Folk Music U.S.A.: Vol. 1

Various Artists

This wide-ranging anthology of American folk music was compiled by noted folklorist Harold Courlander from recordings, many of them field recordings, made in the 1940s and ’50s. Almost all the performers on the collection—who include Cisco Houston, Elizabeth Cotten, and Snooks Eaglin—learned their music from oral tradition. Selections represent a broad spectrum of American folk music, from Puerto Rico to the north coast of Alaska.

Extensive liner notes, written by Charles Edward Smith, delve into the characteristics of American folk music and provide detailed information, with lyrics, for each of the 25 selections.

Track Listing

101	John Henry	Virgil Perkins and Jack Sims	4:10
102	Grizzly Bear: Negro Prison Camp Worksong	n/a	3:31
103	Blowing the Train	Percy Randolph	2:52
104	Six Thousand Miles from Nowhere	Snooks Eaglin	3:06
105	Dark Was the Night	Blind Willie Johnson	3:24
106	Amasee: Children's Ring Game Song	n/a	1:34
201	Spooky Drums	Baby Dodds	2:19
202	Black Jack Davy	Mary Jo Davis	3:09
203	Drunken Sailor: Dulcimer Medley	n/a	1:19
204	Ellen Smith	Pete Steele	1:38
205	Run, Run	Elizabeth Cotten	0:57
206	Mole in the Ground	Bascom Lamar Lunsford	2:49
207	Rolling River: Country Dance	Murph Gribble, John Lusk, and Albert York	2:45
301	Allons Danser Colinda: Cajun Dance	Roy Brulé	1:51
302	Sourwood Mountain: Square Dance Tune	Hobart Smith	1:22
303	Diamond Joe: Cowboy Song	Cisco Houston	2:24
304	Siete Leguas: Corrido	Peter Hurd	2:24
305	Matachines Dance	n/a	1:33
306	Moonlight Song: Taos Indian Serenade	n/a	2:08
401	War Dance Song	n/a	1:28
402	Esta Navidad: Puerto Rican Christmas Song	n/a	3:06
403	Aguinaldo Cagueño: Puerto Rican Song	The Trobador De La Montana and the Puerto Rican Quartet	4:17
404	Rocky Road: Shape-Note Singing	Alabama Sacred Harp Singers	2:43
405	If We Never Meet Again	n/a	0:55
406	Inviting-In Dance Song	Otis Ahkivigak	1:05