The Folk Process - Music History of Charles of Sweden to House of the Rising Sun
I often wonder with old folk songs what the "original" tune sounded like. In many cases the song was already very old before anyone bothered to copy down a version of the tune, and in cases like Long Lankin there might be multiple versions floating around by the time anyone became interested. Folk songs were traditionally transmitted orally to people who didn't read music, and by slight misremembering of the tune or by altering it a little to suit one's own performance style, the so called Folk Process would transpire and alter the song, sometimes just in the tune or sometimes in the lyrics as well.
Or if you just want to hear them because you can't read music either, here's some from YouTube.
And finally perhaps my least favorite version (in part because they mess up the lyric "rambling man" into "gambling man" and the rest of the verse makes no sense then) but basically the only version anyone seems to know these days...
Recently tried this one to some good effect. As I did it, I petitioned Ganesha, but any of those crossroads deities (Mercury, Ellegua, Odin) will be able to help you here. You need: Blockbuster Oil Blockbuster Incense (loose or resin works best for this) Van Van Powder or Oil Gunpowder 2 White, Black or Orange Candles Fabric and Thread to wrap spell remains Offering for Ganesha (candy is a favorite) Do this spell on a Sunday or a Wednesday, or in a Sun or Mercury hour. Begin with your candles. White can be used for anything and is always a good choice. Black candles can be used to blot out problems and to bring destruction of all types, and so are a popular choice in Blockbuster work. Orange is used for opening the way and is another possibility if you are feeling blocked. Whatever colors you choose, take one candle and carve your name (or the name of the person the spell is for) onto it. Then carve on the other candle what it is you want to unblock -- this cou...
A popular and very traditional hoodoo spell, often used for any situation where you need to control someone with magic , is the namepaper-in-shoe spell. It's very easy: you write the target's name 3, 7, or 9 times on a paper (depending on intent and who's giving instruction) then fold it up, sometimes after dressing it with oils or powders, then put it in your shoe. This "keeps the person underfoot" or "stomps out the trouble" or "puts pressure on them" or any other number of metaphors. I have had this work several times over the years. In one instance, I was working for a very unpleasant boss, on a short-term job. It was the last day, and I only had about 3 hours of work left on the project; and I wanted him to up my pay for the day since it almost wasn't worth the trip across town for the amount he was paying me, for only 3 hours. He was very reluctant. So I wrote his name 3 times on a 5-dollar bill he'd given me, and dusted it...
(EDIT: Up to date information about the Intranquil Sprit can be found in my book The Intranquil Spirit , available on Amazon. This post has some incomplete information which is clarified in the book.) The Intranquility spell is, unfortunately, the first resort of many a rejected lover. In some ways it makes sense -- the more unhappy and forlorn one is about a breakup, the better this idea of making the other partner feel just as much so starts to sound. Unfortunately, this spell is often not well suited to a case. The purpose of the standard Intranquility spell is to have the person be tormented by the spirit until they make contact with you, or whomever the spell is being cast for. This means that if a person is already in good contact with their ex OR if they're one of those people who cannot restrain themselves from initiating contact, then this already is probably not the right spell for that case. If you've had an Intranquility spell cast and you make contac...
We exist in an unprecedented era. There is now internet , a creation which allows text and images to be instantly transferred from person to person. People can have jobs and never ever see their employer or go to an office -- they might not even live in the same state or the same country as the person they work for! This has an impact on traditional magic spells. Most of your classic old time hoodoo "get a job" or "get business" spells assume you will be interacting directly with the boss or with customers. Some traditional operations of this type include: To have a successful job interview, wash your face with sugar before going to interview. To get a job, sprinkle some salt on the person interviewing you and on the floor of the business. To get customers, wash the floor of the shop with a mixture of your urine, sugar and bluing. For a successful job application, dress your resume with powder such as Steady Work or Van Van . For business success, sprinkle magneti...
Fast Luck is a popular and old-style hoodoo formula, generally used for any purpose in which one needs luck in a hurry, especially in matters of love or money. At Extrascentsory Apothecary, Malcolm Mills writes, " I once had four different bottles of commercial versions of Fast Luck oil, none of which smelled even vaguely like the correct recipe. Two of them smelled like cherry, one smelled like baby powder, and the fourth smelled like lemon. Since Fast Luck is a combination of Juniper Berry, Patchouli and Rose, none of these oils was authentic ." Now, the cognoscenti are probably giggling here. For those not in on the joke, the juniper patchouli and rose recipe is another of the well-known fake hoodoo/voodoo recipes written by "Horrible" Herman Slater . Over at Lucky Mojo, there's an article about the recipe for Fast Luck formula in which she discredits the Slater recipe and provides a simple version from Zora Neale Hurston : Cinnamon Vanilla ...
