The band members continue to research music of the period to expand their repertoire and to provide a wide variety of the “top 40” of the mid-19^th century.

Although clearly inspired by one or more British colonial era tunes, Old Zip Coon is an American original. First published in 1834, the song was re-published in 1861 by minstrel composer Dan Emmett under the title Turkey in the Straw. We decided to open this collection of early to mid-19th century music with this song, because of its association with minstrelsy during that time, and because the song has endured into this century.

2. If You've Only Got A Moustache (Cooper/Foster)     2:53
   John Robison, banjo
   Su Tarr, fiddle
   Victoria Hamrick, vocals
   Robbie Watts, guitar

One of Stephen Foster's less well-known songs, we found this comic piece through researching original period sheet music. The lyrics suggest that the song was written for a male singer; in performance, we've found that it's even more comical for a woman to point out the positive aspects of wearing a mustache.

3. Lady Margaret/Lord Drummond (traditional)    2:10
   John Robison, banjo
   Su Tarr, fiddle
   Robbie Watts, guitar

One of the most popular dances of the period was the reel. We find that this dance continues to be popular with today's audiences, and we always find willing volunteers at our performances who will shake a leg to this set of tunes and others of the same genre.

4. Aura Lee (Fosdick/Poulton)   1:57
   John Robison, banjo, vocals
   Su Tarr, fiddle
   Victoria Hamrick, vocals
   Robbie Watts, guitar

Ladies and Gentlemen, Elvis has left the building! And thank goodness for that, since we can now return to the original tune that inspired Love Me Tender. With lyrics by W.W. Fosdick and music by G.R. Poulton, Aura Lee was one of the most popular songs during the War Between the States.

5. The Leaving of Liverpool (traditional)   2:35
   John Robison, banjo, vocals
   Su Tarr, fiddle, bones, vocals
   Victoria Hamrick, vocals
   Robbie Watts, guitar, vocals

This well-known song recounts the tale of an immigrant bound for California from one of England's largest port cities. The journey likely occurred around the time of the Gold Rush (1848). The sentiment was universal among immigrants to this country -- go to America, make a fortune, and return home to loved ones and family. For many, the return trip never happened. Although many thousands of Irish, Welsh, English and German immigrants found America more to their liking than their homelands, many thousands of others lost their lives in the War Between the States.

6. Haste to the Wedding/Smash the Windows (traditional)    2:00
   John Robison, banjo
   Su Tarr, fiddle
   Robbie Watts, guitar

The early 19th century was a time of massive immigration to the United States from the northern European countries. These two jigs are from the Northern Isles -- one English, one Irish -- and were composed during the 1700s.

7. The Water Is Wide (traditional)   3:03
   John Robison, banjo, harmonica
   Su Tarr, fiddle
   Robbie Watts, guitar, vocals

This song was originally published in 1724 under the title Waly, Waly. It became known as The Water is Wide during the 19th century, and experienced a revival of popularity among folk singers of the 1960s. A universal sentiment both then and now, the song puts forth the idea that love is not always what it seems to be.

8. Do They Miss Me At Home? (Mason/Grannis)   2:26
   John Robison, banjo
   Su Tarr, vocals
   Victoria Hamrick, vocals
   Robbie Watts, guitar

During the greatest trial the Union has ever known, young men far from homes in both North and South felt alone and forgotten. Songwriters of the time addressed these feelings in songs such as this, such as Weeping Sad and Lonely (When This Cruel War is Over), and When Upon the Field of Glory, which was featured on our second recording. Unlike other songs of the time that expressed political views or perhaps lauded a specific hero, songs like Do They Miss Me At Home touched people on both sides of the conflict.

9. The Cruel War (traditional)    3:48
   John Robison, banjo, vocals
   Su Tarr, fiddle
   Victoria Hamrick, vocals
   Robbie Watts, guitar

Examples of women disguising themselves as men so that they could join the fight were common during the War Between the States. Although this plaintive ballad was popular during that period, it was likely written much earlier, perhaps during the first American Revolution.

10. Believe Me If All Those Endearing Young Charms/The Gentle Maiden (traditional arrangement by Coulter, adapted by Southern Horizon)   4:24
   Victoria Hamrick, oboe
   Janet Watts, piano
   Kate Watts, flute
   Robbie Watts, guitar, vocals

Believe Me If All Those Endearing Young Charms was published by Thomas Moore in 1808. According to one source, the melody is much older, and is associated with another poem that was first published in 1737 in London. The Gentle Maiden is a beautiful Irish waltz composed in the mid-1800s. The idea to put these two songs together was the brainchild of Phil Coulter and James Galway, who recorded them on their Legends disc. We adapted Coulteris arrangement to capture the true feel of what might have been heard in a parlor concert during the period--after, of course, we researched the availability of oboe and flute during the time. The result is a new sound for Southern Horizon. We hope you like it.

11. Banish Misfortune (traditional)   2:04
   John Robison, banjo
   Su Tarr, fiddle, bones
   Robbie Watts, guitar

This tune is an 18th century double jig from Wales. We included this tune in memory of the Welsh miners who immigrated to Pennsylvania, and their progeny who mined the Confederate breastworks in Petersburg during the siege in 1864. If anyone needed to banish misfortune during a dangerous assignment, they did.

12. Riding a Raid (traditional)   2:42
   John Robison, banjo, vocals
   Su Tarr, fiddle, vocals
   Victoria Hamrick, vocals
   Robbie Watts, guitar, vocals

This rousing cavalry song uses the tune from the Scottish Bonnie Dundee. The words, like many familiar songs that survived the great conflict, are anonymous. J.E.B. Stuart IV, a frequent attendee at our concerts, often requests that we play it for him. We are more than happy to oblige, both in concert and here.

13. The Faded Coat of Blue (McNaughton)    5:10
   John Robison, banjo, vocals
   Su Tarr, fiddle
   Victoria Hamrick, vocals
   Robbie Watts, guitar

This poignant song reflects the feelings of a mother who realizes that she may never see her son again, and that she may never even know where he is buried. Thousands of unmarked graves cover Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia as well as other states where the fighting was fierce. Frequently, local citizens were hired to dispose of the bodies left on the field of battle. After the battle in Sharpsburg, Maryland, one citizen was arrested for having thrown the bodies of numerous dead Confederates down a well. He had been paid to bury the soldiers by the U.S. Army.

14. The Vacant Chair (Washburn/Root)   2:22
   John Robison, banjo, vocals
   Su Tarr, fiddle, vocals
   Victoria Hamrick, vocals
   Robbie Watts, guitar, vocals

Henry S. Washburn wrote the words to this song, which is subtitled "We Shall Meet, But We Shall Miss Him," on the occasion of Thanksgiving, 1861. His son, a Union soldier, had not long before been killed on the field of battle at Ball's Bluff, Virginia. George F. Root set the words to music, and published the song in Chicago in1862.

15. Hector the Hero (J. S. Skinner)   3:20
   John Robison, banjo
   Su Tarr, fiddle
   Robbie Watts, guitar

According to Homer, Hector was the son of the king and queen of Troy. He commanded the Trojan army when Ulysses invaded that land, and was killed in battle by Achilles. His body was dragged around behind a chariot until Achilles realized how grief stricken the king and queen were. He then ordered the body be given back to the parents for proper burial. This waltz is of Scottish origin, and we believe it is an appropriate requiem for those slain during the War Between the States.

16. Tenting on the Old Camp Ground (Kittredge)   3:21
   John Robison, banjo, harmonica, vocals
   Su Tarr, fiddle, vocals
   Victoria Hamrick, vocals
   Robbie Watts, guitar, vocals

Walter Kittredge was a New Hampshire singer and composer who spent part of his professional career performing with the Hutchinson Family. The Hutchinson Family was a group of abolitionist performers who eventually were banned from playing even in Union camps because the incendiary nature of their performances was unacceptable to Union General Phillip Kearny. The original sheet music of this piece acknowledges that it was "Adapted and sung by the Hutchinson Family." It provides a fitting denouement to our collection of period songs, since it looks forward to "the dawn of peace."

17. Old Zip Coon Reprise (traditional)   1:00
   John Robison, banjo, tambourine
   Su Tarr, fiddle, bones