Barwick Green (The Archers)

  1. maudlin mandolin
    maudlin mandolin
    "The Archers" radio serial was 60 years old last Christmas. The theme is one section of Arthur Wood's orchestral suite entitled "My Native Heath". Each section is apparently called after a place in Yorkshire and this one is described as a Maypole dance. Abc for the first section is to be found at Melodeon.net -the other bit I played by ear on a Stagg.


  2. Marcelyn
    Marcelyn
    That's got a lively bounce in it. Really nice job.
  3. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Now that has just brought back to mind the sketch done by Billy Connolly, the Scottish comedian/performer/tv personality, in which he bemoans the fact that the UK National anthem is so boring compared to those of other nations, and he suggests we adopt this very tune as our new anthem. No words to be learned as we'd just sing along to the melody "Tum te tum te tum te tum....", making it easy for newcomers to learn as they arrived in Britain and offering a much cheerier song than the existing one.

    Nice sound from that electric mando.
  4. Martin Jonas
    Martin Jonas
    "Barwick Green" was written in 1924 by the English composer Arthur Wood as part of his suite "My Native Heath". It has been used as the theme tune for the BBC radio soap opera "The Archers" since its beginning in 1950.

    This mandolin version with tenor guitar accompaniment is based on a lead sheet posted here:

    http://www.gasworks-scratchy-folk-or...een-guitar.pdf

    Mid-Missouri M-0W mandolin
    Vintage Viaten tenor guitar


    https://youtu.be/2SSMqhoeuQc

    Martin
  5. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Great job Martin I love this tune!
    Got me excited to record something, many thanks!!
  6. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Over 11 years since this one first appeared on this thread, and for some reason got no real follow-up, so well done Martin for reviving it. I still think it would be a good anthem, especially when our national teams were involved in sporting events.
  7. OldSausage
    OldSausage
    Oh dear oh lor', a fine rendition, me old pal me old beauty.
  8. John W.
    John W.
    Great job, Martin…various parts highlight the bottom and top ranges of that mando.
  9. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Ooooh no, there’s another one who’s contracted Old Blightey-all-right-mate-strawberries-cream-and-custard-dance-around-the-Maypole-me-Ol’-codger.
    There’s no cure, David.
  10. OldSausage
    OldSausage
    Simon, do you not remember Walter Gabriel?
  11. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Walter Gabriel?
  12. OldSausage
    OldSausage
    I guess you never listened to The Archers. He was a very well-loved recurring character and those were his catchphrases.
  13. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Walter Gabriel was in The Archers?


    Oooh, you mean, ‘Oh dear oh lor', a fine rendition, me old pal me old beauty’ is something a character named Walter Gabriel from The Archers would say?

    -sorry I was confused. A lot of people I used to know would communicate like that.

    I loved listening to The Archers.
    As soon as it was over I’d switch the radio off, or change station, basically as soon as they started talking. So I don’t know any of the characters, I loved the music though.
    I’d then listen to Radio Caroline.
  14. OldSausage
    OldSausage
    The actor who played him was famed for the accuracy of his regional accents and idioms.
  15. Martin Jonas
    Martin Jonas
    Thanks, all -- glad you liked it and it got David and Simon to trade war stories!

    I have only just noticed that the PDF lead sheet I have linked is intended to go with various harmony parts for other instruments which are here, but I think it works just fine with only mandolin melody and tenor guitar chords. No need to overcomplicate the setting. Keeping it simple and hummable.

    Martin
  16. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    War stories? Now I’ve really no idea what you’re talking about.
    Which war are you talking about Martin?

    X:1
    T:Barwick Green
    M:6/8
    L:1/8
    K:G
    P:Part A
    |a2fg2e|f2d e2c|d2B (cBA)|d6|
    d2B g2e|d2B G3|d2B g2f|e3d3| d2B g2e|d2B A3|A2d ^cde|d6|e2f gfe|c2d edc|B2c dcB|A6|d2B g2e|d2B G3|d2g fga|g6|
    P:Part B
    [K:C]
    C2G, (G,A,B,)|C2B, C2D|E2B, (B,CD)|E2D E2F|G2A G2F|E2D C3| (D2E)D2C| B,2A, (G,A,B,)|
    C2G, (G,A,B,)|C2B, C2D|E2B, (B,CD)|E2^D E2^F|G2^F E2G|^F2E ^D2F|EE^D E2D|E2B B^c^d|(e6|e2)B (B^c^d)|(e6|e2)e e^f^g|
    P:Part A again
    a2^f g2e|^f2d e2c|d2B (cBA)|d6||
    [K:G]
    d2B g2e|d2B G3|d2B g2f|e3d3| d2B g2e|d2B A3|A2d ^cde|d6|e2f gfe|c2d edc|B2c dcB|A6|d2B g2e|d2B G3|d2g fga|g3e3|d3f3|g3e3|d3f3|gzz z3|gzz z3|(G6|G6)||
  17. Martin Jonas
    Martin Jonas
    Sorry, Simon, didn't mean to be cryptic. Just meant to use "trading war stories" to imply a metaphorical image of two old codgers sharing stories of yesteryear on a park bench. Not that either you or David are old codgers (well, not more than the rest of us).

    Martin
  18. Ginny Aitchison
    Ginny Aitchison
    I had no idea what The Archers was/were - but I am reading a book that just said.."I was staying home and listening to the Archers. NOW I know what that means.
  19. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    No problem Martin, it's the Internet I'm afraid, extremely diverse shifting ideas.

    I did a Wiki search, and David is right, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Gittins the man who played Gabriel was much loved and it was a wonderful program. But that was in 1951.

    I was a teenager in the high unemployment, late 70s and The Archers, which played on the radio at lunchtime so that farmers could listen to it, was the most awful program you could think of! there was a lot of land grabbing at the time as well, with the good-natured small farmers going bust. A bit like the 1930s dust bowl in the states, with many foreclosures and insecure migrant/ immigrant farmworkers.

    There was often an outcry in the media because the producers, in the interest of portraying reality would deliberately set the actors against each other which was then seen as a cheap ploy to get interest. Lots of inflammatory feedback from weekly events too. Nearly got scrapped a few times.

    But it's a wonderful pastoral tune.
  20. Kevin B
    Kevin B
    Love the Archers and love the versions of the tune here. I haven’t listened to program in a while…. Maybe ….I definitely need to learn this tune.
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