So much thanks to give for, and so much to say about, this excellent piece. Folk songs and singing constitute a critical piece of Catholic flourishing. I've been planning a festival in North Carolina that drives at this very notion. For any readers who happen to live in the surrounding region of the US, come to the Kingfisher Folk Fest in Candler, NC on August 2 and experience the premises of this piece in action. Jam sessions, ballads, called dances, storytelling, and festivity are all on the agenda. All proceeds go to a classical Catholic school in the area.
You have struck a very wonderful chord (no pun intended). I haven’t listened to everything yet, though I plan to later today. But what I remember from my youth is precious: my Irish grandparents and their four daughters and sons-in-law would clear the dishes from “the groaning board” (the table laden with a sumptuous meal for a holiday) and start singing with harmony and some instruments: Old Black Joe, The Mountains of Mourne, Low Bridge, and countless others. As kids nearing adolescence, we would sometimes roll our eyes. But we loved it just the same. It was warm, bringing everyone together, sometimes very moving because these oldsters would feel so much from the music. When I was younger, we would fall asleep to the music and feel very safe. Thank you for reminding me. Like dancing, this tradition has fallen away so much that we don’t remember our roots.
So beautiful! I never had anything like that growing up. The closest thing to it was my father playing the piano, he was a very good improviser on show tunes, and it really filled the house.
That's cuz I'm way older than you are! I hope we can revive this custom in some way before people forget. Old Black Joe was a favorite because my grandmother lived in the era when it was sung in the Midwest and the South. She herself was born in Texas in 1891 of a Missouri railroad man and a Kansas mother. The song is a very slow and poignant one.
Have you seen the book American Folk Songs for Children by Ruth Seeger? It is our current favorite for little known songs, and Barbara Cooney did the pictures, which is always a delight.
One particular singer who has hit all your points for me is Stan Rogers, the father of the Nathan you mention above. I've lived or worked in half of Canada's provinces and territories, and with every new one, I found that Stan had written a song about it, as if for me personally, decades before. In most cases, those tunes had been bouncing around in my head since I was a child, just for the musical worth, and then the lyrics would finally come into focus as I drove around the Yukon, (with Teslin blocked, there really IS nowhere left to go!) or looked out over a prairie vista, or met so many maritimers working drilling rigs in the frozen north. He is the example we need to follow for your program.
An article that discusses Maritime folk music without mentioning Stan Rogers? (Though I did notice his son's incidental inclusion.) His works are some of Canada's greatest modern cultural treasures. Anybody who wants to develop an appreciation for distinctively North American folk music needs to acquaint themselves with the music of the late, great Stan.
So much thanks to give for, and so much to say about, this excellent piece. Folk songs and singing constitute a critical piece of Catholic flourishing. I've been planning a festival in North Carolina that drives at this very notion. For any readers who happen to live in the surrounding region of the US, come to the Kingfisher Folk Fest in Candler, NC on August 2 and experience the premises of this piece in action. Jam sessions, ballads, called dances, storytelling, and festivity are all on the agenda. All proceeds go to a classical Catholic school in the area.
For full details, see kingfisherfest.com.
Outstanding!! We need a lot more initiatives like this. And anyone who can support this Fokl Fest in North Carolina should do so.
You have struck a very wonderful chord (no pun intended). I haven’t listened to everything yet, though I plan to later today. But what I remember from my youth is precious: my Irish grandparents and their four daughters and sons-in-law would clear the dishes from “the groaning board” (the table laden with a sumptuous meal for a holiday) and start singing with harmony and some instruments: Old Black Joe, The Mountains of Mourne, Low Bridge, and countless others. As kids nearing adolescence, we would sometimes roll our eyes. But we loved it just the same. It was warm, bringing everyone together, sometimes very moving because these oldsters would feel so much from the music. When I was younger, we would fall asleep to the music and feel very safe. Thank you for reminding me. Like dancing, this tradition has fallen away so much that we don’t remember our roots.
So beautiful! I never had anything like that growing up. The closest thing to it was my father playing the piano, he was a very good improviser on show tunes, and it really filled the house.
That's cuz I'm way older than you are! I hope we can revive this custom in some way before people forget. Old Black Joe was a favorite because my grandmother lived in the era when it was sung in the Midwest and the South. She herself was born in Texas in 1891 of a Missouri railroad man and a Kansas mother. The song is a very slow and poignant one.
Have you seen the book American Folk Songs for Children by Ruth Seeger? It is our current favorite for little known songs, and Barbara Cooney did the pictures, which is always a delight.
Thanks for the recommendation!
One particular singer who has hit all your points for me is Stan Rogers, the father of the Nathan you mention above. I've lived or worked in half of Canada's provinces and territories, and with every new one, I found that Stan had written a song about it, as if for me personally, decades before. In most cases, those tunes had been bouncing around in my head since I was a child, just for the musical worth, and then the lyrics would finally come into focus as I drove around the Yukon, (with Teslin blocked, there really IS nowhere left to go!) or looked out over a prairie vista, or met so many maritimers working drilling rigs in the frozen north. He is the example we need to follow for your program.
An article that discusses Maritime folk music without mentioning Stan Rogers? (Though I did notice his son's incidental inclusion.) His works are some of Canada's greatest modern cultural treasures. Anybody who wants to develop an appreciation for distinctively North American folk music needs to acquaint themselves with the music of the late, great Stan.
So glad to see you back with such an enjoyable piece, Julian! You have given me some good music to listen to!
Love this! Thank you! Great reminder to listen to this type of music again! My dad was a French Canadian logger from the Gaspe 🥰
This reminds me of a project I was involved with about 30 years ago. Songs for God and Country. https://store.olvs.org/course-materials/books-by-subject/music/songs-for-god-country-cd.html Thanks to Julian and Peter for this!!!
It is such a shame that my state song has been suppressed by the state government for ties to the Confederacy. It's such a catchy tune.
Looking forward to checking all this out!