Journey Over

For now, at least. I've reached the end of the whistle-playable tunes notated in Folk Songs of the British Isles compiled by Andrew Gant. Not sure where I'll go from here in the blog - except for looking to buy a semi-decent video camera!

Ye Banks and Braes

Back to Scotland. The words are Robert Burns, the tune in my book is the traditional Scottish melody The Caledonian Hunt's Delight.



Not sure of the tune, but the words are right! Lovely vocals by Holly Tomas.

Widecombe Fair

A well-known song from my youth. Not sure why? But it's one I look forward to trying to play!



That's most probably why!

Jon Pertwee Bless him!

When the Fancy-stirring Bowl

Another 'Tune for Inspiration' that might well not turn out to be. I've yet not tried playing it, and I can't find out anything else about it except from what my book says: "Text and melody: Madden Collection of Ballads, Cambridge."

Western Wind

This tune might well date from the times of Henry VIII. Here it's given the 1970's psychedelic touch:



I couldn't find out anything about the group, but it's great stuff!

It's Wikipedia page (Cheers to Toppish from 'The Session'!):

Westron Wynde

The Willow Song

Another 'Tune for Inspiration' from my 'Folk Songs' book. I've not yet been able to find a version on YT that I like enough to post. So it's so far for reference only. Apparently it pre-dates Shakespeare's use of it in Othello.

The Unquiet Grave

Was there another I could post?

The Miller of Dee

Back to Ol'England. The Miller of Dee dates from the 17th century. Here it's played on fiddle by KirbyFiddler:



Miller of Dee Wiki page.

The Meeting of the Waters

Next up on my 'Folk Songs' journey. You won't get more traditional Irish than this:



The words are by Thomas Moore. Not sure who's the flautist.

The Flowers in the Valley

Not to be confused with a Scottish tune of a similar name. This version comes close to the one in my book:



What a great tune! Listen out for the off-camera whistle. It's old Cornish.

The Cuckoo

Another must in my ever-increasing 'Tunes to Learn' list. The Cuckoo's a song I used to 'play' on guitar in my younger days. Here's a great version by 'The Grove':

The Bailiff's Daughter of Islington

Really pleased to come across this. A real gem from Jon Rennard:



Sadly, Jon's own story didn't have a similar happy ending. He died, aged 24, in a car accident in 1971. His legacy lives forever.

The Bailiff's Daughter of Islington

Strawberry Fair

A fun abstraction from the 'official' lyrics by Anthony Newly (It reminds me of Bowie's early stuff):



The song was collected by S. Baring-Gould in 1905 and was credited as traditional Devon. It dates from earlier:

Strawberry Fair (Song)

Pastime with Good Company

Another great find on my folk songs journey. Blackmore's Night with 'Past time':



Okay, it's attributed Henry VIII, but still it's great:

Pastime with Good Company

Oh, No, John!

Another tune from 'Folk Songs of the British Isles' compiled by Andrew Gant. Apparently, it dates from the 17th Century and comes under many guises, many bawdy, as can be imagined. This version was collected by Cecil Sharp in 1907:



Another of Raymond Crooke's renditions. Good job, still I'm kinda relieved she said no! :)

Oft in the Stilly Night

A great find this:



It's an old Irish tune played soulfully here by Gordon Tuley Hochstetler.

O Waly, Waly

Next from my 'Folk Songs of the British Isles' book. This version of 'O Waly' is traditional Somerset:



Benjamin Britten (piano) and Peter Pears (tenor). Others must surely follow.

Hush, My Dear, Lie Still

I'm pretty sure this is the same tune as my book:



Short, but so very sweet by Scarlet Carson.

Helston Furry Dance

Best known these days, maybe, as The Floral Dance. This traditional Cornish song dates from well before 1838. Here it's played by not-so-bad BadWhistle:

Diverus and Lazarus

Next up on my 'Folk Songs of' journey (See Labels below). This was the only YT one I found. A great solo-vocal version by Alan Rosevear:



It's based on one of the parables of Jesus:

Rich man and Lazarus