Barbara Allen (Traditional Folk Song)

[@alyasagan3620]

Nostalgic really...its been 40 yrs since I heard someone singing..bring back old memory..it was so beautiful back then.

[@garywhitaker4124]

Beautiful voice for singing folk songs thanks for sharing

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Thank you, Gary! I like how you said that.

[@TheBillp62]

Beautiful ! Joan Baez-like....I heard 3 verses of the song at the end of the 1951 Alistair Sim movie “A Christmas Carol” when I was younger, and it still is quite haunting as it was written in the 17th century in Scotland. Well Done Nina !

[@ernestwilliams268]

I love the one by Crystal Gayle Similar to the one my mother sang in the Smokies NC when I was a child in the 40's An old English version.

[@princessblazena]

A Christmas Carol is where I first heard the song too! I was always bothered that they cut off singing right in the middle of a verse for a dramatic entrance 😂

[@YorkyOne]

There's no evidence that it is Scottish - the earliest reference being the Samuel Pepys diary entry referring to it being sung at a London party 2nd January 1666.

[@oscar646]

So simple and faithful to the song’s intent. So beautifully done. Thank you.

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Thank you very much, Oscar. I’m very glad you liked it ☺️

[@NorthCrayMalcolm]

A beautiful rendition. Thank you.

[@NinaRicciMusic]

It is heartening to see so many people enjoy my rendition of this beloved old song. Thank you, Malcolm.

[@AprilKeez]

I will never forget the first time I heard you sing; you totally floored me!! Your voice is so stunning and I love these videos!

[@EdSandersCOS]

This is a beautiful rendition of an old song, brought to new life! Thanks for it!

[@albertadriftwood3612]

Captivating voice on this singer. Best live version sung under the trees ever.

[@000RainbowChick000]

Ooooh beautiful 🥰

[@mrgildons]

Wonderful rendition of this great classic

[@trackie1957]

That was lovely. I can’t sing it myself without choking up, so thank you!

[@ריצארדיעקובסון]

I know the feeling

[@ccdg1066]

I have the same problem/feeling. Can't hold a tear or two.@@ריצארדיעקובסון

[@melinda6024]

this lady must have listened to Joan Baez a million times, because she sounds just like Joan. The best version I have heard was by the folk singer, Pete Seeger.

[@lacedmichey6404]

The first time I heard of this song was in my music appreciation class. I enjoyed the song and decided a few months later to search it up and I stumbled across this vid. Your version sounds nice.👍🏼

[@mdperkins1482]

Good job! Beautiful voice.❤

[@baxtronicxavier]

This is a beautiful rendition. Your voice is so sweet.

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Thanks very much!

[@LB-eh5fz]

PLEASE DO MORE SONGS LIKE THIS ,,YOU HAVE A BEAUTIFUL VOICE,AND YOU ARE VERY BEAUTIFUL, 🌹

[@donnafriedman3316]

You do it justice. TY for sharing. We all need more music in these times.

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Thanks, Donna! Glad I could cheer you up with a song!

[@syourke3]

Very nicely done. Lovely. Thank you.

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Thank you for watching! There are more videos that you may like on my channel. Be sure to subscribe!

[@banjosforbreakfast6086]

👏👏👏 One of my favorites done beautifully!

[@patriciodasilva7902]

My grandfather and grandmother named my mom after this song.

[@EricJS53]

Thanks for sharing this oldie but goodie! Very nice version! Have a great day!...and keep passing the music on, Nina!

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Thanks, Eric! Sorry for the slow reply! It is a goodie, isn't it!

[@TrueNorthPoliticalPulse]

I was looking for this tune, and found you singing it... Just wanted to comment that you did an *excellent* job. Thank you so much!

[@harveyjohnny1967]

lovely version

[@mikefitchNYC1971]

I love this song. You did an outstanding job on it Nina.

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Mike, thank you so much for the compliment and thank you for coming to my show this afternoon!!! I am excited for you about your future plans. Mom told me about Tennessee 😃

[@adriennemorris536]

You made my morning! What a lovely rendition!

[@NinaRicciMusic]

I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Adrienne! Have a wonderful day!

[@tzacixim]

made my night!

[@NinaRicciMusic]

I’m really glad you found my video! I post traditional folk songs now and again, so be sure to subscribe to my channel for more content. I have a new video out called “All My Trials.”

[@linda36]

🔥❤️my second grade teacher read us this poem in class then sang it, I’ve loved it ever since and to this day know every word by memory ..your voice and style sounds so much like hers I love it! ❤️

[@joeysanguine3596]

Happy to subscribe🥰🥰; so glad you covered this epic song ma’am

[@loz911]

I THINK I HEARD JEAN RITCHIE SIING THIS. BEAUTIFUL SONG & VOICE!

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Hey Loz 👋 Thank you very much! You sound like you’re knowledgeable about folk music. I haven’t heard Jean Ritchie’s version before. I should search it out and see if she does have one.

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Have you subscribed to my channel already? There’s more music where this video came from!! 🌻🪕🎶

[@michaelnoonan352]

a beautiful rendition of an old melancholy song

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Thank you for stopping by, Michael! It certainly is a lovely, albeit melancholy song. Thank you for the compliment!

[@lindaberg1695]

I had to come back to hear this again, it's just so lovely! I'd love to hear you sing 'Scarlet Ribbons'.....

[@NinaRicciMusic]

I am planning to honor your request very soon, Linda!

[@lindaberg1695]

@@NinaRicciMusic That's wonderful, I look forward to it. Your voice is so well suited to that beautiful song. ♥

[@NinaRicciMusic]

@@lindaberg1695 I am glad you recommended “Scarlett Ribbons” to me. I hadn’t heard it before but it very quickly touched me with its sweetness.

[@axeman4071]

Beautiful

[@domenicoturco3543]

Wow!

[@keithnaylor1981]

Beautiful performance.

[@1000rocanroles]

Nina you are beautiful and you sing wonderful! Greetings from Argentina

[@pleasesayhi4009]

So lovely!

[@Charlie-fx9dp]

Near of Joan Baez... Good cover of this classic and sad song! From France.

[@larrymason9091]

Enjoyed the song, miss getting to see you. Hope you and your mom are doing well.

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Miss you as well, Larry! Are you doing well during this quarantine? I, for one, am enjoying the solitude right now, and they beautiful spring!

[@princessblazena]

So beautiful 😱😍❤😊

[@johnwallacemcclure1143]

You did the ballad great justice. Keep on singing and playing!

[@LB-eh5fz]

I JUST SUBSCRIBED,, I LOVE THIS

[@josephinephillips6608]

So beautiful!!!

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Thank you, Josephine! You have the same name as my grandmother 😊

[@ScarlettAstor]

This is a lovely rendition.

[@patriottroll1764]

Beautiful!

[@genuineyou]

This is the only recording I've ever found that uses the melody my mother always sang. She was from the mountains of North Alabama.

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Hi JoLaine, I’m very glad you found my video and could hear the melody again. It’s a song that I think touches people in their youth and it stays with them lifelong. Thanks for commenting and sharing your story🌹

[@NinaRicciMusic]

P.S. I live about an hour from Scottsboro, AL in the foothills of Signal Mountain in Chattanooga.

[@genuineyou]

I'm from Mentone Al, just down lookout mountain from you! ​@@NinaRicciMusic

[@NinaRicciMusic]

@@genuineyou Wow!! I say “small world” so often now, I shouldn’t be surprised anymore. Well, let me tell you, I will be performing at Songbirds in Chattanooga on June 20th at 7pm, and you are cordially invited! 🎶 My mom and I enjoy visiting the flight school on Lookout for sunsets 🌅 Hope to run into you!

[@genuineyou]

Alas, I live in Florida now. But I've subscribed and will keep up with you that way.

[@danielross4869]

Lovely

[@robertmiller6467]

At first I just had the audio and couldn't figure out if this was Melanie (Safka) or Dolly Parton. Neither! Great voice, great talent.

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Lol! What a great comment. Glad you found my video, Robert! Hope you’ll subscribe and follow my journey. I post traditional folk songs ever so often and original songs, too!

[@lindaberg1695]

Beautifully done!

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Thank you, Linda!

[@denniswalter3920]

If you like this song... please subscribe to Nina Ricci's KZbin channel. There's dozens of other great song's that you're sure to enjoy!! 🎵 🎸😎. Happy listening 🎧

[@stephenwhite5658]

I was searching for different versions of this song to learn it on mountain dulcimer. Very well done ! Merry Christmas to you!! Sorry for the harsh comments I wouldn't worry bout them too much🙂

[@NinaRicciMusic]

I am always happy to hear of folks finding this video when they are searching for “Barbara Allen.” It is just one of those timeless songs that touches people, usually at an early age, I think.

[@stephenwhite5658]

I think so as well! There's so many versions I've been also listening to Jean Ritchie's version this morning it makes me tear up! I saw you are in Nashville I came out here from Outer Banks North Carolina to Columbia Tennessee to see my sister for the holidays thank you for responding I've been playing dulcimers since 1996 but have never learned this song

[@NinaRicciMusic]

@@stephenwhite5658 I am from Nashville! But I don’t spend a great deal of time there anymore. I mostly live *on the road.* This summer I performed in Gatlinburg for a month, and then I was picked up by Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, TN for a 3-month performing contract with the theme park. Now, I’m in Florida for the winter. It’s a full life! 🎶 ninariccimusic.com

[@stephenwhite5658]

Wow! That's really awesome to hear good for you and good luck to you!! I've been playing drums for 39 yrs in North Carolina but my music ship hasn't come in yet!!

[@KoolKats5]

You should come play at Bristol's Rhythm and Roots 9/13-9/15/24. You'd get a lot of exposure. You're very talented. Could you do, Casey Chapman's, "You are the Captain"?

[@NinaRicciMusic]

@@KoolKats5 Are you affiliated with Bristol Rhythm & Roots? I’d love to perform there but haven’t been so fortunate to be invited, yet.

[@KoolKats5]

@@NinaRicciMusic I'm a fan, I'm attending the event again this year. There are 92 acts playing. Contact the event planners online. You can find them by Googling, Bristol Rhythm and Roots. I'm not sure what it takes to get invited as a headlining musician (where you'll make $) but I've seen many other new, amateur artists playing around town at bars and at the camp grounds as sort of a warm up and they make big tips. People like to keep the party going when they leave the shows downtown and the smaller artists are always appreciated.

[@suzannelawson9215]

Happy, happy Birthday Nina! Such nice photo of you on your special day and the one with your aunt Wendy too. Hope you both had a fun day! Does your aunt sing too?

[@VinylBlog]

A fantastic rendition- very Baez-esque! Sometimes known as ‘Bawbee Allen’ in England. That’s how I usually sing it

[@harrywhale3647]

Samuel Peeps referred to the song as Barbary Allen.

[@ianwallace4032]

Never heard bawbee Allan.....

[@VinylBlog]

Ian Wallace Try the Ewan MacColl version! If you’re interested

[@harrywhale3647]

@@VinylBlog yes I know his version. much better than this

[@VinylBlog]

harry whale It’s defiantly a more British version, whereas this, like Joan Baez’ version, is more Americanised. I wouldn’t say any version is better, just personal preference like

[@Kentuckymadness1]

It is 400 years old this Christmas.

[@skinandwire8808]

Isn't it tragic how when you get a woman doing her interpretation of an ancient song that has been interpreted in literally thousands of different ways on both sides of the Atlantic, you get a bunch of blokes telling her how she ought to have done it better?

[@Progger11]

That's the Internet in the new century for you.

[@janfrye3156]

She sounds a lot like Joan Baez. That's why I requested this song Jan Frye

[@knackerEv]

Yes it is. But it's only the tip of the tragedy. Too many people these days just won't let other people be their selves. Long live fluffy.

[@patmoriarty9050]

I learnt this song from my Mother back in the 50s in Killarney, County Kerry Ireland. words were slightly different. Can any one tell me where the song comes from. In my version there is mention of Scarlet Town. Does any one know where this is.

[@mrh375]

The English town of Reading in the Royal county of Berkshire is the origin of Scarlett Town,

[@patmoriarty9050]

@@mrh375 Thank You Very Much. My Mother now aged 92 cant remember where she heard this lovely song.

[@KoolKats5]

Please help me find an old folk song about Barbry Allen and Sweet William that includes the lyrics about him marrying another woman and bringing her back to the hallow. It talks about BA seeing them come to town before he ends up dying. I can't find this version Anywhere. I first heard it at Dollywood years ago. I later found it on Spotify. But now it's as if it never existed. Thank you.

[@NinaRicciMusic]

@@KoolKats5 Wow! That sounds like a very interesting version. I’m unfamiliar with it, but I would recommend posting this information on a Facebook page called “The Ballad Tree.” There are some very well-versed people in that group who may be able to identify your song.

[@KoolKats5]

@@NinaRicciMusic will do. I thought I'd found it, Sweet William & Fair Margaret, but it's not the one.🤷‍♀️

[@otaviopmartins]

Please, play Coal miner's daughter

[@stevejames5863]

you frigin sound exactly like joan baez...wow

[@Pkilla80]

Your style is super warm and beautiful. Listen to some Jewel I think you would connect to her. Specifically the album titled "Picking Up The Pieces" you'll find a duet with the Legendary Dolly Rebecca Parton. All the best to you!

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Hi there, Patrick! Mom and I will check out that Jewel album 💎😉 I think Jewel is a very unique voice among artists. Here is a link to my first album. kzbin.info/aero/PLRrpR5MswZhhwY1Suv2elz_JqBPiQFjql&si=e6R65fURdZfcY0uw

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Thank you for helping us this morning!! 🇺🇸 📫

[@ernestwilliams268]

Beautiful When God made her and that voice. he broke the mold. Sings a lot like Joan Baez but better

[@stanleywoodison8699]

A traditional English folk song .

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Some say English, some say Scottish 🤷🏻‍♀️ The first known reference to the song was by an English writer named Samuel Pepys and he called it a “Scotch song.”

[@Wotsitorlabart]

@@NinaRicciMusic At the time in England there was a vogue for songs written in the Scottish style but they were actually written by English ballad writers. They were known as 'Scotch songs'. So, the very first appearance we have of 'Barbara Allen' is a theatre actress singing "her little Scotch song" at a very high class London party in January 1666 at a time when 'Scotch songs' were all the rage - all of which might suggest that the song was actually written for the theatre. There is no evidence that the song is actually 'Scottish'.

[@NinaRicciMusic]

@@Wotsitorlabart I am grateful for your history-based comment. Thank you for contributing to the discussion here and I will pass along this knowledge as I share the song in performances. There is definitely a barrier in understanding the origins of folk songs from European decent here but a great appreciation for the songs by revivalists like me.

[@Wotsitorlabart]

@@NinaRicciMusic And it's interesting that Pepys wrote that the celebrity actress/singer /dancer Elizabeth Knepp sang "her little Scotch song Barbary Allen" rather than "a little Scotch song" or "the little Scotch song" suggesting that he had heard her sing it before and that it was her 'party piece' (and perhaps written for her?). Pepys and Mrs Knepp were 'good friends' and in his diaries he often writes about her under the pseudonym 'Bab. Allen' (perhaps just in case Mrs Pepys managed to decipher his code).

[@jimphayre]

Are you Dolly's daughter? Very nice...

[@michaelwheeler3782]

Fabulous voice. She reminds me of a young Joan Baez. Does she have any cds?

[@NinaRicciMusic]

Hello Michael, it’s kind of you to stop by and leave me a comment! I hope you’ll subscribe to my channel and ring the notification bell for updates. I’ll be posting a new folk song very soon! I do have CDs and recordings available on my website, including my newest album ‘Fare Thee Well: A Joan Baez Tribute’ released in 2020 in celebration of Ms. Baez’s 60th year in music. Link to music in my shop: www.ninariccimusic.com/shop Link to my Joan Baez tribute: www.ninariccimusic.com/product-page/fare-thee-well-a-joan-baez-tribute-cd

[@Kentuckymadness1]

I recon

[@Kentuckymadness1]

When you sing the words dwelling. You should say dwellin.

[@Wotsitorlabart]

Silly comment.

[@andreaslukas7328]

these songs are timeless beauties, great you enjoy performing them. for me you are overdoing a bit with vibrato and this nasal twang. a more natural approach might add to the performance, sometimes less is more... . my request: love song to a stranger.

[@harrywhale3647]

my point exactly

[@harrywhale3647]

well you murdered that

[@NinaRicciMusic]

My mom said, "murdered bad, or murdered good?" :D

[@quintonbroster2994]

Harsh

[@harrywhale3647]

it's a Scottish folk song , you make it sound American American country with an overly exaggerated vibrato

[@NinaRicciMusic]

I understand. I am an American folk artist and songwriter from the South, and I live in the country music capital of the world, being Nashville. In the South, my sound would not be considered country, but I'm sure there are undertones in my sound. At this time, I am preparing to release an album in tribute to Joan Baez based on her 1960 self-titled debut album. The songs I recorded for the album are mainly traditional folk songs of various origins, which I re-interpreted in my own way. I see that you like Bluegrass. I do a bit of that myself. If I may, I will send you a link to my first album, Designs On Me, which is not a traditional folk album, but an album of original music. Here is a link: soundcloud.com/ninariccimusic/sets/designs-on-me-wavs-for-radio

[@jash6981]

It's just a different interpretation-doesn't have to sung in the traditional way. Imo

[@harrywhale3647]

@@NinaRicciMusic thank you for the link to your album, you have a nice voice .

[@harrywhale3647]

@@jash6981 yes it is , very different indeed, far removed from the original.

[@jash6981]

@@harrywhale3647 I'm pleased to hear a different version of this four hundred? year old song-what is your own favourite version? I think I would choose Shirley Collins.

[@harrywhale3647]

bad sorry

[@NinaRicciMusic]

harry whale Can you tell me why? Every criticism is an opportunity for improvement. Thank you!

[@frankfelice5758]

You are amazing!

[@thomasj.harris5630]

Beautiful

[@VinylBlog]

A fantastic rendition- very Baez-esque! Sometimes known as ‘Bawbee Allen’ in England. That’s how I usually sing it

[@VinylBlog]

A fantastic rendition- very Baez-esque! Sometimes known as ‘Bawbee Allen’ in England. That’s how I usually sing it