Recordings & Info 251. Lang Johnny More
CONTENTS:
1) Alternative Titles
2) Traditional Ballad Index
3) Child Collection Index
4) Mainly Norfolk
5) Folk Index
ATTACHED PAGES: (see left hand column)
1) Roud No. 3100: Lang Johnny More (27 Listings)
Alternate Titles
Long John, Old John, and Jackie North
Lang Johnnie Moir
Johnnie Moir
Young Johnny More
Traditional Ballad Index: Lang Johnny More [Child 251]
DESCRIPTION: John More, on a visit to London, falls in love with the King's daughter. The King declares he will kill John, and takes him prisoner by drugging him. John sends a message begging help. Two giants come to rescue him, browbeating the King into surrender
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST_DATE: 1827 (described in a letter from Peter Buchan to Motherwell; see Emily Lyle, _Fairies and Folk: Approaches to the Scottish Ballad Tradition_, Wissenschaflicher Verlag Trier, 2007, p, 172)
KEYWORDS: royalty love courting prison execution rescue
FOUND_IN: Britain(Scotland(Aber))
REFERENCES: (6 citations)
Child 251, "Lang Johnny More" (1 text)
Bronson 251, "Lang Johnny More" (15 versions)
Greig #27, pp. 1-2, "Lang Johnnie More" (1 text)
GreigDuncan2 246, "Lang Johnnie More" (10 texts, 8 tunes) {A=Bronson's #5, B=#3,C=#2, D=#1, E=#13, F=#11, G=#9, H=#12}
DBuchan 59, "Lang Johnny More" (1 text)
DT 251, LONGJOHN
Roud #3100
RECORDINGS:
John Strachan, "Lang Johnny More" (on FSB5, FSBBAL2) {Bronson's #8}
CROSS_REFERENCES:
cf. "Johnie Scot" [Child 99]
ALTERNATE_TITLES:
Long John, Old John, and Jackie North
Lang Johnnie Moir
NOTES: Child views this as "perhaps an imitation, and in fact almost a parody, of 'Johnie Scot.'" Certainly the plots are very much alike -- but the supernatural feats of the rescuers are commonplaces (cf., e.g., "Hughie Grame" [Child 191]).
The surname "More/Moore" appears a distortion of Gaelic "Mor," "big." - RBW
Child Collection- Child Ballad 251: Lang Johnny More
Child --Artist --Title ---Album --Year --Length --Have
251 Alex Troup Lang Johnnie Moore The James Madison Carpenter Collection 1927-1955 No
251 Battlefield Band Lang Johnnie Moir Opening Moves 1993 5:25 Yes
251 Battlefield Band Lang Jonnie Moir At the Front 1994 5:24 Yes
251 Bell Duncan Lang Johnnie Moore The James Madison Carpenter Collection 1927-1955 No
251 Belle Luther Richards Young Johnny More The Helen Hartness Flanders Collection No
251 Bill Jones Long John Moore Turn to Me 2000 3:44 Yes
251 Bill Jones Band Long John Moore Live at the Live 2002 5:20 Yes
251 David Edwards Lang Johnnie More The James Madison Carpenter Collection 1927-1955 No
251 Ewan MacColl Lang Johnnie More The English and Scottish Popular Ballads (The Child Ballads) - Vol. 6 [Reissue] 196? No
251 Ewan MacColl Lang Johnnie More The English and Scottish Popular Ballads (The Child Ballads) - Vol. 3 1956 5:32 Yes
251 Ewan MacColl Lang Johnny More Blood and Roses - Vol. 1 1979 6:32 Yes
251 Ewan MacColl Lang Johnnie More Ballads - Murder Intrigue Love Discord 2009 5:42 Yes
251 Hamish Imlach Lang Johnny More Old Rarity 1971 6:29 Yes
251 Hamish Imlach Lang Johnny Moore All Round Entertainer - Volume 2 of the Hamish Imlach Sampler 1973 6:19 Yes
251 Isaac Troup Lang Johnnie More The James Madison Carpenter Collection 1927-1955 No
251 James Troup Lang Johnnie Moore The James Madison Carpenter Collection 1927-1955 No
251 Jock Duncan Lang Johnny More Tae the Green Woods Gaen 2001 No
251 John Strachan Lang Johnnie More Songs from Aberdeenshire 2002 12:48 Yes
251 John Strachan Lang Johnnie More (first part) Glenlogie - The Classic Ballads 1975 No
251 John Strachan Lang Johnnie More (second part) Glenlogie - The Classic Ballads 1975 No
251 John Strachan Lang Johnny More The Folk Songs of Britain, Vol 5: The Child Ballads 2 1961 1:31 Yes
251 John Strachan Lang Johnny More Classic Ballads of Britain & Ireland - Folk Songs of England, Ireland, Scotland & Wales, Vol 2 2000 1:34 Yes
251 John Strachan Lang Johnnie More The James Madison Carpenter Collection 1927-1955 No
251 John Strachan & Hamish Henderson Lang Johnnie More The Green Wedding - The Classic Ballads 3 1976 No
251 Johnny Mowat Lang Johnnie Moore The James Madison Carpenter Collection 1927-1955 No
251 Martin Carthy Long John, Old John and Jackie North Because It's There 1979 6:05 Yes
251 Miss Elizabeth Craig Lang Johnnie Moore The James Madison Carpenter Collection 1927-1955 No
251 Mrs Rettie Lang Johnnie More The James Madison Carpenter Collection 1927-1955 No
251 Mrs W.A. Reid (Reed) Lang Johnnie Moore The James Madison Carpenter Collection 1927-1955 No
251 Mrs William Duncan Lang Johnnie More The James Madison Carpenter Collection 1927-1955 No
251 Sidney Luther Young Johnny More The Helen Hartness Flanders Collection No
Mainly Norfolk: Long John, Old John and Jackie North
[Roud 3100; Child 251; Ballad Index C251; trad.]
Ewan MacColl sang Lang Johnnie More in 1956 on his and A.L. Lloyd's The English and Scottish Popular Ballads (The Child Ballads) Volume III. This and all other of his track in this anthology were reissued in 2009 on the Topic CD Ballads.
John Strachan of Fyvie, Aberdeenshire, sang Lang Johnny More in a recording made by Peter Kennedy on the anthology The Child Ballads 2 (The Folk Songs of Britain Volume 5; Caedmon 1961; Topic 1968).
Martin Carthy sang Long John, Old John and Jackie North in 1979 on his album Because It's There. He commented in the record's sleeve notes:
… The exceptions are Long John, Old John and Jackie North which is a reworking of Long Johnny Mor, full of swash and buckle, and the Death of Young Andrew, a reworking of a severely holed set of words, and both songs are to be found in F.J. Child's English and Scottish Popular Ballads.
Lyrics
Martin Carthy sings Long John, Old John and Jackie North
Now Long John's from the mountain gone, he's to London town,
And the king's daughter in fair London she fell in love with him.
Now Long John was a giant born, he was fourteen feet in height,
And the king's daughter she wept for him as she laid alone at night.
And when the king he heard of this an angry man was he,
Says, “This mighty man shall stretch the rope that hangs on the gallows tree!”
So he sent men and cunning men and around him they did creep
And they fed him drops of laudanum and they laid him fast asleep.
So that when he's awaked out of his sleep a sorry man was he,
With his jaws and hands in iron bands and his feet in fetters three.
So he's bribed him a servant, Long John he's given him meat and fee
To run to his uncle Old John to come and rescue he.
And the first few miles the little boy walked and the next few miles he ran
And he run till he come to the broad water where he lay down and swam.
And when he come to the mountain high he cried out aloud
For there he spied him Jackie North with Old John by his side.
And there as these two giants stood a grisly sight to see
For they were tall as the eagles call and broad as the oaken tree.
“Oh rise rise, Old John, Jackie North, come thee!
For Long John's in prison strong and hanged he must be.”
So they ran over hill and they ran over dale and they ran over mountain high
Till they come down to London town at the dawning of the day.
They cried upon up your city gates, “Open at my call!”
Then they up with their feet and they kicked a hole straight in through London Wall.
And they trampled down by Drury Lane, the crowd before them ran,
Till there they spied him, Long John stood under the gallows pin.
They said, “Is it for murder? Is it for rape? Is it for robbery?
For if it's any heinous crime we'll stand and watch you die.”
He says, “Not for murder, not for rape, not for robbery.
But it's all for the love of a gay lady they are here to see me die.”
So they took him from the gallows pin, before the king went they
Their armour bright cast such a light it fair dazzled his eye.
“Good day to you, Ardquo; cries Jackie North, “Good day to you,”cries he,
“For we have come for your daughter's wedding all down from the mountains high.”
When the king he seen them come an angry man was he,
Cries, “One of you is tall enough what shall I do with three?”
“Oh cursed be that serving boy the tidings bore away.
For I do vow and I do swear high hanged he shall be.”
“Oh if you hang this little boy the tidings brought to me
We three shall come to his burial and paid you'll surely be.”
“A priest, a priest,” Long John he cries, “to join my love and me,
A priest, a priest,” Long John he cries, “for married we will be.”
“Oh take my daughter, Long John, my curse upon you fall.
And take my serving boy also lest all my city fall.”
They've taken the lady by the hand, set her prison free
And the drums did beat and the fifes did play, they spent the night with glee.
And then Long John and Old John, Jackie North all three,
A freed bride and a serving boy went back to the mountains high.
Acknowledgements
Transcribed by Garry Gillard. The Digital Tradition version, which is very similar, is at the Mudcat Café.
Folk Index: Lang Johnny More [Ch 251]
At - Long John, Old John, and Jackie North
Sm - Cauld Kail
Battlefield Band. At the Front, Topic 12TS 381, LP (1978), trk# B.03 (Long Johnnie Mor/Moir)
Carthy, Martin. Because It's There, Rounder 3031, LP (1979), trk# A.05 (Long John, Old John, and Jackie North)
Jones, Bill (Belinda). Turn to Me, Compass 7 4338 2, CD (2002), trk# 8 (Long John Moore)
MacColl, Ewan. Blood and Roses, Vol. 1, Blackthorne ESB 79, LP (1979ca), trk# B.02
Strachan, John. Folk Songs of Britain, Vol 5. The Child Ballads, Vol. II, Caedmon TC 1146, LP (1961), trk# B.04 [1950s]
Strachan, John. Songs from Aberdeenshire, Rounder 1835, CD (2002), trk# 23 [1951/07/20]