The Bab Ballads (version 2)
W. S. Gilbert
Read by LibriVox Volunteers
The Bab Ballads are a collection of light verse by W. S. Gilbert, illustrated with his own comic drawings. Gilbert wrote the Ballads before he became famous for his comic opera librettos with Arthur Sullivan. In writing the Bab Ballads, Gilbert developed his unique "topsy-turvy" style, where the humor was derived by setting up a ridiculous premise and working out its logical consequences, however absurd. The Ballads also reveal Gilbert's cynical and satirical approach to humor. They became famous on their own, as well as being a source for plot elements, characters and songs that Gilbert would recycle in the Gilbert and Sullivan operas. The Bab Ballads take their name from Gilbert's childhood nickname, and he later began to sign his illustrations "Bab".
Nothing else quite like the Ballads has ever been produced in the English language. They contain both satire and nonsense, as well as a great deal of utter absurdity. The Ballads were read aloud at private dinner-parties, public banquets and even in the House of Lords. Summary by Wikipedia and Phil Chenevert (2 hr 50 min)
Chapters
| Captain Reece | 5:02 | Read by Phil Chenevert |
| The Rival Curates | 3:35 | Read by Lisa Reichert |
| Only A Dancing Girl | 2:18 | Read by Ken Masters |
| General John | 2:26 | Read by MikeStanich |
| To A Little Maid—By A Policeman | 1:35 | Read by Ken Masters |
| John And Freddy | 2:45 | Read by MikeStanich |
| Sir Guy The Crusader | 3:49 | Read by Shakira Searle |
| Haunted | 2:37 | Read by Chris Pyle |
| The Bishop And The `Busman | 2:57 | Read by MikeStanich |
| The Troubadour | 4:34 | Read by Shakira Searle |
| Ferdinando And Elvira; Or, The Gentle Pieman | 5:53 | Read by Lisa Reichert |
| Lorenzo De Lardy | 3:47 | Read by readread |
| Disillusioned—By An Ex-Enthusiast | 3:41 | Read by Shakira Searle |
| Babette’s Love | 6:11 | Read by Ezwa |
| To My Bride—(Whoever She May Be) | 3:35 | Read by Shakira Searle |
| The Folly Of Brown—By A General Agent | 3:29 | Read by Chris Pyle |
| Sir Macklin | 2:51 | Read by Chris Pyle |
| The Yarn Of The “Nancy Bell” | 3:40 | Read by Chris Pyle |
| The Bishop Of Rum-Ti-Foo | 3:28 | Read by Chris Pyle |
| The Precocious Baby. A Very True Tale | 4:03 | Read by John Kellow |
| To Phoebe | 1:36 | Read by Ken Masters |
| Baines Carew, Gentleman | 4:36 | Read by Lisa Reichert |
| Thomas Winterbottom Hance | 4:54 | Read by NoelBadrian |
| The Reverend Micah Sowls | 3:49 | Read by KDMoore |
| A Discontented Sugar Broker | 4:16 | Read by MikeStanich |
| The Pantomime “Super” To His Mask | 2:31 | Read by Ezwa |
| The Force Of Argument | 5:00 | Read by Ruth Golding |
| The Ghost, The Gallant, The Gael, And The Goblin | 4:53 | Read by Diana Schmidt |
| The Phantom Curate. A Fable | 4:18 | Read by NoelBadrian |
| The Sensation Captain | 4:17 | Read by Newgatenovelist |
| Tempora Mutantur | 3:16 | Read by Shakira Searle |
| At A Pantomime. By A Bilious One | 4:32 | Read by Shakira Searle |
| King Borria Bungalee Boo | 4:24 | Read by MikeStanich |
| The Periwinkle Girl | 4:44 | Read by Shakira Searle |
| Thomson Green And Harriet Hale | 4:11 | Read by Ezwa |
| Bob Polter | 4:57 | Read by Lisa Reichert |
| The Story Of Prince Agib | 4:13 | Read by MikeStanich |
| Ellen McJones Aberdeen | 4:46 | Read by MikeStanich |
| Peter The Wag | 3:34 | Read by MikeStanich |
| Ben Allah Achmet;—Or, The Fatal Tum | 3:51 | Read by MikeStanich |
| The Three Kings Of Chickeraboo | 3:31 | Read by MikeStanich |
| Joe Golightly—Or, The First Lord’s Daughter | 3:56 | Read by MikeStanich |
| To The Terrestrial Globe. By A Miserable Wretch | 1:33 | Read by Ken Masters |
| Gentle Alice Brown | 6:26 | Read by Shakira Searle |