Customer Reviews

The Appalachians

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have always prided myself in believing that I enjoy every variety of music. However, I have recently discovered how untrue that is, due to the small percentage of the music world I expose myself to. In accordance to this discovery, I asked a few friends to share some of their eccentric favorites, and one brought this disk and the accompanying documentary to my attention. The Appalachians Soundtrack is so much more than merely a CD with songs. It is heritage, history, tradition. It is family, love, sweat and tears. After watching the film, I experienced the music with an entirely reborn ear, and have since been unable to get it out of my head or off my mind. Music is so much more then something to dance to, so much more then even a story to be told or heard, music like that on the Appalachians soundtrack is a way of life. The people of the Appalachians relied on it as a release, a freedom. This album has truly opened my eyes to another amazing world of music. I invite you to let it do the same for you.

My grandfather has always told me whimsical stories of the family sitting around the fire, him with his old guitar, Gramma at the piano, sisters and brothers with shakers and fiddles, Aunt Nannybelle and her unwavering vibrato, having a hootenanny. As much as I have always loved these stories and much to my dismay, I could never get a grasp on what it really felt like to be there. I often asked Grandpa "What kind of music would you play? What songs?" His response was always the same: "Why, the good stuff, darlin'!" He never expounded upon this, and I imagined he spoke of hymns and traditional country tunes, until one day I gave up on the dream of experiencing a hootenanny in my mind. The Grandpa called. He said, "There's this CD. Goes with a movie, its called The Appalachians. That's it, darlin'. That's the good stuff." Listen to it. You'll see, Grandpa is always right.

The exemplary companion album to a PBS television series, this features a wide range of Appalachian folk music, from stark, spooky "shape note" gospel singing to plunky old-time tunes and greased lightning bluegrass, with story songs and spirituals, murder ballads and laments for lost love -- all the styles and sentiments that make American mountain music so weird and wonderful and emotionally resonant. Many of the major players are on here: Jimmie Rodgers and the Carter Family (and June Carter Cash, keeping the tradition alive); bluegrassers like Mac Wiseman, David Grisman and the Osborne Brothers; old-school folkies like Jean Ritchie and Depression-era balladeers such as the Blue Sky Boys and Blind Alfred Reed, and even a few young'uns like Jeff Black and Jason Ringenberg to round things out... It's a nice set that spans the 20th Century and gives a well-rounded view of the rich musical heritage of a region that helped shape American popular culture.

As central as The Appalachians are to American folk and country music, the stories behind the music are often forgotten. PBS' three-hour documentary presents both a chronology of U.S. settlement and the colorful historical figures who figured into it. This accompanying CD fleshes out the multithreaded musical traditions that eventually "came down the mountain" to inform today's folk and country traditions. This is a rich overview of American music's British roots, and the resulting sounds that emanated from the hills and hollars, including string bands, bluegrass, gospel, and shape-note singing. Legendary figures like Jimmie Rodgers, The Carter Family and The Blue Sky Boys are plated with contemporary artists that include Ricky Skaggs and Jason Ringenberg. It's the continuity of this directly voiced songwriting tradition that brands the collection as folk music, and keeps the history alive. [©2005 hyperbolium dot com]

As a college student in this fast-paced modern world, will all of our ease and conveniences, it is easy to forget the story of the past. It is easy to misplace the memories of elementary school documentaries that were meant to teach us the hardships, struggles, failures and successes that our ancestors faced in this nation years ago. Once in a while, we need to be reminded. When that time comes for you, I highly suggest watching The Appalachians and experiencing the driven soundtrack. The Appalachians series does an excellent job of combining historical information, entertaining stories and aesthetically pleasing music and imagery, which is magically captured in this CD. It's portrayal of the pain, hard work, building and rebuilding of a culture high in the mountains is breathtaking. Listening to this leaves you thinking of life, how it was then and how lucky we are now. It stirs your senses and emotions, adding to your wisdom and adjusting your attitude. An inspiring and artistically profound piece, to which I give my strongest recommendations.

The Appalachians Soundtrack is an authentic representation of the music of the Appalachian mountain people. Having had the rare opportunity to contribute to this collection of music for the PBS series, I'd like to make known my name, and where I can be found on the web, should anyone find my title theme of any particular interest. My name is Arlene Faith, writer of "East of River Shannon" (title theme for the series and soundtrack), which is not mentioned anywhere except in the tiny credits given inside the CD liner notes. All other references say only "instrumental". I'd like to thank many of you for contacting me after purchasing the CD, and hope that this will make it a little easier for others.

Arlene Faith
Wooden Stone Music
www.woodenstonemusic.com

Anthology
The Appalachians
Dualtone Records 80302-01201-2
Dualtone.com
Very Ken Burns. Faded sepia still photos come to mind, as do talking heads speaking from paneled, book-lined offices at the University of Tennessee. This is not a bad thing. Ken Burns has lured a lot of people into appreciation of and interest in the Civil War, baseball and other documentary topics. That this anthology is a companion piece to a public television series is better than okay -- it wouldn't have existed without it.
Affiliation with a themed broadcast series also kept producers' goals of sharing and educating in the forefront of decisions about what to include. The record never loses sight of Scotch-Irish musical roots, nor of the lyrical topics one would expect from ignorance and poverty, societal factors that do exist alongside us, just out of range of the CD player remote control.
It is a successful documentary, and easily worth buying and wearing out.

Great Music!! Product is as described, and arrived in a very timely manner, in excellent condition.

Perfect for any , all Appalachin Resident , or history buff.