This one is as influential as it is essential. Woody is accompanied here by Lead Belly, Cisco Houston, Sonny Terry and others. "Hard Travelin'," "Oregon Trail," "The House of the Rising Sun," "John... more

22 songs favored by leaders of antiwar, civil rights, industrial labor, farm worker, and other struggles throughout American history. "Jesus Christ" Woody Guthrie, "Blowin' In The Wind," New World... more

Who could chronicle the history of this great American art form—the train song—better than Smithsonian Folkways? A 36-page booklet rides along with Jay Gould's Daughter Pete Seeger; Wabash Cannonball... more

"Broadside" magazine was sort of the literary equivalent of the proverbial '60s coffeehouse, where folk and protest singers would come together and share their latest songs coming out of the peace,... more

Simply 25 of the finest '40s-to-'60s performances from the Folkways vaults: "Pastures of Plenty" Woody Guthrie; "Changes" Phil Ochs; "Betty and Dupree" Brownie McGhee; "We Shall Overcome" Pete... more

Train wrecks, hurricanes, the Titanic, Tom Dooley, Jesse James, Billy the Kid…these are the tales and tragedies sung here. A 40-page booklet joins "Billy the Kid" Woody Guthrie; "Young Charlotte"... more

A mentor to everyone from Bob Dylan to Suzanne Vega, "The Mayor of MacDougal Street" was a treasured figure in the Greenwich Village scene for four decades. His autobiography and its portrait of the... more

Two dozen cuts tap the traditions of Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee. These banjo/fiddle workouts, bluegrass gems and ballads include Sugar Baby Dock Boggs; Southbound Doc & Merle Watson;... more

"Broadside" was an early-'60s magazine devoted to publishing topical songs, and who else but Phil Ochs would be its #1 contributor? These tapes were recorded privately for "Broadside" to transcribe... more

Songs of Our Native Daughters gathers together kindred musicians Rhiannon Giddens, Amythyst Kiah, Leyla McCalla, and Allison Russell in song and sisterhood to communicate with their forebears.... more

The singer/activist teamed with up-and-coming quartet the Chambers Brothers in 1966 to record this soul-stirring blend of gospel, folk-rock and blues. The singing is sublime across the board, and the... more

The music is traditional, their voices are utterly distinctive—this is Bill Monroe and Doc Watson, and these are 17 unreleased duets: Foggy Mountain Top; Kentucky Mandolin; Soldier's Joy; Chicken... more

Over 50 years after its original 1952 vinyl release, this is still the best American roots music collection around! Musicologist Harry Smith assembled the anthology from 78 rpm discs issued between... more

Happy Woman Blues - Lucinda Williams, whose musical style defies easy categorization, recorded her first album of original songs in 1980, supported by a six-member band. Her songs are a mix of... more

Leyla McCalla's Vari-Colored Songs is a celebration of the complexity of Black culture and identity, and a tribute to the legacy of poet and thinker Langston Hughes. A songwriter and... more

Charlie Parr's newest album, Last of the Better Days Ahead, is a collection of powerful new songs about how one looks back on a life lived, as well as forward on what's still to come. It's spare... more

Simultaneously heartbreaking and hopeful, this new collection of songs is rooted in the history of slavery in America, and speaks out with passion and determination against the ongoing cycle of... more

Leyla McCalla's Vari-Colored Songs is a celebration of the complexity of Black culture and identity, and a tribute to the legacy of poet and thinker Langston Hughes. A songwriter and... more

This award-winning compilation (2011's Independent Music Awards prize for best reissue) collects eleven tracks culled from Ola Belle's two Folkways albums along with eight previously unreleased live... more

Vinyl LP pressing. Named a National Heritage Fellow in 2010 and elected to the International Bluegrass Music Hall of fame in 2011, Delano Floyd "Del" McCoury has been a presence in bluegrass music... more

Elizabeth "Libba" Cotten (1896-1987) wrote her well-known song "Freight Train" at the age of 11 and sang it for nearly 80 years. Through her songwriting, her quietly commanding personality, and her... more