Girl of Constant Sorrow

Sarah Ogen Gunning was a Kentucky folk singer and union supporter at the time of the Harlan County Coal War of the early 1930's. With her sister, Aunt Molly Jackson, Gunning sang songs in support of the push to organize in the midst of strong resistance from company bosses and their privately hired guards. This collection, which presents a mix of unaccompanied labor songs and tales of hardship, was originally recorded by labor folklore authority Archie Green in the early 1960's. The record's first song, "I am A Girl of Constant Sorrow", was first recorded by Alan Lomax in 1937, and is a personal adaptation of the well-known Appalachian Ballad "I am a Man of Constant Sorrow".