Jolly Old Hawk: An Old Folk Song Winter Playlist

Here’s a new winter playlist with you, full of some of my long-time cherished favorites! Here you'll find old English Wassailing songs, strange apocryphal Christmas stories, shape note hymns, modern songs based in tradition on themes of charity and compassion, and much more. Click here to enjoy Jolly Old Hawk: An Old Folk Winter Playlist!

Here are some highlights:

• Drive the Cold Winter Away: A 17th-century English song describing the many social pleasures of winter.

• Herod and the Cock: An apocryphal Christian story about Herod being shown up by a roasted rooster. 

• Homeless Wassail: A modern song by Ian Robb based on traditional Wassailing tunes about the needs of the unhoused.

• Christ Child's Lullaby: A song originally in Gaelic from the Hebrides of Scotland. Featuring myself and friend Kevin Elam.

• Occom's Carol, performed by Tim Eriksen: A remarkable 18th-century hymn by Mohegan minister Samson Occom, extolling the virtues of love and lamenting the anguish of the baby Jesus, born without care from the world (to me, this evokes the idea of Jesus as refugee).