John Barleycorn

[Dave Hicks]

An old ballad with guitars, mandolin and vocal. Some notes below.

Thanks if you do listen - it's rather long.



This song (Roud 164) is of uncertain provenance. Although it is sometimes thought of as being of ancient pagan origin, from the days of death-and-resurrection agrarian cults, that is probably not so. The text dates back to Scottish and English printed sources of the 1500’s and 1600’s. However, it had passed over into oral tradition by the 19th century, with several associated tunes.

John Barleycorn was performed by many in the British folk revival of the 1960’s and on. My version derives from Traffic’s, who probably learned the song from Mike Waterson’s unaccompanied version.

For more information, see

https://afolksongafortnight.blogspot...ycorn.html?m=1

https://www.mustrad.org.uk/articles/j_barley.htm

[JeffD]

Nice playing. Nice choice. Its a tune and song I have wanted to learn. Though, I had not heard Traffic's version. The version with which I am more familiar is by Steeleye Span.

The good job.

[Dave Hicks]

Nice playing. Nice choice. Its a tune and song I have wanted to learn. Though, I had not heard Traffic's version. The version with which I am more familiar is by Steeleye Span.

The good job.

Thanks, Jeff. I like Steeleye's version, but Traffic is much more familiar to me, since I bought that album new xxx decades ago.

D.H.

[slickmando]

I love the combination of the guitar and the mandolin. Very nice!

[tmsweeney]

nice rendition- its funny how sometimes songs appear in our common consciousness, we had been trying this one at the local jams this spring, guitars and mandolins, and nobody getting the verses exactly alike.
I am partial to the Traffic version - I did hear Robin Williamson sing it to the tune of "Star of the County down".

[Dave Hicks]

nice rendition- its funny how sometimes songs appear in our common consciousness, we had been trying this one at the local jams this spring, guitars and mandolins, and nobody getting the verses exactly alike.
I am partial to the Traffic version - I did hear Robin Williamson sing it to the tune of "Star of the County down".

That makes sense - both the JB melody used by Traffic and, more so, Star seem to be related to the Dives and Lazarus melody, a common slow-ballad tune.

I seem to have trouble keeping more than three verses of JB in my head at once, so I sympathize with the confusion.

D.H.

Maddy Prior sings Dives and Lazarus:

[Mike Buesseler]

This almost feels like a hijack, but it is another tune with the same name, John Barleycorn by Kenny Baker. There is great tab available here at the MC tab section. Also in Tabledit. http://youtu.be/zabq-nkrpcU

[Dave Hicks]

Doubly posted by accident

[Dave Hicks]

This almost feels like a hijack, but it is another tune with the same name, John Barleycorn by Kenny Baker. There is great tab available here at the MC tab section. Also in Tabledit. http://youtu.be/zabq-nkrpcU

Yeah, that's definitely a different tune. Good one, though.

D.H.