A Family Heritage: The Story and Songs of LaRena Clark

New folk music and folk-song materials in this comprehensive study are particularly important for singers, folk music enthusiasts, ethnomusicologists, comparative and cultural studies scholars, and those interested in Canadian culture. LaRena Clark was a great singer and knew many fine songs. Her wide repertoire covers almost the complete range of types and topics of traditional Anglo-Canadian songs. Comparison with other collections in Canada, the United States, the British Isles, and Australia indicate just how unique and far-reaching it was. Clark's background and her varied ancestry shaped her repertoire. The account of her parents' activities gives a vivid picture of folk life in rural Ontario during the early years of this century. She knew some Canadian songs previously unreported, and she wrote songs with a strong Canadian flavour. Musically, Clark's songs are a microcosm of practices characteristic of British folk music throughout the English-speaking world. Particularly noteworthy is her constant reworking of traditional materials, procedures, forms, and individual tunes.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgements Introduction Women and Folksongs My Relationship with LaRena LaRenaâs Repertoire General Aspects of LaRenaâs Singing by Jay Rahn LaRenaâs Story Background Early Life LaRena and Gordon LaRenaâs Songs and Records LaRena Tells of Her Ancestors LaRena Talks of her Songs The Songs 1. Classic Ballands The Dapple Grey The Kingâs Daughter Lord Gregory Barbara Allen The Gypsy Davy There Was a Lord in Edinburgh The House Carpenter Iâll Go See My Love The Golden Vanity 2. Songs of True Love The Gallant Hussar The Cottage on Yonder Moors The Rifle Boys The Lady Leroy The Wars of Troy The Banks of the Nile Molly Vaughn The Lass of Glenshee Lovely Jimmy My Irish Girl Through Rocks and Hills Do Us Divide Peggy Gordon Lord Allanâs Daughter King Henry Has Sent Me Free Iâll Remember You, Love, In My Prayers A Womanâs the Joy and the Pride of the Land 3. Songs of False Love The Shipâs Carpenter The Jealous Lover Early, Early in the Spring The Bonny Young Irish boy The Butcher Boy The False Young Man Go and Bring Me Back the Boy I Love Go and Leave Me If You Wish To Adieu Unto Cold Weather I Once Loved a Lass Rattle on the Stovepipe Iâm Ruined, Iâm Ruined Forever The Hidden Question Young Jimmy Brown Iâll Go Seek for Another 4. Returned Lover Ballads The Dark--Eyed Sailor The Mantle So Green Bloody Waterloo George Riley The Banks of Claudy The Banks of Inverness 4. The Burns Connection Burns and His Highland Mary Highland Mary O The Soldier Laddie 6. Bawdy Ballads The Foggy Dew Razinberry lane The Little Ball of Yarn The Roving Shantyboy Green Grows the rashes O Green Leaves So Green O 7. North American Romantic Ballads The Lass of MOhee The Young Indian Lass The Chippewa Stream The Banks of the Pembina 8. Comic Songs Devilish Mary Pat and His Old Leather Britches Big Jackass Smelling of Partridge Jane McInnery from Cork I Had But Fifty Cents Come Tiddly Wink Some Day The Burglar Boy 9. Irish Songs The Drowning of Willie Leonard The Banks of Newfoundland The Cruiskee Lawn 10. English Songs The Old Country Fair The Faggot Cutter Thyme, âTis a Pretty Flower The Rich and the Poor Bonny Black Bess 11. American Songs The Texas Rangers The Cowboyâs Lament Young Charlotte The Arkensas Traveller Never Going to Cease My Wandering The Ploughboy 12. Local Canadian Songs Bridget from Washago Drill, Ye Tarriers, Drill Memories of the Miramichi 13. Lumbering Songs The Farmerâs Son and the Shantyboy Fine Times in Camp Number Three Hurry Up, Harry The Squire Boys The Raftsmenâs Song 14. LaRenaâs Composition O Canada, Land of Our Homeland Buckskin Baby Tuscarora Maiden Woes of Two Fisherman Hawkestone on the Shores of Lake Simcoe LaRenaâs Palce in Musical Tradition By Jay Rahn Summing Up Sources and References for LaRenaâs Songs LaRenaâs Family Songs LaRenaâs Recordings LaRenaâs Compositions Publications Cited Recordings Cited Index of Songs Index of First Lines

About the Author :
The late Edith Fowke, an internationally known folklorist, produced more than twenty books, countless articles and eight record albums devoted to Canada's oral heritage. Jay Rahn is a Canadian ethnomusicologist and is a Professor of Music at York University. He has published extensively on ethnomusicology, music theory, and music history.