OK, so I'm arriving six months late to this discussion, but I'm in a group in Nashville called Kindling Stone. Over the past couple of years, we've been starting to explore the wonderful (and prolific) Shaker music tradition. It's estimated that collectively, the Shakers wrote 10,000(!) songs and tunes or more, with only a fraction in publication or on recordings. In our process, we've had some contact with the brilliant scholar Dan Patterson who wrote The Shaker Spiritual, mentioned in this thread as an essential book for those interested in Shaker music and culture. I would add to this Early Shaker Spirituals and the Boston Camerata's recording Simple Gifts as good listening. William Coulter from the west coast has made some nice instrumental recordings of Shaker songs. Our group has had the pleasure of performing this summer and last in the Meeting House at the Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village in Maine, the only active Shaker community in the country. If you're ever in Maine, it's an amazing place to visit. Kindling Stone's debut recording has recently been released, and may be of interest to folks here. In addition to our own songs, it features selections from the Shaker and The Sacred Harp traditions. It's available at: http://cdbaby.com/cd/kindlingstone