Tall Tales of British Columbia

The telling of tall tales is probably as old as man. For all of its antiquity, however, the art form seldomly continues its own life once transferred to the printed page. Since no transcription can ever be perfect, but merely an approximation, the end result will never be as interesting as the original. Furthermore, the telling of tall tales is partly a matter of drama and context. This is particularly true for the tall tales in this issue of the Sound Heritage Series; they have been “translated” three times, and each step has removed them farther from their original life. Almost all the tales were told to Michael Taft, who recorded them on tape or in note form. At a later date, he transcribed each tale as he prepared his manuscript draft of Tall Tales of British Columbia. In turn this draft was edited to conform to the editorial style of the Sound Heritage Series. Consequently there is a polish to the printed versions which some readers may deplore. The risk of this occurring is unavoidable; however, the original tapes and transcripts are available for study in the Sound and Moving Image Division of the Provincial Archives of British Columbia.