The Ballad of Shirley Collins, LP UK Earth Records 2018 - EARTHLP029

The Ballad Of Shirley Collins – which premiered at the London Film Festival in 2017 – tells this story, though to reduce it to that single aspect does everyone (not least of all Shirley!) something of a disservice. The story proves itself to be something of a time-travelling Transatlantic road-movie of sorts, utilising a motherlode of archive audio to recount the tale of her seminal 1959 song-collecting trip around America’s Deep South alongside her then-lover (and legendary ethnomusicologist) Alan Lomax.

The Ballad Of Shirley Collins, documentario presentato in anteprima al London Film Festival nel 2017, racconta la storia di questa cantante, anche se ridurla a questo singolo aspetto farebbe un torto a tutti (non ultima Shirley!). La storia si rivela una specie di road-movie transatlantico che viaggia nel tempo, utilizzando una miniera d'oro di audio d'archivio per raccontare la storia del suo fondamentale viaggio del 1959 alla ricerca di canzoni nel profondo sud degli Stati Uniti insieme al suo allora amante (e leggendario etnomusicologo) Alan Lomax.

Tracks Side 1: Shirley Collins: “All I Ever Wanted” (0.37) - Shirley Collins: Calvary Hill (2.41) - Ishman Williams & The Williams Singers: Got On My Travelling Shoes (1.22) - Shirley Collins: “Do You Want Me to Start, Alan?” (0.24) - Texas Gladden: I Never Will Marry (Roud 466; Laws K17; G/D 6:1244) (1.57) - Sid Hemphill and Lucius Smith: Come on Boys, Let’s Go to the Ball (2.02) - Horton Barker: A Rich Irish Lady (Roud 180; Laws P9; G/D 6:1219; Henry H72) (2.02) - Ian Kearey: The Poor Drowned Sailor (1.11) - Sidney Hemphill Carter: Pharaoh (Roud 11823) (1.11) - Shirley Collins: “I Used to Could Sing” (0.47) - Shirley Collins: Outtake (London 1959) (0.47) - Side 2: Shirley Collins: “There’s Never Been a Merry England” (0.59) - Andy Hemsley and Hastings Jack in the Green: The Seeds of Love (Roud 3; G/D 6:1180) (3.23) - N.J. Brothers & The United Sacred Harp Musical Association: Calvary (1,59) - Lucius Smith: Make Lulu Behave Herself (1,59) - Ruby Vass: Single Girl, Married Girl (Roud 436) (1,59) - Shirley Collins: “I Can’t Really Forget Them” (0.17) - George Stoneman: Sally Anne (Roud 3652) (2.11) - Michael J. York & Ossian Brown: The Cloud House / Cyclobe—Son of Sons of Light / George Collins—Dolly (2.23) - Dolly Collins: Missa Humana (excerpt) (2.44) - Shirley Collins: Wondrous Love (Roud 5089) (2.30).