“Caleb Meyer,” by Julyan Davis (2014) (click link to see more of Davis’s work inspired by murder ballads) Cautionary Tales YouTube provides a plethora of amateur, semi-pro, and professional performances of Gillian Welch and David Rawlings‘s song “Caleb Meyer.” For … Continue reading →
Ian & Sylvia Tyson In this week’s second post, we’re going to give a relatively quick listen to “Katy Dear.” It’s in the same song family as “Silver Dagger,” although with a different focus and a more gruesome end. The … Continue reading →
I found the music of Colorado-based songwriter and recording artist Rorey Carroll, when she “liked” our Facebook page. I looked up her web site, and gave “Head Hung” a listen, and heard something I recognized in this original murder … 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. If there’s a narrative to capture here, it’s that I think “Pancho and … Continue reading →
“Girl by Stream” Charles Van Shaick ca. 1880 This week finds us in new waters – sibling rivalry. Ok, ok, I know. One thing to love about murder ballads is that we can’t dismiss the violence with simple explanations or … Continue reading →
