What Was the Anthology of American Folk Music?

The Anthology of American Folk Music is a six-album compilation released in 1952 by Folkways Records. The collection is one of the most influential releases in the history of American folk music.

The Anthology of American Folk Music

In 1952, Harry Smith released The Anthology of American Folk Music, a landmark six-album set of commercial recordings of American folk music from the late 1920s and early 1930s. The Anthology was one of the most influential releases of its time, and has been hugely influential in the development of American folk, blues, and country music.

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. Employing an open-ended definition of “folk,” the compilers—folklorists Harry Smith, Moses Asch and Bernard Klatzko—included songs by such artists as Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson, The Carter Family, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Bessie Smith, Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly, Reverend GaryDavis and Clarence Ashley. They were originally recorded on fragile shellac discs and copied onto acetate transcription disks.

Who compiled the Anthology of American Folk Music?

The Anthology of American Folk Music is a six-album compilation released in 1952 by Harry Smith, a scholar, anthropologist, and musicologist. The collection was assembled from his personal collection of 78 rpm records. The Anthology presents 82 recordings that were originally issued on 78 rpm format between 1927 and 1932.

What is the significance of the Anthology of American Folk Music?

The Anthology of American Folk Music is a six-album compilation released in 1952 by Folkways Records, optimum subcategory of Vanguard Records. The anthology recorded ninety-three tracks and was compiled by Harry Smith from his personal collection of about twenty-eight thousand 78rpm records. It incorporated work songs, ballads, protest songs, and religious music from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries that helped inform the development of twentieth century popular music. Although it had little impact when first released, the album’s influence on the American folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s was considerable. Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, Odetta, The Holy Modal Rounders, Grateful Dead, and The Byrds were all heavily influenced by the anthology.

The Songs on the Anthology of American Folk Music

The Anthology of American Folk Music was a six-album set compiled by Harry Smith and originally released in 1952 by Folkways Records. The Anthology was one of the most influential releases of the 20th century and helped to spark the American folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s. The Anthology included a wide range of songs, from traditional folk songs and ballads to blues, country, and gospel.

What are some of the songs on the Anthology of American Folk Music?

The Anthology of American Folk Music is a compilation album released in 1952 by Folkways Records (catalogue FP 251, FP 506), assembled by the American folklorist Harry Smith. It is one of the most influential recordings ever made, and exerted an enormous influence on the folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s. The anthology’s six discs present eighty-four American folk, blues and country recordings that were originally issued on 78 rpm phonograph records in the 1927–1932 period.

Disc one: Social Music
1.”And We Bid You Goodnight” – Traditional; performed by The Bainbridge Quartet
2.”Oh Death” – Traditional; performed by Dock Boggs
3.”Cindy” – Traditional; performed by Alvin Rubio and His Aviators
4.”The Coo Coo Bird” – Traditional; performed by Clarence Ashley and Doc Watson
5.”She Moved Through the Fair” – Traditional; performed by Bill Garrett
6.”The Wagoner’s Lad” –Traditional; performed by Buell Kazee
7.”Jesse James” – Missouri Hide Hunters; sung by Frank Hutchison
8.”In Tall Buildings” – Tom Carter; sung by Carter Family
9.”Lonesome Valley” –Traditional; sung by Georgia Tom Dorsey and Tampa Red with Ma Rainey
10.”Keep My Skillet Good and Greasy” – traditional, Blind Lemon Jefferson

What do the songs on the Anthology of American Folk Music tell us about American folk music?

The Anthology of American Folk Music is a six-album compilation released in 1952 by Folkways Records, subtitled “A Selection of the Best known and Rarely Heard Songs Sung in America from the Rural South, Southwest, North and West, Issued for the First Time as a Complete Album.” The Anthology was compiled by Harry Smith from his personal collection of 78 rpm records. The song selection represents a wide cross-section of styles within American folk music, including ballads, work songs, play-party songs, cowboy songs, blues, and religious music.

The Anthology is one of the most influential releases in the history of American folk music, helping to spark both the folk revival of the 1950s and ’60s and the contemporary folk scene. The songs on the Anthology provide a window into American folk music at a time when it was largely oral tradition passed down through generations. The lyrics and melodies offer insights into American culture and history, while the different musical styles reflect the diversity of America’s regional traditions.

The Legacy of the Anthology of American Folk Music

The Anthology of American Folk Music was a six-album compilation released in 1952 by Folkways Records. The Anthology helped to spark the folk revival of the 1950s and 1960s and was hugely influential on musicians like Bob Dylan and The Grateful Dead. It is considered one of the most important recordings of American folk music ever made.

How has the Anthology of American Folk Music influenced American folk music?

The Anthology of American Folk Music is a six-album compilation released in 1952 by Folkways Records, edited by Harry Smith. The album is famous for its role in helping to revive interest in American folk music in the 1950s and 1960s. It has also exerted a significant influence on the development of subsequent folk, country, blues, and rock musicians.

The Anthology was compiled from commercial 78 rpm recordings that were originally issued between 1927 and 1932. Included are eighty-four songs by seventy-two different artists. Most of the songs are from the southeastern United States and Appalachia, although a few are from as far away as Texas and California.

The album covers a wide range of American folk music, including blues, country music, gospel music, old-time music, and Cajun music. Some of the more famous artists represented on the anthology include Blind Lemon Jefferson, Bessie Smith, Uncle Dave Macon, The Carter Family, and Dock Boggs.

Since its release, the Anthology has been enormously influential on American folk musicians. Bob Dylan famously credited the album with providing him with a glimpse into the “old America” that he wanted to capture in his own songs. Other artists who have been influenced by the Anthology include Joan Baez, John Fahey, Jerry Garcia, and Emmylou Harris.

What is the legacy of the Anthology of American Folk Music?

The Anthology of American Folk Music is a six-album compilation released in 1952 by Folkways Records, edited by Harry Smith. The album is one of the most influential releases in the history of recorded music. It helped to spark the folk revival of the 1950s and 1960s, and led to the rediscovery of many forgotten musicians.

The Anthology was compiled from Smith’s personal collection of 78 rpm records, which he had amassed over several years. He chose 84 songs that he felt represented the “authentic” sound of American folk music, and arranged them into six themed discs. The discs were organized thematically, rather than chronologically or geographically, and included songs from a wide range of styles and genres.

The Anthology has been praised for its eclecticism, for its inclusion of both well-known and obscure artists, and for its illustration of the vast range of American folk music. It has also been criticized for its lack of context or explanation, and for its omitance of important regional styles such as Appalachian music.

Despite its shortcomings, the Anthology remains an essential document of American folk music, and its influence can be heard in the work of countless artists who came after.