FOLK SESSION – Howard Arms, Brampton

We were missing some regular attenders due to seasonal ill-health, when we met on 20^th January but were delighted to welcome Paddy, returning after a long absence. Our theme was the thoroughly ‘folkie’ one of ‘Rogues, Vagabonds and Thieves’.

To start with the rogues at the top of the pyramid: corrupt politicians ranged from Gary’s 18^th Century Parcel of Rogues through Sally’s gallery of 20^th Century incompetents (You Knew We Were Coming) to Geoff’s comment on contemporary events, Confounds the Science. Adrian satirised dishonest entrepreneurs in The Man Who Waters the Workers’ Beer.

 

Slightly surprisingly, we had only one example each of those archetypal folk rogues, the highwayman, the smuggler and the poacher: Ron and Linda sang Too Close to the Wind and The Whitby Smugglers’ Song, while Katy gave us the ballad Johnnie of Braidislee. Rather more popular were colonial outlaws. America gave us Pancho and Lefty (Gary) and the unfortunate hero of Slip Jigs and Reels (Phil), while Sally took us to Australia for the exploits of the Wild Colonial Boy. Maritime villainy featured as piracy in Geoff’s Captain Kydd and as privateering in Anne’s Polly on the Shore. Alan (creative as always) mentioned the tiniest act of roguery possible, when the little boy in Sunday in Savannah is warned not to go fishing on the Sabbath.

 

We had lots of contributions about roguery in love – or, less delicately, sexual shenanigans. Gerda complained of faithless lovers in Miss Otis Regrets and Queen of Hearts; John on harmonica played tunes with warning titles like The Randy Wives of Greenlaw; Big Market Lasses; The Unfortunate Rake and The Drunken Landlady, while Sally took us through the convoluted sexual affairs of an entire village in her song Johnny Be Fair. Paddy and Phil both described how a sailor’s encounter with ‘flash girls’ is followed by being cheated and ends in a brawl (Ratcliffe Highway and Jack Tar on Shore respectively). Alan’s Rocky Raccoon features a shoot-out between rivals in love, while a rash marriage in Lawless (Paddy) leads to tragedy all round.

Charles approached the ‘vagabond’ part of the theme very directly with Stevenson’s The Vagabond and with The Wraggle-Taggle Gypsies. Phil’s Jolly Beggar is both a vagabond and a rogue (and, by his own statement, a thief). Anne pointed out that ‘vagabond’ originally meant an itinerant workman, as Sullivan’s John goes off to mend pots and pans with the tinkers. 

Some singers called our attention to the penalties for theft: transportation in Ron and Linda’s Fields of Athenry; gaol in Adrian’s Sweet Swansea; and his lament I Wish There Were No Prisons; gaol again in John G’s song The Old Triangle, and his tune Jack Broke the Prison Door.

We next meet on 17^th February at 8pm in The Howard Arms, Brampton. Our theme will be ‘Love’ (so close to Valentine’s Day, what else could it be?)  ALL WELCOME!

And for those who like to prepare in advance, we have decided on themes for March – ‘Trades and Professions’ – and for April – ‘Rivers, Lakes and Seas’.