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A Christmas Carol: A Folk Opera

by GreenMatthews

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1.
A tale of Victorian Yuletide we'll tell So listen unto us and listen ye well A tale we'll unfold that we're sure you will know By Mister Charles Dickens, who lived long ago Here's a health to the holly and ivy And a health the Yule log we burn To the goose and the tree and the glad company Here's a health to Old Christmas Returned The month was December, snow lay on the ground And the wind chilled the busy streets of London Town The city was bustling with vigour and vim Save for one lonely office which stood dark and dim. The office's sign hung forlornly and read: 'Messrs. Scrooge and Marley' though Marley was dead. They'd buried him deep down and there he would stay But to change signs costs money, and Scrooge wouldn’t pay. A mean-tempered grasping old miser was he! He was so tight with money that he'd skin a flea For its hide if he thought it would add to his hoard. For Wealth was his Deity; Profit his Lord. Such a skinflint you've never encountered As cold and as hard as a stone No warmth and no glee and no sweet charity He's Winter made flesh, skin and bone One cold Christmas Eve, as Scrooge sat at his desk Bob Cratchit, his clerk, plucked up courage to ask: 'Kind sir, might I ask since it's Christmas Day soon If I work Christmas morning, could I leave here at noon?’ 'A pox upon Christmas!' the old miser spat 'You know very well that I've no time for that. I suppose I can cope if you're early away But mind you work twice as hard on Boxing Day!’ Flushed with success, Bob walked back to his place A glow of deep pleasure suffused his pinched face For he'd eat Christmas dinner with his family and wife And with young Tiny Tim, the delight of his life. Just then came a knocking - Bob went to the door There stood a gent crying: 'Alms for the poor! We provide them with sustenance, clothes and refuge Would you care to donate to us, dear Mr Scrooge?’ 'Alms for the poor, sir? Please give me details. 'Are there no workhouses? Are there no gaols?' 'I regret, sir, there are.' said this friend of the poor 'Then let them go there!' snapped Scrooge, slamming the door. Scrooge's nephew was next, his face red as a berry 'Happy Christmas, dear uncle! May your Yule be merry! Cratchit looked up and he smiled at the lad But one glare from Scrooge sent him back to his pad. 'Uncle, you always spend Yuletide alone. This year come to dinner with us at our home! We promise we'll give you a Christmas to treasure!' But Scrooge merely scowled and bent over his ledger 'Uncle, pray tell me why you look so glum? The happiest time of the whole year has come When all through the land folk make merry and feast From richest to poorest, from greatest to least’. 'If it comes to that, nephew, what brings you such cheer When you're poor as a church mouse and your prospects are drear? I'll be too busy working to come round and dine Keep Christmas in your way - I'll keep it in mine! Later that day, Scrooge returned to his home Where – needless to mention – he dwelt all alone. As he searched for his key, he looked up at the door And noticed a thing he'd not noticed before. The knocker – a thing made of solid cast iron - Was wrought to resemble an African lion But now it was Marley, his partner of old Who glowered at Scrooge in the gloom and the cold. 'Beware' cried the knocker: Scrooge started away In terror and shock, with a cry of dismay. But when he looked back at the knocker he saw It looked just the same as it had done before. 'Humbug!' Scrooge muttered 'A trick of the light! What a weakling I was for to take such a fright.' His brave words however his actions belied As he fumbled the lock and then scuttled inside. But no trick of the light was the spectre Though Scrooge had dismissed it as naught Before long he'd see that old Jacob Marley Was not quite as dead as he'd thought...
2.
Upstairs went Scrooge with a single candle. The house was dark but the dark is cheap. Beside the fire ate a frugal supper, Then closed his eyes and fell fast asleep He had not long been in sloth and slumber When he was wakened by a sound. He heard a bell toll in the distance And then from down below the ground He heard a groaning and a wailing As one in torment and despair The sound at first came from the cellar But slowly travelled up the stair Closer and closer came the crying The voice familiar seemed to be Then with a crash the door burst open There stood the Ghost of Old Marley Old Scrooge sat speechless in his armchair And gazed upon the spectre bleak With chains and fetters was it girded It gazed on Scrooge and began to speak....
3.
My old friend Ebenezer Scrooge, my partner when alive, I'm glad to find you well and trust our counting-house still thrives? Though by your ashen countenance I judge that my arrival Has caused you no comfort or joy, comfort or joy Has caused to you no comfort or joy. Now doubtless you desire to know why I've returned again. This visit from beyond the grave must seem to you arcane, But gaze upon my fetters and pray take note of this chain Which has brought me no comfort or joy, comfort or joy Which has brought me no comfort or joy. This chain I forged when on the earth, by avaricious deeds. Thus am I fettered by my own hard-heartedness and greed. I am beyond redemption and so now with you I plead Let me bring you some comfort and joy, comfort and joy Let me bring you some comfort and joy. For if my chain seems long to you who died so long ago, Think how much longer must be yours and daily how it grows, And how you'll spend the afterlife in misery and woe In a place with no comfort or joy, comfort or joy For in Hell there is no comfort or joy. You have one chance to yet evade this bleak eternity. This night more ghosts shall visit you – their number shall be three. Pay heed to them and if you do I vow and guarantee They shall bring you great comfort and joy, comfort and joy They shall bring to you great comfort and joy My time alas is ended, friend, and so I take my leave To stumble through the endless night; to sorrow, mourn and grieve. Think on my words and do not fail to seize this one reprieve And I wish you great comfort and joy, comfort and joy So farewell my friend – I wish you only joy...
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After Marley 02:26
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A Funeral 02:01
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about

A brand-new retelling of the best-loved Yuletide adventure of them all – “A Christmas Carol”

Using new lyrics and traditional English folk tunes, GreenMatthews (with special guest Jude Rees of Pilgrims' Way) use a bewitching blend of voices and instruments to create a musical reimagining of this seasonal favourite.

The album is an hour-long “folk opera” of Dickens’ iconic novella and is presented entirely in narrative song, using brand-new lyrics set to traditional English folk and carol melodies.

The album is the latest in a long line of similar folk operas such as Peter Bellamy’s The Transports, Fairport Convention’s Babbacombe Lee and of course Ewan McColl’s classic Radio Ballads. Lyricist Chris Green says “A Christmas Carol is one of those rare works of literature that has been completely assimilated into the popular consciousness. It’s a tale that has been retold and reinvented by each new generation for the last 170 years, much like a classic folk song - so it seemed a natural progression to retell it using traditional melodies with new words.”

credits

released November 13, 2017

Sophie Matthews - voice, flute, English border bagpipes

Chris Green - voice, guitar, mandocello, piano, accordion, bass, drums

with special guest

Jude Rees - voice, oboe, melodeon

Lyrics by Chris Green. Music trad. arr. Chris Green.

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GreenMatthews Coventry, UK

Chris Green and Sophie Matthews play English traditional songs and tunes in a thoroughly 21st-century kick-ass style. Using a blend of ancient instruments such as cittern, English bagpipes and shawm as well as modern folk instruments such as guitar, flute and piano accordion, they breathe new life into material from hundreds of years ago, making it fresh and relevant for a modern audience. ... more

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