The Anthology of American Folk Music – Free Download

The Anthology of American Folk Music is a six-album compilation released in 1952 by Folkways Records (catalogue FP 251, FP 252, and FP 253), edited by Harry Smith.

Introduction

The Anthology of American Folk Music is a six-album compilation released in 1952 by Folkways Records, catalogue FP 251/2, edited by Harry Smith. It is considered one of the most influential recordings ever made in the United States. The Anthology was compiled by musicologist and film-maker Harry Smith from his personal collection of 25,000 78 rpm records. The collection contains songs by 81 artists recorded between 1927 and 1932. In 1948, while living at the YMCA on West 63rd Street in New York City’s Manhattan borough, Smith began cataloguing his collection with an eye to compiling an Anthology. He initially envisioned nine discs with about 300 songs total; however, the original LP release presented 84 songs across six discs (divided evenly into sections called “Ballads”, “Social Music”, and “Songs”).

What is the Anthology of American Folk Music?

The Anthology of American Folk Music is a six-album compilation released in 1952 by Folkways Records (catalog FP 251, FP 252, and FP 253), comprising eighty-four American folk, blues and country music recordings that were originally issued from 1927 to 1932. Experimental film maker Harry Smith compiled the music from his personal collection of 78 rpm records. The album is famous due to its influence on the American folk music revival in the 1950s and 1960s. The Anthology was released on compact disc in 1997, and again in 2002 with new artwork, on Smithsonian Folkways.

Where can I find the Anthology of American Folk Music?

The Anthology of American Folk Music is a six-album compilation released in 1952 by Folkways Records (catalogue FP 251, FP 252, and FP 253), comprising eighty-four American folk, blues and country music recordings that were originally issued from 1927 to 1932.

In 1998, the original anthology was reissued on CD by Smithsonian Folkways (SFW CD 40501), with a below additional material:

-an essay by Robert Gordon
-an interview with Harry Smith conducted by Mary Katherine Aldin
-a discography of Folkways Records by Louisa Bjerregaard
-a list of all the songs in the collection with recording details.

The booklet accompanying the reissue won a GRAMMY Award for Best Album Notes.

How can I listen to the Anthology of American Folk Music?

The Anthology of American Folk Music is a six-album compilation released in 1952 by Folkways Records, comprising eighty-four American folk, blues and country songs recorded between 1927 and 1932. influential on the American folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s.

The Anthology was compiled by Harry Smith from his personal collection of 78 rpm records. The collection came from the East Coast andmiddle America, but not from the deep South, where Smith believed the blues originated. It includes material from Alan Lomax’s 1934 field recordings made in Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Kentucky for the Library of Congress.

The Anthology was originally issued as six double-sided discs in 1952..It was then reissued as a box set in 1957, with each disc reissued separately on LP in 1962..A CD box set was issued in 1997, with each disc containing approximately 30 minutes of music..In 2011, Smithsonian Folkways issued a deluxe edition containing both the original LP version and the 1997 CD reissue..

You can listen to the Anthology of American Folk Music for free online at Smithsonian Folkways: https://www.folkways.si.edu/smithsonian

Conclusion

The Anthology of American Folk Music is one of the most influential collections of American folk music ever assembled. Originally issued by Folkways Records in 1952, it compiled ninety-six songs on six discs, all performed by relatively obscure artists mostly active in the first three decades of the twentieth century. The anthology was assembled by Harry Smith, a painter, bohemian, and mystic who also dabbled in ethnography and folklore. It was reissued in 1997 by Smithsonian Folkways, with a new introduction by Greil Marcus.