World Music: The Imagined Village, "John Barleycorn"
(United Kingdom) There are many theories about this old folk song that was made popular by Stevie Winwood and Traffic in the 70's. Some say it was written by Robert Burnes, the Scottish poet. Others say that it was a song created much longer ago, when most of Britain (and Europe for that matter) was pagan, and the Church was attempting to appeal to the earth worshipping masses. The song can therefore be taken as either a simple metaphor that equates a man with a sheaf of barley, who is then cut, ground, and served "most barbarously" or as a metaphor for Christ, who dies and is transformed. The Imagined Village starts off with a fairly strict reading of the song, sung by folk stalwarts Martin and Eliza Carthy. But once Billy Bragg gets into the game, the band kicks in with South Asian drums and sitar, and the lyric turns into a paean to multiculturalism. The performance is in the Real World studios, prior to the band's going out on tour.
(United Kingdom) There are many theories about this old folk song that was made popular by Stevie Winwood and Traffic in the 70's. Some say it was written by Robert Burnes, the Scottish poet. Others say that it was a song created much longer ago, when most of Britain (and Europe for that matter) was pagan, and the Church was attempting to appeal to the earth worshipping masses. The song can therefore be taken as either a simple metaphor that equates a man with a sheaf of barley, who is then cut, ground, and served "most barbarously" or as a metaphor for Christ, who dies and is transformed. The Imagined Village starts off with a fairly strict reading of the song, sung by folk stalwarts Martin and Eliza Carthy. But once Billy Bragg gets into the game, the band kicks in with South Asian drums and sitar, and the lyric turns into a paean to multiculturalism. The performance is in the Real World studios, prior to the band's going out on tour.
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World Music: The Imagined Village, "John Barleycorn"
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