The Songs and Ballads of Hattie Mae Tyler Cargill

"My grandma, Hattie Mae Tyler Cargill, was the last of the Tyler ballad singing family from Kentucky. The Tylers were very private people and kept their music in the family. They had their own way of tuning all the instruments and their own ways of playing them, and they only allowed family members to know those techniques.

-Acie Cargill

The Songs and Ballads of Hattie Mae Tyler Cargill is a recording of songs passed down from the tradition of the Tyler family. This is a singular collection, representing a tradition that had ceased transmission with the death of Hattie Cargill, and had never before been recorded. The decision to share, record and perform the Tyler's music was made by Hattie's grandson Acie, the last to have learned the Tyler's style and repertoire from his grandmother. Among the unique aspects of the Tyler's style is the uncommon accompaniment of ballads with varied instrumentation, vocal harmony, and even the exchanging of parts; another is the Tyler guitar noting style, which involved drop-thumb playing with the index finger thrusting downward.

The Songs and Ballads of Hattie Cargill presents traditional songs, including seven Child ballads, and some ballads possibly written by Cargill herself. One song, "The Death of Young Robert", may have derived from Cargill's community role as a singer for those nearing death. Together, this collection preserves an exceptional, longstanding and obscure tradition - in the words of Sandy Paton, "the Tylers seem to have discovered their own way of presenting these songs of reach other's pleasure, and used it creatively"

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Track Listing

101	Come All Ye Fair and Tender Ladies	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	03:12
102	The Carol of the Cherry Tree	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	04:07
103	The Lover's Proof	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	02:15
104	Dark-Skinned Davey	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	02:36
105	I Wish I Was Single Again	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	02:19
106	The Farmer Feeds Us All	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	01:29
107	Keep Your Garden Clean	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	02:55
108	My Brother Edward	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	02:53
109	Lord Lovel	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	04:00
110	Omie Wise	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	03:27
111	The Bachelor's Lament	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	02:17
112	The Dear Companion	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	02:56
113	Lord Thomas and Fair Ellender	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	04:32
114	The Death of Young Robert	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	02:49
115	The Unbroken Token	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	03:49
116	Barbara Allen	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	04:10
117	The Rosebud Blooms but Once	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	03:55
118	My Wedding Day	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	02:17
119	Sweet William and Lady Margaret	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	04:07
120	The Dying Daughter	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	03:09
121	The Waggoner's Lad	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	03:04
122	My Kentucky Home	Debra Cowan, Acie Cargill, Susan Brown	03:45