Ken Bigger is a writer based in the Midwest. He co-founded Murder Ballad Monday in 2012.
With Pancho having met his match in the deserts down in Mexico, this week we turn to the north country, and an Ontario mill town, and a song inspired by a story overheard in a bar. Â Stan Rogers, penned âHarris … Continue reading →
Panchoâs StepchildrenâPancho and Leftyâ has been a foray into a more Western genre of murder ballad, building on Patâs discussion of âJack Straw,â I suppose.  The Wikipedia entry on murder ballads cites Olive Burtâs 1958 article, âThe Minstrelsy of Murder,â which … Continue reading →
Steve Earle and Townes Van Zandt After such a long post last time, I plan for this one to be long on music and short on text. Â If thereâs a narrative to capture here, itâs that I think âPancho and … Continue reading →
Walking Man, by Alberto Giacometti A Work of Betrayal Iâm about to spill a good bit of ink, figuratively speaking, on a song that is only around 270 words long (including repeated words). Â I want to (re)introduce you to âPancho … Continue reading →
âEx-Farm Family, now on WPA.â Photo credit: Dorothea Lange. Farm Security Administration, Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library Archives. In regard to âFair Ellenderâ â the subject of this blogâs first post â I suggested that the Brown Girlâs murderous act … Continue reading →
The Lass of Loch Royal As Hamish Henderson noted in the link we discussed in the post that started this week with the deception May Margaretâs mother perpetrates on Willie matches that found in âLord Gregoryâ (lyrics) or âThe Lass of … Continue reading →
River Clyde, near Abington Drawn into the Clyde Water My introduction to âDrowned Loversâ began with hearing a spare bit of guitar playing, opening up with regular, almost transmitter-like pulses as the tenth track on Kate Rusbyâs solo debut album, … Continue reading →
The River Clyde âMotherâs Malisonâ (Child 216) If the first song discussed in this blog was about the potentially dire consequences of following the counsel of oneâs parents instead of the counsel of oneâs heart, this week weâll show just how … Continue reading →
The Last Judgment by Jean Cousin The Man Comes Around This will be a relatively short post.  Also, Iâll offer apologies to our loyal readers who may have seen some of what Iâm about to discuss in comments to an earlier … Continue reading →
Mary Magdalene in the Grotto, by Jules-Joseph Lefebvre The Ballad of Mary Magdalene This one is perhaps the biggest stretch, but as you may have noticed before, Iâm interested in how artists tell stories around a central, more well-known story. … Continue reading →
