By Suzi
In Japanese, Megitsune simply means female fox, or vixen. If said of a woman, it is disparaging, implying falseness. However, lively girl band Babymetal say that women throughout the ages have always had to be actresses, hiding their feelings, “smiling at face, crying at heart”. Paramore's Fake Happy continues that theme. “Hey, if I smile with my teeth, I bet you believe me.”
The A's have broken up with one girlfriend and are pretending that the current one is her. She looks the same, acts the same, but in trying to deceive themselves, they're also deceiving her. Not good. Meanwhile Kelis's boyfriend has tricked her once, and she's not going to let that happen again.
Back in 1929, songwriter, preacher and fiddle player Blind Alfred Reed had a dire warning for young ladies. Young men are not to be trusted, he sings. Beware! And you certainly should beware if when walking on the hills you're accosted by a foxy gentleman with brightly shining teeth. In some versions of this song he's simply a brigand, but Fairport Convention's words suggest that Reynardine is a shapeshifting werefox. Similarly, if walking by a Scottish loch or river, Jethro Tull advises us to watch out for Kelpies.
Kelpie statues in Helix Park, Falkirk, Scotland
Variations of this next song about a deceived husband date back to the 18th century if not before. I had a job choosing between two very different versions, but picked Our Goodman or Old Cuckold by John Jacob Niles as being the most comical. And now for two surprisingly unzedded songs, The Who's Substitute, in which Roger Daltrey sings about being not all as he seems, and The Eagles' Lying Eyes, which concerns a wife who lies to both her husband and her lover.
Time now for a bit of punk rock from The Adicts. The Joker in the Pack refers to a Clockwork Orange-style bowler and boots, but these are probably metaphorical. He seems to be putting on a act and keeping his motives hidden. However, in their near-eponymous song, the Fun Lovin’ Criminals positively boast about their misdeeds.
Amos Lee's song concerns a troublemaker who might be a politician, and his associates, who are all Tricksters, Hucksters and Scamps. Meanwhile, the Meditations realise they've been Tricked. They've been sent out to fight and die; now they want to know who's behind it all.
The next song, performed by Old Blind Dogs, is a true story, about an 17th-century Scottish outlaw and fiddle player, who was caught, tried and sentenced to be hanged. He might have escaped his fate if the local laird, learning that a pardon was on its way, hadn't ordered that the clock be put forward a quarter of an hour so that the pardon didn't arrive in time. Macpherson composed the tune in his prison cell the night before he died.
Next, Lynx DeMuth sings of living in a world of Tricksters and Fools, longing to be free of the problems these bring, while Hercules and Love Affair meditate on what's True/False Fake/Real. Finally we turn to Otis Taylor and his lovely song, Babies Don't Lie. No, but sadly they learn, sooner or later. Best to set them a good example and not lie yourself, because, believe me, they'll know.
Artifice and Other Antics A-List Playlist:
Babymetal - Megitsune
Paramore - Fake Happy
The A's - I Pretend She's You
Kelis - Trick Me
Blind Alfred Reed - Beware
Fairport Convention - Reynardine
Jethro Tull - Kelpie
John Jacob Niles - Our Goodman or Old Cuckold
The Who - Substitute
The Eagles - Lying Eyes
The Adicts - Joker in the Pack
Fun Lovin’ Criminals - Fun Lovin’ Criminal
Amos Lee - Tricksters, Hucksters and Scamps
The Meditations - Tricked
Old Blind Dogs - MacPherson's Rant
Lynx DeMuth - Tricksters and Fools
Hercules and Love Affair - True False/Fake Real
Otis Taylor - Babies Don't Lie
Guru's Short Folky Wildcard Playlist:
1. Martin Carthy, accompanied by the peerless, sadly late fiddle player Dave Swarbrick, sings of a massive con trick played by the Lochmaben Harper, based (as with the Devil and the Feathery wife) on the harper's wife's idea. Both the King and a pair of wealthy aristocrats are swindled out of a considerable amount of money.
2. Pentangle - Sovay. A young woman goes to somewhat extreme lengths to make sure that her beloved is true to her. She'd have shot him otherwise.
3. Eliza Carthy - Jacky Tar. Some may remember the movie The Boat That Rocked, containing an incident which (rightly, imo) came in for a fair amount of criticism. However, in this case the lady seems very pleased with her substitute lover.
4. Jake Thackray - The Remembrance. Jake's known for his comic songs, at least one of which could've featured here, but here's a serious song about how young men are conned into going to war.
5. Oysterband - Everywhere I Go. “They want to tell you this, they want to sell you that.” About not knowing who or what to believe.
Eliza Carthy sings about Jacky Tar, from her album Queen of the Whirl
These playlists were inspired by readers' song nominations in response to last week's topic: Not quite as it seems: songs about tricksters, trickery and fakery. The next topic will launch on Thursday after 1pm UK time.
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