THE SHIRE OF FORGOTTEN SEA

by Mike Nichols

Background

When I first moved to Kansas City in 1976, I became one of the founding members of Kansas City's first chapter of the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA), which was to be called the Shire of the Forgotten Sea. I adopted the persona of a 14th century Welsh bard, conveniently using my public Craft name (and pen name), Gwydion Cinhil Kirontin. (The name was also a bow to three of my favorite fantasy writers, Evangeline Walton, Katherine Kurtz, and Joy Chant.) It was also under that persona that I wrote the song "The Shire of the Forgotten Sea". I imagined myself as a bard wandering far from his beloved homeland and yearning for his eventual return there. Although conceived as a very personal statement, the song became something of an anthem in the early days of the Shire's (now Barony's) history. In the interests of SCA historians and lore-masters, I present it here: 

Technical Notes

The sound quality is not the best, since I was working from a 23-year-old cassette tape source which had badly deteriorated. I was able to do some digital "restoration" but that process introduced some phasing anomalies, which were enhanced by the MP3 encoding. Still, it sounds a LOT better than the tape! And for historical purposes, it's not bad at all. 

Performance Rights

Permission is granted for the public performance of this song only as long as no lyrics or musical content is changed, credit is publicly given to the composer, and it is performed without cost to others, and is not part of a for-profit venue. Other performances of this song must be approved in writing by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

Reproduction Rights

Permission is granted for the analog or digital reproduction of this song only as long as the content is essentially unchanged, the tape or file carries the composer's name, and it is transmitted and used without cost to others, and is not part of a for-profit collection. Other reproductions of this song must be approved in writing by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

Transcription Rights

Permission is granted for the written transcription of the music and/or lyrics to this song only as long as they are not changed, written credit is given to the composer, and it is transmitted and used without cost to others, and is not part of a for-profit collection. Other written transcriptions of this song must be approved in writing by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..