An entire night of singing: just singing. It was an extremely emotional night: Tony, Katy, and Anthony returned. The band composed of several artists, featuring several guitarists and an accordion player. It was not a night to learn about new information, how could it be? But it was a good way to practice singing the lyrics and just getting into the mood of singing songs for what they are. The folk songs, especially “O Mary Don’t You Weep” and “Banks of Ohio,” really can be just make all the stress in life seem to dissolve and disappear. Four hours pass by quickly because we got lost in the songs. It is ironic how dark and sad the songs really are, yet how we sing them in class makes them playful and fun.
pg. 92-100, 187-204
“The rose and the briar: death. Love and liberty in the American ballad”: Isn’t the title catchy? Death was thoroughly portrayed in the lyrics, and made its way into the folk songs. I think the author made an interesting point: why would anyone write, “killed in an automobile accident,” when “death on the highway” is catchier? A song makes you want to listen.
Death was made into an event: now that is an interesting topic. According to Marcus, death as itself and part of a tradition raises people up and joins them as a community. The point was not to gratify death but to tell stories about it. Marcus writes, “its not to lift the dead into a heaven of in corporeality, but to make you feel the world turning, to realize that a someone once walked the earth, he or she then left it, and in a particular way.” Death is not just a cycle, but each person has their own life story and ending. The songs carry a kind of truth that can’t be found elsewhere. Such is the case for Barbara Allen, which is an old song, yet so powerful that they will be sung forever.
When the host of the Big Surprise, Jack Berry, asked the woman what are the words to “the Streets of Laredo,” her response was classic. She sang the answer, trusting that each word would lead her to the next one. Somehow the story was more important than the prize money. She made you forget that anything outside the song existed, which is extremely gratifying to see how music can have an affect on people and their memories. I am sure that moment marked a memory that was special in her lifetime.
Nick Tosches article, “Country: The twisted Roots of Rock n’ Roll,” was at some points difficult to follow. He made references to several country artists and songs that I did not know of. Yet he described his obsession with the song “Black Jack David,” which traces back to the origins in messianism and Christianity. This brings up the power of the origins: what we claim is original is actually false. Tosches goes on to discuss the Ubangi Stomp, which was the tough strain of churlish country music that came about in the 1950s. Yes this means Elvis! Other topics included, the ballad of Orfeo and the Faa gypsies.
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