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The Youngbloods and Holy Modal Rounders covered songs from this 1964 Folkways LP, the debut by this Pennsylvania-born singer-songwriter (whose unconventional singing and songs made him a hero in '60s... more

You don't need to be a card-carrying member to get swept up by the message and music here. This 1955 Folkways LP collects generations of working-man's anthems: We Shall Not Be Moved; Casey Jones (The... more

Released in 1972, after many of it's artists had risen to international acclaim, Broadside Ballads, Vol. 6 contains previously unreleased songs that appeared in the folk publication Broadside... more

Banjo player and singer Ola Belle Reed created this album and it's accompanying notes as an autobiography, a document that describes her childhood in the mountains, her experiences, and her opinions... more

Singer, activist, and founder of Paredon Records (now also under the stewardship of Smithsonian Folkways), Barbara Dane was born in 1929 and was still going strong last time we spoke with her. This... more

Von Schmidt and Cahn's musical friendship grew out of ill-fated road trips, rebelliousness, and of course, a shared love for the blues. As Cahn writes, "What we had in common was a feeling about... more

Born in Brooklyn in 1936, Dave Van Ronk was Bob Dylan's "first New York guru," writes Dylan's biographer Robert Shelton. "Dave Van Ronk was the musical mayor of MacDougal Street," Shelton continues,... more

Banjo player Dock Boggs once said, "Lonesome songs always appealed to me." This collection features classic dark and lonely songs like "Pretty Polly" and "Oh Death." Meant as a companion album to... more

Named for the folk magazine Broadside, this 1963 LP (later reissued by Smithsonian Folkways) was recorded in Broadside's cramped NY apartment in decidedly intimate fashion. Along with "The Ballad of... more

Joined on this recording by fiddler Tracy Schwarz, this album explores new musical territory "at least ten years in either direction," including unaccompanied ballad singing and bluegrass. Of... more

After attracting attention with his live sets in NYC (where he often played in a duo with Dylan), Spoelstra signed to Folkways and got the chance to show off his inspired takes on folk classics and... more

Legendary Beat poet Allen Ginsberg explores the fusion of poetry and music in this rare 1970s recording. Called a "venerated bard of resistance" Ginsberg sought "how the raw mind actually works"... more

Recorded in 1940, and later reissued by Folkways Recordings in 1950, Guthrie's first album chronicles the American Dust Bowl through his prosaic style of talking blues. Using only guitar and vocals,... more

Malvina Reynolds, the well-known songwriter and activist for social justice and the environment, performs some of her most famous songs in the compilation of studio and live recordings fro mthe 1960s... more

On this collection, Adelaide Van Wey juxtaposes the Anglo-American ballads of the Smoky Mountains of North Carolina with songs from French Creole Louisiana. As the title track enjoins, "Bring along... more

Sam Eskin, according to the album's original notes in 1951, "has been traveling across the United States for thirty-five years, learning songs from all sorts of people in all sorts of places." This... more

Sung by labor educator Joe Glazer, this album features songs by union organizer Joe Hill. Although these songs are rooted in their time, their messages are still relevant today, and this collection... more

Peggy Seeger's honest, unadorned voice and Clark Weissman's deft guitar accompaniment grace this selection of ballads whose characters lament the trials of courting and the tribulations of ill-fated... more

Compiled from field recordings made in 1963, this album offers a view of musical life in the Laurel River region of North Carolina, where dances and "workings"-days of common labor followed by... more

On this unique album, Adelaide Van Wey sings Creole songs in the distinctive patois of New Orleans and performs street cries from the eastern United States. Zither accompaniment adds an enigmatic... more

A classical singer by profession, George Britten was born in Reading, Pennsylvania. His own heritage inspired him to find and learn the music presented on this album-songs that provide vignettes of... more

The first bluegrass LP ever released, this recording was partially reissued with additional tracks and liner notes in 1990 as Smithsonian Folkways Recordings 40037.

Inspired to share her musical life at home with audiences beyond the kitchen door, Jean Ritchie compiled this album of songs and stories from her family. Unlike studio recordings, this collection... more

See also: Smithsonian Folkways Recordings reissued series of American Favorite Ballads.

After researching, learning, and polishing songs found on early recordings of country music, multi-instrumentalist Mike Seeger laid down these rousing tracks in 1962 at his home in New Jersey. His... more