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In 19th-century Scotland, farm laborers would sleep in buildings called "bothies," and the term bothy ballad emerged to describe the songs those farmhands composed. Performed here by Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger, the songs deal with the experiences of the farm workers, especially the plowmen, before the mechanization of agriculture changed the way of life and work. Other songs sung in the bothies were humorous and satirical, such as "The Muckin' O' Geordie's Byre" on the subject of domestic upheaval. Liner notes include information on bothy ballads, and notes and lyrics for each song.