Format | On Demand CD |
Ordering Number | FW-02301-CCD |
Barcode | 093070230125 |
label | Smithsonian Folkways CCD |
Release date | 06/04/2005 |
Release date | 01/01/1960 |
salesrank | 13545 |
Ten years after British scholar Cecil J. Sharp declared the traditional English ballad a "moribund" art form, he discovered a rich and thriving tradition of ballad-singing in America's southern Appalachian Mountains. Jean Ritchie, a tradition-bearer from Appalachian Kentucky, shares some of her favorite "story songs" of murder and romance. "Hangman" and "Old Bangum" feature the Appalachian dulcimer, a type of fretted zither unique to the region. Liner notes include an introduction by Ritchie, notes by Kenneth J. Goldstein, a bibliography on the ballads collected by Francis Child, and historical information and lyrics for each song.