Vance Gilbert is, in his own words, "big in the music business like a barnacle is big in shipping". Performing solo with acoustic guitar, his
original music (including songs about
Old White Men,
Gilligan and
the planet Pluto) and some
well-chosen covers, as well as his
on-stage banter, have
charmed audiences all over* for umpteen years. He has
made a reply to CeeLo's infamous song,
performed alongside Arlo Guthrie while having an attack of gout and in his spare time, he makes
free-flying models of
antique airplanes. But sadly, he has just gotten the most publicity of his career... as an
unwilling participant in one airline's Security Theater. (Story picked up by
The Consumerist,
the Economist, and
James Fallows at the Atlantic.)
[more inside]
posted by oneswellfoop
on Aug 26, 2011 -
55 comments
Today would have been Woody Guthrie's ...99th birthday, and the beginning of his centennial year.
"Woody is just Woody. Thousands of people do not know he has any other name. He is just a voice and a guitar. He sings the songs of a people and I suspect that he is, in a way, that people. Harsh voiced and nasal, his guitar hanging like a tire iron on a rusty rim, there is nothing sweet about Woody, and there is nothing sweet about the songs he sings. But there is something more important for those who will listen. There is the will of a people to endure and fight against oppression. I think we call this the American spirit." - John Steinbeck
For fans, there's a
webpage to organize events and such around his centennial. And here's something for those that don't know his work, and those that want to remember:
This Land Is Your Land
Biggest Thing Man Has Ever Done
Talking Dustbowl Blues
So long it's been good to know you
posted by Stagger Lee
on Jul 14, 2011 -
48 comments
Root Hog or Die has an extensive collection of links to world folk music repositories. There are over 60, with days and days of music to listen to. Some are comprised of field recordings, some are from old 78s, and some are from more contemporary sources, so you'll have to use your judgement about which you're comfortable visiting. The sites cover everything from
Hmong music to
Ossetian music to
Northwest Fiddle Field Recordings.
posted by OmieWise
on Jun 24, 2011 -
13 comments
Sixth-grader Jackson C. Frank was horribly burned when the boiler at his Cheektowaga, New York, elementary school
exploded March 31, 1954, killing fifteen of his classmates. While recovering from his injuries, Frank was introduced to the guitar, and the insurance settlement he received a decade later helped fund a trip to England, where he recorded his
first and only album.
[more inside]
posted by Knappster
on Aug 15, 2010 -
34 comments
Showing Off is a series of videos, audio clips and articles in which noted music journalist and Frankie Goes to Hollywood mastermind Paul Morley explores various facets of music. Each month has a theme,
[warning: most links have autoplaying video] Michael Jackson,
Kraftwerk,
classical music,
disco,
The Beatles,
folk music,
The X Factor,
the Noughties,
the next big thing,
UK hip hop,
jazz, and
dance. Here is some of what's on offer:
MeFi faves Dan Le Sac and Scroobius Pip on hip hop,
These New Puritans' Jack Barnett, Johnny Marr on folk (parts
1,
2), but isn't all just interviews, there are also a lot of performances, e.g.
Michael Nyman and David McAlmont,
Badly Drawn Boy,
Susanna Wallumrød covers Thin Lizzy's Jailbreak, and
Cornershop cover Norwegian Wood.
posted by Kattullus
on Apr 26, 2010 -
8 comments
Richard and Mimi Fariña. I doubt I'll ever forget his song,
Bold Marauder, or his
cult novel,
Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up To Me. He and
Mimi, Joan Baez's sister, made three fine albums before
his tragic death. Youtube has
a live version of "Bold Marauder." Also,
a nice cover by Kendra Smith, and
a fanvid for the pirate romance, "Frenchman's Creek," using a cover by John Kay of Steppenwolf.
posted by shetterly
on Sep 21, 2009 -
13 comments
To Hear Your Banjo Play is a documentary by Alan Lomax from 1947. It is narrated by Pete Seeger and features Woody Guthrie, Sonny Terry, and Brownie McGhee among others.
posted by RussHy
on May 23, 2009 -
15 comments
Wade Mainer played a two-finger style of banjo, between old timey and bluegrass. Here is an interview he did with David Holt at the age of 97.
Part 2.
Part 3. Still playing strong!
posted by RussHy
on Feb 1, 2009 -
9 comments
A recent series of posts on the web site of First Things magazine looks at what could be described as a reactionary moment on the part of some folk and roots musicians in Québec and around the world... and we're not talking
The Goldwaters (
Wikipedia).
[more inside]
posted by Jahaza
on Jan 7, 2009 -
10 comments
On this date in 1949, a Canadian music
legend was born.
Stanley Allison "Stan" Rogers chronicled Canadian life. He wrote his own
sea shanty after a song session with the
Friends of Fiddler's Green , and the song he came up with,
Barrett's Privateers, is still sung today by members of the Canadian navy as they march.
Many of his songs were of
tragedy or
hard times or the
loss of a way of life.
On June 2nd, 1983, an in-flight fire aboard an Air Canada flight forced the plane to make an emergency landing at the Greater Cincinnati Airport. Survivors spoke of a large man with a booming voice who helped others to safety, only to perish himself of smoke inhalation. It was believed, though not confirmed, that
Stan Rogers was the hero.
His music has also saved at least one life. The song
"The Mary Ellen Carter" speaks of perseverance and rising to any challenge, and is a fitting legacy to a Canadian legend who died at the age of 33.
His son
Nathan carries on his musical tradition, as does Stan's brother
Garnet Rogers, who also performed on Stan's albums.
posted by newfers
on Nov 29, 2008 -
44 comments
You've got just over two weeks to make it to the
John Henry celebration in Leeds, Alabama, where some folks believe the legendary steel driving contest actually took place. Maybe you already made it to
John Henry Days in Talcott, West Virginia (or read a
fictionalized account), where some more folks claim the same. John Garst, Scott Nelson, and other folklorists weigh in
here, supplemented by a wealth of links and resources on the subject. While you think on it let
Mississippi Fred McDowell,
The Boss,
Ralph Stanley,
John Jackson,
Merle Travis, and
Jason Isbell tell their own versions.
John Garst and his research mentioned
previously.
posted by Roman Graves
on Aug 28, 2007 -
17 comments
Isaac Guillory was widely regarded as probably the best acoustic guitarist in Britain.
These three clips from a Berkeley performance in 1989 show why he is still much missed.
posted by teleskiving
on Jul 2, 2007 -
13 comments
On November 25th, 2006, Valentin Elizalde was killed in the city of Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Elizalde, a singer of a style of song known as the
narcocorrido, was warned not to step foot in Tamaulipas because of a video for his song “A mis Enemigos,"
which showed footage of (WaPo article) the deaths of drug traffickers from the
Gulf Cartel. In
December of 2006, Javier Morales Gómez was killed in Huetamo, Michoacán while talking on his cell phone. Morales Gómez was the singer for Los Implacables del Norte, another group closely associated with
narcocorridos. The most famous death of a narcocorrido writer/singer has to be
Chalino Sanchez, killed in 1992, and spawning several imitators known as
Los Chalinillos that are still prevalent 15 years after Sanchez's death. (
previously) [more inside]
posted by sleepy pete
on May 25, 2007 -
17 comments
Before you do anything else, just
listen to this. That's
eefing, a 100-plus-year-old vocal technique from rural Tennessee that's, well, the original hillbilly beatboxing. The undisputed master of the art was
Jimmie Riddle. His unique skill landed him
recording* and
TV (youtube) work. Want more weird sounds from the deep south? Try
Hollerin & Whoopin and
Ringing the Pig. *
[warning: on the "Little Eefin Annie" page, avoid the "click here to hear Rolf Harris Eeefin'!" link: it's a pesky popup.
posted by flapjax at midnite
on Jan 6, 2007 -
51 comments
Harry Everett Smith was a, "
20th-century Renaissance man, working as an abstract film-maker, painter, musicologist, anthropologist, theoretician, self-mythologizer and connoisseur of arcana". His
Anthology of American Folk Music was
hugely influential on
American music, while his
alchemical, synæsthetic films were to have a similar impact on
experimental film and animation. Enjoy his mesmerising and astonishing
"Early Abstractions" on Youtube [part 1 or 4],
hear Harry lecture, or
listen to some tracks from The Anthology.
posted by MetaMonkey
on Dec 8, 2006 -
9 comments
The Virtual Gramophone. A massive database of early Canadian 78 RPM recordings, now available in mp3 and rm format. Over 13,000 titles available, freely downloadable. Includes
biographical notes on the artists, notes on the
history of Canadian recording, interesting
technical notes on media conversion, a
few videos from the olde dayes, and
podcasts. This collection is particularly strong on Quebecois and Acadien folk/fiddle music. Courtesy of the
Library and Archives Services of the Government of Canada.
Mentioned once before in passing, five years ago on Metafilter, but much improved since them realaudio only days.
posted by Rumple
on Oct 31, 2006 -
18 comments
Folk Songs For The 21st Century was recorded in the late '50s. Sheldon Allman wrote all the songs, and sings them in a strange, warped baritone voice. His tongue had to be firmly planted in his cheek when writing something like "Space Opera". Then again, maybe not...
[via Buzz.]
posted by mr.marx
on Apr 13, 2004 -
4 comments
Streaming video documentary films about American traditional music. Great American roots music films for free! Click and watch full length documentaries about the Popovich Brothers Tamburitza band of South Bend Indiana, Louisiana creole fiddler Canray Fontenot, the last Black medicine-show performer, sacred harp singing and much more. An amazing collaboration between folklorists and indie film makers.
posted by zaelic
on Mar 8, 2004 -
2 comments
