A-Conjuring Summer In
Beltane Fire Society Edinburgh
THE GOLDEN ROOM EPISODE 11
A-Conjuring Summer In
Oh, do not tell the Priest our plight,
Or he would call it a sin;
But–we have been out in the woods all night,
A-conjuring Summer in!
Rudyard Kipling, ‘A Tree Song’
To celebrate May Day, the ancient Celtic fire festival of Beltane which marks the beginning of summer, a merry selection of poems, songs, and field recordings from across Britain – featuring an archive recording from the iconic Padstow Obby Oss celebrations in 1932, the Glastonbury Beltane Celebration, Hastings Jack-in-the-Green, and the Beltane Fire Society of Edinburgh, plus original poetry and folk music. Compiled by Kevan Manwaring.
Track Listings
Dawn Chorus – a English woodland in May, part 1
Padstow Obby Oss (1932) Pathé News
One with the Land – Kevan Manwaring (Silver Branch)
Maypole Song – The Wicker Man (1973)
Beltane Fire Society, Edinburgh, montage
Maid Flower Bride – Kevan Manwaring (Silver Branch)
To Be Unbuttoned – Gabrielle O’Connell
Hastings Jack-in-the-Green (2019)
May Song – Beggars Velvet (1990)
The Winning of Spring – Kevan Manwaring (Silver Branch)
Lass of Islington – trad. David Metcalfe (from ‘Rogues & Ravens’)
The Well – Ella Bloomfield, with drumming by Jay Ramsay (from ‘Phoenix demo’)
Heartwood – Kevan Manwaring (Silver Branch)
Dawn Chorus – a English woodland in May, part 2
River Lover – Gabrielle O’Connell
Glastonbury Beltane Celebration (2019)
Prologue – Jehanne Mehta (words); Fred Hagender (harp) (from ‘Heart of Yew’)
Campfire – Wiltshire downs, late April
Turning the Wheel: seasonal Britain on two wheels by Kevan Manwaring, published by O Books , 2011
Silver Branch: bardic poems published by Awen 2018
With huge thanks to the dedicated and creative communities who have kept the celebrations in Padstow, Hastings, Glastonbury and Edinburgh going all these years. May we gather once again (when it’s safe) to a-conjure summer in.
