Field Recorders' Collective - 101 albums

Subject: Field Recorders' Collective - 101 albums
From: Vic Smith
Date: 12 Nov 19 - 01:18 PM

I have used the Mudcat search engine on the Home Page to search for Field Recorders' Collective after a serendipitous search took me there. There seems to be mentions of where this is mentioned in other threads but no thread devoted to it.

It looks to be a treasure chest of really important recordings of mainly white, mainly Old Time, mainly fiddle and/or banjo songs and tunes though there are is also cajun, early bluegrass and other aspects of American musical heritage from home or concert recordings - and the 101 albums on the site seem to be freely available to listen to.
Many of the names do not resonate with me on this side of the Atlantic but others do - Wade Ward, Dewey Balfa, Ola Belle Reed, Dock Boggs, Nathan Abshire, Tommy Jarrell, Buddy Thomas and some others.

I decided to make my first listening to be a song and a singer that I did not recognise and random choice took me to an old lady called Maggie Parker singing Wicked Polly. If the collection is half as good as this recording, I am set for many, many hours of fascinating listening.

This is the first part of what they have to say about themselves at https://fieldrecorder.org/about-frc/

The music can be listened to at https://fieldrecorder.bandcamp.com/

About the FRC
The Field Recorders’ Collective is an IRS-recognized nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation and distribution of noncommercial recordings of traditional American music,   material that is unavailable to the general public. Although some recordings in the collection have been shared privately and informally among collectors, they have never before been made readily available to the entire old time and traditional music community. Many of the source recordings used by the FRC come from private collections belonging to the individuals who made them. Although a number of source recordings are available through specialized music archives, gaining access to the archives (which may be thousands of miles away) and to the recordings that they maintain isn’t always simple. Sometimes, archival recordings can only be heard by visiting the archive. And even when an archive is willing to provide a copy, the cost can be prohibitive.

What does the FRC do? Among other things, your purchase of FRC products enables us to:

* track down important collections of traditional music;
* audition source recordings and selects the best examples for inclusion on our albums;
* digitally edit these recordings to trim out what isn’t relevant;
* apply suitable EQ and filters to create a high quality listening and learning experience; and
* solicit written background material and photographs for context, available via the FRC website.

Has anyone here ant experince of buying from/contacting/supporting this organisation?

Subject: RE: Field Recorders' Collective - 101 albums
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 12 Nov 19 - 01:51 PM

No, but it makes me think I should go look at the various 10" and 12" LPs in Dad's collection and see if they apply to this group. Something they can add to their resource.

Subject: RE: Field Recorders' Collective - 101 albums
From: GUEST,NICKP (COOKIELESS)
Date: 13 Nov 19 - 04:29 AM

Vic

I've bought dozens of them and can't speak too highly of them. A friend of mine has also bought downloads but I prefer the real thing although I tend to buy the latest relelase when I'm over there because of the restrictive postage costs from the U.S.

Obviously you have to be a fan of American Oldtime music but...

Nick

Subject: RE: Field Recorders' Collective - 101 albums
From: GUEST,Hootenanny
Date: 13 Nov 19 - 05:00 AM

Yes Vic,

I am surprised that you didn't know about them.

Maggie Parker is from a sizeable family of musicians in West Virginia, the Hammons Family all worth exploring. They also have good DVD's of Clyde Davenport, The Roane Mountain Hilltoppers and others.

I have dealt with them from the beginning and can thoroughly recommend them. Most, possibly all of their material comes from amateur collectors and enthusiasts's private recordings and they have some real gems if you are a follower of American Old Time as Nick says.

Any profit made is paid to the families of the musicians the majority of who are no longer with us.

Stilly River: They do not re-issue old commercial recordings except one I believe that of Early Upchurch a gospel singer made up from very scarce small label singles.

They certainly deserve support for doing a great job in making such material available. Like Nick I prefer the "real thing" but the cost of mailing does make more sense if you are happy with downloads.

Subject: RE: Field Recorders' Collective - 101 albums
From: Janie
Date: 18 Nov 19 - 11:18 AM

FRC is a wonderful resource. Glad you started this thread.