DESCRIPTION:
Two songs based on the confessions of the celebrated witch Isobel Gowdie of Auldearne at her trial in 1662, here performed by Northumbrian folk singer and storyteller Sedayne (Sean Breadin), accompanying himself on Hungarian Citera, electronic Shruti Box and Noah Bells on the wild & windy evening of the 15th of January 2009.

The Allansford Pursuit is a poem by Robert Graves (found in a footnote on p. 402 of The White Goddess) based on Gowdie's shape-shifting incantation "I shall go into a hare, with sorrow, and sych, and meikle care, and I shall goe in the Divellis name, ay will I com hom againe". This is interleaved with The Ragwort Road by 'Dancing' Jim Wetherspoon, (Northumbrian trickster, shapeshifter, and former village idiot of Haltwhistle who also put the tune to the Graves' poem) inspired by Gowdie's "Horse and hattock, horse and go, horse and pelatis, ho, ho!" (p. 290 of The Faber Book of Popular Verse) which relates to the practise of rubbing the body with an hallucinogenic ointment brewed from ragwort (Senecio jacobeae) to give the illusion of flying, thus the witches broomstick was, in fact, a stalk of ragwort, a plant which still causes no small alarm today - see http://www.ragwortfacts.com/ for more.

A riddle now to you I'll tell to you,
It's of a horse that has no shoe;
It's mane is of the glittering gold,
and in the dark earth it was foaled.

*

I will go into a hare
with sorrow and sighing and mickle care,
and I will go in the Devil's name,
aye 'til I be fetched hame
- Hare, take heed of a bitch greyhound
will harry thee all these fells around
for here come I in Our Lady's name
all but for to fetch thee hame

Cunning and art he did not lack
but aye her whistle would fetch him back

*

A riddle now to you I'll tell,
It's of a horse that has no tail,
Nor need is there of saddle nor bit,
Nor spur nor whip to take to it.

*

I will go into a trout
With sorrow and sighing and mickle doubt,
And show thee many a merry game,
Ere that I be fetched hame.
- Trout, take heed of an otter lank,
will harry close from bank to bank.
For here come I in Our Lady's name
All but for to fetch thee hame.

Cunning and art he did not lack,
But aue her whistle would fetch him back.

*

R - for the Rowan, quick and light;
A - for the dark sweet Aconite;
G - is for the grass green goad,
To ride a weed, the ragwort road

*

Yet I will go into a bee,
With mickle horror and dread of thee
And flit to hive in the Devil's name,
Ere that I be fetched hame
- Bee, take heed of a swallow hen,
Will harry close, both but an' ben,
For here come I in Our Lady's name,
All but for the fetch thee hame

Cunning and art he did not lack,
But aye her whistle would fetch him back.

*

W - for the Witches Brew
O - for the Ointment, known to few,
R - for Rune
T - for toad, as dance we down the Ragwort road

*

Yet I shall go into a mouse,
And haste me unto the miller's house,
There in his corn to have good game,
Ere that I be fetched hame.
- Mouse, take heed of a white tib-cat,
that never was baulked of a mouse or rat,
For I'll crack thy bones in Our Lady's name,
Thus shalt thou be fetched hame.

Cunning and art he did not lack,
But aye her whistle would fetch him back.

*

Horse and pelatis, horse and go,
Horse and hattock, ho, ho, ho!


The provenance of this piece is antique, but mention must be made of the lads of South Tyne, The Storyteller at Fault, The Ragwort Roadshow, Badger in the Bag, Blenkinsopp Castle, and Rivermeet; to all this, and more, this is my personal homage. Pinky used to like this one too as I recall; hope all is well, wherever you are!

Sedayne, Thursday 15th January 2009