Bawdy Hootenany (1959)

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AUDIO FIDELITY STEREODISC AFSD 6121

BAWDY
HOOTENANNY
Oscar Brand, guitar-Dave Sear, banjo

Come all you staunch lovers of sin and gin. Prepare to savor a choice collection of spicy classics you'll never hear in Sunday school. If you belong to that company who relish free living but are afraid to partake of its diversions, you'll get a vicarious thrill out of these rollicking sorties into the affairs of virile men and vulnerable maids. If you happen to be one of those worldly souls who have sampled the fruits of love, you'll find some choice plums here that are certain to bring a twinkle to your eye and a tingle to your senses. Here, in short, is a rare miscellany of brazen ballads and licentious lyrics culled from the most popular classics.

Ballads are a form of expression in which man's passions are incorporated with some of the more enduring patterns of human experience. The chief purpose in ballad making is to choose incidents and situations from daily life and to relate or describe them, as far as possible, in language commonly used by men while imparting to them the coloring that comes with appealing melody.

Ballads have a strong kinship with poetry. They strive to make incidents and situations interesting by tracing in them, truthfully but without ostentation, the primary motivations of human nature. Most ballads deal with humble and rustic life, possibly because in this kind of environment the essential passions of the heart can find more chance of fulfillment. In this rustic environment human emotions are under less restraint, are more naturally and spontaneously contemplated, and more freely communicated. Also, manners and morals of rural life germinate in an atmosphere where there is usually considerably less insistence on social conformity.

All poetry, and ballads must be included here, is inspired by the spontaneous overflow of powerful feeling. In ballads, however, the action and situation give importance to the feeling, rather than vice versa. Certainly the theme of a woman betrayed is nothing so unusual as to cause human emotions to well up. But when there's a new twist to this situation or when the action is marked by a quirk of fatethat is out of the ordinary, the dramatic impact is bound to be greater. Such is the case in this recording, where Oscar Brand uses all sorts of amusing devices to bring about a quirk of fate or a new twist to a familiar situation.

There are literally thousands of ballads which have been handed down in many countries from generation to generation without change. Then there are countless ballads whose stories and texts have been altered from place to place, while their melodies have remained intact.

Here, then, is an invitation to solid enjoyment. You'll be delighted by the cast of rascals and rakes who parade before your ears in this recording. You'll delight in the many subtle — and not-so-subtle — insinuations Oscar Brand makes as he relates the trials and tribulations of these characters. You'll chuckle over the many plays on words and double meanings suggested by Brand's sophisticated presentation. Finally, you'll probably conclude that while man can't live by pleasure alone, it helps in many situations.

OSCAR BRAND for many years has enjoyed a reputation as one of the world's outstanding authorities on folk songs and ballads, as well as for his masterful performances in this area. A six-footer who began life as a one-footer in Winnipeg, Canada, Brand received his early education in his native city, later moving to Chicago, where he continued his studies and first went to work. Eventually he migrated to New York City, where he has won recognition as a performer, producer and world authority on ballads. As balladeer Brand has been heard widely in concert, records and via radio and television. His writings on ballads are to be found in libraries all over the world. As director of folk music for the Municipal Broadcasting System in New York, Brand has become well known to Gotham residents. He has also had his own program over this station for many years.

WINNIPEG WHORE—This ditty, imported by Oscar Brand from his native city, is of ancient vintage. It made its way to Canada originally from merry old England. The tune suggests an object lesson to young men about how they should protect themselves against being taken in by ruthless and immoral women.

CINDY—Here's a fast banjo tune about a fast gal who knows her way around town and around the boys. This has many versions and countless verses, both providing the basis for competition among balladeers who know the piece.

PLYMOUTH TOWN—You may remember the title of this tune, but you won't recognize the words when you hear Oscar Brand's version. It's a version of the old sea chantey, "Maid of Amsterdam," and was heard by Brand and "captured" at a concert he once attended at Vassar College.

SWEET VIOLETS—Known from bar to brothel, this famous ballad was first heard by Oscar Brand in New York City. You'll soon enough recognize the tune, but you'll find the chief four-letter word, highly effective in the use of alliteration, changed to the form S-N-O-W instead of another four-letter word.

THE MONEY ROLLS IN—If you know My Bonny Lies Over the Ocean, you'll get a kick out of this ditty, a college favorite. The thesis deals with man's propensity for sin and gin with special emphasis on the profits that are apt to accrue from same.

CHICAGO—One gets to hear songs in all sorts of ways, and Oscar Brand discovered this one through an advertising man. It treats with the attractions of the windy city, not the least of which is its female population.

DON'T CALL ME—Here's a rousing British song with a contemporary flavor. It was learned first hand by Oscar Brand from British "Tommies," and you can understand on hearing it why it has such an authentic flavor. The tune is an old one, but the words are contemporary.

ROLL ME OVER—This tune, which has many, many verses, is a famous American army favorite. While the verses used by Oscar Brand contain a liberal sprinkling of lusty verbiage, the listener is challenged by all sorts of possibilities through improvisation.

CHISHOLM TRAIL—Here's a delightful tune about a chap who keeps reaching in his pocket and pulling out coins and bills of different denominations which he equates to female availability and willingness. In the end the listener concludes that no matter what amount is involved, the price is always right.

CHARLOTTE THE HARLOT—This, as you might imagine, tells of a gal who's mighty retiring, but not in the accepted way. She's the pride of the prairie—the cowpuncher's whore. And in their way they have a great deal of respect for the gal.

BLINDED BY TURDS—No words are minced here in this ditty which tells about a lady whose self-control leaves much to be desired in one area. "It's a wonderful song," the balladeer informs us, "but it's all about turds."

I RIDE AN OLD PAINT—This provides many familiar associations of the West, including the fact that when cowboys are out in the wild open spaces, there are no comparable substitutes for women. It is made most effective with Oscar Brand's masterful style.

This collection of folk songs is as valid a manifestation of America's culture as any other. They've been sung around the country for hundreds of years while the nation was being built, and some of them date back hundreds of years before then. A few of the songs are to be found in a famous collection in the British Museum entitled "Pills to Purge Melancholy -- a collection of old songs," dated 1607.

Side 1

1.  Cindy—2:34
2.  Winnipeg Whore—1:40
3.   Erie Canal—2:05
4.   Money Rolls In—2:22
5.  Charlotte the Harlot—2:31
6.   Chicago—1:52
7.  Gathering of the Clans—3:17

Side 2

1.  Susie—1:49
2.   Blinded By Turds—2:13
3.   Don't Call Me-2:52
4.   Roll Me Over—2:00
5.  Plymouth Town—2:32
6.   Chisholm Trail—2:20
7.  Sweet Violets—2:50

© 1963


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