Gower Wassail : Venereum Arvum, December 2009

Real time improvisation (no dubs / live in the studio), Monday, 14th December 2009.
Rachel McCarron : singing & frame drum
Sean Breadin (Sedayne): crwth, shruti box & bells

It hardly seems credible that having been immersed in folk music since birth Rachel had no recollection of ever hearing The Gower Wassail - one of the most popular & oft covered traditional songs in the folk revival. Of course to rectify this I went straight to the source, playing her the longer of the two (?) recordings made of Phil Tanner's superlative singing, which she lived with for a day or so before we made this recording. We had a vague notion of coming together on the choruses, but the rest is pure improvisation, especially in the crwth part, which weaves oblique to the traditional melody with occasional unisons; though the crwth is a Welsh instrument, there is no significance in this! The dance sequences were instigated by Rachel on her frame-drum - my responses are entirely wild as to both direction and modality - or rather amodality, which is a better term for what I do here, which is no way traditional. Ultimately, this is a wee session, a jam, an improvisation at the heart of which is one of the most beautiful songs of the English Speaking Tradition, collected from one of the most beautiful traditional singers. This is our tribute, by way of an ante-folk music; something for the season, perhaps...

Gower Wassail (Traditional / Phil Tanner)

A-wassail, a-wassail, throughout all this town.
Our cup it is white and our ale it is brown.
Our wassail is made of the good ale and cake,.
Some nutmeg and ginger, the best we could get.

Al di dal - al di dal di dal
Al di dal di dal - al di dal di dee
Al de deral - al de derry
Sing too rel I do

Our wassail is made of an elderberry bough.
Although my good neighbour, we'll drink unto thou..
Besides all on earth, we'll have apples in store,
Pray let us come in for it's cold by the door.

We know by the moon that we are not too soon,.
And we know by the sky that we are not too high,.
We know by the star that we are not too far,.
And we know by the ground that we are within sound.

Now master and mistress if you are within
Pray send out your maid with her lily-white skin
For to open the door without more delay
Our time it is precious and we cannot stay

Here's a health to our Colley and her croo'ed horn
May God send her Master a good crop of corn
Of barley and wheat and all sorts of grain
May God send her Mistress a long life to reign

Now master and mistress - thanks to you we'll give
And for our jolly wassail as long as we live
And if we should live til another new year
Perhaps we may call and see who do live here

*

Location: Saint Michael's-on-Wyre, Lancashire, Sunday 13th December 2009

http://www.myspace.com/venereumarvum

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Gower
• Wassail
• Christmas
• Phil
• Tanner
• Crwth
• Frame
• Drum
• Shruti
• Box
• Traditional
• Folk
• Song
• Improvisation
• Drone
• Bells

[hangfireshot]

Awful arrangement. 

[Lassiegull]

stunning!

[nobodysbard]

Thoroughly enjoyed this. Great stuff!

[Fabyr]

Excellent! Beautiful evocative song.

[MsLuckhurst]

Excellent as always, Sean! well done, Rachel!

[HenfieldWill]

Lovely. Haunting and beautifully sung and played. Loved it!

[banjoray]

Extremely listenable piece of work. I think Phil would have loved it......

[neilbrook]

Superb music played as only you can.

Beautiful song sung so clearly the story is effortlessly understood.

When's the Christmas album out :-)