Some Songs That May Or May Not Be Folk According To People's Views
I Think They Are All At Least Close
Introduction
This is a short response to a request to share more music in the Facebook Group "Worldwide Folk, and Traditional Music from England, Scotland, and Ireland", which you can visit here:
I have written a lot of folk-based playlists and received praise, support and a lot of flak.
The flak ranged from daring to share my article in the group (because I am paid 0.6c when you read it, so I was guilty of self-promotion), but then it becomes about the definition of folk music.
I've heard it said that if music is recorded, then it is not authentic folk music. After that, it is about subjects, location, age, instrumentation and any number of things.
If a modern band cover a traditional folk song, does it stop being a folk song, or is it that recording that is not a folk song?
So here are a few songs that I consider folk songs, but let me know if and why you disagree. I love constructive criticism, so if I get it wrong, let me know why.
So here are the ones I am sharing:
Woody Guthrie - "This Land Is Your Land"
To me, this is a true folk song, even though it is not hundreds of years old. It is a song for everyone. Is this version at Barack Obama's Inauguration by Pete Seeger, his son and Bruce Springsteen still a folk song? I love both versions, and you could sing this unaccompanied.
Jake Bugg - "Lightning Bolt"
This song reminds me of Woody Guthrie, despite being part of this millennium and having a band behind it, but for me, this is a folk song, despite the electronic solos.
Richard Thompson - "Sumer Is Icumen In"
A song from the last millennium but one. It has age on its side, but is this a folk song? I think it is, which is why I have included it here.
Steeleye Span - "Gaudete"
I think this was my introduction to Steeleye Span. It is a Christmas song, it is unaccompanied, and I consider this a folk song.
Andy M. Stewart and Manus Lunny - "Haughs o' Cromdale"
I first heard this by Five Hand Reel, which introduced me to Dick Gaughan. This is a great story, but it contains a lot of instrumental backing. The story goes:
A battle took place on 30 April, 1690, in which a Jacobite force was routed on the low ground (haughs) at Cromdale in Morayshire by government forces. James Hogg, the Ettrick shepherd, later wrote a song about the defeat which became very popular. But then an unknown bard, unhappy with the story of a lost battle, added an exaggerated description of Montrose's victory over the Covenanters at Auldearn in 1645.
Na Casaidigh - "The Rising of the Moon"
I first heard this song by Fairport Convention with Sandy Denny singing. This is an excellent version.
Na Casaidigh with the popular Irish song about the 1798 Rebellion in Ireland. Na Casaidigh or The Cassidys are a traditional Irish family band from the Gaoth Dobhair (Gweedore) Gaeltacht in County Donegal.
Ar Log : "Hiraeth"
I'll finish off this short selection with a Welsh folk song:
“Hiraeth” : This word has no exact English equivalent. The nearest translation is a yearning or longing.
Conclusion
All these examples are great songs first and foremost. Are they folk songs?
I say yes, but you may disagree with all my choices, and that is fine.
I have covered the British Isles with a nod to the place across the pond, but if you want to check out more of my folk articles, there are a few here:
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Comments (5)
Here's an interesting one for the 'folk or not' debate: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5M90oFjSlx8 It was written by prisoners in a German concentration camp (the Moorsoldaten were prisoners put to work on digging peat from the moorlands). It's been covered by several folk acts (Lanken, among the more prominent recent ones). It also gets made over by various other bands in different styles and genres (such as Helium Vola, here, who tend towards arty electronica, often with a medieval bent). You could argue 'not folk' since we know who wrote it, when and why; it's not a song handed down via an oral tradition. Equally, you can argue it's absolutely the work of a group of ordinary people rather than pro musicians, and is absolutely folk. Although, by that definition, any self-taught band would be folk - Oasis, anyone? Or maybe we can just enjoy the music and not worry too much about classification except as a signpost to move from 'if you like that, maybe you'll like this as well', Good topic, though. For extra credit, we could discuss whether a track that samples music from a computer game could be classed as 'folk'. :-)
I can remember singing "This Land Is Your Land" at the top of my voice as a child, oh, the memories. I was an aggravating child. Great list, Mike
In painting, folk is considered to be untutored work, or a style of work passed down through generations. (I guess that would make me a folk writer-ha.) I do think Woodie Guthrie qualifies as a folk writer. He was exploring traditional musical forms including the ballad. This Land is Your Land with all verses included is definitely a protest song, although most people only know the first verse, the most positive one. His narratives about actual events still ring true today- especially Plane Crash at Los Gatos Canyon (Deportee) and 1913 Massacre. We seem doomed to repeat the same events over and over in the US. Also a big fan of Richard Thompson- his song A Heart Needs a Home is one of my favorites and 1952 Vincent Black Lightning definitely falls into the folk ballad category. Eager to listen to the rest of your picks-
Great choices and very informative, Except for Guthrie, I did not know these. Thanks for sharing.
Great list, Mike. This Land is Your Land to me is definitely a folk song for I learned that back in elementary school. Your other songs from The British Isles not sure about but they do have an air about them.