Folk Files #2.9 - I Said the Sparrow

This episode is an exploration of ghost songs or, more accurately, “revenant ballads.” Ghosts are not particularly common in English ballads, so we’ll look at what circumstances are needed to summon a revenant into a song and discover how these supernatural lyrics interact with ancient superstitions from multiple cultures. These ghosts are mainly on the side of justice and love, but watch out: they can tear you to pieces if you wrong them. For a list of all musical excerpts used in this episode, click here: https://folkfilespodcast.com/episodes/season-3/episode-3-10/ Host: Olivia Harding On a Quiet Street Where Old Ghosts Meet by Jay Michaels: https://jaymichaels1.bandcamp.com/album/on-a-quiet-street-where-old-ghosts-meet Learn about the newly unearthed concert from Jean Ritchie: https://thebluegrasssituation.com/read/unearthed-jean-ritchie-concert-from-1960-shows-a-fun-side-of-the-mother-of-folk/ Support Folk Files by joining the Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/FolkFilesPodcast Assistant Producer: Aaron J. Morton Folk Files is a member of the Bluegrass Situation. Learn more about BGS here: https://thebluegrasssituation.com/ Interested in sponsoring Folk Files? Contact BGS: https://bit.ly/sponsorBGSpods

Non-lexical vocables are syllables without any semantic meaning, sometimes called “nonsense syllables.” In this episode of Folk Files, we’ll explore lilting, yodeling, konnakol, throat singing, and other vocable traditions from around the world. During our global musical journey, we’ll discover that these syllables carry meaning, even though they don’t have definitions.

The Anglo-Irish ballad "The Unfortunate Lad," the cowboy classic "Streets of Laredo," and the blues song "St. James of Infirmary" are often considered different versions of the same song. But it's possible that this categorization was influenced by careless and dubious scholarship. In addition to examining the relationship between these different songs, this episode of Folk Files looks at how these ballads (#2 in the Roud Folk Song Index) functioned as PSAs that educated listeners about public health concerns. (Content note: this episode discusses STIs).

According to many textbooks, the blues is a genre that was born in the rural Mississippi Delta, with roots in the “sorrow songs” of enslaved people. It’s easy, however, to poke holes in this origin story and instead start to see the blues as a joyful, rebellious musical expression that formed in an urban environment. In this episode of Folk Files, we’ll take a look at different theories about the origin of the blues, separate fact from fiction, and uncover the reason why the Mississippi Delta narrative was promoted so strongly.

Whereas the “Two Sisters” murder ballad is a complete, coherent story, “Two Brothers” is messy. What’s the motive? Who are these brothers? Who kills who? In this episode of Folk Files, we search for the answers to these questions… and discover a dark hypothesis for why the story is so vague. (Content warning: this episode discusses themes that may not be appropriate for children).