at Azkena Rock Festival
in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain, in June 2010

We were only four at last Friday's Dragon Folk Club session but we got through twenty nine songs which isn't too shoddy.

Colin as MC started the evening with Jez Lowe's The Lazarus Dance.

The main theme that emerged was driven by Geoff who sang exclusively songs by octogenarian, Bob Dylan, for his birthday:

• She belongs to me
• The times they are a-chaingin'
• It ain't me babe
• Blowing in the wind
• Just like a woman
• Positively 4th Street
• Mr tambourine man
• Don't think twice it's alright

Simon added one to the Dylan count with The mighty Quinn.

There's one more thing to mention before signing off and that is that Colin Colin sang a song which doesn't seem to know its own name. I think Colin thought of it as Wimoweh, possibly after the version by Karl Denver (or possibly not). Younger readers may know it as The lion sleeps tonight, possibly from the version by Tight Fit. It was however written in 1939 by Solomon Linda under the title Mbube.

It was also Colin who finished the session with Three Jolly Fishermen (roud 3496).

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

(Number of people present - 4 of whom 4 performed)

Striding through May

St Constantine's Church, Constantine, Cornwall
(Photo: Vernon White)

While we didn't quite hit the heady heights of the previous week's attendance, eight didn't seem too bad last week. There was no official theme though some people were carrying through the May theme from previous weeks.

Colin was MC and generously put himself on first. He broke the ice with Steve Knightley's Man In Green to mark the previous weekend's Jack in the Green procession in Bristol.

Derek fulfilled the promise I made in the previous blog report, that he would sing a version of the song Hal an Tow (Roud 1520), used on Helston, Cornwall's May Flora Day, but this time the one used in neighbouring Constantine (sorry I couldn't find a recording of Constantine).

Whilst the Rest of Us are Back at Work…

The Monument was erected by
Sir Christopher Wren, to commemorate
the fire of London

Your regular scribe was still on holiday this week, thereby allowing Mike to appropriate Spanish Ladies (Roud 687), albeit in a non-Newfoundlandic format, and subjecting you all once again to the rantings of the Substitute Scribe.

In fact, my last week’s RANT (Railing Against Nonat Tenders) proved to have had an effect, having been read by John, who had attended many sessions at the Bridge in ye olde dayes, and came to sample the new venue.

Our number of performers was also swollen by two newcomers: Geoff, who performed a wide range of predominantly Irish songs, and Zenara who brought with her not only a fine unaccompanied singing voice, but also that scarcest of all folk club assets – an Audience!

When Derek opened with False Lover Won Back (Roud 201, Child 218) one would probably have given reasonable odds that it might turn out to be the longest song of the night. But next to Courting in the Kitchen (Geoff - Laws Q16) and Bruce Campbell’s The Roman Gladiator (Mike) it soon paled into insignificance.