DJ Jim Q's Playlist: Folklore

Selected by our friends in the Guatemala City chapter, the theme this month is Folklore. Art, and music specifically, have always been vehicles for storytelling and lore. As far back as we can dig, music and story have been intertwined, with evidence of rudimentary flute-like musical instruments dating back to over 40,000 years, well before the written word. Music has been a way to preserve stories through oral tradition. The oldest documented musical composition is The Hurrian Hymn, discovered on fragments of small clay tablets excavated in what is now northern Syria, dated to around 1400 BCE. The most recovered of the composition, the Hurrian song, is dedicated to the goddess Nikkal. She is the spouse of the moon god and goddess of fruit, fertility and the orchards. So even the earliest of songs celebrate otherworldly beings. From ancient times to present day, the tradition of song as a conduit to pass narratives on from generations to generation is a big part of our collective human story.

The Hurrian Hymn to Nikkal, terra cotta, circa 1400 BC.

Folklore, of course, is a particular form of storytelling. It is usually associated with embellished tales, fantastical legends, odyssey and often contain some type of allegorical thread. The earliest American musical forms — blues, country, and folk — rely heavily on folklore and oral tradition. Some tell stories of larger-than-life characters based on real people, like John Henry, Davy Crocket, and Calamity Jane, but just as often these tales drifted into the realm of fantasy. There are countless blues songs about crossing paths with the devil, or the wagon-load of country songs idealizing the frontiersman with plenty of fantastical stories of western heroes. There are some great stories in those tunes, Johnny Cash having always been one of my favorite yarn spinners.

I wanted to avoid completely saturating the playlist with older genres like blues, country and folk, but where are all the contemporary songs of folklore? They’re almost as elusive as the Loch Ness monster. While this playlist certainly skews towards earlier decades, fear not! I was able to unearth a number of lore-laden modern musical myths. Also, I just want to point out there are very few good songs about Bigfoot. Come on, let’s do better.

Once upon a time there was a playlist. This playlist was replete with tall tales, fables, and legends beyond imagination. The theme this month is folklore, and these musical myths will take you through Tolkien worlds, to realms of Greek gods and to the charming adventures of some of our favorite folk heroes of yore. So gather round the fire, and lean in close — we have a story to tell.

Thanks for listening. I hope you enjoy the playlist. If you do, I would love to hear from you. Give me shout on Twitter and be sure to follow me on Spotify. See you next month.

Banner Illustration by Kate Greenaway, 1887. Preparatory design for Robert Browning’s “The Pied Piper of Hamelin”.