EWAN MACCOLL DISCOGRAPHY

Issue 38
May 2008

This discography is based on the lists in Ewan MacColl's files,with additions from other sources, most notably The Complete Topic Records Discography by Dr. Mike Brocken and Rod Stradling, which is available online at http://www.mustrad.org.uk/discos/discog.htm

Peggy Seeger's Web site includes a discography that includes the recordings that she and Ewan MacColl made together (along with most of her other records).

This discography is organized by country of issue--English releases first, followed by American and Australian labels, and then the rest of the world. Compilations and radio transcriptions are at the end of the discography. Many of the songs on the British Topic LPs were also released in some form in the U.S. on Riverside, Folkways or Stinson.

Some of the songs on the Australian Wattle label originated on Topic. A few songs on Topic releases were recorded in Australia for Wattle.

Many of the Blackthorne releases were issued in the U.S. on Folkways and Rounder, and in Australia on Larrikin.

Several labels in the U.K. and elsewhere have released Ewan MacColl material on compact discs, including re-issues of earlier LPs, compilations of songs that originally appeared on more than one LP, and individual tracks on “various artists” collections. I have listed the ones I know about, but more will probably appear in the future.

In addition to these publicly available recordings, Ewan MacColl also made numerous radio and television appearances on the BBC and elsewhere. Transcriptions or off-air recordings of a few of these performances may be in private circulation. I have included Catalogue numbers for those BBC Transcription Service discs that I can confirm.

This listing does not include records produced, directed, or compiled by Ewan MacColl, on which he does not appear as a singer. However, I have included recordings of his plays, even if he does not appear in them.

Unless otherwise noted, all listings are 12-inch LPs.

There are almost certainly additional items that do not appear on this list, including private issues. If you know of any, please let me know and I'll add them to the next edition.

Two good online sources of biographical information about Ewan MacColl's life and work are http://www.peggyseeger.com/ewan-maccoll and http://www.wcml.org.uk/people/em/timeline.htm.

HMV Records (England)

10-inch 78 rpm

B10259 Van Dieman's Land/Lord Randall
B10260 Sir Patrick Spens/Eppie Morrie

Decca (England)

7-inch EP
DFE 6367 Alan Lomax And The Ramblers
(Alan Lomax, Ewan MacColl, Peggy Seeger, Shirley Collins, Sandy Brown,
John Cole, Bryan Daley, Jim Bray and Alan Sutton)

45 RPM
45 -F-10787 Alan Lomax and the Ramblers featuring Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger Hard Case/Dirty Old Town

Topic Records (England)

(78 RPM)
TRC39 The Asphalter's Song; I'm Champion at Keeping 'em Rolling
Four Pence a Day; Barnyards of Delgatie
TRC40 The Four Loom Weaver/McKaffery
TRC46 As I Went Out One May Morning/Keach in the Creel
TRC48 Collier Laddie/Johnny Lad (with Al Jeffrey)
TRC49 The Brewer Laddie/Johnny Lad
TRC50 Poor Paddy Works on the Railway
TRC51 Moses of the Mail
TRC54 The Ballad of Stalin
TRC55 The Coalowner and the Pittman's Wife/Jamie Foyers
TRC56 Dirty Old Town/Sheffield Apprentice
TRC57 Browned Off/The Union of the Fire Brigade (with Al Jeffrey)
TRC71 Ballad of New Poland/Trafford Road Ballad (with Brian Daly)
TRC75 Girl at Stzalinvaroz/It's Only Propaganda (with Brian Daly)
TRC77 Johnny Breadisley/Henry Martin (with Brian Daly)
TRC78 Johnny Todd/Cosher Bailey's Engine (with Brian Daly)
TRC79 Wull Cayrd/The Swan-Necked Valve (with Brian Daly)
TRC93 The Iron Horse; Four Pence a Day; The Wark O' the Weavers
TRC97 Sixteen Tons/The Swan-Necked Valve (with Brian Daly)
TRC102 The Banks of Sweet Dundee/Fitba' Crazy; The Wee Cooper O Fife

(8-inch EP)
T.7 (later 8T7) Row Bullies Row (with A.L. Lloyd)
T.8 (later 8T8) The Black Ball Line (with A.L. Lloyd)
Note: T.7 and T.8 were reissues of songs previously issued on TRL 3

(7-inch EP)
TOP71 Gamblers and Sporting Blades (with A.L. Lloyd)
TOP98 Blow the Man Down (with A.L. Lloyd and Harry H. Corbett)
TOP99 A Hundred Years Ago (with A.L. Lloyd)
TOP100 The Coast of Peru (with A.L. Lloyd)
Note: TOP98, TOP99 and TOP100 were re-issues of songs from the earlier T.7 and T.8.

(10-inch LP)
10T13 Shuttle & Cage
10T25 Second Shift
10T26 Barrack Room Ballads (with Peggy Seeger, Jimmy Macgregor and John Cole)
10T36 Bold Sportsmen All (with A.L. Lloyd)
10T50 Still I Love Him (with Isla Cameron)

(12-inch LP)
TRL 1 [Untitled] (from earlier Topic 78s by EM, Isla Cameron, and The Topic Singers)
TRL 3 The Singing Sailor (with A.L. Lloyd and Harry H. Corbett)
12T16 Chorus From the Gallows
12T41 Streets of Song (with Dominic Behan)
12T79 The Jacobite Rebellions
12T103 English and Scots Folk Ballads (with A.L. Lloyd)
12T104 Steam Whistle Ballads
12T130 Bundook Ballads
12T147 The Manchester Angel
12001 Songs Against the Bomb (with Peggy Seeger and Fred & Betty Dallas)

Samplers:
TPS114 Folk Songs
TPS145 Folk Songs
TPS166 Men At Work
TPS169 A Prospect of Scotland
TPS201 Ballads and Broadsides
TPS205 Sea Songs and Shanties

Compact Discs (LP reissues and compilations):
TSCD463 The Real MacColl
TSCD464 Blow the Man Down
TSCD470 The Folk Collection
TSCD480 English & Scottish Folk Ballads
TSCD495 Bold Sportsmen All: Gamblers & Sporting Blades
TSCD499 Round Cape Horn
TSCD502 Chorus From the Gallows
TSCD703 Scottish Voices
TSCD705 The Voice of Folk
TCSD707/8 The Folk Collection (one EM track)

TSCD801 Radio Ballad No 1: The Ballad of John Axon
TSCD802 Radio Ballad No 2: Song of a Road
TSCD803 Radio Ballad No 3: Singing the Fishing
TSCD804 Radio Ballad No 4: The Big Hewer
TSCD805 Radio Ballad No 5: The Body Blow
TSCD806 Radio Ballad No 6: On The Edge
TSCD807 Radio Ballad No 7: The Fight Game
TSCD808 Radio Ballad No 8: The Travelling People

Transatlantic Records (England)

XTRA 1052 Blow Boys, Blow (UK release of Tradition TLP 1026)
XTRA 1054 Classic Scots Ballads (UK release of Tradition TLP 1015)
XTRA 5013 A Sailor's Garland (UK release of Prestige PL-13043)

Argo Records (England)

ZDA 98 The Paper Stage, Volume 1
ZDA 99 The Paper Stage, Volume 2

DA 133 The Travelling People (orig. BBC Radio Ballad)
DA 136 On The Edge (orig. BBC Radio Ballad)
DA 139 (also released as RG 474) The Ballad of John Axon (orig. BBC Radio Ballad)
DA 140 (also released as RG 538) The Big Hewer (orig. BBC Radio Ballad)
DA 141 (also released as RG 539) The Fight Game (orig. BBC Radio Ballad)
DA 142(also released as RG 502) Singing the Fishing (orig. BBC Radio Ballad)

ZDA 137 As We Were A-Sailing (with The Critics Group)
ZDA 138 Ye Mariners All (with The Critics Group)

ZFB 12 Solo Flight
SPA 102 The World of Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger (volume 1)
SPA-A 132 The World of Folk (one song on compilation)
SPA 216 The World of Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger (volume 2)
SPA 307 The World of Folk, Volume 2

Blackthorne Records (England)

All with Peggy Seeger

BR 1050 Penelope Isn't Waiting Any More (Peggy Seeger)
BR 1055 Saturday Night at the Bull and Mouth
BR 1057 Cold Snap
BR 1059 Hot Blast
BR 1061 Different Therefore Equal (Peggy Seeger)
BR 1063 Kilroy was Here
BR 1065 Freeborn Man
BR 1067 Items of News

ESB 79 Blood and Roses, Volume 1
ESB 80 Blood and Roses, Volume 2
ESB 81 Blood and Roses, Volume 3
ESB 82 Blood and Roses, Volume 4
ESB 83 Blood and Roses, Volume 5

BR 20535 Parliamentary Polka/Song of Choice (45 rpm single)
BR 10525 Housewife's Alphabet/My Son (45 rpm)

BS 1 Daddy, What Did You Do in the Strike? (cassette)
BSC2 White Wind, Black Tide (cassette)

Beckenham Anti-Nuclear Group (England)

(cassette)
[No number] 4%

Cooking Vinyl (England)

(12-inch LPs, reissued as Compact Discs)
COOK 036/COOKCD036 Naming of Names - Topical Songs
COOK 038/COOKCD038 Black and White

(Compact Discs)
MASHCD002 Folk On 2: 75th Birthday Symposium

Cooking Vinyl Samplers with one or more Ewan MacColl tracks:
GRILL CD 003 Hootenanny
GRILL CD 004? Cooking Vinyl 1993 Sampler
GRILL CD 005 Cooking Vinyl Catalogue 1993 Volume 2
GRILL CD 007 Cooking Vinyl Sampler 1994
GRILL CD 010? Cooking Vinyl Sampler Volume 6 (1997)
GRILL CD 012 Now This Is What I Call Folk

Recall (England)

(Compact Disc)
149 Antiquities (re-issue of material originally recorded for Cooking Vinyl)

Reactive Masters (England)

(Compact Disc)
REMCD 514 The Legend of Ewan MacColl
(also exists as Nectar NTMCD502)

National Union of Tailoring and Garment Workers (England)

(45 RPM single)
[No number] Come On, Gal (a.k.a. Needle and Thread)

MAI Records (Medical Aid for Indochina) (Canada)

(7-inch 33-1/2 single)
[No number] The Wounded night
Brother Did You Weep? b/w White Blossom (Bach Mai), sung by The Rose-Redwoods

Amalgamated Union of Engineering Workers (England)

(45 rpm Single)
AUEW1 We Are The Engineers / I'm Gonna be an Engineer
(“An A.U.E.W. Contribution to International Womens Year”)

Folktrax (England)

Compact Disks and Cassettes

FTX-253 As I Roved Out 1953-54
(Two half-hour programmes from Peter Kennedy's BBC radio series. The first is a live ceilidh with Bob and Ron Copper, Isla Cameron, Seamus Ennis and Peter Kennedy; The second programme was a studio broadcast that includes one song by Ewan MacColl: “The Trooper Lad”.)
FTX-950 Alan Lomax Presents Sing Christmas 1957
(The 1957 BBC Christmas Broadcast. Also released by Rounder (USA) as ROUN1850)

Columbia Records (USA)

AKL4946 Folksongs from Scotland
SL-206 World Library of Folk and Primitive Music, Volume III: England
SL-209 World Library of Folk and Primitive Music, Volume VI (Scotland)

Stinson Records (USA)

These Stinson releases appear to have originally been issued as 10-inch LPs. They also exist as 12-inch LPs and cassettes. U.S. isssues of material also released in the U.K. on Topic.

SLP 79 Fourpence a Day: British Industrial Folk Songs
SLP 80 Haul on the Bowline (with A.L. Lloyd)
SLP 81 Off to Sea Once More (with A.L. Lloyd)
(SLP 80 and 81 contain material from Topic TRL3, T.7 and T.8)

Riverside Records (USA)

Some of the Riverside releases were US issues of material from the Topic catalog. Others were produced for Riverside by Kenneth Goldstein.

RLP 12-605 Scots Drinking Songs
RLP 12-609 Scots Folk Songs
RLP 12-612 Scots Street Songs
RLP 12-621/22 English and Scots Popular Ballads, Volume 1
RLP 12-623/24 English and Scots Popular Ballads, Volume 2
RLP 12-625/26 English and Scots Popular Ballads, Volume 3
RLP 12-627/28 English and Scots Popular Ballads, Volume 4
RLP 12-629 English and Scots Popular Ballads, Volume 5
Note: RLP 12-621 – 12-629 were also issued as a boxed set of nine LPs
RLP 12-632 Bad Lads and Hard Cases
RLP 12-635 Thar She Blows (with A.L. Lloyd)
RLP 12-637 Matching Songs of Britain and America (with Peggy Seeger)
RLP 12-642 Bless 'Em All
RLP 12-652 Champions and Sporting Blades (with A.L. Lloyd)
RLP 12-656 English and Scots Love Songs (with Isla Cameron)

Compact Disc
RCD-9912-2 The Riverside/Folklore Series, Volume 4: Singing the Mother Countries
(includes five E.M. tracks)

Riverside/Wonderland (USA)

RLP 1424 Folk Songs for Little Sailors (includes two E.M. tracks with Peggy Seeger)

Offbeat Records (USA)

OLP 4023 Scotch Drinking Songs (re-issue of Riverside RLP 12-605)

Washington (USA)

(1960's re-releases of earlier Riverside LPs)

WLP 711 British Army Songs
WLP 724 Whaling Ballads (with A.L. Lloyd)
WLP 733 Scots Folk Songs
VM 738 Street Songs of Scotland

The English and Scottish Popular Ballads (with A.L. Lloyd):
(previously Riverside RLP 621-629)
WLP 715 Volume 1
WLP 716 Volume 2
WLP 717 Volume 3
WLP 718 Volume 4
WLP 719 Volume 5
WLP 720 Volume 6
WLP 721 Volume 7
WLP 722 Volume 8
WLP 723 Great Britain Ballads Not Included in the Child Collection

Tradition Records (USA)

TLP 1015 (on CD as TCD 1051)Classic Scots Ballads (with Peggy Seeger)
TLP 1026 (on CD as TCD 1024)Blow, Boys, Blow (with A.L. Lloyd)
TLP 2059 Manchester Angel (U.S. issue of Topic 12T147)
TSP 2 The Folk Song Tradition (sampler LP with one song by E.M.: “I Loved A Lass” from TLP 1015)

Legacy International (USA)
Bescol (UK)

Compact Discs

CD 346 Scottish Drinking and Pipe Songs (with Peggy Seeger)
(Partial reissue of Tradition TLP 1015 with other, apprently previously unreleased material recorded by Alan Lomax)

Prestige Records (USA)

INT 13060 The Art of the Concertina (Alf Edwards; two songs sung by E.M.)
PL-13004 The Best of Ewan MacColl
PL-13043 A Sailor's Garland (with A.L. Lloyd)
PL-13061 A Lover's Garland (with Peggy Seeger)

Vanguard Recording Society (USA)

VRS-9083 Newport Folk Festival 1960, Volume 1
VRS-9084 Newport Folk Festival 1960, Volume 2
VRS-9090 British Industrial Ballads
VSD 17/18 Greatest Folksingers of the Sixties (One E.M. track: “Ballad of Springhill” from 1960 Newport Folk Festival)

Dionysus Records (USA)

D1 Merry Muses of Caledonia (songs from Robert Burns bawdy collection)

Folk-Lyric Records (USA)

FL 116 A Garland of Scots Folk Song (with Betsy Miller -- Ewan's mother)
DLP2 The Merry Muses of Caledonia (Reissue of Dionysus D1?)

Folkways Records (USA)

FW 3043 Broadside Ballads 1600-1700, Volume 1
FW 3044 Broadside Ballads 1600-1700, Volume 2
FG 3509 The English and Scots Popular Ballads, Volume 1
FG 3510 The English and Scots Popular Ballads, Volume 2
FG 3511 The English and Scots Popular Ballads, Volume 3
FW3805 The Unfortunate Rake
FS 3850 Whaler Out Of New Bedford (with Peggy Seeger, A.L. Lloyd, & Dave Swarbrick)
FW 4506 Music of the World's Peoples: Volume 3 (one E.M. song)
FW 8501 Singing Streets (with Dominic Behan)
FW 8561 Different Therefore Equal (orig. Blackthorne BR 1061)
FW 8562 Kilroy Was Here (orig. Blackthorne 1063)
FW 8563 From Where I Stand (with Peggy Seeger)
FW 8710 Hot Blast (orig. Blackthorne 1059)
FW 8731 Saturday Night at the Bull & Mouth (orig. Blackthorne 1055)
FW 8732 New Briton Gazette, Volume 1 (with Peggy Seeger)
FW 8734 New Briton Gazette, Volume 2 (with Peggy Seeger)
FW 8736 Folkways Record of Contemporary Songs
FW 8755 Two-Way Trip (with Peggy Seeger)
FW 8756 Songs of Two Rebellions
FW 8757 Popular Scots Songs
FW 8758 Songs of Robert Burns
FW 8759 Bothy Ballads of Scotland
FW 8760 Traditional Songs and Ballads (with Peggy Seeger)
FW 8765 Cold Snap (orig. Blackthorne 1057)
FW 8871 Field Trip -- England (two tracks on a collection of field recordings)

(Never Issued)
New Briton Gazette, Volume 3
Fields of Vietnam

Note: All Folkways releases are available on Custom CD from the Smithsonian Institution, which owns the Folkways catalogue. http://www.si.edu/folkways/

Smithsonian Folkways Recordings

(Compact Disc)
SFW CD 40130 Best of Broadside 1962 - 1988
(five-CD box set includes one E.M. track with Peggy Seeger -- “Legal-Illegal” from Hot Blast)

Rounder Records (USA)

3080 Freeborn Man (orig. Blackthorne 1065)
4003 At the Present Moment
4011 Penelope Isn't Waiting Any More (orig. Blackthorne BR 1050)
4015 Songs For Peace (U.S. issue of German Folk Freak FF 4010)

(compact discs)
ROUN1700 The Alan Lomax Collection Sampler(one E.M. track: The Four Loom Weaver)
ROUN1719 Songs of Christmas From the Alan Lomax Collection (one E.M. track: Christmas Rhyme)
ROUN1741 World Library of Folk and Primitive Music - Volume 1: England
(From Alan Lomax's field recordings 1939-51; two E.M. tracks)
ROUN1743 World Library of Folk and Primitive Music - Volume 3: Scotland
(From 1951 field recordings by Alan Lomax; three E.M. tracks)
ROUN1850 Sing Christmas and the Turn of the Year: The Live Christmas Day 1957 Broadcast on BBC Radio
(E.M. appears on several tracks; this broadcast included a long list of performers)
This programme was also issued by Folktrax. as FTX-950
CDROUN1778 Folk Songs of England, Ireland, Scotland & Wales: Songs of Seduction
(Various Artists recorded by Alan Lomax)

Mercury Records (USA)

SRM-1-685 The Second Annual Farewell Reunion (Mike Seeger; one song with E.M.)

Green Linnet (USA)

(Compact Disc)
3058 Black and White (orig. Cooking Vinyl COOKCD038)

Acoustic Disc (USA)

(Compact Disc)
ACD 46 Grateful Dawg
(From the soundtrack of the movie of the same name about Jerry Garcia and David Grisman; includes one E.M. track: “Off to Sea Once More”)

Wattle Records (Australia)

(78 rpm)
?? Jim Jones at Botany Bay/Black Velvet Band (with Peggy Seeger and John Cole)

(7-inch EP)
B-2 Convicts and Currency Lads (with A.L. Lloyd, Peggy Seeger and John Cole)

(10-inch LP)
C5 Singing Sailors (with A.L. Lloyd)
C6 Shanties and Fo'c'sle Songs (with A.L. Lloyd)
Note: C5 and C6 appear to contain tracks from Topic TRL3, T.7 and T.8

Larrikin Records (Australia)

BR 1059 Hot Blast (orig. Blackthorne 1059)
BR 1061 Different Therefore Equal (orig. Blackthorne 1061)
EM 2556 No Thyme Lyke the Present (Also issued by EMI)

Amalgamated Metal Workers And Shopwrights Union (Australia)

(Double Cassette Set)

AMWSU 91 Songs of Struggle
(Live concert with Peggy Seeger, recorded at the Tom Mann Theatre in Sydney, 198?)

Le Chant du Monde (France)

(7-inch EPs)
Contents from Topic LPs

LDY 4155 Chants de Marins Anglais No. 1 (with A.L.Loyd and Harry H. Corbett)
LDY 4156 Angleterre: Chants de Travail (with Peggy Seeger)
LDY 4157 Chants de Marins Anglais No. 2 (With A.L. Lloyd)

Albatross (Italy)

VPA 8093 Living Folk (with Peggy Seeger and The London Critics Group)

Recorded April 24, 1968 at the Teatro Lirico in Milan, Italy
Reissued in 2002 on CD in Japan as KING KICC-5762

OneWorld

No number We Have A Dream (with other artists)

Folk Freak Records (Germany)

FF 4010 Songs for Peace
(One song with Peggy Seeger -- "Come Live With Me" -- on a collection)

Amiga (East Germany)

8 45 367 Freeborn Man (reissue of Blackthorne 1065)
8 45 374/375 das Beste aus 20 Jahren. Festival des politischen Liedes 1970-1989
(Compilation including at least one E.M. track)

Litera (Germany)

8 60 040 Unternehmam ol Zweig
(This is a performance of a German translation of EM's play, Operation Olive Branch, which was an adaptation of Aristophanes' Lysistrata. EM does not appear on this recording.)

Ossian (Ireland)

CD reissues of LPs licensed from the Topic and Folkways catalogues. Order through the Internet from www.ossian.ie.

CD10354 Bothy Ballads of Scotland (orig. Folkways FW 8759)
CD10355 Scottish Traditional Songs (with Peggy Seeger)
CD10356 Songs of Robert Burns (orig. Folkways FW 8758
CD10357 The Jacobite Rebellions (with Peggy Seeger; orig. Topic 12T79)
CD10358 Traditional Songs & Ballads of Scotland (with Peggy Seeger; orig. Folkways FW 8760)

MNW (Musiknatet Waxholm) (Sweden)

MNW59P Alternativ Festival
(Music recorded at the Alternativfestivalen in Stockholm, 17 - 22 March 1975. Includes Peggy Seeger and Ewan MacColl on one track: “Song of Choice”. 2-LP set.)

Compilations

These are “Various Artists” collections that include at least one Ewan MacColl track. In general, these are re-issues of material from one or more of the LPs or CDs released over Ewan's own name.

Island/Transatlantic Folk 1001 The Electric Muse: The Story of Folk into Rock
(one track in four-LP set--E.M. with Alan Lomax & The Ramblers)

Golden Hour GH 855 The Best of Folk

Elektra EKL-9001 The Folk Box
(One track -- “Geordie” -- in a four-LP set of songs taken from the Folkways and Elektra catalogs.)

(compact discs)
Castle ESB CD 416 New Electric Muse (one song on 3 CD set)
Rhino R2 72160 Troubadours of British Folk, Volume I: Unearthing the Tradition
(One track -- “Dirty Old Town”)
Nectar NTRCD 047 Essential Folk, Volume II
Greentrax CDTRAX5005 If it Wisnae For the Union (STUC Centenary Album)
Music Club MCCD ?? Folk Heritage
Debutante 565 616-2 And Who Knows Where the Tyme Goes “A Collection of Folk Classics”
(One E.M. track -- “Dirty Old Town”)
Retro R2CD 40-106 And We'll All Have Tea; English Folk Anthology
(One E.M. track -- “The Four Loom Weaver”)
Emporio EMPRCD 826 Folk Heartbeat II
Emporio DEMPCD 002 Festival of Folk
Sony/Smithsonian Folk Song America: A 20^th Century Revival
?? A Celtic Celebration
?? Golden Bough - Festival de musiques irlandaises
?? Gaitas, Violines y Otras Hierbas (Disco 2)

BBC Radio Transcriptions

104181/2 Bold Nelson's Praise
(“A garland of stories and songs from the time of Trafalgar, by A.L. Lloyd” with Ewan MacColl, Isla Cameron, Stan Kelly and others)

(Exact date unknown--1950's) The Little Beggars

CN 343 (Discs 114804/05/06) The Fight Game (Radio Ballad)
All of the Radio Ballads were distributed to broadcasters outside the UK by the BBC Transcription Service as sets of 12-inch discs.

Radio Documentary Series (USA)

(released as boxed set of cassettes)
Parsley, Sage and Politics; The Lives and Music of Peggy Seeger and Ewan MacColl
http://www.pegseeger.com/html/psp.html

EAV Filmstrip (USA)

LE27953 - LE27954 The Ballad Tradition
(LPs to accompany an educational filmstrip. “Narrated and sung by Ewan MacColl with Peggy Seeger”)