What is your favourite folk song?

[TheYearOfSmallThings]

I've just accidentally listened to Dougie McLean singing Green Grow The Rashes (Scots), and realised pretty much all the folk music I know is Irish.

What is your favourite folk song of any nation but sung in a normal voice (no fonny nonny no and I don't want to be picturing morris dancers).

@midgetastic Peat & Diesel are great! From Lewis.

Oh yea I love them !

Mustn’t forget Paul Simon’s performance of Duncan as well.

Mandy prior and Tim hart folk English song albums - late 60-70s for the purest and for their voices…right at start of folk revival I think…I go back to these collections again from time to time …still have my original LPs 😱🤷🏼‍♀️

but there’s great artists around…think I’ve got stuck again for artists rcording around 15-20 years ago …( seth lake an, Kate rush by, show of hands, bellowhead type stuff) , so links to artists that are newer have kept me busy and interested for last 2 hours…nice to hear some newer stuff ..l thanks to all who’ve given m an enjoyable evening of listening 😊

I'm not sure if it's a folk song strictly speaking, but - All Around My Hat

All around my hat I will wear the green willow
And all around my hat for a twelve-month and a day
And if anyone should ask me the reason why I'm wearing it
It's all for my true love who's far, far away

The Band Played Waltzing Matilda. An amazing anti war song.
The Green Fields of France
Will You Go Lassie Go
Raglan Road
Where Have All The Flowers Gone
Teddy O' Neill
Red Is The Rose
Down By The Sally Gardens

So so many....
Dirty old town
The first time ever I saw

The leaving of Liverpool

Plaisir d'amour

The fields of Athenry
Wild Rover

I recently discovered Dougie McLean singing Caledonia. I love it.

lovely molly - sam lee’s live version

craigie hill - dick gaughan

Oh I love this thread! I’ve been singing folk songs since I learned to talk - it’s a family tradition - and I adore the genre. I love the feeling that I’m singing the indigenous songs of our island, building on traditions that have lasted centuries.

In no particular order:

Burial blessing - jonny flynn
Dido Bendigo (aka the keswick hounds song)
country life - the watersons
shoals of herring - ewan macoll
the water - jonny flynn
high on a hill - kate rusby
green grow the rushes-o
scots wa hae - dick gaughan
barrett’s privateers
the wellerman
lady franklin’s lament
the cuckoo is a pretty bird
the purple heather
blackwaterside - sandy denny
the thirty foot trailer - ewan malcoll but i love the watersons version

Bees wing ❤️

oh and king creosote - the entire diamond mine album. Just beautiful.

Richard Thompson is touring atm 👌

My favourites are:

Ca' the yowes

Carrickfergus

Marie's Wedding

I wonder if you would enjoy this series, if you can access BBCIplayer.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/m00116jn/transatlantic-sessions?seriesId=unsliced

Red and Gold by Ralph McTell gets me, he has written so many good songs. The Hiring Fair, From Clare to Here etc. He wrote a superb song for Remembrance, The Unknown Soldier which makes me ugly cry every time.

It’s a shame that most people only know him for The Streets of London, which is fabulous. I’ve seen him live a few times and he’s a fabulous performer with a huge repertoire of beautiful songs.

Has Christy Moore been mentioned, he does a great version of Brown Eyes with Shane McGowan

She Moved Through the Fair. By pretty much anyone but special love for Loreena McKennitt.

Anything at all from Seth Lakeman 😍

Where does the time go by Sandy Denny. Beautiful.

What a wonderful thread - bookmarking so that I can pick up on everything that has been mentioned.

Probably not folk, and most definitely Irish, but I love Schooldays Over by Mary Black. Such a beautiful haunting voice. I saw her years ago at the Royal Albert Hall and she just filled that space. Fabulous.

There was a wonderful series that the BBC did years ago about the development of Irish music called Bringing It All Back Home. Some wonderful music on the soundtrack - I’d love to get a copy.

Enjoying the love for Eric Bogle and Christy Moore - I sang my children to sleep with The Lock-Keeper, Safe in the Harbour, and Nancy Spain.
Current favourites are Sand and Water (Beth Nielsen Chapman - it'll make you cry) and Martha Wainwright's Proserpina (discovered as Dd1 left home for university, and the lament to come home to mama hit hard!).

This is such a great thread!

@NeedWineNow I’m pretty sure that Schooldays Over was written by Ewan Maccoll. One of so many wonderful of his songs.

I was just coming back to say KC. I LOVE his latest album too. How lovely and atmospheric his stuff is and I like his way with words.

Forgot an English one (I think) is Geordie

Sonny by Mary Black from A Woman's Heartbalbum.
There are so many to choose from on that album.....
Caledonia Dolores Keane
A Woman's Heart Elenor Mc Evoy.

If you like folk music and you've not heard the album, do listen.
Let me know what you think after.