Illustration
Cold Hailey Rainy Night
“Then she rose and let him in, and kissed his ruby lips and chin and then they went to bed again…” Cold Hailey Rainy Night, as sung by The Imagined Village, recounts an ancient occurrence known as the “night visit.” A man comes to his lover’s... More
Illustration
East Virginia
Easy Virginia as sung by Joan Baez. The singer pines for a woman until the day he dies. In death he calls out, “look on the way you done.” An ironic ode to the romantic entitlement of folk music, the unnamed voiceless woman of the song is portrayed... More
Illustration
Easy Rider
Easy Rider by Odetta tells the story of a woman scorned by her lover. She longs to escape the male gaze. She dreams of transforming into a catfish, swimming in the sea, to “keep those men from fussing over me.” In the distance the easy rider... More
Illustration
Koxville Girl
“Go down go down you Knoxville girl, you can never be my bride.” Based on the folk song Knoxville Girl, as sung by the Louvin Brothers. She is killed by her lover, and thrown in the river, her ghost rises up to seek justice before she can rest... More
Illustration
Lowlands
“I’ll cut away my bonnie hair…so no other man shall think me fair…my love lies dead in the windy lowlands.” She chooses to shed her feminine beauty, so as to never love again. Lowlands, as sung by Anne Briggs.
Illustration
Prove It On Me Blues
Prove It On Me Blues, by Ma Rainy depicts secret moments of discretionary lesbian love. The singer teases us singing, "They say I do it, ain't nobody caught me. Sure got to prove it on me."
Illustration
The Unquiet Grave
The Unquiet Grave, as sung by Kate Rusby. A heartbroken woman holds vigil by her lover’s graveside for a year, for she “craves one kiss from (his) sweet lips.’ He is unable to rest peacefully, rising up from his grave to offer her a cold deadly... More
Illustration
Wildwood Flower
Wildwood Flower, as sung by the Carter Family. Her lover has left her, with “no warning or word of farewell.” In a moment of heartbreak, she boldly wields her beauty and power, singing “I will twine, I will mingle my raven black hair, with the... More
Work by
Rebecca Michie
Illustrator
“The Ramblin' Women re-imagines the stories of the women portrayed in folk ballads of old. By retelling their sometimes subtle, sometimes fatal (yet nonetheless pivotal) moments of agency, these...” [More]