What’s New

Bob Bovee introduces “Yuba Dam,” an old-time song with a humorous tale of verbal misunderstandings. 

Kim Wallach introduces “Bibble A La Do.” Also known as “Buttermilk Hill” and “Shule Aroon,” “Shule a Ghra,” “Siúil a Rún,” and by many other names, the song laments a lad gone for a soldier—sometimes one for whom the singer has sold everything to supply with the tools of war, only for them to die anyway.

The Summer 2022 CDSS News is now available! Take a deep dive into the Irish Howle with Graham Christian; remember Lifetime Contribution Award recipient George Fogg; dance via Zoom at a Ball-That-Would-Have-Been; find out how the recorder can shine as a musical star; hear an oral history of old-time and modern Western dance from Bill Alkire; and much more.

Joel Mabus introduces “The Golden Willow Tree,” in which a duplicitous sea captain strikes a bargain with a cabin boy to take down a pirate ship.

George Stephens introduces “Ford o’ Kabul River,” a poem by Rudyard Kipling set to a tune by Peter Bellamy. The song tells the story of a regiment of British Hussars who drowned while attempting to cross the river and occupy Kabul during the Second Anglo-Afghan War in 1879.

With the 2022 issue of Country Dance + Song Online, we are excited to present three articles on very different topics, two of them by contributors new to the journal. We will time-travel to three centuries of Anglo-American dance—all different, but all evolutionarily connected. Read more and download the issue.

Ian Robb introduces “Bold Riley,” a sailor’s farewell that has become a favorite memorial song.

The Spring 2022 CDSS News is now available! Learn about the Johnny Appleseed of morris dance; try a two-couple ECD or a happy march; read an interview with the late, great Tony Barrand; and much more. 

Nick Dow tells of a visit to a pub in Broadwindsor and an evening of memorable songs. One of these, “The Foggy Dew,” is the story of a bachelor who takes in a young woman on a chilly night and ends up as a single father.

On this episode of Contra Pulse, Dave tells us all about his early years and how his journey as a fiddle player began on a spur-of-the-moment whim. We explore his identity as a New England Style Fiddler, and get to hear Dave demonstrate his unique fiddle strum, and a few beautiful tunes on the guitar. Dave leaves us with a cliffhanger about new developments coming out with his band, Stomp Rocket, so we’ll just have to wait at the edge of our seats to find out. In the meantime, enjoy!

CDSS is pleased to support “Songs that Speak,” a monthly YouTube series by Saro Lynch-Thomason. Learn about the history, folklore, and modern-day relevance of traditional songs, and sing along as Saro teaches each song through sing-and-repeat. Saro’s latest offering is “Can Songs Kill? The Leo Frank Trial and the Ballad of Little Mary Phagan.”

Ken Willson and Kim McKee present “Scarborough Settler’s Lament,” in which an exile to Canada during the Highland Clearances sings about longing for the beauty of Scotland.