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The Ever Decreasing Circle

The Ever Decreasing Circle

The Ever Decreasing Circle
The Kipper Family
with the New Trunch Coronation Band

Dambuster Records DAM 012 (LP, UK, 1985)
Dambuster Records DAMCD012 (CD, UK, 2005)

Recorded at a variety of locations, including the Parish Church of St. Just-outside-Trunch, the Old Goat, and the Front Parlour (courtesy of Mrs. Dot Kipper), by the Dambuster mobile recording studio.
Produced by Richard Digance and engineered by Dave Bubb
Sid and Henry Kipper are joined, instrumentally, by the New Trunch Coronation Band and, vocally, by the Trunch Glee Club, the regulars of the Old Goat Inn, George, Len, Dot, Kevin and Annie Kipper, and the Vicar.

All songs published by Dambuster Music Ltd.

Tracks

Side 1Side 2
  1. Thirty Days (0:05)
  2. Rusty Cold Farmer (3:31)
  3. The Turning of the Year (0:08)
  4. The Trunch Wassail Song (2:08)
  5. Valentine Rhyme (0:13)
  6. The Losing of the Whale (4:50)
  7. Easter Week (0:22)
  8. The Southrepps May Song (2:54)
  9. Derby Day (0:08)
  10. Creeping Ivy (2:40)
  11. The Wild Mounting Time (4:12)
  1. The Glorious Twelfth (0:15)
  2. Bald General Coote (4:19)
  3. Plough the Fields and Scatter (0:09)
  4. Harvest Away (3:32)
  5. Summer Is a Going Out (0:10)
  6. Joan Sugarbeet (3:26)
  7. Remember, Remember (0:13)
  8. Spencer the Wild Rover (2:46)
  9. No Ale (0:11)
  10. The Poacher's Christmas (5:56)
  11. Happy New Year (0:06)

Note to Spencer the Wild Rover

The discovery that two pages of Billy Kipper's old song book had become stuck together has raised more questions than it has answered. When did they get stuck together, and, more importantly, how? Is the entire Kipper repertoire the result of pages getting stuck together? Such questions are better left to experts in matters adhesive. The fact is, however, that anyone who regarded Sid and Henry as simple, innocent rustics must now think again. It is quite clear that they are also enthusiastic and methodical researchers into their local traditions. With loving care and old rabbit-skinning knife Sid prised the errant pages apart and discovered this little gem. The big question now is how such an unusual song found its way into the Trunch tradition in the first place. According to Henry there is a story that it was first sung in the middle of the last century by Ephraim Kipper, who suffered from what might now be described as schizophrenia. Other favourites of his, such as Pretty Nancy Usher's Well and Cruising All Around My Hat are now, sadly, lost.

(from the record sleeve notes)

Note

Those loveable bastions of the Norfolk singing tradition are back with another selection of singular Trunch variants of traditional English songs. Unlike their first a cappella album they are joined by the famed New Trunch Coronation Band which features such superb musicians as Tony Hall, melodeon (a brilliant musician who has been absent from record for too long), Pennie Harris, hammered dulcimer, Tim Laycock, concertina, and Ursula Park, cello. Here we have our first chance to hear such classic songs as The Rusty Cold Farmer, The Losing of the Whale, The Southrepps May Song, Bald General Coote, The Wild Mounting Time, Joan Sugarbeet, the amazing Spencer The Wild Rover, and others.

(Thanks to F. S. for the note.)

Acknowledgements

Garry Gillard thanks Tony Rees - and John Bushby who kindly loaned him the precious original.