The Weavers At Carnegie Hall [Live]

The Weavers | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Live
• Label: Vanguard Records
• ASIN: B000000EFX
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,368 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording

Peter, Paul & Mary, Bob Dylan, and the Kingston Trio were youngsters next to the Weavers, but without these acoustic elders, the aforementioned artists may have never found their folk voices. The Weavers were the main catalyst behind the folk explosion of the '50s and early '60s. This album captures the spark that led to that detonation. Certainly the foursome was responsible for the leftist political bent associated with folk music to this day. The Weavers were one of the few musical entities blacklisted during the McCarthy hearings in 1952 after a witness named them as Communists, probably a result of members Lee Hays and Pete Seeger's labor-union activities. In 1955 the quartet reunited for this historic show--and you can still hear the triumphant spirit in the air that night as the group (and audience) delight in the Weavers' brand of eclecticism, moving from Leadbelly and Woody Guthrie covers to old English ballads, African music, New Orleans spirituals, and songs that would soon influence rock & roll. --Bill Holdship

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Weavers Forever!, August 23, 2001

By 

Anthony Clarke (Woodend, Victoria Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Weavers At Carnegie Hall (Audio CD)

I was given this album in the late 1950s when a young teenager. Since then I of course became a Bob Dylan disciple, then became heavily addicted to the best British rock and pop music, through The Who, The Beatles, Kinks, Animals and all the other members of that extraordinary 1960s caravanserai.

And amidst all that was the explosion into my consciousness of great classical music, experienced through the likes of Oistrakh and Richter, Giulini and Klemperer, Schwarzkopf and Popp.

I still love ALL types of great music. And I still regularly return to The Weavers and still marvel at their art and their commitment. And of all their recordings I have heard since they first impinged on my young consciousness, this 1955 concert at Carnegie Hall is still the freshest, thumpingest, foot-stomping best. Buy it now. No matter what your age, it will enrich your musical life forever.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An essential piece of Folk Music!, February 20, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Weavers At Carnegie Hall (Audio CD)

This is one of the best Folk albums ever and definately the place to start your collection of Weavers material. When you hear their version of "Sixteen Tons" you'll quickly forget the one by Ernie Ford. "When The Saints Go Marching In" is also great. And, of course, "Wimmoweh" and "Goodnight Irene" are excellent. Add "Rock Island Line" and "Follow The Drinking Gourd" and you have a classic album. But, there are 20 cuts total, so this just barely scratches the surface. The songs, Seeger's instrumentation, and the harmonies of the four is simply outstanding. Definately get this one and enjoy some of the finest Folk Music ever recorded.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I DARE YOU NOT TO SING ALONG, April 13, 2001

By 

MOVIE MAVEN (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Weavers At Carnegie Hall (Audio CD)

I never saw/heard The Weavers live, but I have many of their albums and have played this particular one, literally, hundreds of times. No, I am not a big folk music fan. In fact, I cannot think of one other so-called folk album in my collection of CD's.

The first thing one notices about this live concert, recorded in February of 1955, is that the sound is so terrific-- as if recorded in that great concert hall yesterday. At the same time, the sense of pure joy coming from the stage and then back from the audience is palpable.

The four voices that make up the group are individually so fine & so idiosyncratic: the big, booming bass of Lee Hayes, the sweet baritone of Fred Hellerman, the totally unique sound of Pete Seeger and, best of all for me, the warm alto of Ronnie Gilbert whose every note is just about perfect and whose enunciation is superb. You understand every single word she sings on every single song.

From Ireland, Africa, Indonesia, the American South, Israel, etc. every song is chosen perfectly and matchlessly performed....and I promise you that you'll never listen to "Greensleeves" ever again, without slyly smiling. It is easy to hear that the audience is having the time of their lives. The Weavers are a national treasure. I dare you not to sing along. Highly Recommended.