The Forest Minstrel
The Forest Minstrel (1810) is an anthology of 83 songs, assembled by James Hogg, divided into four sections: 'Pathetic Songs', 'Love Songs', 'Humorous Songs', and 'National Songs'. Hogg himself is the author of 56 items. There are also 15 by Thomas Mounsey Cunningham, 5 by John Grieve, 3 by William Laidlaw, 3 by James Gray, and one perhaps by John Ballantyne. Background. In February 1810 Hogg exchanged life as a shepherd in the south of Scotland for a literary career in Edinburgh. Within weeks of his arrival he persuaded Archibald Constable to publish "The Forest Minstrel". The  words 'Printed for the Editor' on the title-page suggest that the publication involved a degree of authorial subsidy. Of the 56 songs by Hogg himself nearly one-third had appeared in "The Scots Magazine" between 1803 and 1808. Most of these were revised for the new publication, with a tendency to tone down their rural localism, colloquialism, and earthiness to make them more acceptable for polite readers and performers: "'The Forest Minstrel" is meant for the young lady at her piano'. Editions. Until 2006 the only edition of "The Forest Minstrel" as a collected set of songs was that  published in Edinburgh on 4 August 1810 by Archibald Constable and Co. with the title "The Forest Minstrel; A Selection of Songs, adapted to the most favourite Scottish airs. Few of them ever before published. By James Hogg The Ettrick Shepherd, and others." The contents were as follows (by Hogg unless otherwise indicated): Reception. "The Forest Minstrel" attracted only two reviews. That in "The Scots Magazine" valued 'the plainness, and even rudeness of the language' combined with 'loftiness' of thought, but had reservations about the compatibility of Hogg's old simple style with a new 'taste for rich and artificial  ornament'. "The Critical Review" had essentially the same complaint, but was more socially aggressive and found Hogg's originality forced and tasteless.