(Rock, Folk/Country) CD

(Global Grooves, Folk/Country) CD

(Global Grooves, Folk/Country) CD

A massive folkloric project – one that really shows how much the form has evolved since the early days of recording! This huge book-length collection looks at the rich legacy of Appalachian music as it moved north towards the Mason-Dixon line – from roots in Virginia and Tennessee, to northern spots in Maryland and Pennsylvania as those older communities languished. The first half of the collection focuses on important 60s recordings of Ola Belle Reed and the New River Boys – done by folklorist Henry Glassie, and very well recorded – and the second half looks at the long legacy of music that's continued in that area, sometimes after the sounds have faded from the source of their original roots. CD one features all recordings of Ola and her contemporaries – while CD two features recent material with a surprisingly vibrant feel – and artists include TJ Lundy, Ryan Paisley, Hugh Campbell, Zane Campell, Dave Reed, and John Miller – as well as the Debusk-Weaver Family. The book itself is worth the price of admission – hardcover, full of photos and writings – and over 250 pages long! CD

A landmark collection of music – the now-famous series of American Folk Music volumes put together by Harry Smith in the 50s! The work here spans the space of a few early decades of recorded music – all in styles expertly chosen by Smith, with countless examples of music that might have fallen beneath the sands of time if not otherwise included in the series! Even back at the original release of the collection, the series was a crucial bit of musical archaeology – and over the ensuing space of decades, has only gone onto become even more important. Styles run the gamut from blues to roots to folk and other styles in between and features tracks by Dick Justice, Coley Jones, Buell Kazee, Kelly Harrell, the Carter Family, the Bently Boys, Henry Thomas, the Alabama Sacred Harp Singers, Blind Willie Johnson, Dock Boggs, Blind Lemon Jefferson, and more! CD

Music from the Iron Mountain String Band, the New Lost City Ramblers, Dock Boggs, Clarence Ashley, Clark Kessinger, Maybelle Carter & Sara Carter Bayes, Doc Watson & Fred Price, Lee Sexton, Mike Seeger, John W. Summers and more. CD

Includes music by Mac Wiseman, the Stonemans, Chubby Wise, Don Reno, the Shelton Brothers, Grandpa Jones, Gene Autry, Fiddlin' Red Heron, Asa Martin, and Lester Flatt – 20 tracks total. CD

Music from the Fisk University Jubilee Singers, Tupper Saussy, Connie Smith, Johnny Cash, Sleepy John Estes, The Prisonaires, Buddy & Julie Miller And The McCrary Sisters, Rosanne Cash, Dolly Parton, Brandy Clark, Carl Perkins, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, and much more. CD

(Rock, Folk/Country) CD

(Rock, Folk/Country) CD

Piano and violin come together beautifully here – the former by Barbara Higbie, the latter by Darrol Anger – who also plays mandolin and cello as well! There's an acoustic balance here that's more jazz than some of the other Windham Hill albums of the time – especially in the music's sense of rhythm and phrasing – and the rich acoustic tones of both players get wonderfully past some of the new age cliches that are too-often wrongly associated with the label – and remind us that at their best, records like these offer up a key flowering of the acoustic underground of the 70s. Mike Marshall plays guest mandolin on one title – and tracks include "Movie", "Tideline", "Above The Fog", "True Story", "Onyame", and "Gemini". CD

Another beautiful package from Revenant. These are recordings from the late 20s. 60 minutes of music and a 64-page booklet. CD