Romeo and Juliet â Sir Frank Dicksee, 1884 Note: This is Part 3 of a three part series.  See also Part 1 and Part 2. Introduction What is it about this weekâs song, âMatty Grovesâ, that attracts us so?  (If youâre … Continue reading →
Barnard Castle â William Turner, 1825 Note: This is Part 2 of a three part series.  See also Part 1 and Part 3. Introduction It is clear that psychological themes in this weekâs subject, âMatty Grovesâ, strike the most resonant chords for … Continue reading →
This is Part 1 of a three part series.  See also Part 2, and Part 3. Introduction â âTwas on the high, high holy dayâŚâ This week we go back to Britain, to the old ballads.  Yes, itâs one of … Continue reading →
The thing I like about traditional murder ballads is that there doesnât have to be any motive for the murder. Thereâs just these two people and he takes her down to the river and he kills her and he throws … Continue reading →
The recipients of the Awards for excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research of the twenty-first annual ARSC (Association for Recorded Sound Collections) award ceremony have been announced. Recipients for works in History include Lightninâ Hopkins: His Life and Blues, by … Continue reading →
In this interview mentioned in the last post, Nick Cave explained how his musical inclinations were forever changed when â as young boy in a small town in Australia â he started watching the Johnny Cash Show. The first episode of the show … Continue reading →
This week, Iâll explore the dialogue between Johnny Cash and Nick Cave, two great modern murder balladeers who wrestled with themes of redemption and retribution as they explored crime, death, love, isolation, religion and the myths and musical roots of … Continue reading →
The D.K. Wilgus article I mentioned in my first post this week divides the American versions of what it refers to as the âRose Connoleyâ ballad into two forms. Â The first is what Wilgus calls the âCome-all-yeâ form, which normally … Continue reading →
âDeath Gospel and the Heart of Saturday Nightâ The above-linked short essay on Adam Arcuragi and âDeath Gospelâ music came out today in âSightings,â an on-line journal of the University of Chicago Divinity Schoolâs Martin Marty Center for the Advanced … Continue reading →
    Holly Hunter and Nicholas Cage in âRaising Arizonaâ  Watching this pitch-perfect clip from Joel and Ethan Coenâs âRaising Arizona,â reminded me of Patâs introduction to âTwo Sistersâ , where he mentions that he first heard Clannadâs version … Continue reading →
