I got this book today in the library for free (it was surpluse). It’s really hefty (about 3" thick) and has well over 400 pages, all of them full of (you guessed it) English Folk-Songs from the Southern Applachians.
Nearly every song is in the key of D or G, and thus playable on whistle.
It was published in 1932 and onward in various editions.
Has anybody ever heard of this book? And if you own it, what are some songs I should learn? 
What does this mean, exactly?
Are these English songs that were found in Appalacia,
(like Barbara Allen), or Appalacian songs that sound
English (like One I Love), or what?
That’s Cecil Sharp’s significant collection. He had another one with fewer songs too. I wish I had the T of C to look at now–I would love to recommend some songs to you. You can’t go wrong with any of them, though.
I went looking online for the T of C, in fact, and I found out that the book you got for free is selling for $250 as a rare book!
Carol
That sounds like a really cool book! I’m jealous.
Is Pretty Saro in there? You might enjoy that one on the whistle.
Carol
I’m an old-time banjo player who plays whistle on the side. As much as I love ITM, I’m much more steeped in Appalachian fiddle tunes, and I can assure you that LOTS of what’s in that book works great on whistle. I’ve never understood why flute, fife and whistle fell from use in the American South, but they did. It wasn’t because the tunes didn’t work, though.
I’m not actually sure, but I know that song from when I saw and heard Reel World String Band perform it. One of my jobs (I work two), as an usher at concerts, lets me see a lot of performances so I’ve probably heard a lot of songs in the book but don’t realize it. And the job (my “main” one), as a librarian’s assistant, lets me have many free books.
I love Pretty Saro!
That might be an interesting paper to write. I’m going to take a music class in Applachian studies class at my college next year (God willing), and I should see if I could look into that deeper.
A film about collecting these songs was made a few years ago; it was called Songcatcher. Interesting for the most part, there’s a lesbian subplot which is a bit silly, but the music is really the best part of the film. Iris Dement and Taj Mahal are in the movie, for example.
Speaking of Pretty Saro, there’s a real audio clip with lyrics here, along with some other good links.
What kind of lesbian subplot?
a gratuitous one. you’d have to see the movie, but i thought it was a needless distraction from the story… for that matter, there’s a hetero romance that’s a silly subplot too. the music and the story are enough to make it a good movie, IMO.
I haven’t seen it, but the consensus I’ve heard is that it’s only worth seeing for the music. Too bad, the concept was good.
Really nice site!
Carol
The music in Songcatcher was great, but yeah, the movie itself felt like it was preaching more than telling a story. A little like reading Elmer Gantry.
the dulcimer player in the movie is Don Pedi (he’s in the barn dance scene). We were with him just after he finished the movie and told us that they directors wanted him to “pass out” and drop his dulcimer on the floor. He said "I don’t THINK so - this is an historic instrument!). So, instead, they had the “heroine” take if from him as he passed out.
I’d love to see that book, Cran - I’m sure we already play a lot of the songs in it.
Oh - and Don has made it a mission to go around and song catch on his own to fiddlers before they pass on. Eight years ago he was up to about 800 songs - I’m sure he’s doubled that by now.
Cran - another performer you must hear before she stops touring is Jean Ritchie. While her voice isn’t for everyone, hearing her talk about her heritage, where her songs came from, her travels in Ireland to search on the historic roots of songs, and just her all around great personality makes her a true treasure in Appalachian music.
Yes to Jean Ritchie. She has a book with a name very similar to Sharp’s: Folk Songs of the Southern Appalachians, with nice notes to go with the songs much like those in Alan Lomax’s classic book, Folk Songs of North America. Some of Ritchie’s notes are personal though, like this one for Sister Phoebe: “Mom Ritchie gave us this gentle little kissing game. She says that when she was growing up, dancing was a sin but kissing games were considered ‘civil and harmless’–we even played them in front of the preachers and the old folks and none thought anything against it. Some joined in, too.”
Carol