Has anyone noticed the recent upswing of interest in traditional American music started with the first official release of Harry Smith's Anthology of American folk Music?
When the collection first came out as a bootleg Harry stated his goal was to shake the white picket fences of America. He even thought it was of paramount importance that the songs follow each other in a very specific fashion some alchemical pattern he devised.The crazy bastard did it. The collection was the center piece of the great folk scare of the 60's.The larger more debatable repercussions took place in the role that the folk scare played in the civil rights movement.
Swing ahead to '97 where corporate American decides what most people think and know and think they know....here comes Harry again with that ragged odd collection of songs. 3 years later more and more traditional style albums are being recorded and are beginning to approach the mainstream audience with the success of "Oh Brother, where art thou" and I read yesterday that another film "song catcher" with another soundtrack chaulk full of the good stuff is on the way.
Incidentally, 2 other folks from Harry's day who thought they could change the world with the power of the old music are getting more attention these days too- Alan Lomax with the bottomless Rounder series and Woody Guthrie is more popular now than he has been anytime since the folk scare. Folk music is a thirty year locust, right? Anyone else smell a revival?