It happens that I'm in a Civil War reenactment band (with Doug Jimerson, mentioned above), and we have been in the studio doing songs relating to Abe Lincoln. Our approach is not 'soldier songs,' but popular songs and parlor songs of the day. Doug IS a trained tenor (he does the 'Star-Spangled Banner' at Baltimore Orioles and Washington Nationals baseball games fairly often) and that means we do fewer minstrel songs or actual soldier songs, but I've been nudging the band in that direction ever since joining (for that Civil War recording mentioned above, as it happens).

Our Lincoln CD won't be out till the fall, alas, but there are a lot of recordings out there. I particularly like some of the minstrel show reenactment bands -- the Camptown Shakers and the 2d South Carolina Stringband are two of my favorites (go to CDBaby.com).

Bob Clayton