Comments on: The Private's Lament

The Private's Lament

LN — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 19:18:58 -0800

The companion piece to the Turret Gunner's Farewell. This one's about my other great uncle, who fought in WWI and lived to tell the tale. (A bit more downbeat than TGF, and a bit of creative licence taken regarding his hometown.)

By: Alvy Ampersand

Alvy Ampersand — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 22:10:36 -0800

Instead of making another weird bug-eyed emoticon, I'd just like to thank you for these songs. Both are in my top 10* and I hope there are more to come.

*No small feat, considering how many awesome songs have been posted to MeMu. Again, thanks so much!

By: flapjax at midnite

flapjax at midnite — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 07:12:42 -0800

You have a lovely voice, clear and honest delivery, and, with these songs you've posted to MeFi, a very rare talent for writing interestingly and evocatively about long-past historic times. Bravo!

By: LN

LN — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 10:25:51 -0800

Thanks, flapjax and Alvy! This is just my own way of chronicling the stories of my family. There is more where this came from, I assure you! :)

By: Randy Curtis

Randy Curtis — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 12:06:57 -0800

You have a beautiful Voice, I enjoyed it very much.

By: snsranch

snsranch — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 18:24:38 -0800

Hey LN, what a beautiful way of keeping your family's history alive. I'm curious as to whether these tales are from journals or were told to you. The details are numerous and fascinating.

By: LN

LN — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 05:33:32 -0800

The stories are mostly oral, passed down to me through my folks. This is then bolstered with background research; for example, I managed to get the service records of both my uncles, which helped flesh out their stories. For songs where the protagonist is still alive, I just go straight to the source, and ask for as many details as I can.

Picking people's brains is something I'm trained to do from my Uni days; it comes naturally. The beauty is, the more you ask, and the more brains you pick, the more stories start to surface. It's like a fountain! :)

The writing of the Turret Gunner's Farewell involves somewhat of a ghost story, though, which I consider to be immesurably cool.

By: Jofus

Jofus — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 06:01:08 -0800

Again - this is beautiful. Can I ask whether the tune itself is your own - or is it inherited?

By: nicolin

nicolin — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 06:10:13 -0800

your family is blessed with a bard.

By: LN

LN — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 09:32:36 -0800

The tune is an old song: "Rounding the Horn". I think it might be English, originally. You can hear it here.

And for those who were interested, the tune to the Turret Gunner's Farewell is "When a Man's in Love He Feels No Cold", originally collected from the singing of Paddy Tunney. Hear it here.

By: hurdy gurdy girl

hurdy gurdy girl — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 21:45:08 -0800

Lovely, just like the Turret Gunner. I look forward to hearing more!