Holy, holy holy, it’s Anne Briggs on YouTube.

Longtime readers will know that, like many a mainstay and folk pioneer (not that I’m comparing myself in that way, mind), Anne is one of my muses. She wasn’t on the scene for very long and footage of her is very, very rare. But sure enough, there she is — greeted on the couch by Louis Killen and then some impassioned banter with… oh geez, I can never tell those two dudes in the early Watersons apart… I think that’s Mike Waterson (someone help me out, if ya know).

I was stunned and drooling, but not for long, for there was much, much more to distract me. Apparently YouTube is just a veritable treasure trove of old skool British Isles folk clips. We have more Watersons (here’s a great performance of “Hal-An-Tow” — ELLEN KUSHER! I’m looking at you ’cause you turned me on to this album) and there’s a plethora of cool old Pentangle, including “Let No Man Steal Your Thyme”, “Wedding Dress” and — hang on to your 60’s medievalist Arthurian britches — “Hunting Song”.

Dang, that Jaqui McShee is just riveting. Reminds me of this cool girl I know, but I’m not gonna say who because she reads this.

Now, that last one may be a little hard for some of you to take. I totally understand. However, I’d just like to state for the record that Bert Jansch, in addition to being a bitchin’ guitarist gift from the Otherworld, was actually pretty hot back then. But I really don’t know what’s going on there. I do love how he calls it “a thirteenth century rock and roll song.” I don’t know if they wrote it or not, but, despite the glockenspiel, “Hunting Song” is in my personal top 10 favorite folk songs, hands down (lyrics, influences demystified and trivia here).

Lastly, I’ll leave you with a video of Richard Thompson singing “Beeswing,” a song supposedly inspired by/based on Anne. That’s how the legend goes; however, the story also goes that he only met her twice, and that both times she was “drunk and unconscious.” Whatever the case may be, it’s a beautiful song and well worth listening to. Fair warning: it is emotional; in fact, so emotional that one YouTube viewer has commented, “What a song. It makes me weep every time I hear it, and that’s a lot of weeping.”

Anyway, on the Annie tip, her Wikipedia entry is a good source for the basics — while it’s still up, anyway.

Snapbang! Had my head down for about, hrm, 12 hours today (most of it copywriting, though I did spend about three hours on a pitch this morning) and only just now remembered that this dropped today:

Latest anthology from Terri and Ellen Datlow. Illustrations by Charles. Tricksters! Hooray!

Also new: two novels from the dynamite husband and wife team of Emma Bull & Will Shetterly. (Their early urban fantasy novels continue to blow my mind.) Details on the Endicott blog.

I seem to be having run-ins with music I’d forgotten. We had the Suzanne Vega last night. Some Beautiful South that’s so pretty and so pained, it has always made me want to cry… almost. Love Tractor — anyone else remember them? And an Irish tune called “The Mooncoin” that’s so frickin’ addictive, I just had to learn how to play it. Especially since all the recordings I could find were kind of crappy (yes, even the Steeleye version, I’m sorry to say — maybe there’s just something about hearing it in a New York bar). But I haven’t played anything in a long time…

Oh!! Speaking of music: hello Fairport Convention BBC box set extravaganza hello. As if I had the eighty bananas to blow on this. I had to put the Pixies DVDs back. But Leland, bless him, made sure I didn’t leave the store without it.

Sometimes I think of folk songs as these mischievous fae beings, lithesexy watercolor sprites with elf ears and pointy teeth. I say this because they have the power to totally derail any rational but story-obsessed mundane with a rapturous tune, intrigue, and glittering, dreamy promises of a fascinating song lineage just waiting to be uncovered. That is, if one has access to the Internet and a couple of hours to spare.

I don’t speak from experience or anything. No, not at all. What, me waste time?

Time has been so short for me over the last couple of months that I all but forgot about the stacks of folk music that hang on a shelf just above my second writing desk (in the studio proper), probably because I barely lifted my head between August and December. But I do make time for magazines even when I don’t have any (time, that is), so I read the feature on Karen Dalton in the latest BUST, then promptly forgot about it until it was time to download this month’s Emusic tracks. I had to nab her recently re-released IN MY OWN TIME because, yes, my folk-of-the-obscure cred is something that I actively maintain (or at least try to maintain) while at the same time pretending to be all nonchalant about it. And I had never heard of Karen Dalton.

As to the album itself, well, I see why all the boys were into her. For me, the jury’s still out. The voice is really a make-or-break thing for me and I haven’t quite embraced hers, shall we say. And she has some goddess-awful selections on this thing (”How Sweet It Is”? what the fudge?). But she also has some real jems, including an old (and yes, obscure) thing from the Revolution called “Katie Cruel”.

“Katie Cruel” has that thing going on whereby the lyrics really don’t make a ton of sense, yet coupled with the tune, they convey the mood perfectly. The story is only a skeleton, or a frame — not enough to stand on its own, but just seductive enough to get one’s brain itching to fill in the gaps. Also, it’s from the North (the American Heritage Songbook notes a family in Vermont at the turn of the century as its source, though it’s gotta be way older than that if that thing about the Revolutionary War soldiers dancing to it is to be believed). I don’t know (or hear) much about the history of New England folk songs, so that’s kind of a treat.

For some reason, “Katie Cruel” reminds me of “Nottamun Town,” another beautiful, bizarre song, standing proud on mere story bones. Bert Jansch does my favorite version of that one; you can hear it on my folk mixtape if I haven’t taken it down (I can’t remember).

Come to think of it, Jansch does “Katie Cruel” on his very latest CD, called THE BLACK SWAN. It’s a duet with Beth Orton, I think. You can get that on Emusic, too.

Speaking of Endicott, do NOT miss Terri’s post on the BBC Radio Ballads. The spirit of original series of documentaries by Ewan MacColl and Charles Parker lives again!

As if that wasn’t cool enough, Emusic has begun ripping Topic Records’ catalog. This is a “holy sheet!!” moment if ever there was one. Let’s not talk about how I didn’t upgrade my subscription before they changed their pricing model…

Heard about this by way of a discarded copy of the Metro on the train this morning:

Lomax the Songhunter

“Whether neo-roots rockers realize it or not, their amped version of a Leadbelly tune is thanks in part to one man’s dogged passion for documenting local cultures and traditions. ‘Lomax the Songhunter’ chronicles the life of folklorist and musicologist Alan Lomax, featuring commentary by a number of his friends and subjects, including Pete Seeger and Woodie Guthrie.”

The “neo-roots rockers” thing made me laugh.

This one, let me tell you, is absolutely not to miss. Shirley Collins, Peggy Seeger, Jean Ritchie, tons of Lomax footage (he was a charismatic bugger), and bright-eyed Peter Kennedy (!!!) all make appearances. The scenes of the filmmaker returning to the places and people that Lomax filmed 30 and 40 years before are incredibly moving, almost as much as the music itself (of course, that’s the point). And, my God, what music… pinch me, but is that a human being making that sound, from deep within the mines of Siciliy?

Be sure to check out the site above; there are all sorts of fun resources on Lomax that are worth flipping through, even if you don’t watch the documentary, which is scheduled to be rebroadcast a-plenty throughout the rest of the month, so check your local listings.

I had no idea that Peter Kennedy had passed away, as I haven’t been to the Folktrax site in some time. Readers of the PLATFORM blog might remember me nerding out over the guy some time ago. He was sweet about it. Anyway, on the documentary he’s alive and well, and totally lucid, with the music still clearly running through his veins. It’s always such a delight to see the passionate people, even on a TV screen.

Here’s another fun thing found just now: an archive of American folklore films, complete with plenty of Lomax. Last thing: I love this obituary:

” There was a time when, if you were out studying traditional music in America, you could not help but cross a path Alan Lomax and his father had blazed. You probably still can’t.”

I think it’s safe to say you still can’t.

(15:16:45) SpookyLikeDat: okay, this is just too much:
(15:16:45) SpookyLikeDat: http://nwfolk.com/songlists/bagels.html
(15:17:45) WorkPalNick: Didn’t expect it to need its own category
(15:17:48) WorkPalNick: “Bagel songs”
(15:17:52) SpookyLikeDat: Exactly.
(15:18:04) WorkPalNick: I wonder if there’s a Sirius radio station that plays all bagel songs, all day
(15:18:18) SpookyLikeDat: I dunno, didn’t think the “folk tradition” (ahem) would have much to say on the subject
(15:18:30) SpookyLikeDat: http://nwfolk.com/songlists/kazoo.html
(15:18:49) WorkPalNick: Ah, but that’s songs that have a kazoo in them
(15:18:55) WorkPalNick: Now, if they had a list of songs where people were playing the bagel?
(15:18:57) WorkPalNick: I’d be impressed.
(15:19:29) WorkPalNick: In fact, if I ever start a band, I’m going to find a way to make music with a bagel, and do it.
(15:19:36) SpookyLikeDat: you could eat it
(15:19:44) SpookyLikeDat: if it’s toasted, it’s like percussion
(15:19:50) WorkPalNick: And we’ll be the headliners at Foo Bar, the bar I’m going to open when I retire.
(15:20:03) SpookyLikeDat: I hadn’t heard about this.
(15:20:10) WorkPalNick: Yeah, I just decided that a few weeks ago.

All kidding aside, this could keep me entertained all day.

Anne Briggs has her own page on Wikipedia.

Good! All is as it should be.

Fought not one but two fires today, then tackled the crowds of self-absorption at the 14th street Trader Joe’s, then came home to a little housecleaning, and Leland’s not here and the last thing I really want to do right now is head into the studio. Which means, yes, that’s right, it’s exactly the time that I need to be in the studio the most. But first, a list.

1. Item: Mr. Wood is having a bleepin’ hard time with his eye right now. Go libate a bottle of scotch to his non-blindness. Or at least keep him in your thoughts.

2. My copy of the Fairytale Tarot arrived. Hoo–wow. That’s about all I can articulate at the moment, but I’ve added it to my stack of things to review for Endicott. Which I’d better start whittling down soon, as I’m sure Midori will be compiling the lists in early May. Other reviews a-comin’: Sonya Taffe’s two recent releases, OUTFOXING FEAR, and the Mythic Delirium anthology.

3. Speaking of reading, if you want something that reminds me a heck of a lot of PLATFORM, check out FIVE FLIGHTS UP. Feels like Ms. Schlesinger is a kindred spirit. Also makes me want to write — hrm, not more PLATFORM, because busking is hard work and just thinking about it exhausts me — about the faces of New York, faces and minds, bones and hearts. If you know what I mean.

4. Mini-project for two or three rainy days: systematically download every mp3 from folkden.com.

5. A couple of nights ago, I said to Leland, “give me something to dream on.” And he pulled out a couple of old Dover books with art by Heinrich Kley. Talk about a mind that’s delightfully unfettered. Most folks are lucky if they can tap into their shadow sides even once in a while. Some of it reminded me a bit of Molly Crabapple’s stuff (love it!).

6. I guess you know you’ve made it as a blogger when the spammers have found you. The spammers have found this place. But! No worries, thanks to Wordpress‘ spam protection. Comments shall stay on. I love Wordpress.

7. Role playing games aren’t my thing. I harbor no prejudice, mind; it’s the time suck factor that gets me. Ergo, I know nothing of that world, save for what my one lone hardcore gamer friend reports when she skips off to I-CON or whatever. So I can’t imagine that there are many gamers passing through. That said, has anyone here heard of Deliria? The divine Miss Sooj Tucker mentions it on a radio broadcast that’s on her latest live album and I daresay it’d be right up my alley.

One thing I’ve always been bad about with the Irish music is remembering titles of tunes. Always have been, always will be. It doesn’t help that Patrick didn’t always know the names of some of them, either. And then some of them — the coolest of the huge, huge lot — don’t have names. Or you’ll have dozens of tunes all named after the composer. Case in point: how many “Paddy Fahey’s” have you heard?

It’s an odd thing, my memory and Irish music. I can only manage to keep a certain number of tunes in my head and hands at once. That number, on a good day, is about fifty, which is pretty darned low by Irish music standards. When I learn a new tune, some old tune slips quietly out the door, only to return if invited by an act of sitting down with a recording or the sheet music. Which I’ll break down and do, eventually, because losing friends is a drag. Then new friend gets offended by my lack of attention on them and goes off running into the night, until it’s their turn for another one-on-one session.

Ah, but the companionship is so rewarding. Believe me, it’s the only reason why I put up with such high maintenance behavior.

Sometimes, though, the tunes will come a-knockin’, usually through an old recording stumbled on by way of the “shuffle” feature of my iPod or iTunes. And I’ll be drawn in, nearly instantly, by the sparkling conversation and witty repartee of the notes and measures. She’ll bat her eyelashes, smile sweetly and whisper, “oh, hell, don’t you miss me?”

And then I’ll go to pieces. I’ll catch her name only by sneaking a peek at the LCD, swearing to remember it this time. I never do.

But I remember how the tune goes, that is certain.

Sometimes these girls come along to remind me to get out of my own box. Feels like a lot of them have been kicking around lately. Such as:

SJ Tucker

You know those girls? You know?

If not, get out of your box, I do implore you…