Folk, Folk Rock, and Singer-Songwriters
American Folk Music
Charles Seeger and Alan Lomax
Robert Zimmerman (?)
- Two musicologists who researched and recorded a large number of Appalachian folk songs and published their work in scholarly studies
- Charles Seeger's son, Pete Seeger (born 1919), is a musician who sang and played guitar and banjo
- Performed many of the songs his father had researched and had a lasting influence on a folk resurgence in the 1960's
Bob Dylan: The Icon of Folk
- Originally from Minnesota
- 2nd Generation Russian/Jewish Immigrant
- Young follower of Woody Guthrie
- Moving to "The Village", NYC
- Joined the counter-culture underground folk movement
- Woody Guthrie in hospital in NY, wanted to get to know the man behind the music
- Won the Nobel Peace Prize in Literature, 2016
- Bob Dylan (1962)
- Debut Album
- Mostly folk ballads
- "House of the Rising Sun"
- Folk music=passed down music coming from an oral tradition
- Rhythms, melodies, and lyrics of folk songs change often as new performers adapt old songs to their own performance style
- In contrast to art music, where a composer plans and notates all details
- Folk musical style and traditions vary from one part of the US to another
- music based on songs settlers of different cultures brought with them from their homelands
- British-derived folk music from the Appalachian Mtn. region had a strong influence on rock music starting in the 1960's
- direct links to old songs from Elizabethan English, Irish, and Scottish music:
The Almanac Singers/The Weavers
Woody Guthrie
- Almanac Singers founded by Pete Seeger in New York, 1941
- modified traditional folk songs and performed them with new texts that stressed political concerns of their time
- The Weavers also founded by Pete Seeger in 1948
- Harmonized group vocals were a new experience for American audiences; they achieved national recognition
- Investigated by the House Un-American Activities Committee for left-wing political songs
Songwriter/Singer/Guitarist
- Member of the Almanac Singers
- Sang and Performed "True" Folk
- But also wrote originals in the folk style!
- Voice of the Common Man
- sang songs that supported the war cause
- "This Machine Kills Fascists"
- his slogan
- "This Land is Your Land"
- A Socialist Anthem!
- Fiddle, Acoustic guitar, string bass, and recorder
Dylan Cont.
Folk Rock
Style Characteristics: traditional American folk/folk revival
Joan Baez
- use of primarily acoustic instruments
- use of traditional folk instruments such as accordian, acoustic guitar, mandolin, fiddle, harmonica
- played by technically adept instrumentalists and singers that can carry the stage on their own
- a lack of slick production, coordinated dance moves or complicated recording studio techniques
- stripped down, honest, real
- traditional folk covers or originals in a traditional style
- small vocal groups or solo artists: not many large bands
- lyrics/music can be covered or changed often to reflect a new performers version
- lyrics can reflect current events, politics, or other aspects of the time in which the song was written
The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan (1963)
- Second Studio Album
- Mostly Originals
- Very Socially Conscience
- "Blowin' in the Wind"
- Civil Rights Anthem
- "Don't think twice its Alright"
- Plugging In (?!?!?)
- 1964:
- The Newport Folk Festival
- Electric Dylan?!?
- Controversy
- traditional folk singer
- great technical guitar chops
- can carry the stage as a soloist
- trait common to many folk musicians
A New Dylan:
- Album "Bringing it All Back Home" (1965)
- Electric & Acoustic
- "Mr. Tambourine Man", "All Along the Watchtower", "It's Allright Ma (I'm Only Bleeding", etc.
- A new, completely original style
- Folk influenced, electric rock music
- Alienated traditionalists
More Folk Rock
- The Byrds vs. Dylan versions of "Mr. Tambourine Man"
Peter, Paul, & Mary
- The Byrds also cover Pete Seeger with "Turn Turn Turn"
- The Mamas and the Papas "California Dreamin"
Joni Mitchell
Folk Trio & Activists
- Songs about Peace, Love, & Harmony
- Resisted the use of non-acoustic instruments throughout the 60's
- "If I Had a Hammer"
- Pete Seeger cover
- First big hit
- "Blowing in the Wind"
- Bob Dylan cover
- Many folk groups would cover each other's songs
- Iconic singer/songwriter with a strong folk background and a uniquely creative style
- Uses unique chromatic motion (motion by half step) in her original music
- Vocal style changes quality from high to low: sounds like a different singer when singing high
- Unique vocal range and control
- Her album "Blue" is fantastic!!
- "All I Want", "My Old Man"
Simon and Garfunkel
- Folk influenced rock music but in more creative, out of the box style
- Excellent vocal partnership
James Taylor
- "Scarborough Fair"
- reworking of a traditional English ballad
- uses classical counterpoint: a style of writing complex interlocking melodic lines.
- innovative musical arrangment
- uses exotic instruments like harpsichord and glockenspiel
- "Sound of Silence"
- their most famous song
The Singer/Songwriter
Current musicians taking cues from folk/singer-songwriter style
An Emerging Tradition:
- Artists Who Sing & Compose Their Own Music
- Moving away from covers
- Specifically associated with the folk tradition
- Lyrics tend to lean away from the political and social activism associated with folk music
- Instead tells stories about very personal experiences and their own lives and relationships
- sets up a close, intimate communication between the audience and performer
"Ohio"
Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young:
- A Folk-Rock Supergroup
- All from different popular acts
- The Kent State Shootings
- Kent State University, 1971
- Group of student protesting Vietnam
- Cambodian Campaign
- May 1 - 3
- Increasingly tense protests
- Gov. Rhoades proclaims the protestors "Un-American" and declares martial law
- May 4 at Noon
- Attempts at dispersal
- 13 seconds, 67 rounds
- 4 Killed, 9 Wounded
- All un-armed