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Far Over The Forth (4 track CD)

by Ray and Archie Fisher

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Kilbogie 02:59

about

Ray and Archie Fisher - Far Over The Forth: A chance to hear the great folk singers Ray and Archie Fisher as they were in 1961. Individually and together they have had a big influence on other young singers; Archie with his easy, pleasant folk manner and sensitive accompaniments; Ray of all the young singers, probably closest to "big" Scottish ballad tradition as personified by such singers as Jeannie Robertson from whom she has learned so much. This CD has been produced from a record made over fifty years ago. There may be a few slight imperfections associated with the age of the original material, but we have tried to make the sound quality of the CD as clear and crisp as possible. We hope that you will agree with us that the quality of the music still shines through.

The following track notes by Norman Buchan are taken from the original album sleeve:

The Night Visiting Song
This is a composite version from field-recordings made by Hamish Henderson. There is a whole series of night-visiting songs in Scotland. ranging from the bawdy, such as "The Laird o windy wa's" to the tender. This is a particularly good version of the latter. An English version "The Grey Cock", but with a supernatural theme, may be found in "The Penguin Book of English Folk-Songs".

Far Over The Forth
An expanded version of a song sometimes attributed to Burns. It is a curious mixture of the folk-sentimental and the literary-sentimental. It was learned from the singing of Lizzie, the daughter of the great Aberdeen folk-sing Jeannie Robertson.

The Twa Corbies
When is a ballad not a ballad? Answer when it isn't sung. The Twa Corbies has for long been regarded as one of the most flawless as it is one of the grimmest of all our ballads; but it wasn't being sung. No tune appeared to survive in oral tradition and attempts at setting it remained literary, academic and dead. Then RM Blythman (the Scots poet "Thurso Berwick") set it to this marvellously sombre old Breton tune 'Al Alar'ch, The Swan, learned from the Breton folk-singer Zaig Montjarret. The result was astonishingly right and the Twa Corbies has passed into the repertoire of our younger folk-singers. It is related to the English "Three Ravens". A corbie is a crow.

Kilbogie
The theme of the poor man who casts off his rags to show himself a shining prince is common in folk-lore, and especially in love stories. In Scotland it was given a realistic twist, reflecting the pride-in-poverty of the Highlands and its contempt for the pride of property of the Lowlands. Indeed the historian could read much into the frequency with which Highland Lords in disguise carried off Lowland maids and then confounded the canny commercial instinct for property of bride or father. In "Glasgow Peggy" (Child 228) to which Kilbogie is closely related, this is made clear in the verse:
He's ta'en her up tp yon high hill,
When that the sun was yet shinin' clearly,
Says: "A' that is yours as far as ye can see
For lyin' doon wi' a Hielan' laddie"
And the same point is made in the coach and six reference in Ray Fisher's version.

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released June 26, 2013

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Foot Stompin' Records Edinburgh, UK

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