FIRST TIME LISTENING TO SIMON & GARFUNKEL SCARBOROUGH FAIR - Reaction video

[@marianfoley5821]

It's 2 songs set in Counterpoint. The Scarborough Fair is a medieval song set in Counterpoint with a Paul Simon anti war song, A side of the Hill, which is the Canticle part.

[@danielferguson3784]

Scarborough Fair was a annual event that started in Medieval days when a fair was granted by one of the Kings. It was the longest in England at 44 days, when most towns had fairs of usually 7 days. Goods from all over Europe were traded at the fair, on the sea shore in the North Yorkshire town, including oriental spices, cloth, & much wine, while Scarborough made pottery was exported, along with wool & other local produce, all around the North Sea coasts. The song calls for the lover to complete several impossible tasks, & the herbs mentioned are all associated with Love, Loss, & Death. It dates in origin to the high period of the Fair in the 14th century. Most such fairs were ended in the 18th or early 19th centuries, because they had become associated with rowdiness, trouble & riots, but also political assemblies at a time when these were suspected of subversion.

[@R_McGeddon117]

The song was about a Scottish soldier who went to war in a foreign land and knew he was going to be killed He asks his former lover to get a piece of land to bury him. The herbs were traditionally buried with corpse and the cambric shirt was a type of seamless linen shroud used way back then Once knowing that the song makes a bit more sense

[@jemp1965]

Thanx a lot for this information because I just knew that this a classical madrigal song from the UK newly interpreted by Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel.

[@PeterOConnell-pq6io]

The song dates from medieval times. Songs contrasting War's hopes and their actual losses always show how things seldom work out.

[@brentoliver8814]

I love your reaction. You are a beautiful woman :-)

[@woodysthoughts4032]

This is based on an old Scottish ballad, dating back to the year 1670 according to Wiki. Basically two songs are being sung. (1) A young man gives the girl a list of impossible tasks to perform for reasons not entirely clear. (2) In response, the girl gives him a list of impossible tasks. Personally, I think the original reasons have been lost. Various versions claim differing reasons for the tasks.