Minstrel Banjo Style [CD on Demand]

Minstrel Banjo Style

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 26, 2009)
• Original Release Date: October 25, 1994
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Rounder
• ASIN: B0000002M7
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #224,062 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

This is the first recorded anthology to present the sound of the banjo as heard in ante-bellum times. This compilation may very well provide listeners with initial exposure to this tradition-steeped music.

This product is manufactured on demand using CD-R recordable media. Amazon.com's standard return policy will apply.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must for traditional music lovers, July 31, 1998

By	Tyger Brand Banjos ([e-mail]) (California) - See all my reviews

A brilliant collection of some of the nation's top minstrel banjo players performing period pieces on period instruments. Delightful and entertaining even for those who might not be inclined to purchase a "banjo" CD and sure to be an inspiration to those looking for an alternative to bluegrass. Truly addictive for those with a predisposition.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Let the banjer ring, February 6, 2004

By	Pharoah S. Wail (Inner Space) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This cd is a collection of tunes and gourd and/or hoop banjos being played by some of the best musicians in this genre... Joe Ayers, Clarke Buehling, Bob Winans, Bob Flesher, Bob Carlin, and Tony Trischka.

First of all, I will say that I had the opposite reaction to the inclusion of the lyrics/burlesque tunes. All too often in America, history is white-washed. Minstrelsy is something that most of White America is no longer aware of. If by chance an unaware person does stumble upon this cd (or others like it), to not include the uglier tunes would be to change history and present a false picture of reality to that person. There is already the white tendency to think hey, slavery and Jim Crow weren't THAT bad. To stamp the name "minstrel" on a cd and then omit all the ugly lyrics and stereotypes that were at the very heart of minstrelsy would be one more way for White America to be misled by itself. It'd be like teaching America's middle and upper-class children American History while giving them little or no understanding of the evolving, brutal history of race relations in this country. Woops! We already do that. The truth of American history is that it's an ugly, painful history. No one learns anything by having all the uglier moments forgotten, deleted, or politically-corrected out of the collective consciousness of the ruling class.

I've long been of the opinion that there are too few "story" tunes on this cd, but being that the title and emphasis is specifically on the banjo playing styles, I understand why there are only a few of these songs represented. Lyrically, there are absolutely more hate-filled minstrel tunes out there than those presented here, but you can still come away from this cd with a bit of an understanding of the mockery and buffoonery that was a cornerstone of minstrelsy. Oh I'se So Wicked is lyrically the heaviest tune of this disc, what with the slave character being beaten but stating that she deserves it because "I'se so very wicked". White America should remember that for us white people, minstrelsy was the most long-lasting form of mass-entertainment this country has yet seen.

This is a great disc, filled with excellent tunes and banjo playing. The recording quality is very high and the various tones of these great old and replica banjos are a joy to hear. When you hear the full-bodied, resonant tones of the old gourd and hoop-styles banjos, you (or at least I) can't help but wonder why so many people moved to the Gibson Mastertone sound. Aside from in the hands of Dock Boggs and a handful of others, the Mastertone sound is thoroughly inferior to the gourd and hoop tones. That African resonance is gone from the Mastertone sound, while it is in full bloom on the gourd and hoop replicas.

3 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars And now, the Larch..., April 16, 2001

By	David Bradley "David Bradley" (Sterling, VA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

What posessed me to buy this CD? What on earth was I thinking?

I don't know, frankly, but I'm glad I did. While it doesn't tell a story the way it's genre-mate, the soundtrack to Ken Burn's Civil War, did, it does set a time and a place effectively.

The few vocal tracks are a little hard to stomach. I understand the history of the music just fine, but I still think the aural picture of modern day white men singing in this manner is more akin to performing in blackface than they may realize. There is no intent to mock or insult in this recording, but there is still something a bit odd about a 21st Century white man from a gentrified area of Virginia singing "I thought she was g'wanna kiss me when she took and pulled my nose" in some...uh...rural accent.

Call me picky.

Still, I like the CD. Recording it is important, listening to it is enjoyable.