Foreword

In the early days of the folk song movement the performers of traditional songs and tunes always allowed their work to be passed into the tradition. Other singers and musicians were then able to continue in creating and developing the folk process. Traditional folk music and song has always been a living tradition that changes with longevity and the creation of it has been a slow process. The appropriation, borrowing, adapting and plagiarism have always been part of the artistic creation in the folk movement.

The interpretation of the work as always was dependent on the artistic ability of the performer. In the ‘old days’, before the advent of recording machines, song lyrics and tunes were freely adapted by the singers to suit themselves, location and audiences. The same tune played by folk musicians was never the same tune as it underwent changes with differencing musicians and the ability of the performer.

The custodians of the tradition, the source singers and musicians, in the name of posterity, were always happy to pass on the music of their forebears.

The songs and ditties contained in this anthology were learnt or collected by the author from source singers between 1964 and the mid-1990s. Many of the earlier songs in the collection pre-date World War 2, and some of the lyrics of the songs represent the language, ideas, and prejudices of earlier eras, which do not prevail now.

Some of these original lyrics are now probably deemed to be offensive, racist, sexist, and not politically correct. No offence is meant in the publication of these lyrics, they are given here in their original form for the preservation and study of them as historical mementoes of the time when they were popularly sung.

The most difficult part of the song gathering process was the initial rooting out of the singers or song carriers. This usually necessitated visiting several hostelries which tended to be the weekend haunts of the singers. Since I learnt the songs orally, committing them to memory, several visits to the pub were often required, not an unpleasurable task.

The versions of the songs in this anthology tend to be transmutations of the originals I memorised. The lyrics given here are the ones that have evolved from the original ones, and as I now recall them almost sixty years after I first learnt some of them.

True to the Folk tradition I give acknowledgement, where possible, to the source singer along with its history, and the story behind the song.

Please remember songs are for singing, so feel free to adapt or do whatever you will with the contents of these pages.

Copyright - Creative Commons Licence CC-BY-SA 4.0
(Attribution required and Share Alike, the licence must be same for any derivative work.)


Mick Haywood
Whitby, October 2024