> Sandy Denny > Songs > Fairport Convention: Nottamun Town

Fairport Convention: Nottamun Town

[Trad. arr. Fairport Convention]

A song from the repertoire of Jean Ritchie of Viper in Perry County, Kentucky, borrowed by Shirley Collins when Jean was collecting in England, then recorded with Davey Graham, the tune taken by Bob Dylan for his angry Masters Of War and here sung by Sandy Denny with Fairport. The guitar-and-drums duet is reminiscent of the things Davey was doing on Better Git It In Your Soul several years before.

Ashley Hutchings commented in his songbook A Little Music:

[Nottamun Town is more than a nonsense song,] probably an old magic song using the device of riddles. The “back-handed awk'ard talk” resembles the language of mummers plays. As an old Kentuckian told Jean Ritchie: “If 'twas understood, then the good luck and the magic be lost.” But who can resist a riddle? So, at the risk of losing good luck and magic, perhaps I could start the ball rolling by suggesting thet the part which begins “Sat down on a hard, cold frozen stone” might refer to a cemetery?

Some explicitly sexual references are said to have been self-censored out of the song by the folk.

This version appears on What We Did On Our Holidays, on The Electric Muse, and in 2004 on the 5CD Fledg'ling anthology A Boxful of Treasures. There is an interesting instrumental portion in the song, featuring acoustic guitar (Richard Thompson), bongoes (Martin Lamble) and violin (Simon Nicol).

A BBC radio version was recorded on May 28, 1968 in Studio 1, 201 Piccadilly, for the Top Gear / John Peel radio show and broadcast on June 2, 1968 with a repeat on June 30, 1968. It was produced by Bernie Andrews. The track can be found on tne semi-bootleg From Past Archives It was finally released officially in 2002 on the Island CD re-release of Heyday and on the Fairport unConventioNal 4CD set.

Roger McGuinn and Jean Ritchie sing this on Roger McGuinn's CD Treasures from the Folk Den.

Lyrics

In Nottamun Town not a soul would look up,
Not a soul would look up, not a soul would look down,
Not a soul would look up, not a soul would look down,
To show me the way to fair Nottamun Town.

Met the King and the Queen, and a company more
Come a-walking behind and a-riding before
Come a stark naked drummer a-beating the drum
With his hands on his bosom, come marching along.

Sat down on a hard, hot cold frozen stone,
Ten thousand stood 'round me, yet I was alone
Took my hat in my hands for to keep my head warm,
Ten thousand got drownded that never was born.

(repeat first verse)

Jean Ritchie's Lyrics

Jean Ritchie had three more verses (2, 3, and 5) than the ones sung by Fairport Convention:

In fair Nottamun Town not a soul would look up
Not a soul would look up, not a soul would look down
Not a soul would look up, not a soul would look down
To show me the way to fair Nottamun Town.

I rode a grey horse, a mule roany mare
Grey mane and grey tail, a green stripe down her back
Grey mane and grey tail, a green stripe down her back
There wa'nt a hair on her be-what was coal black.

She stood so still, she threw me to the dirt.
She tore my hide and bruised my shirt
From saddle to stirrup I mounted again
And on my ten toes I rode over the plain.

Met the King and the Queen, and a company more
A-Riding behind and a-marching before
Come a stark naked drummer a-beating the drum
With his heels in his bosom come a-marching along.

They laughed and they smiled, not a soul did look gay
They talked all the while, not a word did they say
I bought me a quart to drive gladness away
And to stifle the dust, for it rained the whole day.

Sat down on a hard, hot cold frozen stone,
Ten thousand stood 'round me, yet it's alone
Took my hat in my hands for to keep my head warm,
Ten thousand got drownded that never was born.