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Charles Benfield was the main informant for the Bledington tunes, most of which were noted by Cecil Sharp at Benfield’s house at Bould (Oxon), a hamlet about a mile from Bledington (Glos). CJ Sharp wrote, 2 September 1909, “Ch. Benfield was fiddler to the Bledington Morris till it lapsed about 15-20 years ago. He afterwards taught some younger men, (including George Hathaway,) but could not induce them to continue. He is an agricultural labourer and a keen morris dancer. His fiddle was bridge-less and bow-less so he half hummed and half whistled this & following 2 tunes.”
The version Sharp collected from C. Benfield consists of only the B music (2nd strain) G. Hathaway’s version contains both strains.
C. Sharp noted similar versions of the tune from George Simpson, of Sherborne, and, at Cheltenham, from William Hathaway, previously from Lower Swell. He noted that the B music was played “deliberately” because the dancer(s) went down on one knee.
note by Charles Menteith