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Library of Congress Assembles Folk Music


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Library of Congress Assembles Folk Music

By CARL HARTMAN

Associated Press Writer

March 24, 2004, 5:20 PM EST

WASHINGTON -- The Library of Congress has assembled the world's greatest array of American folk music, dance and stories by acquiring the collection of Alan Lomax, adding it to recordings made by his father, John Lomax, beginning more than 70 years ago.

Alan Lomax died in 2002 at 87. He began working with his father when he was 18.

"If there'd been no Alan Lomax, there'd be no Paul Simon, no Carlos Santana, no Grateful Dead," said Mickey Hart, longtime Grateful Dead drummer. He is also a collector of folk music and a member of the board of the American Folklife Center, the library office in charge of the collection.

Hart believes strongly that all music has a basis in tunes loved by ordinary people of each culture and is to be understood in relation to that culture.

When Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote a set of variations to the tune of "Twinkle, twinkle, little star" he was working from a French song that has nothing to do with stars. It's about a child complaining that his father wants him to think like a grown-up instead of just eating candy.

John Lomax took the initiative of recording such musicians as Huddie Ledbetter, better known as Leadbelly," McKinley "Muddy Waters" Morganfield and David "Honeyboy" Edwards. He recorded hours of Woody Guthrie's songs and stories.

"Throughout the world," said singer Pete Seeger, "folksong collectors tend to dig up old bones from one graveyard and put them into another graveyard -- their filing cabinets. But Alan Lomax and his father John wanted the American people to once again sing the wonderful old songs of this country which they never heard on the radio."

There are 400,000 feet of movie film in the Alan Lomax collection, more than 5,000 hours of sounds, 2,450 videotapes, 2,000 books and academic journals and 40 yards of letters, scripts, notes, manuscripts.

Alan Lomax founded the Association for Cultural Equity to foster his aim of preserving oral traditions, now directed by his daughter, Anna Lomax Wood. His collection was housed at its headquarters in New York's Hunter College. The library acquired it with an anonymous donation in an undisclosed amount.

http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/news/...nment-headlines

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  • 3 weeks later...

I was just reading about Lomax's trip around the country (mostly the south) to record old spiritual and original blues works. its nice to hear now that his dedicated work is being preserved at such a level. thanks kooperman!

now, anyone here know how to gain access to these recordings?

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Folk music is one of the most overlooked genres right now, unfortunately, although an aging core of folk music lovers keeps it alive as well as they can. I'd suggest checking the newsgroups for some folk music...

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I was just reading about Lomax's trip around the country (mostly the south) to record old spiritual and original blues works. its nice to hear now that his dedicated work is being preserved at such a level. thanks kooperman!

now, anyone here know how to gain access to these recordings?

i have 16 discs of the collection, it isn't just american stuff--there are carribean islanders, irish and english singers

the american stuff is interesting--church songs, prisoners and chain gang stuff, songs imported and passed down through immigrants

another interesting couple that recorded common people was the warners, anne and frank--they were contemporaries of alan lomax, and recorded mountain people and other simple folk

from them you get gilgarra mountain (aka whiskey in a jar) tom dooley, and many other folk standards made famous in the 60's

they aren't as famous as the lomaxes, but they are almost as important (i have them too)

Edited by nate
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Our newest member and old sparring partner nate has some serious vinyl.....what a great addition to the site, not only for his music expertise but for his ability to puncture inflated egos and buffoons.

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