The story is basically this: A soldier is dying, evidently of venereal disease he contracted from a young woman, and he requests a funeral. Hear how this story has been spun over centuries into a whole collection of similarly themed songs, the earliest possibly dating to 1790. In this recording we are essentially witnessing the evolution of the Anglo-Saxon ballad tradition.

Tracklist:

The Unfortunate Rake
The Trooper Cut Down In His Prime
The Young Sailor Cut Down In His Prime
No, I'm A Young Man Cut Down In My Prime
The Bad Girl's Lament
One Morning In May
Bright Summer Morning
The Girl In The Dilger Case
The Cowboy's Lament
Streets Of Laredo
St. James Hospital
Gambler's Blues
I Once Was A Carman, I Once Was A Carman In The Big Mountain Con
The Lineman's Hymn
The Wild Lumberjack
A Sun Valley Song
The Ballad Of Bloody Thursday
Streets Of Hamtramck
The Ballad Of Sherman Wu
The Professor's Lament

UPC: 093070380523
Label: Folkways Records
Release Date: 5.30.12
Format: CD

Unfortunate Rake - Unfortunate Rake / Various (CD)