Folk Rush in Where Mudcat Fears To Go

Subject: Folk Rush in Where Mudcat Fears To Go
From: Amos
Date: 06 Apr 04 - 11:06 AM

Folk Alley's newsletter includes this "how does he dare" notice:

What is Folk Music?:
One of Program Director Eric Nuzum's latest posts to the
Folk Alley weblog asks the question: what is folk music?
The dilemma of where folk ends and other genres, like
country or pop, take up has spurred many enthusiastic
discussions over the years. Read Eric's entire mini-
essay and add your $.02 here:

http://www.folkalley.com/archives/000183.php

Regards,

A

Subject: RE: Folk Rush in Where Mudcat Fears To Go
From: michaelr
Date: 06 Apr 04 - 07:14 PM

Looks like there, as here, is no consensus. Probably never will be.

Give it up. Just play music... :-)

Cheers,
Michael

Subject: RE: Folk Rush in Where Mudcat Fears To Go
From: SueB
Date: 07 Apr 04 - 02:49 AM

Music stores have sections: rock/pop, classical, jazz, country, r&b, world music, celtic, folk, bluegrass, soundtracks, maybe a few others. Would you look for Metallica in the folk music section?

I don't know how music stores decide what goes where, and I don't always find what I'm looking for where I expected to find it, but I think in general if there is a category for rock and a category for folk, Metallica will be over in rock.


Are there any librarians among us? Is the answer to be found in the Dewey Decimal System, maybe?

Subject: RE: Folk Rush in Where Mudcat Fears To Go
From: George Papavgeris
Date: 07 Apr 04 - 04:20 AM

While music can be categorised (though what use that is, Lord only knows), artists cannot. Metallica in fact have 2 or 3 excellent ballads, that would not shame any folk collection (Look for the acoustic version of "Nothing else matters").

Artists don't move within one genre or category. Why should they? Music has no bounds, only people's minds do. I have written (just among my published stuff) in the following "styles":

English Traditional
Mediaeval
Blues
Rock
Chanson
Church Hymns
Greek Traditional
and there are a few that would not fit in any of the above either.

So what am I? On which shelf do you put my albums?

Songs may be categorised. Albums and artists, not.

Subject: RE: Folk Rush in Where Mudcat Fears To Go
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 07 Apr 04 - 09:17 AM

It's simple, really. For convenience's sake, let's say a guy is playing Greensleeves.

1. If the guy is wearing tails and a white bow tie, and if his instrument cost more than $1000, then it is classical music.

2. If the guy is wearing jeans and flannels shirt and playing a guitar (now matter how expensive), then it is folk music.

3. If the guy is:

wearing bizarre clothes
gurgling the phlegm in his throat
doing his best to extirpate the melody
drowned out by the drummer
while the bass player plays the tonic and fifth

then it's rock.

Mostly it depends on what you wear.

Subject: RE: Folk Rush in Where Mudcat Fears To Go
From: Willie-O
Date: 07 Apr 04 - 09:34 AM

". If the guy is:

wearing bizarre clothes
gurgling the phlegm in his throat
doing his best to extirpate the melody
drowned out by the drummer
while the bass player plays the tonic and fifth

then it's rock."

Actually it's at least as likely to be New Country!

Subject: RE: Folk Rush in Where Mudcat Fears To Go
From: Flash Company
Date: 07 Apr 04 - 09:48 AM

They is all folk songs! I ain't never heard a horse sing one!

Louis Armstrong

FC

Subject: RE: Folk Rush in Where Mudcat Fears To Go
From: dick greenhaus
Date: 07 Apr 04 - 01:29 PM

FC-
THat's a quote that provokes actual nausea. Would anyone mind if I deleted postings containing it?

Subject: RE: Folk Rush in Where Mudcat Fears To Go
From: Ed.
Date: 07 Apr 04 - 02:52 PM

Not me, Dick! *grin*

Subject: RE: Folk Rush in Where Mudcat Fears To Go
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 08 Apr 04 - 12:02 AM

How right you are.