The website afolksongaday.com/ has a monthly vote on the best song, currently:
",... ask you to vote for your favourite July Folk Song ..."We've
selected the seven most popular songs for you to vote on below (based
on page views), ".the list of seven includes "Danny Deever"
and there is a comment:
"It's unusual to have a piece about the horrors of capital punishment
that isn't in fact anti capital punishment. A subtle and troubling
poem brought to life by Bellamy's brilliant tune." Although the
soldiers clearly take no pleasure in the coming events, this is what
became known as a Barrack-Room Ballad. Rudyard Kipling wrote the poem
in 1890, it may, however, have been started before then. Generally
ascribed as being set in India its detail does somewhat match the
execution at Lucknow in 1887 ..."
There are various other comments on the song/poem & Kipling on the blog.
Bryan Diamond
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