Category Archives: My Back Pages

The Skylarks: It’s All About The Name

On the day after my last birthday I got a very nice message from a fellow named Anthony Cook, who is the bass player in a Los Angeles-based band called The Skylarks. Along with a brief note, he included the download link for their third full-length album, the cover of which you see here. I listened to it, liked it, and it sort of slipped off my radar. Over the past few months, every now and then a track has popped up when I’m listening to music in shuffle mode and I think, “Oh yeah, those guys.”

Had it not been for my old friend Will James posting their video here at No Depression last week and announcing that he’s booked them for his Gram Parsons International West showcase next October in Huntington Beach, CA, you might not be reading this. I take no responsibility for this, as you can attribute my mental lapse to the band’s name. Seriously.

At first, the name reminded me of the Pittsburgh doo-wop band The Skyliners who had a hit single in 1959 with “Since I Don’t Have You.” And then I began to think about another LA band called The Larks, who released “The Jerk” back in 1964. That song should not be confused with “Cool Jerk” by the Capitols, although both were dance songs.

And just to illustrate the way my mind takes twists and turns, it finally came to me that, in the early ’70s, one of Ronnie Hawkins’ backup groups from Canada morphed into Skylark, who were signed to Capitol Records and had a smash with “Wildflower” – an early “power ballad” covered and sampled by a diverse crowd, including New Birth, O’Jays, Kenny Rogers, Aaron Neville, Tupac Shakur, and Jamie Foxx.

When I finally decided to write about the group, the plot thickened. Do you have any idea how many bands are already out there with the name The Skylarks?

Let’s start with Miriam Makeba’s group from South Africa, who released two albums in the late 1950s. There were also a Skylark vocal group that formed in Michigan during World War II. They sang for both the Woody Herman and Jimmy Dorsey orchestras, recorded two tracks with Bing Crosby, were signed to RCA Victor, and had a 37 year career.

Some of you might know the Fairfield Four, an African-American gospel group that started out in the ’20s and had their own radio show out of Nashville on WLAC, which was also syndicated across the country. When they stopped touring in 1950, two members started a new group called … The Skylarks.

Allow me just one more. Here’s my favorite video of the week, from Finland’s Skylarks, who play ’60s-style instrumental music. I’ve got no idea where this was filmed, but I’m guessing it’s at some sort of Finnish Beatlesfest. Hang in there if you can, but if you get itchy just cut to 1:45 and let it roll.

Listen, I could go on forever. There must be a thousand bands named The Skylarks. So why would you name your band that? I’ve read about this thing called Google, where one can actually search for such duplicity. Not that there isn’t a history of double-naming throughout time. Nirvana had to pay another band of the same name $100,000 to keep it for themselves. The Charlatans from the UK have to call themselves The Charlatans UK, here in the US. There’s Dead Letter Circus and Dead Letter Chorus. Lizard Wizard and Lizzard Wizzard. Dear Hunter, Deerhunter, Dearhoof and Deartick. It doesn’t end.

The Skylarks that are the seed to this story began several years ago with founding member, songwriter, acoustic guitarist, and lead vocalist Sam Mellon teaming up with pedal steel, dobro, and banjo player Julian Goldwhite, and the aforementioned bassist Anthony Cook. Over time they’ve added Amy Luftigviste on backing vocals, Brian Olamit on drums and vocals, Dan Clucas on horns and percussion, and lead guitarist Russ Chaput.

While most of their performances have been throughout California – “from the desert to the sea,” they say – the new album is being played on both international and college radio, and they’ve managed to already have their songs placed on national television shows and in commercials. This is good straight-ahead American music; rich in texture with a blend of styles and genres. Here’s a taste from the album – a tune called “Almost Feel a Breeze.” Hopefully the band will forgive me for ambling off the beaten path to get to it.

This article was originally published as an Easy Ed’s Broadside column over at No Depression: The Journal of Roots Music.

Many of my past columns, articles, and essays can be accessed here at my own site, therealeasyed.com. I also aggregate news and videos on both Flipboard and Facebook as The Real Easy Ed: Americana Roots Music Daily. My Twitter handle is @therealeasyed and my email is easyed@therealeasyed.com

Americana and Roots Music Videos: Spring 2015

Pixabay License

We’re somewhere around a third of the way into this year and I thought it was a good time to flip through the bin and share some of my favorite albums and songs with you. Frankly, I’m doing this much more for me than for you. I’ve acquired so much new stuff lately, and with barely enough time to listen, it’s going to force me to work a bit. But a night or two of just listening to music? Pretty nice job if you can get it.

I visit YouTube several times a day, every day … and sharing videos has become an important tool in discovering archival footage, catching up on old favorites, and exposing new music. Here’s a few things that caught my eyes and ears this season.

The Westies

John Ellis posted a review on No Depression for The Westies back in February, and he said that they “make music that demonstrates how closely related inner city grit and grime is with the softness of a serene Appalachian mountaintop. Americana doesn’t just belong in rural settings; West Side Stories is Americana music embedded in the rivets of Rust Belt cities with connections to Ireland, coal-streaked miners, and dirt under their fingernails sharecroppers.” Great description. This is the track that does it for me.

Seth Avett and Jessica Lea Mayfield

I seem to have missed their mini-tour last March, but Seth Avett and Jessica Lea Mayfield’s tribute to Elliott Smith presents twelve perfect songs that are handled with care and sprinkled with wonder. I haven’t read much about this project. It’s one that could have easily slipped past you.

Pharis and Jason Romero

I don’t think there’s anybody who has heard Pharis and Jason Romero’s music and failed to fall in love with their harmonies and songs. They’ve got such a great story, and A Wanderer I’ll Stay is probably the strongest of their albums so far. If we could only get them out of Canada and down south, life would be a dream.

Fairport Convention

While Fairport Convention may no longer have the same rabid fan base in America that they still maintain in England, they still make intensely magical music, as demonstrated by the title track of their latest album, Myths and Heroes. The annual Cropready concerts will commence in August.

Calexico

Just about every track on Calexico’s Edge of the Sun has a different guest on it. The first invitation to collaborate went to Sam Beam from Iron and Wine, and then they extended it to Ben Bridwell from Band of Horses, Nick Urata from Devotchka, Carla Morrison, Gaby Moreno, Amparo Sanchez, multi-instrumentalists from the Greek band Takim, as well as Neko Case. I wish we still had Top 40 AM radio because this one would be number one with a bullet.

John Moreland

John Moreland is the most dazzling singer, guitarist and songwriter in America. He’s a very big man. And I think I know why. Deep inside his soul lives Woody Guthrie, a young Bob Dylan, a kid from the Jersey shore named Bruce, and the hardcore troubadour Steve Earle. He’s that f-ing great. And you know what? I first discovered him on YouTube.

This article was originally published as an Easy Ed’s Broadside column over at No Depression: The Journal of Roots Music.

Many of my past columns, articles, and essays can be accessed here at my own site, therealeasyed.com. I also aggregate news and videos on both Flipboard and Facebook as The Real Easy Ed: Americana and Roots Music Daily. My Twitter handle is @therealeasyed and my email address is easyed@therealeasyed.com.

Musicians: The Haves and Have Nots

I don’t believe that my editor was too happy with me this week as the deadline for this column approached and she opened my email to discover that there were no attachments, photos or video links included. Nada. Zip. Nothing. Pleading for just a one-day extension, I admitted to be having a hard time focusing on the latest singer-songwriter album or stringband tour. The main reason being that while I rarely get the dreaded writer’s block, my mind was racing, addled and fried with thoughts of gender dysmorphia, that devastating earthquake in Nepal, and images of riots, looting, and fires in the streets of Baltimore.

Kim first encouraged me to write and post articles more often at No Depression back in 2009, and through the years I assume she has come to trust me. I told her not only would I come up with a great topic, I would keep it simple. Nothing that requires significant proofreading or fact checking. Seriously, how hard would it be to sit down at lunch and whip up a 500-word essay on something fairly light? My inbox is full of solicitations from marketing people and band members all shouting “Me, me, me!” All I had to do was pick one and – shazam! – the Broadside could come alive.

I’m reminded of an obscure Philadelphia band from the ’60s named the Kit Kats who charted locally with a song titled “Let’s Get Lost on a Country Road.” As I looked around for my easy-to-assemble story, I got lost. A little click here, another click there, here’s a link, there’s a link, everywhere there’s a link. And so it was that I thought Aha! Taking on the topic of income disparity in music could be a simple task. It wasn’t.

Many of my friends and acquaintances are musicians, and for the sake of this discussion I define that to mean that they perform and tour, record and release albums, and try hard to make enough money to pay their bills. Sadly, many of them don’t pay their bills. So, in order to make up for their financial shortfalls, they take what we call a “day job.” If they’re lucky enough, it might actually come with a flexible schedule to accommodate their shows or studio time. And if they’re able to score things like medical and dental benefits, it’s as if they’ve hit the lottery.

It’s the sad, sad truth that the life of a musician, both before and since the digital evolution, has always been hard.

For most, that is, but not all.

Below is a list I found today that was published in Forbes magazine last December. Here are the world’s highest paid musicians, with the amount of money they earned in 2014. In order to be fair, I should note that Dr. Dre’s number is a little wacko – it includes his haul from selling Beats, the headphone company, to Apple. So, subtract a half-billion dollars for him.

Still, as I scanned the list, it became clear that there is simply a staggering amount of money in the hands of just a few. Take a look:

1. Dr. Dre ($620 million)
2. Beyoncé ($115 million)
3. The Eagles ($100 million)
4. Bon Jovi ($82 million)
5. Bruce Springsteen ($81 million)
6. Justin Bieber ($80 million)
7. One Direction ($75 million)
8. Paul McCartney ($71 million)
9. Calvin Harris ($66 million)
10. Toby Keith ($65 million)
11. Taylor Swift ($64 million)
12. Jay Z ($60 million)(tie)
12. Diddy ($60 million)(tie)
12. Bruno Mars ($60 million)(tie)
15. Justin Timberlake ($57 million)
16. Pink ($52 million)
17. Michael Bublé ($51 million)
18. Rihanna ($48 million)
19. Rolling Stones ($47 million)
20. Roger Waters ($46 million)
21. Elton John ($45 million)
22. Kenny Chesney ($44 million)
23. Katy Perry ($40 million)
24. Jason Aldean ($37 million)(tie)
24. Jennifer Lopez ($37 million)(tie)
26. Miley Cyrus ($36 million)(tie)
26. Celine Dion ($36 million)(tie)
28. Muse ($34 million)(tie)
28. Luke Bryan ($34 million)(tie)
30. Lady Gaga ($33 million)(tie)
30. Drake ($33 million)(tie)

The musicians I know just barely missed making the list by about $32,970,000. Many work at fast food restaurants, retail stores, or in other areas of the service industry for minimum wage or slightly above it. Others work in the creative fields as web designers, photographers, designers, or other artistic roles. If they are able to stay within their craft, they might offer music lessons, play at weddings and bar mitzvahs, do music therapy at a hospital, find studio work for an hour or two here and there. If they can actually manage to put together a route or circuit of dates at coffee houses, clubs, and maybe festivals to perform at, they often do so at the generosity of others who offer a couch to sleep on and a meal or two.

I know what you may be thinking. They choose to do what they do, so it is what it is. But I don’t think so.

Musicians add something to our lives that you really can’t put a dollar value on. When I look at the list above, I wonder if there wasn’t something musicians could all do for one another. Just off the top of my head, what if NARAS, the organization that sponsors the Grammy awards show, was able to get each of those $33,000,000-plus-grossing artists to throw 20 percent of last year’s income into a fund? And what if that money was used to seed a subsidized group health-care plan that was open to all musicians? Just sayin’.

If I wasn’t way, way, way past my deadline, I could probably think of a dozen other ideas. Some might make sense, some not. I imagine this might seem a little off the wall and half-baked, but “redistributing the wealth” are three little words that make a lot of sense to me. And that list? Absolutely senseless.

This was originally published by No Depression, as an Easy Ed’s Broadside column.

It’s All Going To Pot

Unlike the other columnists here at No Depression, so far my articles haven’t been restrained to a particular topic. Lee writes about music from around the world, Ted is the bluegrass man, and Raina shares about the stages she has performed on. While I’ve tried hard to stay on the theme of “exploring music without a map,” a better phrase or tag-line might have been one that I’ve used off and on over the years: random thoughts … as if your own were not enough.

Anyhow, it was pretty hard to miss via social media in the past week that Tuesday was 4/20. April 20. Doesn’t register? It’s the day some celebrate getting high on weed. A brand new Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard collaborative song titled “It’s All Going to Pot” was released as a video, got itself posted all over inter-webs, was Tweeted and re-Tweeted, shared on Facebook by lots and lots of folks, including No Depression.

Tapping my feet and listening to the chorus while watching these two old dudes toke up, I realized that while I’m less tolerant of the “beer, whiskey and women” country-stereotype we often hear on the radio, I’m actually inclined to enjoy a good song about smoke.

Unlike a certain former president of the United States, I’ve no problem admitting that I inhaled. Frequently. And for a long, long time.

This July marks twenty years of me choosing to be weed-free. There were basically two reasons I gave it up.

First, I was living close to the San Andreas fault line. Whenever I got a buzz, I was sure the ground would open up, swallow me in, and I’d be in no condition to pull myself out of the abyss. The second reason was that my oldest son was about to celebrate his first birthday. In my all-too-real fantasy world, I just knew I’d take him to the supermarket one day, buy my Cocoa Puffs and Ring Dings, pay the cashier, and leave him strapped in the cart. So I gave it up. Couple of years later, I took the path to sobriety and stopped drinking as well.

It was coincidental that this week, and in fact on April 20, I finished Johann Hari’s latest book Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs. A London-based journalist, and a drug-user himself, Hari travelled the globe to research and write a pretty compelling story of how the American bureaucrat Harry Anslinger created the world-wide policy on how to deal with drugs. Anslinger’s solution has resulted in a complex set of laws and theories where the bad guys both run the game and profit from it. In the meantime, ordinary people are labeled criminals and law enforcement is relegated to spending a vast amount of money and resources on trying to control what is, frankly, unmanageable.

Hari presents a rather balanced view of the difference between looking at drug users as criminals, versus treating them like human beings who have a need or desire to live in some version of an altered state.

He also spends a great deal of time tracing the life, persecution, and death of Billie Holiday — a sad, sick tale. With a solid presentation of statistics and research, Hari shares the results of new social experiments in places like Vancouver, Portugal, England, Switzerland, and the state of Washington, where social scientists are turning conventional wisdom on its ears. Should you be so inclined, you’ll find info about it here.

Over time, I’ve gone up and down on the subject(s) of the War on Drugs, the ‘just say no’ policy, addiction, recovery, the glorification of intoxicants and legalization. Seems like it should be something we’ve figured out by now. You might recall that old public service announcement with the scary image — this is your brain, this is your brain on dope. But it’s really not like that for most recreational users. Unlike myself, the vast majority of people can pick it up and put it down with ease. So this week’s ramble is probably less an advocation and more of a reality check.

If we keep doing the same things over and over and it doesn’t work, why not change it?

This was originally published by No Depression, as an Easy Ed’s Broadside column.

Driving That Train, High On Rogaine … Dead Ahead

If you haven’t already heard, a reasonable facsimile of the Grateful Dead are reuniting “one last time” for three shows in Chicago’s Soldier Field over the Fourth of July weekend, to celebrate their 50th anniversary. It’s a dream come true for thousands and thousands of Deadheads. Tickets sold out in a heartbeat when they went on sale in February. When I perused StubHub today, you could still at least get in the door each day, if you wanted an obstructed view seat for a mere $500 starting point, with a general admission floor ticket selling for $13,385. The big enchilada that was listed a week ago, and is now gone: a three-day pass, for $114,000. Not a typo.

One last time? Ha. Just this past week, the band added two more dates in California. In rock and roll lingo, words like “final,” “last,” “farewell,” and “goodbye” are mere approximations of reality. They tend to bop ’til they drop. And, while the number of dearly departed band members far exceeds those that are still alive – with the addition of “Dead for a Day” Trey Anastasio and “Almost Dead” Bruce Hornsby to fill in the missing pieces – it’s likely to be an excellent celebration of music and culture. Despite aging like the rest of us baby boomers, surviving members Phil Lesh (age 74), Bob Weir (67), Mickey Hart (71), and Bill Kreutzmann (68) are far from geriatric and will definitely kick ass (albeit a saggy one).

I first saw the Dead on April 10, 1971, at East Hall, on the campus of Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, PA. I remember a few things from that night – I drank a lot of apple cider, which was passed around at the foot of the stage in gallon jugs. I also remember seeing Jerry Garcia play pedal steel guitar for the New Riders of the Purple Sage, who opened that concert, and Pigpen on organ, harp, and vocals before he left us less than two years later. It was a magical night. I screamed, hollered, and danced for hours. It launched my ten-year fixation on the band.

That fixation ended one night at the Greek Theater in Berkeley, as I watched the sun do a slow-mo fade into the San Francisco Bay. I decided to bail out while they were at the peak; the scene had eclipsed the music.

Through both the miracle of technology and a large group of fans and fanatics committed to saving every single note that the Dead has ever played, with the touch of a mouse I can not only scan the set list and read the recollections from my fellow concert attendees, but I can also stream the show in the comfort of my home. It’s up on the Internet Archive website, along with thousands of other shows they’ve played over the years. That site is hardly exclusive to the Dead, although they are probably one of the bands most extensively represented.

We used to just call that bootlegging. Today, it’s an opportunity to catalog and digitally preserve another piece of fading American history.

Since most of us won’t be refinancing our homes to buy a ticket and travel to Chicago or California, there will likely be opportunities to stream, download, and/or view those concerts, too. And it looks like there will be a documentary of the event released in 2016.

The ‘Core Four’ members of the band sent out this press release:

Millions of stories have been told about the Grateful Dead over the years. With our 50th Anniversary coming up, we thought it might just be time to tell one ourselves and Amir Bar-Lev is the perfect guy to help us do it. Needless to say, we are humbled to be collaborating with Martin Scorsese. From The Last Waltz to George Harrison: Living In The Material World, from Bob Dylan to the Rolling Stones, he has made some of the greatest music documentaries ever with some of our favorite artists and we are honored to have him involved. The 50th will be another monumental milestone to celebrate with our fans and we cannot wait to share this film with them.

If you’re filled with excitement and can’t wait, I found a treat for y’all on the ‘Tube. And, should you be one of the lucky ones this summer to catch a show, don’t forget the sunscreen, watch what you drink, and beware of the orange Metamucil. Fare thee well.

This was originally published by No Depression, as an Easy Ed’s Broadside column.

On Indiana, Wilco and Jim Nabors

Most of the time, I just write about the music. It’s why you come here, so I’m aware I need to stay on topic. A few times over the years I’ve veered off course; most notably when a college student attending the University of Virginia went missing from a Metallica concert a few years back. As a parent, I found myself deeply affected by the anguish that Morgan Harrington’s family was going through, so I wrote an article about her, posted it here, and hoped for the best. The story was all over the news and social media. But I thought any additional exposure might be helpful – who knows, maybe there was a reader from Virginia who might have seen something or have information to share. I know, it was naive of me. But I had to say something.

Indiana. It’s been hard to miss the news about this state. They passed a law a few weeks ago. At first glance, it was not unlike a federal law passed by both the Democrats and Republicans back in the early 1990s called the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. A bunch of other states have passed a version, too. (And like most laws, it’s complex and I’m not going to spend my time nor yours in explaining it here. Go forth and Google.)

What you need to know is that the Indiana legislature decided to add a little extra kick to their version of the RFRA, resulting in what would have amounted to permissible discrimination against people on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. And, while the talking heads on cable news might make it sound like it’s about the right to not sell pizza that might be eaten at a gay wedding, or the right to refuse to bake a cake on which you have to write “Congratulations Carol and Anna” in frosting, because it goes against your religious beliefs, that’s the smoke and mirrors around the topic. The topic itself is singular: intolerance.

By now you probably know what happened. Titans of technology united with barons of business to stand up against discrimination. Cities and states quickly passed laws of their own condemning Indiana. There was talk that the NCAA might pull the Final Four tournament out of Indianapolis. And Wilco cancelled an upcoming show and issued this statement on their Facebook page:

“We are canceling our May 7 show at the Murat in Indianapolis. The ‘Indiana Religious Freedom Restoration Act’ feels like thinly disguised legal discrimination to us. Hope to get back to the Hoosier State someday soon, when this odious measure is repealed.”

There were a few other musicians who raised their voices as well. Can you guess who? Miley Cyrus was probably one of the most vocal on her Twitter account, and she publicly supported Wilco’s decision. REM’s Michael Stipe posted a video saying he loved the people of Indiana but the governor could go “F” himself. And in a letter to the Indianapolis Star, Indiana native John Mellencamp wrote:

“I am not questioning the sincerity of those who believe they have acted in the interests of religious freedom, but I am resolutely stating my opposition to this misnamed and ill-conceived law. It is discriminatory, hurtful, and a stain on Indiana’s national reputation.”

Mellencamp distanced himself from Wilco’s decision by adding that he would continue with planned shows in Indiana because he doesn’t want to let the government come between him and his fans from his native state. Meanwhile, a group of Indiana-based indie record labels (including Sufjan Stevens’ Asthmatic Kitty Records and members of the Secretly Group) signed a press release aligning themselves with civil liberties and the LGBT community but urging the artists not to cancel their scheduled live performances in order to achieve the abolition of the law:

“To musicians with events scheduled in Indiana – please follow through and perform. While canceling shows is one way to protest, a greater statement can be made by coming here and using your art to influence the policy debate that is occurring locally. You can insist that the venue you play publicly states that they will not discriminate under any circumstances. If the venue won’t do that, rebook your show with another venue that will. Your performance can be a rally. We need your support locally.”

So then, what about Wilco? Did they jump the gun or help further publicize the damage this law could have done? Seeing as, in a matter of days, the law was re-worked, and the governor of Arkansas chose not to sign a similar law there, it seems the voice of that band, along with all the others, was loud enough to be heard.

On April 3, Wilco took to Facebook again:

We consider the changes to Indiana’s RFRA a good first step toward creating the sort of welcoming environment we encourage everywhere, so we’re reinstating our May 7 show at The Murat, which we canceled earlier this week. To quote an Indiana University statement from yesterday, ‘religious liberty and equal protection under the law are both cornerstones of our democracy and they should not be in conflict with each other.’ Well said, IU.

While a small battle may have been won, victory for human rights is too far to view. Look no further than the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and contrast it with what’s been happening in Ferguson, MO, 51 years later: laws alone will not change people, their beliefs, or their actions. While public opinion has tilted in favor of supporting gay marriage and equality, and with the US Supreme Court expected to rule on those rights later this year, there will still remain a large group of people in America who will use whatever power they can to sway both the political and cultural opinion.

Of all that I have read or heard this past week, it was an op-ed piece in the Washington Post from the most unlikely person imaginable that I have found truly hopeful. Change comes incrementally, and here’s an example. This is what Arnold Schwarzenegger, the former Republican governor of California, wrote to his party:

“As an American, I’m incredibly concerned about what happened in Indiana this week and the threat of similar laws being passed in other states. As a Republican, I’m furious.

I know plenty of Republicans who are sensible and driven to solve problems for America. They believe in Reagan’s vision of a big tent where everyone is welcome. This message isn’t for them. It is for Republicans who choose the politics of division over policies that improve the lives of all of us. It is for Republicans who have decided to neglect the next generation of voters. It is for Republicans who are fighting for laws that fly in the face of equality and freedom.”

Should you have made it this far, it’s time for the music.

Back in the 1960s and ’70s, an actor from Alabama by the name of Jim Nabors portrayed the character Gomer Pyle, first on the Andy Griffith Show and then his own hit show. In addition to being a television star, he also had a deep baritone voice and released a number of albums, many that were full of spiritual songs. On January 15, 2013, one month after same-sex marriage became legal in Washington State, Nabors married his partner of 38 years, Stan Cadwallader, in Seattle.

Nabors is also well known for singing “Back Home Again in Indiana” prior to the start of the Indianapolis 500, held annually over the Memorial Day weekend. Except for a few absences due to health or other conflicts, he sang the unofficial Indiana anthem every year from 1972 until his final appearance there in 2014. Listen to the cheers as he’s announced. Watch the crowd give him a standing ovation at the end. Indiana is a state full of good people, in spite of the political and religious intolerance we witnessed that propelled them onto the front page.

It’s nice to know that Wilco will be there, too, so their voices and music can soar through the fear and hate.

This was originally published by No Depression, as an Easy Ed’s Broadside column.

The Alan Lomax Video Collection

Here are a collection of videos featuring Alan Lomax, one of the great American field collectors of folk music in the 20th century. He was a folklorist, ethnomusicologist, archivist, writer, scholar, political activist, oral historian, and film-maker. You can find his complete biography and more information about his work here. There are five films made from footage that Lomax shot between 1978 and 1985 for the PBS American Patchwork series, three of which are included here. To view the other two titles, and for more information on the series, visit the FolkStreams website.

Appalachian Journey

The Land Where the Blues Began

Jazz Parades:Feet Don’t Fail Me Now

Alan Lomax, with Phil Summerlin and Buell Cobb, discusses the emotional, historical, and musicological dimensions of Sacred Harp. Lomax sees shape-note singing as characteristically American, places it in a global multi-melodic choral context, and predicts its increasing popularity. Shot at the Holly Springs Sacred Harp Convention, Holly Springs, Georgia, June 6, 1982. For more information about the American Patchwork filmwork, Alan Lomax, and his collections, visit http://culturalequity.org.

For more information about the American Patchwork series, Alan Lomax, and his collections, visit http://culturalequity.org.