| |
Another genre central to the development of American music is
folk
music, made famous by Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, and Bob Dylan.
|
Woody
Guthrie Foundation
|
The Songs of Woody Guthrie
geocities.com
fortunecity.com |
Pete
Seeger Appreciation Page
|
Pete
Seeger’s Songs
|
| bobdylan.com
|
Bob
Dylan’s Original Songs
|
These three singers consistently expressed populist themes in
their music related to the plight of working-class and rural Americans.
As previously noted, Dylan’s shift to more electronic forms
in the 1960s and 1970s reflected the ways in which folk music shifted
somewhat in terms of it’s style. Folk music also draws on
early blues; it may difficult to define clear distinctions between
early blues and folk music as reflected in the music of Robert Johnson,
John Lee Hooker, and Bessie Smith. |
Contemporary folk singers continue the early traditions of openly
addressing social and personal concerns of everyday life as expressed
in the songs by Altan, the Chieftains, Ani DiFranco, Ry Cooder,
Sara McLachlan, Wilco, John Prine, and Los Lobos. |
Sites with lots of links to different aspects of folk music:
|
Musical
Traditions
|
Folk
Music Home Page
|
42explore.com:
Folk Music |
World
Folk Music Association
|
eFolkMusic.org
(some free downloads)
|
The
American Folk Music Community |
| PBS:
Tapping the Roots of American Music
|
The
Mudcat Café [ for downloading folk music ] |
Folk
music instruments |
Dirty
Linen Magazine |
A
Mighty Wind (parody of a documentary on folk music) |
Lesson:
Sing a Tale |
For further reading: |
Filene, B. (2000). Romancing the folk: Public
memory and American roots music. Chapel Hill, NC: University
of North Carolina Press. |
Seeger, R., & Polansky, L. (2003). “The
Music of American Folk Song” and Selected Other Writings on
American Folk Music. Rochester, NY: University of Rochester
Press. |
Stambler, I, & Stambler, L. (2001). Folk
& blues: The encyclopedia: The premier encyclopedia Of American
roots music. New York: Thomas Dunne Books
|
Unterberger, R., & Brend, M. (2002). Turn!
turn! turn!: The '60s folk-rock revolution. New York: Backbeat. |