SF Folkways website and write up
--from the website:
The Anthology of American Folk Music (SFW 40090), Edited by Harry Smith, is one of the most influential releases in the history of recorded sound. Originally issued by Folkways in 1952 as three volumes of 2 LPs each, (a total of 84 tracks), it had been commercially unavailable for many years before this 1997 reissue.

The importance and quality of the Anthology reissue and the accompanying documentation was recognized by the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, which bestowed two Grammy Awards on Folkways for this project: 1997 Best Historic Album, and 1997 Best Album Notes.

When it was initially released, the Anthology brought virtually unknown parts of America's musical landscape to the public's attention. It inspired a generation of musicians to go in search of the traditions, and, in some cases, the musicians whose recordings Harry Smith had selected to include in the Anthology.

Released at a time when the commercial recording industry had largely congealed into a few relatively homogeneous mass markets, the Anthology successfully answered a widespread need for fresh inspiration, aesthetic authority, and uncommon artistry in popular music. It played a seminal role in the folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s, which has had lasting political, economic, and aesthetic impact on American culture.