Old Posts (Pre-May 2021)

Lewes Virtual Session – Tuesday 20th April 2021

Hello again singers in Lewes and elsewhere. The advertised late snow proved scant and short-lived and the blue skies and blossom show that Spring is here to stay. Things are slowly unlocking but, after ongoing discussion, we are not legally able to offer real life singing just yet. So, we will continue with our virtual sessions for a bit longer and there are also the usual two Zoom sessions where those present will decide what we sing. The recordings for all the songs can be found on the website, let me know if you are unable to find anything.

TUESDAY 20TH 7:30PM
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87434996027?pwd=djVnUjZ5VFpSWmw5V1oyc3k1Ny8zUT09
Meeting ID: 874 3499 6027
Passcode: 955598

SUNDAY 25TH  3PM
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87910750563?pwd=eUVmVnBiL0hpeHAxM283WjEzWWsxUT09
Meeting ID: 879 1075 0563
Passcode: 433555

• We’ll kick off with old favourite Gooch’s Beer and then a new song Come Stranger, Come Friend. This was introduced by Alan & Anne from the Chichester group who have provided words plus recordings in two parts for the website. We tried it out and liked it at last month’s Lewes and Worthing Zooms.
• Turning to exploring our beautiful local environment we have Song of the Sussex Downsman and The Run of the Downs (for those who haven’t already sung it in a session, Amaryllis from the Worthing group has written an excellent new tune to replace the Cornish Floral Dance, this is also on the website).
• Staying with the outdoors and nature we will sing The Bee-Boy’s Song and Searching for Lambs.
  Looking ahead to May Day we celebrate with It is the First of May and May Day Carol.
• And to close let’s raise our hearts and voices with Hilaire Belloc’s standards On Sussex Hills and West Sussex Drinking Song.

Best wishes, solidarity, golier etc!

Tina

Saturday, 10 April 2021

Come Stranger, Come Friend

Here's a lovely new song introduced by Alan and Anne at our Zoom meeting on 7th April 2021 and it's called Come Stranger, Come Friend.

Lyrics download links

pdf file recommended if you just want to print the file
Word doc file recommended if you want to edit the file before printing

The full song

Melody

Harmony

Friday, 26 March 2021

Worthing Local Group “At Home” Session – Wednesday 7th April 2021

7.30pm start if attending the Zoom meeting

Hello everyone. Following on from previous ‘At Home’ sessions we have decided to carry on with these sessions until an opportunity to meet up in person arises. We are slowly getting closer to meet up but we will need to hold on a bit longer with the ZOOM or AT HOME Worthing sessions.

If you are unable to join by ZOOM, or you feel it is not for you, then please join us in spirit by singing the same songs.

The song list below is adaptable to a Zoom or a no-Zoom session. Either way, all singers welcome – and welcome to our April Zoom. It is not designed to take over from Tina’s wonderful sessions, but is there to supplement our Worthing sessions which are currently based around singing alone in our own homes (but at the same time). It would be really good it we were to do some interaction with each other which will lead into small, local, socially-distanced groups when the current climate eventually changes, for those who may wish to.

Though I’m not musically gifted like a lot of our members, I am content to put my IT skills to the use of the group so we can keep these sessions going. Therefore I have set up an initial Zoom Session for Wednesday 7th April at 7.30pm. Currently Zoom sessions are free as long as I keep them below 40 minutes in duration; however we can have two sessions back to back. Therefore I would suggest that once we get this one running, we have a 35-minute session, followed by a coffee/beer break of 5 minutes, followed by another half-hour session for those that want to. All is subject to change. To log into the session use the following details below.

Join Zoom Meeting
Wednesday 7th April 2021 at 7.30pm
Meeting ID Number: 553 923 1152
Password: SDFSApr21
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/5539231152?pwd=U2JKc2U2Y3FUamgrcHZleTMxMVdKZz09

The following is a list of proposed songs which we can pull from.

• Thousands or More
• Brisk Young Ploughboy (Lead requested please)
• Country Life
• Lark in the Morning
• Life of a Man
• A Smuggler's Song (individual verses – volunteers required)
• The Fields Lie Silent
• Rosebuds in June
• The Magpie (Lady volunteer please)
• Where Stormy Winds Do Blow
• Twanky Dillo

If you would like to bring along an individual song, poem or story then feel free to so do. If you let me know at the beginning then I will ensure we fit it in.

Dave W

Monday, 15 March 2021

Lewes Virtual Session – Tuesday 16th March 2021

**NOTE EARLIER START TIME FOR THE SUNDAY ZOOM**

Hello again singers in Lewes or anywhere else. As we reach the anniversary of lockdown starting, first vaccinations continue to be rolled out for many people, so things appear to be heading in the right direction, however slowly. Here are my “sing along at home” suggestions for this month. No new songs to learn but I have attached recordings HERE of the two Spring songs which were new last year and have not yet had a public airing. All the other recordings can be found in the previous months.

Anyone reading this anywhere is also invited to join us to sing and chat at one or both of the following Zoom sessions where those present will decide how we use the time.

TUESDAY 16TH 7:30PM 
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82819627897?pwd=VVZjL3E0a3BMQUFpUVNkMk5lVTF4QT09 
Meeting ID: 828 1962 7897
Passcode: 779314

SUNDAY 21ST 1:30PM (NB earlier time than previously as I have another Zoom at 4pm)
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84736383945?pwd=azlabmx2aDhkTEhxVkVvaWxlOFk5QT09
Meeting ID: 847 3638 3945
Passcode: 027485

• Let’s warm up with Ale Glorious Ale and Country Life.
• Next two songs looking towards Spring since, while we might still yet have snow in April, at the moment there is a decent amount of sunshine and blue sky – When Spring Comes In and Birds On The Spray.
• Leading us into the break, a couple of songs about outdoor rural occupations – The Brisk Young Ploughboy and The Turmut Hoer.
• With replenished beer/wine/juice/water/coffee or other beverage of choice on hand, we’ll sing two Kipling songs – Oak, Ash and Thorn followed by A Smuggler’s Song (in which Lewes singers have regularly heard me launch into “Five and Twenty Blackbirds” but I've highlighted “PONIES” on my wordsheet now so hopefully I will get it right this time).
• Two songs follow with birds in their titles and love as their theme – The Lark In The Morning and The Turtle Dove.
• To bring our (sadly still virtual) session to an end we will finish with very old favourites Pleasant and Delightful andEast Sussex Drinking Song.

Best wishes, solidarity, golier etc!

Tina

Sunday, 28 February 2021

Worthing Local Group “At Home” Session – Wednesday 3rd March 2021

7.30pm start if attending the Zoom meeting

Hello everyone. Following on from last month’s ‘At Home’ Session we have decided to give it another go. We are getting closer to being able to meet up hopefully, but in the meantime we will need to be a bit longer with the ZOOM or AT HOME Worthing sessions.

If you are unable to join by Zoom, or you feel it is not for you, then please join us in spirit by singing the same songs.

The song list below is adaptable to a Zoom or a no-Zoom session. Either way, all singers welcome – and welcome to our March Zoom. It is not designed to take over from Tina’s wonderful sessions, but is there to supplement our Worthing sessions which are currently based around singing alone in our own homes (but at the same time). It would be really good it we were to do some interaction with each other which will lead into small, local, socially-distanced groups when the current climate eventually changes, for those who may wish to.

Though I’m not musically gifted like a lot of our members, I am content to put my IT skills to the use of the group to get these sessions moving. Therefore I have set up an initial Zoom Session for Wednesday 3rd March at 7.30pm. Currently Zoom sessions are free as long as I keep them below 40 minutes in duration; however we can have two sessions back to back. Therefore I would suggest if we are able to get this one running, that we have 35-minute session, followed by a coffee/beer break of 5 minutes, followed by another half-hour session. All is subject to change. To log into the session use the following details below.

Join Zoom Meeting
Wednesday 3rd March 2021 at 7.30pm
Meeting ID Number: 553 923 1152
Password: SDFSMar21

The following is a list of proposed songs which we can pull from.

• Pleasant and Delightful
• Oak, Ash and Thorn (Lead requested)
• The Bee-Boy’s Song
• Lark in the Morning
• Ebernoe Horn Fair
• A Smuggler’s Song (individual verses – volunteers required)
• Rosebuds in June
• Green Grow the Laurel (Lady volunteer please)
• West Sussex Drinking Song
• Where Stormy Winds do Blow
• Country Life or The Life of a Man (to finish)

If you would like to bring along an individual song, poem or story then feel free to so do. If you let me know at the beginning then I will ensure we fit it in.

Dave W

Sunday, 14 February 2021

Lewes Virtual Session – Tuesday 16th February 2021

Hello again singers in Lewes or elsewhere. Hope you’re still surviving. At least now some people have had the first vaccination and the days are getting longer with occasional sunshine, despite the recent flurries of snow. Here are my February song suggestions. Just one new song this month with attachments to sing along at home HERE (the others recorded in previous months are marked *).

If you would rather sing and chat with others there are also two Zoom sessions where, as usual, those present will decide how we use the time. Stay as long as you want, all welcome from any area. If anyone is reading this who does not yet belong to SDFS do feel free to come and see what we do.

Tuesday 16th at 7.30pm

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83024913881?pwd=emdVWnFULzlLYXN5SDlmVmRTY09WZz09
Meeting ID: 830 2491 3881
Passcode: 802923

Sunday 21st at 3pm

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87825799809?pwd=SThZSFo2VGwvdkI5UVRwMThSTHM2UT09
Meeting ID: 878 2579 9809
Passcode: 500968

• We’ll kick off with Drink me Brave Boys* and Fathom the Bowl*
• Then our new item, one last wassailing song for the year – Wassail the Silver Apple from the West Country. On the website you can hear Alan & Anne from the Chichester group performing it in two parts with instruments. I’ve attached here each part recorded separately and the words.
• Taking us to our virtual comfort break a pair of sea-themed songs, both sad tales but set to lively tunes – The Constant Lovers* and Our Captain Cried, “All Hands”*.
• Welcome back with two songs concerning local Sussex places – Brighton Camp* from the East and Ha’nacker Mill*from the West.
• Next our thoughts turn to love with The Three Maidens* and The Sussex Wedding Song*.
• And to end another distanced evening, apart but together in spirit, our old favourite Thousands or More* with a slight topical change to the lyrics: “With my bottle and friend you will find me on Zoom!”

Best wishes, solidarity, golier etc!

Tina

Friday, 29 January 2021

Worthing Local Group “At Home” Session – Wednesday 3rd February 2021

Following a fun night of laughter and joyous celebrations (oh and a bit of singing) in January, it has been decided to try another Zoom session for the Worthing Group. If you are unable to join by Zoom, or you feel it is not for you, then please join us in spirit by singing the same songs.

The song list below is adaptable to a Zoom or a no-Zoom session. Either way, all singers welcome – and welcome to our February Zoom. It is not designed to take over from Tina’s wonderful sessions, but is there to supplement our Worthing sessions which are currently based around singing alone in our own homes (but at the same time). It would be really good if we were to do some interaction with each other which will lead into small, local socially-distanced groups when the current climate eventually changes, for those who may wish to.

If you would like to bring along an individual song, poem or story then feel free to so do. If you let me know at the beginning then I will ensure we fit it in.

Though I’m not musically gifted like a lot of our members, I am content to put my IT skills to the use of the group to get these sessions moving. Therefore I have set up an initial Zoom Session for Wednesday 3rd February at 7.30pm. Currently Zoom sessions are free as long as I keep them below 40 minutes in duration; however you can have two sessions back to back. Therefore I would suggest if we are able to get this one running, that we have a 35-minute session, followed by a coffee/beer break of 5 minutes, followed by another half-hour session. All is subject to change. To log into the session use the following details below.

Join Zoom Meeting
Wednesday 3rd February 2021 at 7.30pm
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/5539231152?pwd=c05qclVGeTcxYlRzdGFFZGxtRXdTUT09
Meeting ID number: 553 923 1152
Password: SDFSFeb21

Song List (we can select the order on the evening to suit our mood):

• The Farmers Toast
• On Sussex Hills
• Country Life
• Thousands or More
• The Magpie
• Poor Froze-Out Gardeners
• Fathom the Bowl
• Where Stormy Winds Do Blow
• Life of a Man
• The Fields Lie Silent 
• Hares on the Mountain

Please do not get too worried, this is a list to pick from, not all that will be covered.

Dave W

Wednesday, 20 January 2021

The Silver Apple Wassail

Thanks to Anne and Alan for this recording of The Silver Apple Wassail. Enjoy!

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Don't forget, all our singers are invited to send in contributions. Read this post for more information.

Monday, 18 January 2021

Lewes Virtual Session – Tuesday 19th January 2021

Hello again singers in Lewes or wherever you are. Happy 2021 and I hope you managed a peaceful and restful holiday period. Some of you may still be waiting to celebrate with family and friends who were in the wrong tier at the wrong time and the whole country is now back in lockdown awaiting the long-promised vaccines. As we have more time this year and no public performances immediately on the horizon, we can string out and enjoy the Christmas and wassailing songs for a bit longer than usual. Here are my January suggestions with attachments for you to sing along in the privacy of your own homes. New recordings for this month can be found HERE (those recorded previously are marked *).

If you prefer to sing with others, however chaotically given the limitations of latency and connections, everyone is welcome at these two Zoom sessions. The singers present will decide how to use the time. Do pop in, even if you just want to say a quick hello, being visible on camera is optional too! You should have received the links already, but they are:

TUESDAY 19th 7.30PM

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83131009406?pwd=Z2kyUnNhR3YzQ05lZWNxeGhZOWFMUT09 
Meeting ID: 831 3100 9406
Passcode: 515155

SUNDAY 24th 3PM

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82077361404?pwd=dlBZeHRyMTkwV2Z4VDlsRGtsVUR5dz09 
Meeting ID: 820 7736 1404
Passcode: 943906

• Let’s warm up with two old favourites celebrating our local landscapes – Ha’nacker Mill* and The Song of the Sussex Downsman*
• Next a trio of songs from our usual Christmas collection – The Sussex Mummers’ Carol, Sweet Chiming Bells and While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks (to the newer tune Pentonville)
• To take us to our break, two new songs which some of us already know and love from singing with Brighton Pub Carols – Then Let Us be Merry (from the singing of William Harris, blacksmith and church musician at Rodmell) and Wake Ye Shepherds (from William Boyce of Handcross)
• Welcome back with another new, but more recent, seasonal song. When It’s Christmas Time was written in 2010 by Glen Redman of Brighton Morris and Brighton Pub Carols. He gave permission for SDFS to use it five years ago when we had a lot of other new material to consider, maybe time for another look. Geoff suggested it as one of his favourites at the last Zoom.
• The last of our familiar wassailing songs for this year – Apple Tree Wassailing Song, Here We Come A-Wassailingand Wassail Wassail All Over the Town.
• And to round off the night raise your hearts and voices in Thousands or More* and East Sussex Drinking Song*

Best wishes, solidarity, golier etc!

Tina

Sunday, 3 January 2021

Worthing Local Group “At Home” Session – Wednesday 6th January 2021

Update 6th January 2021: There may be some issues with connecting for the 7.30pm Zoom session. If so the second session will commence around 8.05pm.
Meeting ID: 553 923 1152
Password: SDFSJAN21

7.30pm start if attending the Zoom meeting

A Happy, Brighter, Calmer and Safer New Year to all our SDFS singers and followers. As 2021 begins with alarming levels of the virus still amongst and between us, but also positive news of vaccines and light ahead at the end of this long tunnel, what better way to comfort our spirits, celebrate our hope and express our New Year resolution to keep the SDFS going than to SING – even if it is just to ourselves at home. Many thanks again to Tina for her generous contribution to keeping our SDFS spirits up and song repertoire aired during the shutdown, and to Keith for his support in maintaining our website and posting the monthly notices which keep us in touch – and now also to Dave W, who has offered to host an interactive Zoom session for this month’s Worthing session.

The song list below is adaptable to a Zoom or a no-Zoom session. So for non-Zoomers it still has no mute facility or pictures, so your sound, chosen setting and attire are unrestricted, subject perhaps to others in your household and your neighbours! Either way, all singers welcome – and Welcome to our new Zoom host Dave!

Henny

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And now over to Dave:

Hi all, after speaking to Henny and the rest of the team it seemed that we should consider having a local (Worthing) group Zoom session for the SDFS. It is not designed to take over from Tina’s wonderful sessions, but is there to supplement our sessions which are currently based around singing alone in our own homes (but at the same time). It would be really good if we were to do some interaction with each other which will lead into small local social-distanced groups when the current climate eventually changes, for those who may wish to. Although not musically gifted like a lot of our members, I am content to put my IT skills to the use of the group to get these sessions moving. Therefore I have set up an initial Zoom Session for this Wednesday at 7.30pm. Currently Zoom sessions are free as long as I keep them below 40 minutes in duration; however you can have two sessions back to back. Therefore I would suggest if we are able to get this one running, that we have a 35-minute session, followed by a coffee/beer break of 5 minutes, followed by another half-hour session. All is subject to change. To log into the session use the following detail below.

Join Zoom Meeting: https://us05web.zoom.us/j/6202775062?pwd=MHJzWlBWYmRMRnJ4SFRVLzNCbWZTZz09
Meeting ID: 620 277 5062
Password: TnAX4Q

To get us into the swing of it I would suggest we consider the following songs for this first meeting. All these can change on the day if considered unsuitable or difficult to control via a Zoom session. We can discuss how the songs will be controlled at the first session. So if you have any experience in the conduct of such sessions then happy to take your advice.

• Pleasant and Delightful
• The Fields Lie Silent Now
• Righteous Joseph
• The Holly and the Ivy
• Wassailing songs: Here We Come a-Wassailing – Sugar Wassail – Apple Tree Wassail
• When Stormy Winds do Blow
• I heard a Bird Sing
• Country Life

Anyone who wishes to sing a song or recite a poem to the group would be very welcome. This also applies if anyone would like to take the lead on any of the songs.

Dave

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Finally may I (Keith) say thank you to everybody who has contributed material for this website to keep us all singing our SDFS songs throughout 2020 despite the various restrictions we have had to observe. For any more SDFS singers who would like to contribute, remember an open invitation was posted here about a week ago (here's a direct link if you've missed this).

Here's looking forward to a new year and let us all hope we can safely start to get back together again.

Golier!

Three Short Stories

Thanks to Amaryllis for giving us these three short stories to keep us amused.

TEA TIME TALES

Terry, the terribly tuneless trombonist, tried tromboning, ‘Twankydillo’, troubling the touchy twosome, twenty–three, The Towers. Tremendous thuds, throwing things, taunting threats… Terrible!

Thus Terry tried the triangle. Terry’s tame thrush, tunefully trilled. Together they tried the ‘Titanic’ theme. Terry tested the tuba, then the trumpet, trumpeting the telling tune to ‘Thousands…’ The thrush twittering to time.

Terry turned to the tambourine – taking time to train the talented thrush to trill the theme to ‘The Terminator’.

Then there’s the time Terry taught toucans. The trouble though, Terry’s truculent toucans took things. Tasty tomatoey toast, tinned tuna, tantalising tiramisu…

Together the two toucans tormented Tulip, Terry’s touchy tortoise, tenaciously taking Tulip’s ‘Turmits’.

Terry, tired to the teeth, tricked the toucans to try the treacle tart. Then they tried to take Tulip’s third turnip. ‘Tough,’ thought Terry. They trickled the thickening treacle. ‘Those thieving toucans, the treacle’s turned to toffee. They’re thwarted. Teehee!’

Then they thought to tease Terry. These two took Terry’s thyroid tablets, thereafter, the troubled toucans took to the trees towards the town. The trials, the tribulations…!

Terry telephoned the taxi that took Terry to the tip. There, taking the trombone, Terry transformed the tender tune, “Tiptoe through the Tulips” to terrifying thunderous trumpeting toots! Thus the tip took Terry’s tuneless trombone.

This tale terminates thus: Terry turned totally to the triangle, the tambourine, thrilling the trilling thrush, tempering Tulip the tortoise.

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EPISODE E

Eventually elderly eccentric, Enrique Espinoza’s exhibition entitled: ‘Elgin’s Equivocal Experiences’, ended.

Enrique’s encore: ‘Empires Exposed’, excited Erica Ebernoe, (Endurance Electrics, ex-employee).



Every evening Ernest Edmundson, Erica’s escort, explored each enlightened exposé, expounding elicit escapades. Enrique Espinoza’s enterprising experiments, examined ersatz explanations.

Erica enthusiastically emailed Ernest. “Espinoza’s exposed empirical executives exploiting every émigré entirely, even enslavement ensued! Eventually every emigrant employee expelled! Evidently, egotistical employers engaged, exclusively, experienced experts! ‘Extremists!”



Enrique’s egregious, embarrassing exposure, electrified everyone, especially every evil, execrable establishment! Everyone’s expecting expiation. Even Erica’s Ernest’s extremely excited. “Enrique Espinoza’s extraordinary exposures, emboldened everyone! Enrique’s efforts evoke exultation everywhere!”

Excitedly exhausted, Erica exuberantly echoed Ernest’s enthusiasm. “Enrique’s exceeded everyone’s expectations! Enrique’s enabled everyone’s emancipation!”



Everybody extols Enrique Espinoza’s exceptional epithet: ‘Earth’s Emblem Epitomised’.

“Excellent ending!” exclaims Erica Ebernoe.

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MY MATES

Memorable Movie moments move me. ‘Mad Max’, ‘Marathon Man’, ‘Mash’, ‘Memento’ …

Mum’s mania’s – magical melodies. ‘Magic Moments’, ‘Macarena’, ‘Moonshadow’, ‘Magpie’. ‘Magpie?’

My mum Mary, makes me marvellous mouthwatering meals. Mainly meaty mince mixes. My mum’s my mentor.

My main mate, Max, mimics making movies. Maxie – ‘Mighty Mouse’; me – moth-eaten ‘Maid Marian’! Meanie!

Moreover Max’s mental! Mischief-maker! Makes moronic masks – me, Martian monkey, mumbling: ‘Munchy, Munchy, Monster Munchy’. Max – Martian Master! Manhandling my magical Meccano, monopolising my model Maserati, mangling my microscope. Mum’ll murder me! Max makes me miserable…

Mum mentioned Maisie. “Maisie’s much more mild-mannered.”

Mmmm… Mmmm! Maisie – ‘Maid Marian’, me – ‘Martian Master’!

Marvellously, Max moved!

Maisie’s ‘Maid Marian’s’ magnificent!

Mum’s making Maisie magical minced muffins. Maisie’s mum’s making me massive minty mousses!

Maisie’s my main mate! Maisie makes me marvellously merry.

Mmmmm!

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Four Songs From Alan

Here we have four songs from Alan. They were sent to me quite some time ago, so they are not specifically winter songs. Apologies for the delay and I hope next year we will all be together and singing these songs.

Buttercup Joe

Alan has introduced this song at Chichester and Worthing.

Download lyrics pdf file

Download mp3

England For Me

Alan writes: Patriotic, but about the nicer things of England, so not nationalistic.

Download lyrics pdf file

Download mp3

Love And The Ball

Alan writes: I thought this is an interesting song as it is the earliest such thing I can find re. stoolball, the local game that predated cricket but with similar rules. I used to play it at the Youth Club up in Surrey 'when I were a lad'.

Download lyrics pdf file

Download mp3

Off We Go A hunting

Alan writes: Just for fun. I don't which know set of words came first, Donkey or Fox. I added a verse to make it a bit Sus-sexy. Note that nobody caught Mr Reynard. Horses Neck is a cocktail.

Download lyrics pdf file

Download mp3

An Invitation...

We won't be having our usual “Winter Revels” party this year, but you – our singers – can still show us your party pieces!

You are invited to send in (by email to southdownsfolksingers@gmail.com) any contributions with a theme relevant to the time of year (Christmas, New Year, Wassailing, winter), and anything else you might have performed at the party, that you would like to share here on this website. Contributions may be text (poems, short stories, seasonal recipes, what you’ve been up to,...), images and audio recordings (readings and recitals of poems, stories, songs and other music). You can have your videos shown here too if you first upload them to YouTube and then send me a link, but please don't send video files directly to me as the large files involved always seem to cause problems.

So get writing, record a song or two on your mobile phone, take some photos over Christmas and the New Year and send it all in!

Sunday, 13 December 2020

Lewes Virtual Session – Tuesday 15th December 2020

Hello again singers in Lewes or wherever you are. Early hopes of it “all being over by Christmas” having faded, here we are again, singing 2020 out virtually but still just as heartily. Here are my December suggestions with old, new, starting notes, first verse, chorus, harmonies HERE. Recordings done in previous months are marked *. Words for new songs included, let me know if you need others.

Singers in all three areas should have received the email with the links for three Zoom sessions – the usual Lewes evening slot Tuesday 15th 7:30pm and two afternoon sessions on Saturday 19th and Sunday 20th both at 3pm. If you haven’t had these and want to join in let me know and I will send them.

• Let’s warm up with two songs about hills – from West Sussex an old favourite On Sussex Hills* by Hilaire Belloc and from East Sussex the newer Caburn Hill* written by Lewes singer Dave T. I hope you get some fresh air on a hill near you at some point over the festive season.
• Next a quartet of familiar songs from our existing Christmas repertoire – The Holly bears a Berry, Masters in this Hall, The Moon Shone Bright and The Sussex Carol.
• A short comfort and refreshment break then back to introduce two new carols which are known to those of us who usually sing with Brighton Pub Carols (which is taking place via some shared sets on Facebook this year). The Sinners’ Redemption originated in a broadside newspaper from the 1600s and is another of those unusual minor key morality carols where the “mirth” referred to is religious joy. In contrast Now Christmas is Come is a light and cheerful carol which was collected by Lucy Broadwood from the “Singing Baker of Cuckfield”.
• Looking ahead to the wassailing season we have Wassail all your Apple Trees, a new simple round which was introduced by Alan from the Chichester group, and our old friend Sugar (Sussex) Wassail.
• To finish our evening, and the year’s singing, West Sussex Drinking Song* and Thousands or More* to remind us of the things which really matter in life but cost little – companionship; drinking together, which doesn’t have to be alcohol, could be a hot chocolate; sunshine, which may be a bit hazy in winter but is still worth seeking out and sharing with your special people; and of course, singing a song which has a rousing chorus.

If I don’t see you at one of the meetings, I send greetings for Christmas, Hannukah, Winter Solstice or any holiday which you and yours may celebrate in the cold season and I hope to see you in 2021 which surely must be brighter than this year has been.

Best wishes, solidarity, golier etc!

Tina

Monday, 30 November 2020

Worthing Local Group “At Home” Session – Wednesday 2nd December 2020

My greetings to all SDFS singers and friends as we approach the Yuletide season. It’s a time to sing songs of winter in a mood of celebration and also reflection, and to cheer ourselves as we look towards the turn of another year. Perhaps this year more than ever we wish for better times in the year ahead. It seems a very long time since our cheery meeting at “Ye Olde House at Home” last December – and I hope it won’t be too far into 2021 before we can all be of good cheer and singing together again. Meanwhile, for this month’s session at home let’s fill the air with a predictably seasonal selection from our SDFS collection. I’ve picked some of the songs requested as favourites by the gathered throng last year, but please add any extra or other choices you fancy. Happy Singing from now until New Year – and beyond!

• Warm up with The Holly and the Ivy before the winter moods of the Coppers Christmas Song and Fields Lie Silent. Whilst in this quiet pre-Christmas mood The Angel Gabriel is another lovely one.
• Then pick up the pace with Wassail Wassail All Over the Town (the Gloucestershire Wassail) followed by Masters in this Hall.
• The Moon Shone Bright and the Sussex Mummers Carol also take us back to ‘pre-tinsel’ times, and in a similar but rather more austere mood Christmas is Drawing Near at Hand (a song sung by the Coppers but which has proved to be is a bit of a ‘marmite’ song in the Worthing sessions!).
• The rounds Child of Light, Hey Ho Winter Snow and I Heard a Bird Sing are each pleasing even as solos, and add to this list Alan’s Stir-up Sunday round in anticipation of the season’s special puds and cakes.
• The Woodcutters Song and Deck the Halls bring the winter woodlands into our thoughts and homes.
• Then a trio of favourites, Pentonville, the Falmer Carol and, returning to our hardworking shepherds still watching their flocks, Sweet Chiming Bells.
• Finally, knowing this difficult year will finish soon and our hope and resilience must carry over into the new year, let’s get in the mood with that good old perennial Country Life!

With my very best seasonal wishes,
Henny

Sunday, 15 November 2020

Lewes Virtual Session – Tuesday 17th November 2020

Hello again singers in Lewes or wherever you are. More uncertainty with the current second lockdown, but what is certain is that we will continue singing our Sussex and Hampshire songs one way or another. Here are my suggestions for this month. As always, a mix of old, new, recordings of starting notes, first verse and chorus, and some harmonies HERE. Recordings done in previous months are marked *. Words for new songs included, let me know if you are missing any others.

Two more Zoom sessions this month – the usual Lewes slot Tuesday 17th at 7:30pm and Sunday 22nd at 3pm. Lewes singers have received an email with the links. If anyone else wants to take part let me know and I will send them.

• Kicking off the evening we have the seasonal Where Stormy Winds do Blow *. Hopefully, we are all singing this somewhere safe and warm while appreciating the hard work of those who work outdoors in all weathers.
• Next the old familiar The Run of the Downs but now set to a new tune by Amaryllis from the Worthing group so we can discard the very Cornish Floral Dance! I’ve added some harmonies for the chorus.
• A new song Bold Reynard the Fox was mooted a while back and its graphic description of hunting was thought probably not suitable for our main repertoire at family events (as well as having an uncertain link to the Downs, although it is listed as a traveller song from the South East so probably found its way around many locations). It does, however, give a very honest account of the fox’s fate in this traditional country pursuit often seen in full pomp on Boxing Day and it is set to a very jaunty tune so some singers might want to include it.
• Turning to the Christmas season, a pair of our existing numbers – the unusual minor key morality carol Christmas Now is Drawing Near at Hand and the cheerier The Falmer Carol. These are followed by Stir Up, a new song to be sung as a round. This was introduced by Alan from the Chichester group and was traditionally sung on Stir Up Sunday when puddings were made and left to mature (this year it’s 22nd November which coincides nicely with one of the Zoom sessions).
• That takes us to our refreshment and comfort break. I have my usual coffee and rich tea biscuits while recording these songs, but I may have something stronger on hand at the Zoom sessions. One day we’ll be back at the John Harvey Tavern together…
• Settle back in for another couple of old favourites, Hark the Herald Angels Sing and The Holly and the Ivy, both sung to the more unusual folk tunes.
• Then two very different songs about local lads putting on uniform and travelling far from home. The Young Recruitwent unwillingly after being plied with drink and press-ganged into the army, while The Saucy Sailor does appear to have chosen his lot on the briny ocean. We hope they both returned home safely. Both are new to Lewes singers and were originally introduced by Stephen from the Chichester group. They were collected by Clive Carey from his 1911-1912 visits to Dorothy Marshall of Chithurst House near Midhurst.
• The last new song of the evening (you have all worked incredibly hard, well done) is Shepherds Arise. This will be well known to those of us who sing with Brighton Pub Carols where we would normally have started rehearsals by now. It is from the singing of the Copper Family and was taken up by the "Hope in the Valley" group started by Vic Gammon in the 1970s folk revival. A more recent group of singers and instrumentalists have given Christmas performances under the name "Shepherds Arise" since 2013 in the Lewes area.
• To close proceedings, two that we know and love at any time of the year – Pleasant and Delightful * and West Sussex Drinking Song *

Stay safe, keep well and happy singing until we can meet again in person. Golier!

Tina

Monday, 2 November 2020

Worthing Local Group “At Home” Session – Wednesday 4th November 2020

We greet November with disheartening news but remember, we are of “the stout south country stuff” so I hope you are well and ready to find some cheer in singing a few more of our songs. Even if just to yourselves, accompanied by SDFS recordings, or with others in a ‘bubble’ (or with Tina and fellow Zoomers at the sessions she facilitates – see her posts on this site for details) – singing our songs helps to keep us in touch until we can gather again in the ‘real’ world. So what follows is a mix of seasonal songs to stretch your lungs and fill your hearts at home on Wednesday evening... or any time!

The autumnal mood and lingering memories of summer are fading to be replaced by remembrance, shortening days and thoughts of winter festivals to come. The songs below reflect this and a few may remind you of our past performances at the Weald and Downland Museum Christmas Market – roll on a happier new year and joining them again in 2021.

Let’s start with a familiar and reassuringly positive one, Thousands or More to warm our spirits.

Moving then to Ladies go Dancing for its gentle remembrance of lives lost. Thinking also of those who promised to return and did come home, The Turtle Dove.

The poignant images of sunsets after harvest in Home Lads Home leads us to the peaceful images of winter in The Fields Lie Silent and the comforting thought of spring returning.

The Copper's Christmas Song paints a more lively picture of winter with rural life and work continuing, and Christmas heralding the turn towards a new year.

The Holly and Ivy and The Holly Bears a Berry celebrate these ever-greens that endure in our landscape throughout the winter chill.

Child of Light and Hey Ho Winter Snow (as rounds if you can against a recording or within your ‘bubble’) – the first evokes the peace and mystery of winter and the second the reward of returning home to a warm fire, both enhanced by the presence of singing!

For a more upbeat finale, how about giving the not particularly seasonal Twankydillo a turn (everyone’s ‘favourite’!) – simply for its positive energy and the heat from the forge!

Stay safe and warm yourselves, enjoy the songs and if feeling any winter blues try singing them away!
Henny

Sunday, 25 October 2020

Michael Morpurgo's Folk Journeys on BBC Radio 4

Thanks to Angela S for bringing attention to this series of four programmes being broadcast on BBC Radio 4. Full details here.

Here’s a direct link to the first episode which you can listen to at any time on BBC Sounds. This should be available until at least October 2021.

Tuesday, 20 October 2020

Lewes Virtual Session – Tuesday 20th October 2020

Hello again singers in Lewes and elsewhere. Hope you’re still well and surviving everything. Here are my suggested songs for this month. As ever some old, some new, with recordings of starting notes, first verse and chorus, and some harmonies and lyrics HERE. Recordings which were made in previous months are marked*. I’ve included words for the new songs. If you’re missing any other words let me know and I can send them to you.

In addition I’ve set up two Zoom sessions this month – in the usual Lewes slot Tuesday 20th 7:30pm and on Sunday 25th 3pm. Lewes singers should have received an email with the links for these. If anyone else would like to come along contact me and I will send them. Whoever is there can decide how we spend the time. All welcome at one or both sessions. If you just want to say hello and listen then that’s fine too.

• Let’s get warmed up with Ale Glorious Ale* and The Brisk Young Ploughboy*.
• Next a couple of moodier songs. Hollingbury is a new composition from our own Lewes singer Dave Turner about the ancient hill fort in the north of Brighton; while Poor Froze-Out Gardeners is a 19th century broadside regarding jobless gardeners in winter.
• Taking us to our comfort and refreshments break, a trio of light and pretty love songs. The traditional Hares on the Mountain* then The Turtle Dove* which was collected by Lucy Broadwood from the landlord of the Plough Inn in Rusper. The last one Valiants All is a new song for Lewes singers which was introduced by Stephen Alberry of the Chichester Group and was collected from Stephen Spooner at the Midhurst Union Workhouse. I've added some low and high harmonies.
• We’ll get started again with some singing about… whisper it… Christmas, well it is nearly November now!! As we have plenty of time available at the moment, in the coming few months as well as covering all our usual seasonal songs I will be introducing some new Sussex carols. These will be familiar to those who usually sing with Brighton Pub Carols which it seems we will also sadly be missing this year. But for now let’s start easing gently into the spirit of the season with three familiar songs from our existing repertoire – The Angel Gabriel, the rounds Child of Light / Hey Ho Winter Snow and The Coppers’ Christmas Song to which I've added a new bass harmony.
• Finally, to round off the evening our old favourites East Sussex Drinking Song* and Pleasant and Delightful*.

Stay safe, keep well and happy singing until we can meet again in person. Golier!

Tina

Tuesday, 6 October 2020

Worthing Local Group “At Home” Session – Wednesday 7th October 2020

October has arrived and usually this month our Worthing session would be hosting the SDFS Annual General Meeting at “Ye Olde House at Home”. This year that cannot be and the AGM will have to wait. The Committee will continue in the interim, and upon request the accounts, meeting minutes and SDFS constitution can all be emailed to any singers wishing to read these. To obtain these, and also if you have any SDFS related questions or issues to raise, please contact us via the SDFS email.

Sadly we must also warn that our annual social, the “Winter Revels”, will probably have to wait too, circumstances being too uncertain to take this forward yet. We hope instead for maybe a Spring or Summer Revels in 2021, which will also serve as a celebration of our grand reunion! In similar positive spirit, our Events Organiser John has outlined a possible programme of performances for next year (see below and on our Diary Dates Page). Thank you John for all your work.

Singers across the land are beginning to venture out into the 'live’ world again and the SDFS is watching developments (albeit against a still very uncertain background of Covid-19 cases on the rise again) – so keep watching this space. For now though, in the absence yet of other plans, below are some ideas for your Sing at Home this month.

Looking back at October 2019, we'd begun to use some of our winter and Christmas songs already – but I’ll avoid too many of them yet and instead hang on to the autumnal mood and lingering memories of summer. 

Let’s start with Pleasant and Delightful as we did to get the singing going on 2nd Oct last year, before doing the lovely Fields Lie Silent to quieten the mood.

Then The Woodcutter's Song and Oak, Ash and Thorn for obvious woodland and fireside reasons at this time of year. 

Getting chillier by the minute, how about Poor Froze-Out Gardeners, Hard Times of Old England and Ha’nacker Mill.

Cheering things up Jim the Carter Lad and the energetic Brisk Young Ploughboy, both no doubt given to the occasional Lark in the Morning.

Rosebuds in June never goes amiss and Hares on the Mountain hasn’t been in these set lists for a while.

And for the finale, good old Country Life for its positive gallop through all the seasons with a sense of joy, before (even though at home) Rolling Home.

Happy Singing!

Henny

The Message from John:

Provisional SDFS Event Participation Update For 2021

Dear All,

Here is the list of 2021 dates that organisers have confirmed with me, or will probably be on similar weekends next year. Circumstances may affect events depending on the next 6 months' developments.

Any Wassails and New Year events are problematic, as is the Worthing Seed Swap in February which will be at the height of the annual Flu pressure on the NHS.

The W&DLMuseum has nothing definitely planned at the moment, whereas normally by now the staff would have formed the outline plan for the whole of the following year.

16-18 April: Garden Show Firle Place. The two remaining shows in 2020 have been rescheduled and to date are still on, subject to being pulled if the local authority deems it wise. So assuming no hiccups, all three shows will be on next year.

11-13 June: Stansted Garden Show.

27 June: NT Saddlescombe Open Day.

July-August: One date at NT Standen.

23-25 July: Loseley Park Garden Show.

16-29 August: Arundel Festival with SSS; a virtual festival was arranged this year with individual or bubble performances on line.

12 September: Fernhurst Forge Weekend.

18 September: Southdowns Folk Festival with SSS.

19 September: Brighton Apple Day, Falmer.

October: Possible event at Saddlescombe.

20 November: W&DLM Christmas Market.

John

Please note that all events above are subject to confirmation. As plans change, the list above will not be updated. For an up-to-date event list see the Diary Dates page.

Lewes Virtual Session – Tuesday 15th September 2020

Hello again singers in Lewes (or elsewhere). Hope you’re well and surviving the changeable weather as well as the overall situation. Uncertainty continues on all fronts, so this session is still “virtual” and these are my suggested songs for this month. As ever some old, some new, with recordings of starting notes, first verse and chorus, and some harmonies HERE. Recordings which were provided in previous months are marked: *.

I’ve included words for the 2 new songs. If you need full words for any of the others at any time, either because you were away when we did them or you’ve mislaid your folder, let me know and I will scan and send them to you.

If you would like to take part in a Zoom session on WEDNESDAY 23RD SEPTEMBER AT 7:30PM please let me know via my personal email or text. It may be difficult to sing together with synching issues and delays but we can give it a try and at least say hello and catch up. Maybe people will want to share something new solo or in small household groups. Let me know anyway.

• Let’s kick off with two of our best-known warm up songs: Fathom the Bowl* and The Farmer’s Toast*.
• Next we have two new songs about love which will be known to those who took part in the Belloc, Broadwood and Beyond Project. The first The Loyal Lover was collected by Lucy Broadwood and we have sung this before at Lewes. The other The Delicate Flower was written by Hilaire Belloc.
• Taking us to the comfort and drinks refill break, a trio of our more reflective songs: Life of a Man reminds us of the circle of life. All Things Are Quite Silent* tells of loved ones left behind when sailors are pressganged. Hard Times of Old England describes how those sailors (and soldiers) may later join others to tramp the streets but ends with the hope that good times may return to this country.
• We’ll get started again for the second half of the evening with two songs which cover all the seasons in turn. Country Life* is a rousing traditional number outlining different farming and rural tasks while Seasons Turn* is a more poetic description of nature throughout the year, written by local singer Sylvia Watts.
• Then a trip through the cooler but (hopefully!) still glorious Autumn woods and fields with The Magpie*, The Woodcutter’s Song and The Fields Lie Silent.
• And to round off the evening old favourites East Sussex Drinking Song* and Pleasant and Delightful*.

Stay safe, keep well and happy singing until we can meet again in person. Golier!

Tina

Monday, 31 August 2020

Worthing Local Group “At Home” Session – Wednesday 2nd September 2020

Hello everyone, hello September and welcome to another SDFS ‘at home' session.

With our usual haunts and gatherings closed to us we must continue to sit tight ‘at home’ until we find other places safe enough to gather together to sing. Unfortunately, nothing yet considered meets this safety requirement. Socially distanced small groups and the open air are known to be safer than crowds and indoors, so to keep such options open as the evenings darken and for whenever the risk levels and rules allow (hopefully before next Spring) we may need to consider a temporary move to meeting in the daytime, possibly at a weekend, and to meeting in small groups. No solution to this frustrating and worrying situation will be easy or convenient to all, but above anything else it must be SAFE. (If you have any comments or ideas to add to this discussion – or if you’d like to host a Zoom session as an alternative interim option – do let us know by emailing to the SDFS address.)

For now, here are some songs to choose from and enjoy for September.

Country Life always makes for a cheery start and describes the cycle of the seasons. Then, with the prematurely autumnal weather we’ve had in mind, a few songs for their various references to stormy winds ands gales! On Sussex Hills, Where Stormy Winds Do Blow, Song Of The Sussex Downsman.

Life of a Man describes the falling leaves and The Brisk Young Ploughboy, All Among the Barley and Tommie speak of other seasonal changes and harvests.

The Stedham Oysterman's Donkey is the tale of one man's effort to gather his crop – perhaps needing a Gooch's Beer and an Ale Glorious Ale at the end of it!

Two more old favourites to cheer us, Rolling in the Dew and Green Grow The Laurel, finishing again with Thousands or More.

(Our Burpham sessions CD and this website can again provide help and company for your singing. Many thanks again to Tina for her recordings supplied with the Lewes group notices, and to Keith for the extensive collection he has assembled on the New Songs and Lyrics and Recordings pages.)

Henny

Monday, 17 August 2020

Lewes Virtual Session – Tuesday 18th August 2020

Hello again singers in Lewes (or wherever you may be). Hope you’re well and surviving the heatwave/storms as well as the overall situation. Still no clear idea of when pubs may be fully open again, so we are still “virtual” and these are my suggested songs for this month. I will send something round separately about trying out an additional Zoom session. As usual, some old songs, some newer, with recordings of starting notes, first verse and chorus, and some harmonies here.

• To warm up let’s start with the well-known West Sussex Drinking Song and A Smuggler’s Song.
• A couple of fun extras next – the 15th century Sussex round Sing You Now After Me and the distinctly un-Sussex Finnish reindeer yoik song Ole Leloila. We learned these to sing with other groups at the Southdowns Folk Festival Big Sing in 2019 (sigh, we hope to return there in 2021) and they are useful pieces for warming up and to encourage singing out and blending voices together. Both songs are recorded in full as they don’t really have “verses”.
• Two of our more reflective songs follow – Kipling’s My Boy Jack (again the whole song is here) and Old Adam (first verse and the last verse which is slightly different from the others).
• To round off our first half, two songs about nature – apple scrumping with Tommie and the many uses of Oak, Ash and Thorn.
• Welcoming you back from your virtual drinks and comfort break, we kick off again with the working lives of the jolly Turmut Hoer and the blacksmith in Twanky Dillo.
• Two love songs next – the suggestive Three Maidens (with its “bird in the bush”) and the more sedate Sussex Wedding Song (where once again they are married the very next day!).
• We will finish with old favourites Thousands Or More and Pleasant and Delightful (see previous sessions for recordings including harmonies).

Stay safe, keep well and happy singing until we can meet again in person. Golier!

Tina

Monday, 3 August 2020

Worthing Local Group “At Home” Session – Wednesday 5th August 2020

Hello! Below is another set of songs suggested for you to enjoy at home at this month’s session – and for the time being this will continue to be the way we manage our monthly ‘meetings’.

The heightened risks of singing in the company of others have been well documented and are still being researched. The SDFS committee, group leads and some singers have shared thoughts and ideas about this, with general concern, frustration and sadness about the difficulties we face in wanting to sing together in person outside our household ‘bubbles’.  In conclusion, at this time, we can find no way sufficiently safe for us to resume our usual get togethers to sing. Sad as that is, the safety and health of us all remains the priority, so for the immediate future we will bide our time and continue to monitor the research and guidelines in the hope of safer times ahead. In the meantime we’ll keep in touch through our website at least, maintain our songs at home to keep them fresh, and keep our strong South Downs spirits up!

(There have been some inquiries about using ZOOM for our sessions. Although difficulties and frustrations with this approach have been reported, it is nonetheless a way to see each other which can add to the fun! So if there are any Zoom fans out there who want to host an ‘at home’ session for smallish clusters of singers, do have a go if you’d like to. Maybe you have already? Drop me a line (on the SDFS email) if you’re interested in taking this on or if you’re already doing so.)

Songs suggested for this August session – plus any others in addition or instead, as your mood and fancy take you! (Any requests for September please let me know...) The high summer months, the beauty of the Sussex landscape, fond memories of our visits to sing at Kipling’s home “Bateman’s”, and Mr. Belloc’s 150th birthday recently, have all influenced this selection....

Let’s start with an old favourite (!) – Twanky Dillo – from the smithhy’s workshop to mark the hottest day of the year so far last Friday.

Then Rudyard Kipling’s Oak, Ash and Thorn, celebrating the richness of our woodlands, and his The Bee-Boy’s Song to remind us of the ever-busy bees buzzing in the undergrowth and canopy.

Summer garden blooms and crops feature in Valiants All, and The Turnip Hoer.

Memories of Bateman’s bring memories of My Boy Jack in honour of Kipling’s son and others lost to us.

Home Lads Home is also sad in mood but soothed by images and evocation of the southern English landscape in late summer.

Sussex is vividly described in Song of the Sussex Downsman and The Run of the Downs, and although a month or two behind Rosebuds in June is never out of date for this season.

Mr. Belloc gives us his perspective on the joys of Sussex with the good old West Sussex Drinking Song and On Sussex Hills.

Last but not least, Sussex’s Copper family favourite, Thousands or More, to once again count our blessings and end on a positive note.

Gollier!
Henny

Monday, 20 July 2020

Lewes Virtual Session – Tuesday 21st July 2020

Hello again singers in Lewes (or elsewhere). Can you believe it’s July? Some singers have asked me about meeting in a park or a private home, but there seems to be no safe and legal way to do this yet. Scientific advice suggests that singing may need even more than the 2 metres distancing previously in place, possibly 4 metres, with other concerns regarding smaller airborne particles lingering in the air for up to 2 hours. There would also be the logistics of deciding where to meet, which six people at a time, travel there and back (in several cases by public transport), bathroom and other facilities etc. So our virtual sessions will continue for now and here are my suggested songs for this month. As always, a mixture of old and new with basic recordings of starting notes, first verse and chorus, and some harmonies. Download the recordings, and lyrics for a couple of songs, here.

• To warm up we have Gooch’s Beer and O Good Ale (the second one is not universally loved and not included in our general performances but it’s still a good tune for our individual sessions).
• A couple of songs about local places next – Song of the Sussex Downsman and then Stedham Oysterman’s Donkey which is new to Lewes singers, having been introduced by Stephen at the Chichester group and sung there occasionally. Although not yet part of the main repertoire it’s a fun item. I’ve also attached the words.
• Two sea-themed songs follow – Our Captain Cried “All Hands” (a solemn tale set to a jaunty well known hymn tune) and They Won’t Let Us go to Sea Any More (it will be interesting to see what difference B****t eventually makes to Sussex fishing fleets).
• Before we take a well-earned break to replenish whatever we are drinking, two songs concerning occupations and nature – Seasons Turn and The Jolly Woodcutter. The latter was suggested by a Lewes singer as a possible addition to our general repertoire and is known already by those who took part in the Belloc, Broadwood & Beyond Project. I’ve also attached the words. 
• Back to the second half of the evening with two of our songs concerning war – Follow me ’Ome which is told from the viewpoint of brothers in arms marking the loss of a comrade; then Ladies go Dancing at Whitsun concerning the women left to carry on at home.
• Two contrasting songs about love next. The very direct Rolling in the Dew followed by the more courtly Shepherd of the Downs (one of the many songs where the lovers somehow meet and marry the very next day).
• To close this month’s session we have old favourites East Sussex Drinking Song and Thousands or More (the recordings for these, including harmonies, were included in the previous sessions).

Stay safe, keep well and happy singing until we can meet again in person. Golier!

Tina

Sunday, 28 June 2020

Worthing Local Group “At Home” Session – Wednesday 1st July 2020

Next Wednesday evening, 1st July, will mark our fourth month without our usual singing session at “Ye Olde House At Home”. It’s been a long and difficult time for many, and I hope this finds you all well and coping ok as the situation progresses. Now that some restrictions are easing we can begin to consider when, where and how it will be safe enough for us to gather and sing together again in the ‘real’ world. With the heightened risk of transmitting the bugs when singing in the same space, and sometimes getting as many as 40 singers in the same space at our sessions, this reunion may not be easy to achieve in the near future. If it proves possible for August that will be great, but if not then it’s better safe than sorry and it will still be a joy to look forward to! 

Meanwhile how about these songs to use for our July 'sing at home' next Wednesday ...

Pleasant and Delightful – for its “midsummer morn” and its hopes for a joyful reunion after a long voyage
Come Write Me Down (The Sussex Wedding Song) – a happy conclusion, we hope.

Ebernoe Horn Fair (on or near 25th July, I think?)
Green Grow the Laurel
Eileen Aroon
- all three from our original song book (on the CD), no brides in these but different versions of 'boy meets girl’.

Then back to our landscape, our precious pollinators and the promise of fruit, flowers and crops growing as the summer reaches its height:
The Bee-Boy’s Song
The Farmers Toast
The Brisk Young Ploughboy

Finally, either or both for a rousing finish:
Sussex By The Sea
Thousands Or More – to mark the recent crowds on our beaches, and the “Bright Phoebe” sunshine still “so high up in the sky” after the summer solstice.

Have a good sing!
Henny

Monday, 15 June 2020

Lewes Virtual Session – Tuesday 16th June 2020

Hello singers in Lewes (or wherever you may be). June already! Hope you are well and managing to get some sunshine and fresh air, and possibly some extra human contact with the arrival of the new extended “bubbles”. Here are my suggested songs for another month of virtual singing together, a mix of newer and older ones, again with basic recordings of starting notes, first verse and chorus, and some harmonies (download the recordings here).

• To warm up we will start with Ale Glorious Ale and Drink Me Brave Boys.
• A newish song and a lesser sung “old” song next, both celebrating local places – Caburn Hill (both parts) and Run of the Downs (to the old tune here but there may be a new tune written by one of the Worthing singers to try out at some point, watch this space in later months).
• Two very different songs about the sea – the solemnly heroic Brave Eleven and then the raucously joyful Littlehampton Collier Lads.
• Taking us up to our comfort break/ refill of glasses we have songs concerning occupations and nature – Jim the Carter Lad and our old favourite Rosebuds in June (the tune and alto harmony are here, the bass harmony was one of the extras included last month).
• Let’s kick off the second half of the evening with a lively couple of songs regarding local soldiering – Brighton Camp and Sussex by the Sea.
• In contrast two quieter songs about love. Although Eileen Aroon is not a South Downs song, we enjoy it as reportedly having been Hilaire Belloc’s favourite song and it is followed by Green Grow the Laurel.
• To round off the evening we have Pleasant and Delightful and East Sussex Drinking Song (the recordings for these, including harmonies, were included in the previous sessions).

Stay safe, keep well and happy singing until we can meet  again in person. Golier!

Tina

Monday, 1 June 2020

Worthing Local Group – Wednesday 3rd June 2020

Here are the songs suggested for us to sing in our locked down homes this coming Wednesday evening, 3rd June, between 8.00pm and 10.00pm.

June is now upon us and the glorious sunny weather we’ve had for a while makes it feel like high summer already. This month’s list of songs is again a mix, with some evoking different moods of the season, others acknowledging the difficulties these “Hard Times” have brought, but staying positive and looking ahead to the promise of gathering for a “good beer” and “singing the best song” when we can all get together again.

Accessing some of the song melodies and harmony recordings on this website may help and keep you company when you sing – and for those who have our "South Downs Songs” CD, you’ll have the chance on that to hear our voices singing together and to revisit an extra ‘old’ song or two. Enjoy!

Thank you to everyone who has kept in touch. It’s likely we will be here again in July for another ‘home’ session – but keep checking this website for any updates and plans for future sessions.

Country Life – always a jolly good warm-up
Rosebuds in June* – because it’s June!

Shepherd of the Downs* – and – Old Adam* – reminders of the benefits of co-support!

The Ladies Go Dancing At Whitsun – a wistful summer song, in remembrance

The Lark in the Morning – out there on the Downs singing well and ‘larking' around
Rolling in the Dew* – a rebuke to the lark perhaps...
The Cuckoo* – also out there and still calling, but with a sadder tale to tell in this song.

Hard Times of Old England*
Thousands or More*
West Sussex Drinking Song* – all probably speak for themselves... “Cheers”!

Stay safe,
Henny

*songs which are on the "South Downs Songs” CD

Sunday, 17 May 2020

Lewes Virtual Session – Tuesday 19th May 2020

Hello singers in Lewes (and Worthing, Chichester or anywhere else you may be reading this).

Hope you are surviving the current situation. Here are my suggested songs for another month of virtual singing together, with some basic recordings including starting notes, first verse and chorus, and some low and high harmonies (download the recordings here). For the benefit of any new or returning singers, full words are on the Lyrics and Recordings page and the New Songs page. While singing these I have on my green outfit and straw hat with white blossoms and I will imagine you all doing the same.

To warm up, a couple of old favourites – Constant Lovers and Fathom the Bowl. As I always say at Lewes, this is raucous folk singing at its best so leave aside any training or inhibitions and go for it – think Poldark, not Songs of Praise.

Next, two quieter and more reflective songs so you can go back to your best beautiful, refined singing for these – Ha’nacker Mill and All Things are Quite Silent.

A trio of songs about farming come next – Brisk Young Ploughboy, Ebernoe Horn Fair (an old faithful revisited) and Farmer’s Toast.

At this point in the evening we would normally top up glasses, so refill whatever you are drinking and take a quick break (mine was a coffee and a couple of Rich Teas while recording these songs in the middle of the day).

To open our second half, another trio of newer songs about nature - Bee Boy’s Song, Hares on the Mountain and Lark in the Morning (although the last one is only loosely to do with birds and more about larks of a different kind involving Roger the ploughboy…).

To celebrate May we then have It is the First of May, May Day Carol and Hal an Tow, not South Downs songs but appropriate to the season.

We will end with our own East Sussex Drinking Song and Thousands or More (both with added harmonies this month).

As a further bonus for the men, there are male harmonies attached for Country Life, Life of a Man, On Sussex Hills and Rosebuds in June, which I recorded in 2015 for a harmony workshop and found again the other day.

Stay safe, keep well and enjoy singing until we meet again. I suspect the June session could be another virtual one so do let me know if you have a favourite you want to be included.

Golier!

Tina

Tuesday, 5 May 2020

Worthing Local Group – Songs for another ‘virtual’ session this month – open to all our singers and followers

Here we are in lovely May! Still 'locked down' and unable to gather at "Ye Olde House at Home", so until we can get together again in the future we must content ourselves with ‘virtually’ sharing an evening of songs as we did last month. Thank you to everyone who responded so positively and joined in with our April session and do let us know if you sing with us again this month (replies to me or to the SDFS email to be forwarded). It’s lovely to hear how you all are and, if we need to stay ‘virtual’ for our June session, to know what songs you’d like to sing then. 

So here are the song requests or suggestions made for us to try at home this coming Wednesday evening, 6th May, between 8.00 and 10.00 p.m.

Thousands or More to warm up with – and a reminder perhaps to count our blessings.
Then Ale Glorious Ale for those missing the hospitality at our usual gathering space!

Celebrations of May follow with any or all of:
It Is the First of May
The May Day Carol 
When Spring Comes In, and of course …
Hal an Tow

Searching For Lambs – opens a cluster of seasonal livestock or wildlife songs, to conjure images of the countryside some of us cannot easily visit at present. 
Hares on the Mountain,
The Nightingale, and if not too early in the season,
The Lark in the Morning.

Finally, The Turtle Dove – for its beautiful message of partings and promised return, and with pride that some of these scarce, shy birds choose Sussex each year for their summer visits. Lovely!

Also in this post are recordings of some of these songs, plus a few others, all generously made by Tina for the recent Lewes Group virtual session and to share with everyone. There are melodies to help guide start notes and to remind and rehearse tunes less familiar, and also some harmonies to try. Many thanks Tina.

You can of course change the set list and running order as much as you like – but whatever you choose I hope you have some fun, find comfort in and have your spirits (not just in a glass) lifted and refreshed by singing. 
Stay safe and hopeful for brighter days ahead. "Cheers" to you all.

Henny

Local Group Report – Lewes – Tuesday 21st April 2020

Tina came up with a cunning plan to replace our usual face-to-face meeting. There are problems with synchronization when linking up so she decided to make sample recordings of the twelve songs that she would normally have prepared for us to work through and we posted them to our regulars. Our warm up started with Country Life and On Sussex Hills which we know so well and shouldn’t need referral to our website (except our newer singers of course)! The recorded list included When Spring Comes In, Searching for Lambs, Pleasant and Delightful, Birds on the Spray, Turtle Dove, Magpie, Nightingale and Home Lads, Home. Thoughtfully, Tina gave us both the tune and harmony or alto for some of these. She also gave us the whole of Robb Johnson’s On This Hill, written about the old Brighton General Hospital at the top of Elm Grove on Race Hill (you can hear Robb Johnson sing this here) and suggested that we finish with Thousands or More as is our habit. So we achieved a sort of virtual session and the opportunity to repeat the performance at our leisure over the coming days/weeks. The only thing missing was the Harvey’s and background noise from the bar. We are hopeful that she will spend a few more hours preparing a virtual May session when we can dress in green, put flowers in our hair and dance around the kitchen table!

You can download Tina's recordings here.

Tuesday, 7 April 2020

Report from somewhere in Sussex by Margo

Update 10th April 2020: Margo has provided links for the weekly interactive World Of Music Choir, which may interest some of our singers.
 World Of Music Choir general information
 World Of Music Choir sessions archive
 World Of Music other links

Twice now, I have made a Freudian slip and written Corvid19. I think this may have something to do with all that folklore and some of the songs that we sing about rooks, ravens and magpies who belong to the Corvus family and were thought to be harbingers of doom!

Tina and the Lewes Group had good plans to link up for our sessions using modern technology, but there is a time lapse that makes synchronized singing impossibly awkward.

I hope that some of you have already caught on to Gareth Malone’s Home Chorus which he started on 23rd March and broadcasts at 5pm each day; you can catch up on YouTube. The Telling Medieval Music Group has lots of songs on YouTube and are running a live workshop every Friday at 11am (details here), but I couldn’t get Zoom to cooperate!

What I would really like to tell you is that on Easter Monday, 13th April, the BBC are broadcasting a documentary about the creating of a new Cantata called Windover Hill by Nathan James at 9pm on BBC Radio Sussex and Surrey. If you go to Castley Music – Windover Hill you can see lots of nice photos and read what The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra had to say about the premier performance at Boxgrove Priory in early March. You can also listen to computer-generated recordings – there are nine tracks, but not presented in the same order as the nine movements of the cantata (also available on Soundcloud). Part of the first section, Up From the Hollow, should sound familiar!

Glad none of you can hear me singing at home. When I am out in my garden I remain quiet so that I can hear the busy birds – mostly chattering house sparrows, a pair of wood pigeons, twittering long-tailed tits, a fleeting flock of goldfinches, the occasional rasp of a wren and two robins enforcing their territories, but sadly no blackbirds this spring. Yesterday I actually saw a female chiffchaff rather than her song. Hope we will be allowed to gather together again in time for hay-making. Keep safe and healthy.

Tuesday, 31 March 2020

Hello South Downs Folk Singers One and All

I hope you are safe, well and coping in these tricky times. Here is an idea to fill the gap left by the suspension of our usual local group meetings to sing with fellow South Downs Folk Singers....

Singing is such a joyful, uplifting and consoling thing and if like me you are missing our SDFS get togethers how about still singing a few songs together, safely, during the evenings when we would usually have gathered.

Starting with Worthing’s local group session next Wednesday (1st April), instead of being at our regular haunt "Ye Olde House at Home” join us by singing in your own home at some time between 8.00 and 10.00 pm. Although separate we can still feel united across the air!

Here is a short list of some songs to try at home – and add as many more as you like to fill the evening if you want (not forgetting the refreshment breaks too!)

"Country Life" for its energy and joy.
"Sussex Hills" to remind us we are made of strong “south country stuff”.
"Rolling Home" (albeit not officially a South Downs song!) for its celebration of stoic endurance, solidarity and collective effort.
and "Fields Lie Silent" for its beautiful descriptions of the quietness in a dormant world and its promise of brighter days returning.
Then perhaps add "Hal an Tow", chorus at least, or some other springtime song you like, for an encore!

We can continue this pattern for all the local sessions we are missing during the suspension, with a different set of songs posted here on our website shortly before the date of each one (Worthing 1st Weds, Lewes 3rd Tues and Chichester 3rd Thurs of each month). We’d love to know if you like this idea, find it helpful or have any other ways of joining in song to suggest. Also, If you’d like to suggest a song or songs familiar to most of us to be included in the lists for future sessions, please use the SDFS email for your message to be forwarded to me.

Happy singing on Wednesday evening folks, or whenever you can join us, and we’ll all look forward to happier and safer times ahead.
Henny (SDFS Committee Chairperson)

Wednesday, 18 March 2020

CORONAVIRUS

All of our official SDFS gatherings are now suspended until it is considered to be safe to meet up again. We expect this to be at least to the end of June and possibly well beyond this date.

Please check this website regularly for any updates.

Sunday, 15 March 2020

Local Group Report – Worthing – Wednesday 4th March 2020

Thirty singers gathered to ignore the wind and rain of early March and turn instead to thoughts of the spring and possible songs for the performance events we have planned for the coming season. We opened with Fields Lie Silent describing as it does so beautifully the return of spring after winter. With Emily’s guidance we then sang through When Spring Comes In and Searching For Lambs before moving on to Maytime with Hal an Tow and the May Day Carol. Time was also given to hearing, trying and starting to learn a couple of new offerings made recently – Three Drunken Maidens and Buttercup Joe. Both went down well and may be added to our collection in due course if also liked by our two comrade groups. After a break and some notices about future events we resumed by singing these two songs through again. The evening concluded with a couple of requests, still looking ahead to spring and summer, Rolling In the Dew and Lark in the Morning. Roll on Springtime!

Friday, 21 February 2020

Local Group Report – Lewes – Tuesday 18th February 2020

Despite the downpours and our proximity to the river Ouse, sixteen of us managed to sail along to The John Harvey Tavern for another busy evening of singing. Can’t imagine why Peter B from the Worthing sessions brought his friend Steve in with the wind on such a wet night! Tina had chosen Poor Froze Out Gardeners and Pleasant and Delightful for our warm up and then two of our war songs, All Things Are Quite Silent and Home Lads, Home before launching into Spring and the great outdoors with Lark In The Morning, Searching for Lambs, Birds on the Spray, Brighton Camp, Caburn Hill and Oak, Ash and Thorn.

In the refreshment break we finally presented Tina with a Book Token in thanks for all she does for us and as a belated Birthday present.

Where Stormy Winds Do Blow and The Woodcutter’s Song seemed appropriate for February and then back to better weather with Brisk Young Ploughboy, Seasons Turn, Turtle Dove, When Spring Comes In, Farmer’s Toast closing with a rousing Thousands or More.

Saturday, 15 February 2020

The Worthing Seed Swap 2020

On the 8th February 2020 the SDFS made its now annual performance at the Worthing seed swap. Members were positioned elegantly on the staircase from which their harmonious sounds could echo due to the open stairwell. Two sets of relevant songs for the occasion were presented to a sometimes passing audience, although many interested folk also stayed as they were entranced by the music. It was noted that although the source of the singing was outside the main hall, we could be readily heard therein.

Thanks to all who attended to support me as conductor of the day.

Alan

Sunday, 9 February 2020

Local Group Report – Worthing – Wednesday 5th February 2020

Unfortunately Emily was unable to join us this month but Alan very kindly and ably stepped in to lead us through a mix of songs, including those lined up for performance at The Seed Swap in Worthing on 8th Feb. We started with Country Life then Oak, Ash and Thorn, before trying out In an English Country Garden suggested as appropriate for use at the Seed Swap. Many singers knew it but singing it through demonstrated various renditions, so with inadequate time to resolve these we agreed not to add it to the set list. Moving on, Pleasant and Delightful was requested, then The Magpie, the Seed Swapversion of The Turnip Hoer, Fields Lie Silent and the Woodcutter's Song. Just before we took a break, Alan sang Buttercup Joe, a song which originated in Ashurst. After the break and some notices we resumed with On Sussex Hills, before Amaryllis sang Run of the Downs to a new tune she had written. This was appreciated and enjoyed and Amaryllis agreed to supply the score for consideration by Emily and our colleagues in the Lewes and Chichester groups. The Bee Boy's Song, Hard Times of Old England, the West Sussex Drinking Song and Life of a Man brought us to the last 5 minutes of our session, and Rolling Home was once more the choice made to see us on our way – with thanks again to Alan and all.

Thursday, 6 February 2020

Local Group Report – Lewes – Tuesday 21st January 2020

It was a joy to be back at The John Harvey Tavern when the twelve singers joined in harmony to welcome in the new year. Tina had made a cunning plan so that we could work through four Wassail songs, sad songs, spring-time songs, and those from the repertoire that may or may not be on a set list in the future. The twenty songs were: Apple Tree Wassail; Here We Come a-Wassailing; Wassail, Wassail All Over The Town; Sugar/Sussex Wassail; Ha’nacker Mill; The Brave Eleven; Brisk Young Ploughboy; The Fields Lie Silent; The Birds On The Spray; Brighton Camp (The Girl I Left Behind Me); Caburn Hill; Oak, Ash and Thorn; Hard Times of Old England; The Lark in The Morning; Searching for Lambs; Our Captain Cried, “All Hands…”; The Turtle Dove; When Spring Comes In; Seasons Turn and finishing with Thousands or More.

Tuesday, 4 February 2020

Three Rounds

Supplied by Alan, with recordings.

Wassail

Wassail all your apple trees upon this winter's day,
They will bloom and fruit so well the bugs will fly away,
We'll have plenty, we'll have plenty,
Apple pies, what sweet surprise, we'll eat them every day.

Download mp3

Summer Is Near

Rambling rolling Downs in Spring,
Swifts will soar and harebells ring,
Soft blows the wind, bright shines the sun,
Summer's near and Winter’s done.

Download mp3

Stir Up

Stir up we beseech thee, the
Pudden's in the pot and
When we get home we'll
Eat it all hot.

Download mp3