Chicago FM radio station WXRT is celebrating its 50th Anniversary this year. I can honestly say I’ve followed it every step of the way from late-night-only broadcasts to being on the air 24 hours a day. I have fond memories of listening to XRT on Halloween night for an adventurous selection of spooky songs. Two of my favorites were Steeleye Span’s “Allison Gross” and Fairport Convention’s “Tam Lin.” The DJ would played them back to back, and that’s how I have them now on my Halloween playlist.
Steeleye Span’s successful career of updating centuries-old ballads with electric guitar and drum arrangements began in England around 1969. “Alison Gross,” from the band’s 1973 release Parcel Of Rogues, spins the tale of a witch trying to win a man’s heart through a mix of magic and bribery. She offers him a series of riches, starting with a red mantle with golden flowers and fine fringe. Nothing she conjures can change his low opinion of her appearance, though.
“Away, away, you ugly witch/Go far away and let me be,” he responds. “I never would kiss your ugly mouth/For all of the gifts that you give to me.” Infuriated, Alison Gross whips out her magic wand and turns him into a worm. According to Wikipedia, Steeleye Span added its own chorus and left off the original ballad’s happy ending, which had the man being restored to his proper shape on Halloween by a passing fairy.
Also, he may not have been transformed into an earthworm, since the original lyrics used the word wyrm, which meant dragon. Unlike some of the ancient ballads, which can be slow and gloomy, “Alison Gross” feels like a rowdy Halloween party song villagers might have sung while swinging steins of mead.
Along with Steeleye Span, Fairport Convention helped revitalize folk rock in England by electrifying traditional ballads with modern arrangements. “Tam Lin,” from Fairport Convention’s 1969 album, Liege And Lief, features a strong-willed heroine in a hair-raising tale of lust, evil curses, and redemption. It’s based on Scottish folklore although variations have surfaced in other cultures as well.
The tale warn maidens to steer clear of a wooded area called Carter Hall because a creepy elf named Tam Lin dwells there. A maiden named Janet ignores the warning, believing she has a right to pick roses at Carter Hall since it’s part of her family’s property. “When up there came young Tam Lin says, ‘Lady, pull no more./And why come you to Carter Hall without command from me?’/‘I’ll come and go,’ young Janet said, ‘and ask no leave of thee.”
Fairport Convention breaks up the narrative with energetic instrumental passages driven by electric guitar and fiddle. Although it’s not stated explicitly, Janet’s encounter with Tam Lin includes him seducing her, and later there are consequences. “Well, up then spoke her father dear and he spoke meek and mild/‘Oh, and alas, Janet,’ he said, ‘I think you go with child.” By then, she’s fallen in love with the guy. “For if my love were an earthly knight as he is an elfin grey/I’d not change my own true love for any knight you have.”
Janet goes back to Carter Hall to see if Tam Lin wants to trade the woods for her castle. He’s game, especially since his only other option is being offered up as a human sacrifice. “The Queen of Faeries caught me when from my horse I fell/And at the end of seven years she pays a tithe to hell.” The magic of Halloween offers Tam Lin a means to escape through Janet’s love, and can also transform him back into the handsome knight he was before the Queen of Faeries cast a spell on him.
Janet carries out the elaborate ritual Tam Lin prescribes, and wins his freedom. The Queen of Faeries is furious with the outcome. There are several more sinister variations on the original ballad than Fairport Convention’s version, but there is one that depicts The Queen Of Faeries expressing a grudging admiration for Janet’s pluck.
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