Fakesong: The Manufacture of British "folksong" 1700 to the Present Day"'Folksongs' interest many people nowadays, because they are meant to be the kinds of songs most of our ancestors sang, before industrialisation, before the mass media, before music and song became commodities, and before all the assorted evils associated with advanced capitalist society. 'Folksongs' and 'ballads' represent real values something honest and straightforward and beautiful to hang on to, and make us feel our roots in the Britain of 1900 or 1800 or even 1700. The only problem with this way of thinking is that it is based on myths. What we now know as 'folksongs' and 'ballads' were sought after, collected, edited and published by individuals who were either members of the rising bourgeoisie, or were ideologically sympathetic to bourgeois culture and values. The working people who sang their songs, and had them chopped up, amended and sometimes re-written or invented on their behalf, are remarkably absent from the story of 'folksong'. Before we can begin to piece together the real history of our ancestors' culture, we have to penetrate the 'mediations' of people like Cecil Sharp, Francis James Child and Albert Lancaster Lloyd, and to begin building again on firmer foundations. This book sets out to clear the ground"--Page 4 of cover. |
Contents
TWO CENTURIES BEFORE CHILD | 1 |
FRANCIS JAMES CHILD AND THE BALLAD | 99 |
38 | 105 |
Copyright | |
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aims amongst ancient appeared ballad Baring-Gould became become believed bourgeois Britain British broadside Broadwood Buchan century Child claimed clubs collection collectors common composed contained copies course culture early Edinburgh edition editors England English especially evidently example fact felt folk folksong followed give given hand Harker helped Hustvedt ideas important individual interest John Kidson kind knew labour later learned literary living Lloyd London manuscript Marson marxism material mediators never notes oral original peasant Percy period pieces poet poetry political popular Pound practices printed professional published record referred relation remained Scotland Scots Scott Scottish seems Sharp singers singing social Society song-books songs sources sung taken texts tion took towns tradition tunes village Williams workers working-class wrote