Roving and Redemption

There are a lot of songs about drinking in folk music. They certainly give a bit of the ol' machismo to our own drinking! And what folk festival would be complete without a few (and then a few more) ales?

But some folk songs about drinking are cautionary tales. All rovers must return from roving, or face the dire consequences. Who can forget those great lines from Carrick Fergus?


For I'm drunk today and I'm seldom sober


The handsome rover from town to town


Ah but I am sick now my days are numbered


Come all me young men and lay me down


Throughout the song the rover expresses his longing to return home. But it is too late, he has drunk himself to death.


In Spencer the Rover the need to cease roving and return to a more temperate existence is expressed in almost spiritual terms. Spencer drinks water "and it tasted far sweeter than the gold he had tasted. Sweeter than honey, and gave more content". Ale has clouded his mind  and taken all his money and his family, whilst water replenishes and restores him, bringing clarity and a crucial moment of reflection.


A clouded mind is the true curse of drinking. Its effects are far-reaching. In the novel "An Autobiography of a Super Tramp" by W.H Davies we first meet 'Australian Red' after what he calls "the spree". Whilst walking with his companions, the rest of the group notice that he stops every few moments to check the lining of his clothes. He continues to do this, slowing the pace of the group considerably. Eventually a member of the group demands he stop acting so strangely, or they will be forced to leave him behind. Reluctantly, he explains:


A week ago I had a hundred Dollars saved, but where are they now? It is always my custom...when I go on the spree, to secrete my money in some safe place. Although I have no recollection of doing so, I am positively assured that such has been the case; and would not be surprised at any moment to discover a twenty dollar bill in the lining of my clothes. 


For 'Australian Red' 'the spree' results in an endless cycle of drinking, loss of money and chronic uncertainty. The pattern is always the same. He earns some cash then he spends it all on merrymaking. Afterwards he asks Davies for a loan, telling him he'll repay him after finding his secret stash. But he never finds it since he can't remember where he stashed it. At any rate, the likelihood is that all his cash has been spent on booze. As a result, he spends his life forever drinking and losing, drinking and losing. He is trapped in an uncertain world of his own making, obsessively searching for something he'll never find.  He is a modern Tantalus, forever reaching for an unreachable apple. 


Drink makes us lose our memory, so some drink to forget. But in those moments of blackness, we stand to lose far more than just our memory. Who knows that will happen? Perhaps we will lose our friends. Even our family. Believe it or not, this article was not sponsored by some governmental health agency. I did not intend to preach. I have personal reasons for writing this article connected to something happening to someone I know. I only wish to point out that - as some folk songs seem to suggest - in a world of uncertainty excessive drinking can only make life all the more uncertain.