Folk Song Playlist - August 2025
As previously mentioned, I get together once a month with some neighbors and sing folk songs. Second Sunday Sunroom Singers had our August concerto this past weekend; our playlist was as follows:
This Land is Your Land (our ritualistic opening song)
She'll Be Coming Around the Mountain - verses suggested this time included "She'll be marinating carrots..." and "We will all be free and happy when he's gone." Substitute whatever He feels right there.
Red River Valley - By request. Such a lovely, sweet sad song. I got someone else to sing so I could focus on fingerpicking the guitar part.
Man of Constant Sorrow - Golly it's hard to escape O Brother Where Art Thou when it comes to picking out folk songs. I did it in Drop D with the capo on the 3rd, which sounds about right.
Crawdad Hole - Brought it back again this month. We have crawdads in the creek that runs along the neighborhood, and this summer after a big storm I found one crawdadding along our sidewalk.
Shady Grove - The Doc Watson version. This one I really liked - I didn't know it as well, so had to listen to a bunch of recordings and practice.
Sixteen Tons - Some people say a man is made outta mud/A poor man's made outta muscle 'n blood...I had a lot of fun with the guitar on this one.
John Brown's Body - As many verses as people could handle. There's a few at the tail end of the song that have real tongue twisters; the worst offender is probably "The conflict that he heralded he looks from heaven to view," although the later line "He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword" is like two aspirants shy of She Sells Seashells by the Sea Shore.
Down in the Valley to Pray - Finished a capella on this one. There was some debate as to what key we were in, and some confusion over what a "key" is. But it's funny - once everyone starts singing, most people find the place to fit their voice.
The spotify playlist, until I finally extricate myself from Spotify:
