The Complete Friends of Old Time Music Concert

Bessie Jones, John Davis, and the Georgia Sea Island Singers gained wide renown during the 1960s and ‘70s for their powerful performances of traditional songs from the African American Gullah Geechee community on St. Simons Island, Georgia. Most in the group were born and raised on St. Simons, and could trace their ancestry to the enslaved West and Central Africans who worked on the island’s cotton plantations. Throughout the ‘60s, the Georgia Sea Island Singers were prominent voices in the civil rights movement, bringing hundreds of years of Black musical tradition to bear on a pivotal time in American history. This previously unheard recording captures their complete Friends of Old Time Music concert of April 1965, at which they were joined by legendary bluesman Mississippi Fred McDowell, cane fife player Ed Young, and folklorist Alan Lomax, who acted as emcee. The album showcases a variety of traditional music from the Island and beyond, including stirring work songs, emotionally charged spirituals, jubilant songs for children, and revelatory renditions of Mississippi blues.

 

Track Listing

1	Introduction by Alan Lomax / Travelin' Shoes Georgia Sea Island Singers led by Bessie Jones	02:29
2	Handclapping - Cane Fife Georgia Sea Island Singers led by Bessie Jones with Ed Young	03:07
3	Buzzard Lope (Dance) - In That Old Field Georgia Sea Island Singers led by Bessie Jones	02:12
4	Josephine Georgia Sea Island Singers led by Bessie Jones	01:14
5	Goodbye My Riley O Georgia Sea Island Singers led by John Davis	02:41
6	Go Row the Boat Child Georgia Sea Island Singers led by Peter Davis	01:39
7	Join the Band Georgia Sea Island Singers led by John Davis	01:26
8	Sink 'Em Low Georgia Sea Island Singers led by Bessie Jones	02:29
9	Going Down to the River Mississippi Fred McDowell	03:30
10	Shake 'Em on Down Mississippi Fred McDowell with Mable Hillery	03:04
11	Once There Was No Sun Georgia Sea Island Singers led by Bessie Jones	02:40
12	Adam in the Garden Georgia Sea Island Singers led by John Davis	01:26
13	Who Built the Ark Georgia Sea Island Singers led by Bessie Jones	01:38
14	Let My Children Go Georgia Sea Island Singers led by John Davis	03:19
15	My God Is a Rock Georgia Sea Island Singers led by Peter Davis	04:14
16	I Heard the Angels Singing Georgia Sea Island Singers led by Mable Hillery with Mississippi Fred McDowell	03:11
17	Read 'Em John Georgia Sea Island Singers led by John Davis	01:37
18	Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning Georgia Sea Island Singers led by Mississippi Fred McDowell	03:32
19	Sign of the Judgment Georgia Sea Island Singers led by Bessie Jones	02:45
20	Chevrolet Ed Young, Emma Lee Ramsey	04:22
21	Write Me a Few of Your Lines Mississippi Fred McDowell	03:29
22	Don't Ever Leave Me Mississippi Fred McDowell with Mable Hillery	03:56
23	Marching on the Mississippi Line Mable Hillery, Emma Lee Ramsey	03:12
24	Down to the Mire Georgia Sea Island Singers led by John Davis	03:18
25	Before This Time Another Year Georgia Sea Island Singers led by Bessie Jones	04:56