Introduction: The Unfortunate Lad and Other Members of Roud 2
The Anglo-Irish ballad “The Unfortunate Lad,” the cowboy classic “Streets of Laredo,” and the blues song “St. James of Infirmary” are often considered different versions of the same song. But it’s possible that this categorization was influenced by careless and dubious scholarship. In addition to examining the relationship between these different songs, this episode of Folk Files looks at how these ballads (#2 in the Roud Folk Song Index) functioned as PSAs that educated listeners about public health concerns. (Content note: This episode discusses STIs.)
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Credits
Host: Olivia Harding
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Assistant Producer: Aaron J. Morton
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Musical Excerpts
Cab Calloway
“St. James Infirmary”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSfqNEvykv0
Harry Upton
“The Royal Albion”
https://youtu.be/2i3Tn-9NcoM?si=FiEciVPMFO1JRluD
Sophie Legg, Besty Renals, and Charlotte Renals
“Sailor Cut Down in His Prime”
https://veterantapes.bandcamp.com/track/bonus-track-sailor-cut-down-in-his-prime
Sam Hinton
“My Jewel, My Joy”
https://youtu.be/TE-45Nmq65k?si=7X57QKQothgowTwf
Steeleye Span
“When I Was On Horseback”
https://youtu.be/MQDgA0S1I0o?si=5OlNMiK5NbS54JcU
Old Blind Dogs
“Pills of White Mercury”
https://youtu.be/byUcUqGHw74?si=BkIQ2qZZoUVUYlRJ
Texas Gladden
“The Bad Girl”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dR4QplDkTDM
Johnny Cash
“The Streets of Laredo”
https://youtu.be/OztIngK9s_I?si=AoUoEkJUXlrunIRp
Almeda Riddle
“Tom Sherman’s Barroom”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_YvSjEQZV0
Fess Williams and His Royal Flush Orchestra
“Gambler’s Blues”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnrT2U_pA0k
Louis Armstrong
“St. James Infirmary”
https://youtu.be/JGPvGkgbQ_E?si=fIRqfBmxAxca0rS8
Jim Causley
“Young Man Cut Down in His Prime”
https://youtu.be/jZ3KKrs01zY?si=4ZKLTLslzHKP1K95
A.L. Lloyd
“The Unfortunate Rake”
https://folkways.si.edu/a-l-lloyd-and-alf-edwards/the-unfortunate-rake/american-folk-struggle-protest/music/track/smithsonian
Rising Appalachia
“St. James Infirmary”
https://youtu.be/5o7JFK6nA7g?si=3E1PaG-yyJkxSqZc
For Further Reading and Listening
Roud 2: The Unfortunate Lass (with Vic Gammon & Brian Peters)
The In the Roud podcast hosted by Matt Quinn
The Unfortunate Rake album notes
Kenneth S. Goldstein
Young Sailor / Trooper Cut Down in His Prime / The Unfortunate Rake / St. James’s Hospital
Mainly Norfolk
“Pills of White Mercury” (Unfortunate Rake, Part One) (and the other parts!)
Sing Out!
“The Unfortunate Rake’s Progress: A Case Study of the Construction of Folklore by Collectors and Scholars”
Richard Jenkins