This is the first in a series running alongside the Sing Yonder trip through the Roud Index where in the course of my research I have turned up a recording that is:
unavailable on any streaming platforms including Bandcamp or Youtube
cannot be bought in any form directly from the artist or publisher, or anywhere else
This particular find is a 1992 CD that not only is unavailable anywhere, but has even escaped the notice of the eagle-eyed Reinhard on his essential Mainly Norfolk website.
I found what is apparently a rare copy on eBay before Christmas as I wanted to hear the version of Lord Abore and Mary Flynn (Roud 55). Here’s a clip of that:
It’s all beautiful stuff, quite a retro sound, fairly sparsely but well produced, and the respect for the source material is crystal clear throughout. The artists are (were?) based in the Chicago area at the time of release. Traces of them exist on the internet: here is Phil Cooper’s Youtube account, and Margaret Nelson has a website but it hasn’t been updated for ten years. Some info about Paul Goelz can be found on his website.