The Warner Collection, Vol. 1: Her Bright Smile Haunts Me Still [ORIGINAL RECORDING REMASTERED]

Warner Collection

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 25, 2000)
• Original Release Date: April 25, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Appleseed Records
• ASIN: B00004SBZK
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #203,162 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Field recordings are an interesting concept: they are historical documents intended to preserve the folklore of their indigenous regions, but they can also be enjoyed as songs to be heard. If they are too polished or "professional" sounding, they may lose their archaic, authentic charm. On the other hand, who wants to hear amateur singers if they can't carry a tune, much less do so with any kind of emotional power? What makes this collection so rewarding is the precarious balance it finds. Amateur musicologists Anne and Frank Warner collected these field recordings across the Atlantic Coast states from 1940 through 1966. There are English, Scottish, and Irish folk songs, blues, spirituals, ballads, work songs, and chants of all types included--none of them intended for commercial release and all of them featuring singers to whom music was a family tradition or a community event or perhaps even an innate power. Many of these songs have become well known since they were recorded--some, such as "Tom Dooley," were basically discovered through the Warners' field work--but it's the lesser-known numbers that really hit home: "shudder stories" sung to scare young children, comic minstrel songs, sea chanteys, and more. The snippets of conversations prove that the Warners respected these people greatly and reveled in their genuineness. For fans of Alan Lomax's fieldwork, this set will be a treasured discovery. --Marc Greilsamer

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential Addition To Any Collection, June 16, 2000

By	"phyllisbrny" (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews

This is the first time that material from the Anne and Frank Warner collection has been easily available to the listening public. The Warners collected songs and tunes from singers and players in the Carolina's, New York and New England starting in the 1930's, and the body of material that they brought to the world through their relationships with these tradition bearers forms an important basic framework of folk history. Long hidden away in the Library of Congress, it is at last available for all to enjoy and learn from. Here is where you'll find the original version of "Tom Dooley" (shared by Frank Proffitt) and pure mountain versions of "Whiskey in the Jar" and "Barbara Allen" as well as priceless interview segments with Proffitt and others. These selections were exquisitely chosen, and beautifully remastered and recorded. Whether you have a passing aquaintaince or a deep love of vernacular folk music, put this CD into your collection today.