Reviews That Do Not Add Up, Volume 3, American Favorite Ballads Collection Is Brilliant!

The Good: Consistently great vocals, Competent instrumental accompaniment, Some amazing songs, Great historical value, Duration
The Bad: Some obscure songs (but that's the point!)
The Basics: A scholarly collection of classic American folk music, American Favorite Ballads is a five-disc set which performs known and obscure folk songs in an engaging way.


When one writes a lot about a subject, it is sometimes hard to get excited to continue writing about it. In that regard, I am feeling pretty bad because I do not want to undersell the value of the Smithsonian Folkway Recordings boxed set American Favorite Ballads. I've written reviews of each of the component albums and because the purpose is clear throughout the entire project, all that actually changes album to album is the tracklist. Pete Seeger's presentations in them are meant to have an almost scholarly direct quality to them and as a result, leave little to write about. Now, the five volumes of the American Favorite Ballads collection are boxed together in one convenient pack and this gets no points off for me for using all five discs; each disc is so packed with music that none of them could be condensed.

This collection might well be the essential volume for those looking to build an instant folk collection. The Smithsonian Folkways Recordings sought to archive popular and obscure folk music in the United States before it passed from memory and the collective unconscious. The concept was to produce a series that archived in a fairly scholarly way all the songs in the public domain (which could possibly be forgotten at any time). The collection has Pete Seeger performing songs that used to be sung around campfires and in the hills, a series of musical storysongs that capture the simple soul of the American South, West and the mountains where history and information were often recorded and passed on in songs

This is a simple bundle pack of the albums:
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 1
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 2
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 3
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 4
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 5
With all of their original liner notes and musical content, there is no additional programming or features for purchasing the albums in this way. However, one does get all five albums in a nifty slipcase.

The clear purpose of the collection is to get songs which are classic folk songs performed in a way that is clear. As a result, the collection does not have songs written by Pete Seeger (though there are one or two and The Weavers "Wimoweh" manages to make it on), but rather is a collection of songs largely by writers whose names have been lost to time. Most are simply credited as "Traditional," like "On Top Of Old Smoky," "Camptown Races," "Swanee River," "Go Down, Moses," and "Cowboy Yodel."

Vocally, Pete Seeger is an ideal choice for this type of endeavor. His vocals are clear and he enunciates each word perfectly, insuring future generations will have no problem understanding the words to these classic folk songs. Similarly, he has a beautiful tenor voice that is very easy to listen to. He sings in a voice that has a silky smoothness to it and an energy that holds up over many, many listens to the album. Seeger is able to combine energy and enthusiasm with clarity and that is quite something.

He is also able to emote beautifully with his voice, as he does on songs like "Wagoner's Lad" and "Goodnight, Irene." He infuses those slow ballads with a sense of longing that is heartwrenching to listen to and each time those tracks come on, they fill the listener with melancholy. By contrast, the fast lines on "Old Dan Tucker" would easily get mixed up by a lesser artist, but Pete Seeger sings each of the fast words clearly and with eagerness that makes for an ideal jig song.

Seeger is accompanied on each song only by himself on the guitar or banjo. Folk music has its origins with common people who had little money and the simplicity of the music is reflected well by the stark instrumentation. Seeger remains true to the intent and feeling of the original songs by playing them on simple instruments alone. Unaccompanied by anyone else, Seeger has a "one man and a banjo" (or guitar) sound that rings very true for folk. On these albums, he sounds professional and clear, which makes for a valuable collection.

The songs on American Favorite Ballads tend to be songs about relationships, like "Black Is The Color Of My True Love's Hair" and "Lady Margaret," or the American experience as it pertains to the Westward expansion ("Buffalo Skinners," "Jesse James") and slavery ("No More Auction Block"). The songs range from the instantly recognizable ("Camptown Race") to the obscure ("Play-Party"). What makes this endeavor perfect is this: Smithsonian Folkway Recordings set out to create a definitive collection of folk songs and over the course of the 139 songs on five c.d.s, they achieve that goal admirably by mixing songs which are undeniable folk masterpieces with songs that have already become obscure. If the Smithsonian was trying to preserve for posterity the musical history of American folk music, the fact that many of these songs were unknown to me (making them about a generation away from being lost entirely) achieves the goal.

Pete Seeger might not have much creative control over American Favorite Ballads, but he became the perfect vessel to preserve the classics of folk music for posterity in a way that is clear, easily understood and devoid of poorly-repeating aspects like ad libs or stories about the songs. The liner notes to this collection makes up for that by detailing what history might be known of each song, making this an ideal scholarly collection.

For other Pete Seeger albums, please check out my reviews of:
American Industrial Ballads
We Shall Overcome: The Complete Carnegie Hall Concert June 8, 1963
God Bless The Grass
Stories & Songs For Little Children
Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs
The Best Of Pete Seeger (Vanguard)
Pete
If I Had A Hammer: Songs Of Hope And Struggle
Folk Songs For Young People
Greatest Hits (Brazilian Import)
A Link In The Chain
Birds, Beasts, Bugs And Fishes (Little And Big)
Seeger & Hester
Headlines & Footnotes
At 89

10/10

For other music reviews, please be sure to visit my index page by clicking here!

© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.

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Tribute Albums Always Seem To Be A Mixed Bag: Where Have All The Flowers Gone

The Good: Some amazing vocals, instrumentals, and lyrics
The Bad: Some unimpressive adaptations of Pete Seeger's works.
The Basics: When big names in rock and folk perform covers of Pete Seeger's music, Where Have All The Flowers Gone results: a very average mix of folk music.


With over two and a half hours of music on two c.d.s, one might expect a tribute album to Pete Seeger to be extraordinary. Or, I suppose, those who are not fans of Pete Seeger might expect such an anthology to be entirely boring. As it is, Where Have All The Flowers Gone: The Songs Of Pete Seeger is entirely average. It is, in every way, unremarkable, though it is not bad. As a fan of the music of Pete Seeger, my father presented me with this two-disc album to help illustrate to me how much influence Seeger has had on modern folk and contemporary rock and roll. While the album has an impressive cast of contemporary folk, alternative and rock talent, the album is strangely unmemorable, which says something when one considers I've listened to both discs over a dozen times each.

When one considers Pete Seeger, it is difficult to differentiate between the songs Seeger himself wrote and the ones which he simply popularized. What makes Where Have All The Flowers Gone: The Songs Of Pete Seeger more impressive than If I Had A Song: The Songs Of Pete Seeger, Volume 2 (reviewed here!) is that this compilation of tributes to Seeger actually is loaded with songs Seeger wrote, arranged or co-wrote. Only "Old Riley" appears on this album without any Seeger influence in the creation or adaptation of the song. And what listeners get is a decent, if erratic, mix of talent that is recreating the works of Pete Seeger in tribute to the venerable folk artist.

With thirty-nine songs spread out over the two discs, Where Have All The Flowers Gone: The Songs Of Pete Seeger features almost as many artists or bands performing works written by Pete Seeger. These songs include the instantly recognizable musical storysongs "Kisses Sweeter Than Wine" and "Waist Deep In The Big Muddy," social justice anthems like "We Shall Overcome" and "If I Had A Hammer," and songs about history and social causes like "Where Have All The Flowers Gone" and "My Name Is Lisa Kalvelage." There are very few general philosophy songs, though "Turn, Turn, Turn" is covered by Bruce Cockburn on this tribute.

Unlike other tributes to Pete Seeger that I have heard, Where Have All The Flowers Gone: The Songs Of Pete Seeger has folk interpretations of Seeger's songs as opposed to reimaginings of Seeger's works in other genres. This is more like the people coming to Seeger as opposed to taking his works and running with them. So, for example, Bruce Springsteen presents "We Shall Overcome" in a remarkably traditional folk way. The fundamental difference between these songs and many of Pete Seeger's versions is how musically rich they sound. The duet between Jackson Browne and Bonnie Raitt for "Kisses Sweeter Than Wine" has both guitarists plucking out the melody, which makes it much less stark and vocally-driven than Seeger's original. Most of the songs have more than just a single guitar playing and the prevalence of percussion on the album makes most songs sound a bit richer than Seeger's originals.

The biggest difference in these covers and Pete Seeger's original versions of each song comes in the vocals. While some of the songs like John Gorka's interpretation of "The Water Is Wide" come out with similar articulate (if growling) vocals, other songs are less articulate than Seeger's originals. While Pete Seeger has a beautiful tenor voice, Roger McGuinn has a very different range on "Bells Of Rhymney" and is not as articulate as Seeger. McGuinn's version does not put the emphasis on enunciating each and every word the way Pete Seeger does when he performs, which is made evident by Seeger himself performing the album's final track, "And Still I Am Searching."

The real surprise - for some - comes from how well some of the female artists interpret and perform Seeger's songs on this album. Ani DiFranco, whose works failed to impress me when I immersed myself in her works earlier this year, tells the musical storysong "My Name Is Lisa Kalvelage" articulately and with a feminine voice appropriate to the lyrics. Judy Collins does a soprano interpretation of "Oh Had I a Golden Thread" that carries more emotion and soul than any version I ever heard Seeger present. Even the "Empty Pocket Blues" comes out with a surprising depth from The Weavers's Ronnie Gilbert, Robin Flower and Libby McLaren.

And while the women certainly shine on this album, outside Bruce Springsteen's throaty rendition of "We Shall Overcome" (where he does some awkward rests and syncopations), the men performing do well. Even Donovan's version of "My Rainbow Race" is melodic and listenable.

For those who have not heard much from Pete Seeger, he is an articulate folk singer and his gift to listeners (other than legacy) on Where Have All The Flowers Gone: The Songs Of Pete Seeger is the presence of his song "And Still I Am Searching." He sings it with his trademark enthusiasm and mellow vocals and when he sings "And I'm still searching . . . For a way we can all learn / To build a world where we all can share / The work, the fun, the food, the space, the joy" ("And Still I Am Searching") it is impossible not to hear the heart of the poet being earnestly expressed.

Ultimately, Where Have All The Flowers Gone: The Songs Of Pete Seeger is a decent set and has the music of Pete Seeger presented with musical and vocal variations that one would not get from a straight-out Pete Seeger album. The result is something that Seeger fans are likely to enjoy and that provides a nonthreatening entry into folk music for those previously intimidated by the genre.

The best songs are "Kisses Sweeter Than Wine" (Disc 1) and "And Still I Am Searching" (Disc 2). The low points are "Old Riley" (Disc 1) and "Quiet Early Morning" (Disc 2).

For actual Pete Seeger albums, please check out my reviews of:
American Industrial Ballads
We Shall Overcome: The Complete Carnegie Hall Concert June 8, 1963
God Bless The Grass
Stories & Songs For Little Children
Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs
The Best Of Pete Seeger (Vanguard)
Pete
If I Had A Hammer: Songs Of Hope And Struggle
Folk Songs For Young People
Greatest Hits (Brazilian Import)
A Link In The Chain
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 1
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 2
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 3
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 4
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 5
Birds, Beasts, Bugs And Fishes (Little And Big)
Seeger & Hester
Headlines & Footnotes
At 89

5.5/10

For other music reviews, please visit my index page on the subject by clicking here!

© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.


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A Good Idea Gone Very Mediocre, American Favorite Ballads Volume 3 Is The Least Impressive.

The Good: Good folk music, Great vocals, Decent (enough) instrumental accompaniment, Duration, Concept
The Bad: Least recognizable mix
The Basics: A great concept with an excellent execution, American Favorite Ballads, Volume 3 has unfortunately obscure song choices, which make it a tougher sell.


American Favorite Ballads Volume 3 came in the day before I was leaving for my annual cross-country trip and was due back two days before I would return. Unwilling to jeopardize my status at my local library with even two days worth of overdue fines, I had my librarian send it back. It has taken until now for me to get it back in and, frankly, I am at a loss as to why.

The Smithsonian Folkway Recordings began the American Favorite Ballads project with a smart, clear intent: to catalog and preserve the best folk music ballads for posterity. They hired Pete Seeger to perform them and each volume in the collection included songs that either were or once were well known in order to make sure they were not lost for all time. Seeger performed each track in as close to a “pure” form as possible with the intent being to preserve the most universal version of each song. As such American Favorite Ballads, Volume 3 does not have live versions of songs or any improvisations. Instead, it is a very direct presentation of each song.

And apparently, it is none too soon. On every other American Favorite Ballads album, I recognized many (or most) of the songs. On this volume, the only song that I instantly recognized was “She’ll Be Comin’ Round The Mountain,” which is unlikely to ever fall out of the American songbook given how many children’s albums it is on. There were one or two other songs I realized I recognized, based upon my studies of the music of Pete Seeger (like “Ground Hog”) and Peter, Paul, And Mary, but the short of it is that American Favorite Ballads, Volume 3 does not have the same universal or timeless quality to it that most of the other volumes have. Instead, this volume is pretty much the desperate catch of historic folk music that was (arguably) a generation away from being lost (I feel it is fair to write that as I was raised on folk music and had not heard most of these songs).

With twenty-seven songs and over an hour of music, American Favorite Ballads, Volume 3 is an appropriately dense collection of songs, mostly about the American experience, as told in folk music. Not exactly the work of Pete Seeger, this album is comprised mostly of songs whose original writers have been lost to time (they are credited as “Traditional”) or whose writing remains, but whose vocals performances were lost. This is largely cover songs then, but Pete Seeger gets credit for being the primary vocalist on all twenty-seven tracks and he plays guitar on all of the songs as well. While Seeger is not credited with production on any of these songs, it is tough to argue that this is not the album he intended to make, as he was essentially commissioned to do these (and the others) by the Smithsonian.

For those unfamiliar with folk music, American Favorite Ballads, Volume 3 actually does an excellent job of exploring what the genre is all about. Outside a few songs which are blues like wailing (“Boll Weevil”) or closer to bluegrass (the origins of both genres are remarkably similar) (“St. Louis Blues”), most of the songs are musical storysongs. In these songs, there are characters, things happen and there is some sense of resolution, like “When I first came to this land, I was not a wealthy man, / So I got myself a farm, I did what I could / And I called my farm, 'Muscle in my arm' / And I called my shack, 'Break my back' / But the land was sweet and good, I did what I could“ (“When I First Came To This Land”). The bulk of the songs on American Favorite Ballads, Vol. 3 are such storysongs and they tend to explore American places (“Swanee River”) or events, like the sinking of the Titanic (which, to be fair, was a world event, but American folk singers sure got into singing about it!).

As well, songs on American Favorite Ballads, Vol. 3 explore the changing social life in the United States. While some of the songs are longing ballads that express the loneliness that comes from moving across the wide country (“When I First Came To This Land,” “Arkansas Traveler”), there are also songs about social mores and problems. Folk singers tended to be pretty liberal (or at least honest) about the state of the United States and the writing on some of these songs is frank and expresses a reality that many find uncomfortable. One has to wonder why the Smithsonian Folkway Recordings would want to immortalize “I'm a decent boy just landed / From the town of Ballyfad; / I want a situation, yes, / And want it very bad. / I have seen employment advertised, / 'It's just the thing,' says I, / 'But the dirty spalpeen ended with / "No Irish Need Apply."'“ (“No Irish Need Apply”), but the concept of preserving even the unpleasant realities that future generations might learn from them is remarkably smart.

American Favorite Ballads, Volume 3 also has a few songs about more universal human emotions. Take, for example, “Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child.” That folk song clearly illustrates a sense of feeling unfulfilled when Pete Seeger sings “Sometimes I feel like a motherless child / A long ways from home / A long ways from home / True believer / A long ways from home“ (“Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child”).

While Pete Seeger might not have much in the way of creative control on this album, he sings masterfully and it is clear that he was an ideal choice for a project like this. Seeger has an amazing tenor voice that is able to hold the few long notes required on the songs on this album and to articulate the lyrics perfectly while still being musical. Seeger has amazing pitch and a clarity to his vocals that make every single word easily understood.

And Seeger plays his guitar, which accompanies every song on the album. Because this album is classic folk music, the intent is to make music that is easily shared. As such, the tunes on this album are very simple and they act more as simple accompaniment to the lyrics than in any way dominate the vocals. Seeger may have simple songs to play, but he plays them without any sense of being bored with it or anything less than complete competence.

Still, after eight listens to this album, I find myself only mildly impressed. The concept is better than the execution and while this is worth hearing, it is the least inspired collection of folk songs in this series of recordings. Then again, perhaps as more people hear them, they will come back into the collective conscious and this will have served its purpose.

The best song is “Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child,” the low point is “El-A-Noy.”

For other Pete Seeger albums, please check out my reviews of:
American Industrial Ballads
We Shall Overcome: The Complete Carnegie Hall Concert June 8, 1963
God Bless The Grass
Stories & Songs For Little Children
Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs
The Best Of Pete Seeger (Vanguard)
Pete
If I Had A Hammer: Songs Of Hope And Struggle
Folk Songs For Young People
Greatest Hits (Brazilian Import)
A Link In The Chain
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 1
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 2
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 4
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 5
Birds, Beasts, Bugs And Fishes (Little And Big)
Seeger & Hester
Headlines & Footnotes
At 89

5/10

For other music reviews, please visit my index page on the subject by clicking here!

© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.

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Two Discs Of Extraordinary Music, Pete Seeger's A Link In The Chain Holds Up Well!

The Good: Great duration, Good mix of songs, Good renditions
The Bad: A few versions with guest vocalists that are distracting, Stories don't hold up well.
The Basics: Outside a few stories between songs that replay less well, A Link In The Chain is close to an ideal folk set that offers great value for Pete Seeger fans!


Pete Seeger, prolific singer and songwriter that he is, has a wealth of albums and I still have many to review. The one I have been listening to most and holding off writing about (for no particular reason other than lack of time) is A Link In The Chain, a two-disc set of classic folk music that illustrates exactly why Pete Seeger is considered the master singer and performer that he is.

A Link In The Chain wonderfully includes songs I've not heard before, like "Aimee Semple McPherson," and is a mix of storysongs and songs with social messages. Broken into four groups, the two-disc set covers Tall Tales and Stories (songs like "My Oklahoma Home Blowed Away" and "Waist Deep In The Big Muddy"), Songs of Freedom (social conscience songs, like "Draft Dodger Rag" and "Keep Your Eyes On The Prize"), songs about people, most notably folk legends (like "Jesse James" and a female bandit, "Belle Starr") and a few songs for children (like the socially-relevant and ironic "What Did You Learn In School Today?" and "Be Kind To Your Parents"). This is one of the strongest collections of works by Pete Seeger yet and is pretty much a must-own for fans of Seeger or folk music in general.

With a total of thirty-eight songs on two discs, A Link In The Chain holds up as an amazing work of Pete Seeger as a creative person and an artist. Occupying 60:42 and 52:55, the two discs offer a number of tracks that illustrate Seeger as a creative talent as well as an archivist of classic folk music. Ten of the songs were written by Seeger and an additional three were co-written by the venerable folk singer. The rest are traditional or are by Seeger's contemporaries, like Woodie Guthrie and Tom Paxton and the like. On each track, Pete Seeger plays either guitar or banjo. He also performs the lead vocals on every song, so this is very much his creative vision, even if he is not involved in the production of the album.

A Link In The Chain features Pete Seeger's beautiful tenor voice on all of the tracks and part of what makes Seeger so memorable as a folk singer is his emotive ability. He sings with irony and good cheer on "Get Up And Go" and "Aimee Semple McPherson." He is also able to infuse "Waist Deep In The Big Muddy" with a sense of danger and sociological horror, making it quite distinct from what most listeners might hear on the radio today. Always singing with a perfect clarity that is a model for all performers, Seeger is able to sing with a grandfatherly kindness to his voice on the songs for children, like the classics "Michael Row The Boat Ashore" and "This Land Is Your Land." He carries a weight in his voice as well, especially when he is singing about social issues. On "Keep Your Eyes On The Prize," he goes slightly lower than his usual range to connote a sense of slow-burning importance that works perfectly for the song.

In fact, one of the few places the album goes astray are the tracks where Seeger's voice is distracted from. For example, on "Jesse James," one of the background vocalists is a bass who sings significantly lower than Seeger and his voice overshadows Seeger's during the refrain. Similarly, on "Belle Starr," the background vocals are more overwhelming than supportive. There are only a few tracks like that on the album and far more indicative of the norm and of Pete Seeger's talents are songs like "Oh, Had I A Golden Thread" where his tenor voice rings out with clarity and gusto that is articulate and warm.

On all of the songs, Pete Seeger plays his guitar or his banjo and for those unfamiliar with the works of Pete Seeger, his instrumental accompaniment is just that. There are no songs where his instrument overwhelms the vocals, save on the instrumental only tracks, like "Nameless Lick" which acts as an interstitial between different sections of the albums. Songs that have later been popularized by others, like "Turn! Turn! Turn!" might sound more stark to listeners than their rock-produced cover versions. Seeger makes it work for him and because the lyrics are presented at the forefront and as well as they are, it becomes clear that his message is what is important.

Like most of Pete Seeger's music, A Link In The Chain has a positively liberal agenda in the lyrics. He sings about the need for social justice ("We Shall Overcome") and the need for peace ("Draft Dodger Rag," "Where Have All The Flowers Gone?"). He also sings a number of songs that seek to illustrate that we may learn from the past. "My Name Is Liza Kalvelage" is sung as a first-person account of a German following World War II crying out about wars after the fall of Hitler and the Nuremberg judgments. That is the sort of socially-conscious song that is almost entirely absent from the current American songbook.

Anyone who likes musical storysongs will enjoy A Link In The Chain because the songs are often fun - Seeger sings about brothels on "Queen Anne Front" and escaping work "Hobo's Lullaby" - and they carry a sense of history to them. Anyone who likes classic Country or folk will likely enjoy the style and stories on this album. And for those not yet into them, this is a great set to get one there!

The best tracks are "My Name Is Liza Kalvelage" (disc 1) and "What Did You Learn In School Today?" (disc 2), the low points are the instrumental interludes on both discs.

For other Pete Seeger albums, please check out my reviews of:
American Industrial Ballads
We Shall Overcome: The Complete Carnegie Hall Concert June 8, 1963
God Bless The Grass
Stories & Songs For Little Children
Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs
The Best Of Pete Seeger (Vanguard)
Pete
If I Had A Hammer: Songs Of Hope And Struggle
Folk Songs For Young People
Greatest Hits (Brazilian Import)
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 1
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 2
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 4
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 5
Birds, Beasts, Bugs And Fishes (Little And Big)
Seeger & Hester
Headlines & Footnotes
At 89

8.5/10

For other music reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!

© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Flawless By Default, Headlines & Footnotes Is A Great Collection Of Folk Music!

The Good: Great vocals, Fun lyrics, Good mix, Social commentary, Duration
The Bad: None that I can find (slightly limited instrumentally).
The Basics: Fun and filled with irony and Pete Seeger clearly enjoying himself as he sings, Headlines & Footnotes is an album for anyone who loves (or is intimidated by) folk music.


There might be some irony in declaring Pete Seeger's album a true "Best Of" album of the folk singer's works when I've spent so much time and effort deriding such claims in other reviews. The truth is, for a career like Pete Seeger's which spans over sixty-five years, it is pretty much impossible to make a single disc compilation that encapsulates all of the best of Seeger's works. Still, he does not make the claim that this is a "best of," but the mix is so strong and recognizable for anyone who loves folk music that it becomes a de facto "best of" album for those who study his works.

For those unfamiliar with Pete Seeger, he was the leading folk singer in the United States following the Woody Guthrie era of folk. He supported young folk-rock singers like Bob Dylan and was an influence on people like Bruce Springsteen. He has a strong Populist viewpoint, urging for protection of the environment, worker's rights and the inherent rights of all people to equality and freedom. On Headlines & Footnotes, Pete Seeger combines many of his social viewpoints for an easily enjoyed album that anyone who likes music is likely to enjoy. One need not like folk music to appreciate this compilation.

With twenty-three songs taking up 73:36 on compact disc, Headlines & Footnotes is a collection of folk songs compiled by the Smithsonian Folkways Recordings to encapsulate a wide range of folk themes. Performed exclusively by Pete Seeger, with a little audience participation on "Wimoweh" and "A Little This And That," Headlines & Footnotes is a compilation from harder to find albums of musical story-songs written by Pete Seeger and other greats of folk music. Seeger, who is a prolific writer in his own right, only wrote three of the songs on this album and he co-wrote another five songs and he put music to another song. The others are songs from folk greats like Woody Guthrie ("Sinking Of The Reuben James") and Malvina Reynolds ("Little Boxes") or traditional songs whose original authors have been lost to time ("Peg And Awl"). Pete Seeger plays guitar or banjo on each track. He is not credited with any form of production credit on the album. Still, given the number of albums Seeger has released through the Smithsonian Folkways Recordings and that Anthony Seeger supervised the production of this compilation, one has to figure this is Pete Seeger's intended musical vision.

That said, this is a pretty wonderful compilation of folk music. Thematically, it is one of the most diverse compilations of Pete Seeger's albums. There are songs about organized labor ("Peg And Awl," "Roll Down The Line"), the civil rights movement ("Hold The Line," "The Battle Of Maxton Field"), gender and ethnic equality ("Listen Mr. Bilbo," "There Once Was A Woman Who Swallowed A Lie"), as well as general American history ("Passing Through," "The Sinking Of the Reuben James"). Seeger sings about the horrors of war ("Waist Deep In The Big Muddy") and about the absurdity of the English language ("English Is Cuh-Ray-Zee"). And despite the thematic diversity, Headlines & Footnotes is a remarkably strong album that is very easy to listen to.

Chiefly, the listenability comes from the smooth vocals of Pete Seeger. Seeger has an incredible tenor voice evident on each and every song. He masters his range and he challenges it when leading the audience in "Wimoweh" when he tries the higher and lower parts. Seeger is able to articulate quite clearly and some of the lines are packed with words, like on "There Once Was A Woman Who Swallowed A Lie," which makes the clarity of his vocals even more impressive. Similarly, on "Guantanamera," he sings in Spanish and he makes the words melodic long before he translates them.

Also impressive is the engaging style of Seeger's renditions of the musical storysongs. I've listened to this album over a dozen times and his presentation of the story for "Coal Creek March/ Payday At Coal Creek / Roll Down The Line" is still engaging, which cannot be said of all the stories Seeger tells to his audiences. The history lesson mid-song is well presented and while Seeger speaks it in a musing tone, it has a strangely musical quality that makes the song seem more cohesive than broken up.

As well, Seeger is able to emote wonderfully as he sings. "English Is Cah-Ray-Zee" is presented with a smile that the listener can hear as he sings about the peculiarities of the English language. Similarly, his voice is laced with such irony when he sings of the Klan "If you are free and white and bigot / And your courage comes from a spigot . . ." ("The Battle Of Maxton Field") that champions of ethnic equality can do nothing but smile and be glad there once were artists with the courage to sing such things. Not limited to simply presenting humor in his voice, Pete Seeger makes ballads like "Guantanamera" soulful and the two disaster songs early on the album ("The Titanic" and "Sinking Of The Reuben James") emotional cacophonies of loss expressed through music.

As far as the instrumental accompaniment goes, Headlines & Footnotes is a collection of very simple songs. The vocals of Pete Seeger are only accompanied by a single instrument, either his banjo or his guitar, and while he is a master of them, the musical accompaniment is just that. On Headlines & Footnotes Seeger is a musical storyteller whose purpose is to spread information and he does that masterfully, but he does not prioritize the tunes over his voice and this makes for a wonderful effect. Still, there are some recognizable melodies; "There Once Was A Woman Who Swallowed A Lie" is essentially "There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly" with new lyrics.

Ultimately, Headlines & Footnotes might be musically simple, but songs have a universal quality, like Seeger's ode to aging "My Get Up And Go." Anyone intimidated by folk music in theory will find the broad execution of this album enjoyable and easy to understand. What more could anyone hope for from folk music?

The best song is "There Once Was A Woman Who Swallowed A Lie," the weak point is "Viva La Quince Brigada," though it is not at all a bad song.

For other Pete Seeger albums, please check out my reviews of:
American Industrial Ballads
We Shall Overcome: The Complete Carnegie Hall Concert June 8, 1963
God Bless The Grass
Stories & Songs For Little Children
Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs
The Best Of Pete Seeger (Vanguard)
Pete
If I Had A Hammer: Songs Of Hope And Struggle
Folk Songs For Young People
Greatest Hits (Brazilian Import)
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 1
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 2
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 4
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 5
Birds, Beasts, Bugs And Fishes (Little And Big)
Seeger & Hester
At 89

10/10

For other music reviews, please be sure to visit my index page on the subject by clicking here!

© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.

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Pete Seeger Archives For The Next Generation Again With American Favorite Ballads, Volume 4.

The Good: Great vocals, Decent, recognizable songs, Instrumentally adequate, Duration
The Bad: Not terribly complicated, especially lyrically
The Basics: A good album continuing to catalog American folk music, American Favorite Ballads, Volume 4 is strong, powered by Pete Seeger's clear vocals.


The idea of archiving for posterity the essential works of American folk music is a great one and its success is insured more by the volumes of work that bear familiar music to their listeners than those that preserve already-forgotten works. After all, when people know what they like, they are apt to listen to it over and over again, as opposed to songs that they are unfamiliar with and they might even be biased against. In the case of the Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, the various volumes range from the almost entirely familiar (to anyone who went to summer camp or enjoys folk music) to the downright obscure. I was, therefore, surprised upon picking up American Favorite Ballads, Volume 4 just how familiar many of the songs actually were.

Pete Seeger, working for the Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, lent his talents to American Favorite Ballads, Volume 4 just as he had for the prior three and subsequent one albums. The Smithsonian chose well with Seeger, who belays his usual conversational style of storytelling with his songs to present standards of folk music intended to be the masters for those who come after to learn from. On this album, the Smithsonian capitalizes on Seeger's cool vocal abilities and strength as a performer in his ability to articulate clearly to present well-known American folk songs to those who might not have heard them before.

With twenty-eight songs, occupying 71:28 on a single compact disc, American Favorite Ballads 4 is a compilation of songs, most of which are in the public domain. Seeger did not write any of the songs; that's not the purpose of this album. In fact, outside five of the songs, the original authors have been lost to time and the words are in the public domain, often with regional variances. Seeger provides the vocals on all of the tracks with the most universally-accepted version of each song. The intent of the album is to provide the standard for classics of folk music before they become changed by subsequent generations. As a result, this is a huge task of research and execution and Seeger and those producing the album for the Smithsonian Folkways Recordings took the task on with a gusto that led to many volumes. By the fourth volume, Seeger is compelled to sing more songs that have obvious European origins ("Washer Lad," "Molly Malone") as well as songs that are little more than sea chanteys and drinking songs ("What Shall We Do With The Drunken Sailor?").

The songs on American Favorite Ballads, Volume 4 continue to tell musical storysongs about social mores in colonial times as well as relate a history of the United States from the perspective of the underclasses. For example, "Lolly Too Dum" explores the attempt of a widow to remarry as her "adult" children are reaching marrying age themselves. "Washer Lad" is the heartwrenching story of an underpaid servant and "No More Auction Block" relates life as a slave in the United States. As well, songs like "Lolly Too Dum" and "Hole In The Bucket" help establish (and reinforce) gender roles as Seeger sings about spinster women and nags. Fortunately, the album is a little more rounded than that, including "Johnson" where the damsel in distress is actually a murderess.

Outside the obscure songs, there are several songs that are almost instantly recognizable. These include "You Are My Sunshine," which Seeger records with a perfect delivery, despite other artists making is more soulful, "Army Life" (a humorous ditty about all of the things in the army that are "fine"), "Hole In The Bucket" (which is much more tame than the version my father and his friends used to sing when we were on campouts!), and "Johnny Has Gone For A Soldier." Even the simple song "What Shall We Do With The Drunken Soldier" has a familiar ring to it from summer camps, which is often how many of these songs were passed down from those who knew to those still learning.

Even songs like "Hallelujah, I'm A Bum" have a familiar ring to them. This might also be because the songs are not terribly musically sophisticated. Pete Seeger plays the guitar or banjo on all of the songs and as a result, there is a consistency to the album that is admirable and makes it very easy for listeners to learn the songs. These songs almost universally (only "Talking Blues" stands out as an exception) come from a time where the instruments were played by people with limited musical knowledge and part of the goal of each song was to be easily disseminated. Complex and sophisticated melodies and fingerings make that virtually impossible, so the somewhat monotonous musical quality to this album is actually a more sensible execution of the album's goals.

This is not to say the album is boring. Pete Seeger is able to infuse the songs with energy, enthusiasm and emotion while still singing them clearly. He takes on slower ballads like "Molly Malone" and "Go Down, Moses" with a presentation that is often heartwrenching to listen to. The lyrics are sad, but Seeger is able to present the lines both with clear enunciations and an emotional resonance that achieves the goals of each song. Conversely, on up-tempo songs like "Old Maid's Song," Seeger is able to sing quickly and with enthusiasm that makes one want to dance or skip. He infuses appropriate irony into "Army Life" and the sense of loss necessary to make "Johnny Has Gone For A Soldier."

In the end, that is what makes American Favorite Ballads, Volume 4 such a good album; Seeger makes ideal masters for folk songs without robbing them of emotion. This makes the album easy to listen to and enjoy as well as providing a lasting historical document. The simple songs replay well, despite being instrumentally limited and the diction being remarkably simple. Even so, this is a definite buy for anyone who loves folk music.

The best song is "No More Auction Block," the low point is the unmemorable "Monsieur Banjo."

For other Pete Seeger albums, please check out my reviews of:
American Industrial Ballads
We Shall Overcome: The Complete Carnegie Hall Concert June 8, 1963
God Bless The Grass
Stories & Songs For Little Children
Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs
The Best Of Pete Seeger (Vanguard)
Pete
If I Had A Hammer: Songs Of Hope And Struggle
Folk Songs For Young People
Greatest Hits (Brazilian Import)
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 1
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 2
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 5
Birds, Beasts, Bugs And Fishes (Little And Big)
Seeger & Hester
At 89

8/10

For other music reviews, please be sure to visit my index page on the subject by clicking here!

© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.

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Seeger's Animal Songs, Birds, Beasts, Bugs & Fishes (Little & Big) Is A Good Collection.

The Good: Good vocals, Fun tunes, Good duration.
The Bad: Largely uncomplicated - lyrically or musically, Instrumentally simple
The Basics: Fun and occasionally memorable, Birds, Beasts, Bugs & Fishes (Little & Big) is more an ideal album for children than adults as it is plagued by a lot of repetition.


Because of how often I advocate combining old albums that might have once been decent-length records - but make poor use of the compact disc medium - I think it behooves me to mention that Pete Seeger manages to do just that with his compact disc Birds, Beasts, Bugs & Fishes (Little & Big). Originally released in the mid-1950s as two separate albums focused on animals intended for children (Birds, Beasts, Bugs & Little Fishes) and another for adults (Birds, Beasts, Bugs & Bigger Fishes), Seeger and the Smithsonian Folkway Recordings compiled both into a single album intended to keep the songs on the albums alive in the public ear through the Smithsonian's attempt to archive American Folk Music. The result is a theme album that has a light, enjoyable sound for people of all ages and makes for a decent compact disc.

Unlike many of Pete Seeger's theme albums that are put together to make a social statement or chronicle a specific epoch of American folk music, Birds, Beasts, Bugs & Fishes (Little & Big) seems designed just to entertain listeners. The early half of the album includes children's favorites like "I Know An Old Lady (Who Swallowed A Fly)" and "Skip To My Lou" (there are lines about flies in the sugar bowl and cat's in the cream, which is where the animal association comes in), while the latter half of the album includes slightly more racy songs like "Leatherwing Bat" (I'm using "racy" pretty liberally here!) and the absurd storysong "The Foolish Frog." The thing is, having listened to the album many times before checking out the liner notes (thank you cross-country trip for that!) I can say with some authority that there is little difference in the musical or lyrical quality between the two original albums and there is nothing inappropriate for children on this combined album. In fact, it is surprising Seeger attempted the marketing of the original albums as one for children, one for adults, as opposed to trying to sell twice as many children's albums.

That said, Birds, Beasts, Bugs & Fishes (Little & Big) is a pretty solid 65:46 of music, none of which appears to be the original works of singer-songwriter Pete Seeger. The twenty-eight songs are broken up almost evenly between the original children's album and the adult album as far as the duration goes, though there are two more songs on the original children's album than the original adult one. The liner notes indicate that the songs were transcribed from the Library Of Congress and performed in the 1950s, but there are no credited writers, which implies that the songs are in the public domain. Seeger does perform all of the songs by singing and by playing on his banjo and guitar, depending on the song.

For those who might not have heard of Pete Seeger, Seeger is a folk singer who grew up riding on the coattails of Woody Guthrie and whose career was solid enough to promote the burgeoning career of one Bob Dylan when that younger artist was just starting out. Seeger has a beautiful, clear tenor voice which he uses to articulate lyrics that others might stumble over, like the packed lines of "The Old Hen." He is able to infuse his sense of irony into his voice in "Ground Hog" and his sense of enthusiasm into classics like "Skip To My Lou." He sings soulful and lower on "My Little Kitty" and on songs like "I Had A Rooster" and "Leatherwing Bat" he makes animal noises or inarticulate - though melodical - utterances that are emotive and expressive, if not coherent.

It is Pete Seeger who is finally giving me an appreciation for the less articulate vocalists of my own generation; listening to Birds, Beasts, Bugs & Fishes (Little & Big) becomes an exercise in boredom on heavy repeat because Seeger is so articulate. Because he is so clear with his vocals and he enunciates each and every line (even the annoying squawks of roosters on certain songs) the repetition of lines and refrains soon wears thin. Simple songs like "My Little Kitty," "The Elephant" (arguably the most political song as it is anti-ivory poaching in its subtle way), "Mister Rabbit" and "Grey Goose" become tiresome quicker than these songs might otherwise have had they been performed less well or been put in a different mix - i.e. thematically different songs.

The songs on Birds, Beasts, Bugs & Fishes (Little & Big) all have to do with animals and most are either fun with animals or educational. Even the latter half of the album includes historical education, like on "Little Dogies" where the song is about the role of herding cows and coming to the end of the drive. For those who might not know about how ranchwork is done, songs like "Little Dogies" keep the basic information in the collective unconscious. Most of the songs are intended to express relationships between animals - "I Know An Old Lady (Who Swallowed A Fly)" teaches children both about size relationships between different animals and food chains - or educate youth on how to recognize different animals ("Racoon's Got A Bushy Tail"). The value of the songs is easy to realize; adults and children both learn better when learning is fun and music can make mundane information interesting.

Conversely, animals only play a peripheral role in some of the later songs, like "Turtle Dove" and "Old Paint." "Turtle Dove" is a song of love lost and the mournful quality to it has little to do with animals, but it is still a good song. Similarly, "Old Paint" is more a travel song about leaving one place for another than an actual song about horses.

In addition to having a beautiful and clear voice to articulate the folk songs on Birds, Beasts, Bugs & Fishes (Little & Big), Pete Seeger has the nimble fingers for playing the banjo and guitar. While none of the songs are terribly complicated - though some of the children's songs are surprisingly melodic and not in an unsophisticated way - Seeger is a master at the banjo and the guitar, allowing him to accompany his vocals perfectly. On all of the songs, Seeger uses the instruments he plays as accompaniment and they never dominate his vocals, though on "The Foolish Frog" he comes close.

All in all, Birds, Beasts, Bugs & Fishes (Little & Big) is a fairly mundane album of folk music. Seeger is articulate, but the music is simple, intended to be easily taught to listeners as part of a time long gone when people traded songs and stories around campfires and as such it is tough to listen to this with any sense of frequency. The sense of repetition for music that is simply light and fun also makes it difficult to get excited about as there is little emotional resonance to the overall album. Even so, it is easy to recommend the album as it is inoffensive and children respond well to the repetition. Indeed, despite the fact that this combines two albums, only one of which was intended for children specifically, it might be an ideal album for children for its educational and entertainment value.

The best song is "The Foolish Frog," the low point is the unmemorable "The Darby Ram."

For other Pete Seeger albums, please check out my reviews of:
American Industrial Ballads
We Shall Overcome: The Complete Carnegie Hall Concert June 8, 1963
God Bless The Grass
Stories & Songs For Little Children
Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs
The Best Of Pete Seeger (Vanguard)
Pete
If I Had A Hammer: Songs Of Hope And Struggle
Folk Songs For Young People
Greatest Hits (Brazilian Import)
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 1
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 2
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 5
Seeger & Hester
At 89

6.5/10

For other music reviews, please be sure to check out my index page by clicking here!

© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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More Obscure Folk Makes For An Odder American Favorite Ballads Volume 2 By (Pete Seeger)

The Good: Good vocals, Interesting lyrics, Some fun instrumental accompaniment
The Bad: Less familiar songs
The Basics: An intriguing collection of lesser-known folk songs, American Favorite Ballads Volume 2 continues the Smithsonian Folkway Recordings archive of essential songs performed by Pete Seeger for posterity.


I find myself still with a surplus of Pete Seeger albums, so my Artist Of The Month continues. My wife is not a fan of Pete Seeger, so she's dreading the rest of the month. Still, it is interesting to hear her reactions and she reacted with surprising good humor on the first leg of our trip to American Favorite Ballads Volume 2. On this album, she heard some instrumental work by Pete Seeger that amused her and she actually found herself (reluctantly) grooving to.

The American Favorite Ballads series is designed to keep the essentials of American folk music preserved for posterity through performances by Pete Seeger. Seeger was hired to perform essentially master tracks of American folk songs that might otherwise have been lost because they were obscure, never popular in a commercial sense or whose time was past and were in danger of becoming lost. Smithsonian Folkway Recordings is responsible for creating an archive of what they consider the essentials of folk music. Overall, the collection is five volumes and while the first was almost entirely recognizable, American Favorite Ballads Volume 2 is far more obscure in its collection.

On the plus side, American Favorite Ballads Volume 2 is also more diverse in its musical and vocal sound, making for a more intriguing overall listen than the first volume. Pete Seeger still refrains from storytelling or presenting musical or instrumental ad libs in his performance, but he seems more free to unwind with his sound. So, for example, his presentation of "Barbara Allen," which sounds almost like "Danny Boy," bears more of an Irish lilt to his vocals. In fact, it wasn't until I considered the title of the album that I realized that the song was not Irish!

Similarly, many of the other songs have other vocal twangs to them, mostly Western. "Poor Boy" is presented as if it were on a lonesome trail, around a campfire at night. Vocally, Seeger takes on a sense of being related to the origin of the song. So, when he plays "Sally Ann," he sings the bluegrass song with a Southern accent. Still, all of his vocals are clear and easily understood. For making master performances of American folk classics, this makes for an intriguing and surprisingly pure twist to the songs.

American Favorite Ballads Volume 2 is a twenty-seven track album that occupies over seventy minutes on the compact disc. Before I listened to the album, the only songs I knew were "House Of The Rising Sun" (yes, it was a folk song before it was popularized as a rock ballad!), "Midnight Special" (thanks to my father's obsession with folk music growing up), "Camptown Races," "The Water Is Wide," and "Wimoweh" (I had heard "Froggie Went A Courtin'" on another Pete Seeger album, though). So, most of the songs were completely new to me. The surprising aspect of "American Favorite Ballads Volume 2" is that while many of the songs were unfamiliar to me, their melodies were not. So, for example, "Go Tell Aunt Rhody" has melodic similarities to "Go Tell It On The Mountain."

Pete Seeger did not create most of the songs, though he co-wrote "Wimoweh." Many of the songs are in the public domain and the whole purpose of the album works as a result because the point is to preserve an essential part of American heritage. "Camptown Races," for example, was never going to top the Billboard charts and Pete Seeger's recording of it insures that it remains available to future generations. Seeger sings all of the primary vocals and he plays the banjo or guitar on each track. Still, Pete Seeger is not credited with any production credit on the album, so he is less creatively in control of this album than he is a willing participant of making the truest recordings of these songs for posterity.

It is in the flamboyancy of some of his instrumentals or vocals that my partner found enjoyment in Seeger on American Favorite Ballads Volume 2. For example, in "Young Man Who Wouldn't Hoe Corn," Seeger presents earnest soft vocals, then has a guitar riff that is incongruent which punctuates the themes of the lines. Similarly, on "The Fox," Seeger provides a pretty earnest "quack, quack, quack" which the song calls for and the way Seeger throws himself into the endeavor impressed her.

The more creative selection of songs makes American Favorite Ballads Volume 2 more accessible to those who are not fans of folk music. The strumming banjos and eager vocals are not for everyone. Still, the musical storysongs like "Jesse James" work wonderfully and this is a great album to get people into folk music because the songs do not all sound alike. "Jesse James" is a somewhat repetitive musical storysong, but "Oh, What A Beautiful City" has energy, but less repetition. As well, many of the songs are slow and sad, like "Careless Love" and the Smithsonian Folkways Recordings producer does an excellent job of putting the songs in an order that is quite listenable.

The constant element throughout is, of course, Pete Seeger. Seeger appears on the album only with himself for musical accompaniment and he is a master of the tenor range and the whole "one man with a lone instrument" sound. But on songs like "Go Tell Aunt Rhody" and this rendition of "Midnight Special," Seeger's sound is richer. So, while Seeger captures the actual reality that most of these songs were sung by poor folk with a single instrument that they played themselves, the producer balanced the album to make the sound richer to increase the appeal to those with an ear for music that is anything but stark. Seeger's vocals are universally clear.

Judging by the way my wife grudgingly found herself rocking in her seat and occasionally nodding her head, American Favorite Ballads Volume 2 is a good album for those who are not fans of folk music to learn an appreciation of it. And as someone who has an appreciation of folk music, I found I particularly enjoyed the diversity of songs on American Favorite Ballads Volume 2; these were not the same tired, old folk songs I've heard on innumerable other folk albums.

For that, Pete Seeger and the Smithsonian deserve a lot of credit and this album deserves your attention.

The best track is "Barbara Allen" (which was new to me!) and the low point is the less memorable "Alabama Bound."

For other Pete Seeger albums, please check out my reviews of:
American Industrial Ballads
We Shall Overcome: The Complete Carnegie Hall Concert June 8, 1963
God Bless The Grass
Stories & Songs For Little Children
Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs
The Best Of Pete Seeger (Vanguard)
Pete
If I Had A Hammer: Songs Of Hope And Struggle
Folk Songs For Young People
Greatest Hits (Brazilian Import)
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 1
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 5
Seeger & Hester
At 89


7.5/10

Want to see how this album stacks up against other musical works? Check out this index page with the reviews of the albums organized by rating!

© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.

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Waist Deep In The Big Muddy Is A Typical Pete Seeger Folk Album!

The Good: Some wonderful lyrics, Good themes, Decent vocals, Good instrumental accompaniment.
The Bad: SHORT, Very simple instrumental accompaniment
The Basics: A generally decent album, Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs short, but a generally fun folk album from Pete Seeger.


I found myself enjoying listening to Pete Seeger as my wife and I crossed the country in our little hybrid two years ago. My wife is not a fan of Pete Seeger's works, but she tolerates it while I drive, especially when I put the discs in while she sleeps. As well, on this second night of the trip, I've been left at the house we're staying at for the night while she goes out drinking with her friends. So, I've been catching up on reviews and listening to Pete Seeger albums on heavy replay.

The latest of those is Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs. This is an older Pete Seeger album now available on compact disc and it has a very classic folk-rock feel and sound to it. The songs are generally simple, Seeger sings them energetically and the album replays generally well. For those looking for a simple Pete Seeger album, this is a good way to go; the songs are mostly his and the album only leaves one wishing there were more.

With fifteen songs occupying just about forty-seven minutes, Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs is a tough sell on compact disc. This is not because the album is either bad or deficient in any real way, but rather because the album is so short. As a compact disc, this could have been filled up better and given how prolific Pete Seeger was at the point in his career that this album was originally released, two of his albums could have appeared on a single disc. That said, this is refreshingly filled with the creative vision of Pete Seeger. Seeger wrote seven of the songs and provided arrangements and additional material to three. "Down By The Riverside" and "East Virginia" are old enough to have authors lost to time and "The Sinking Of The Reuben James" and "Last Night I Had The Strangest Dream" are both covers.

Pete Seeger sings all of the songs on his own, though one or two of the tracks have him leading an extensive chorus. For example, "Down By The Riverside" and "Oh Yes I'd Climb (The Highest Mountain For You)" both have chorus accompaniment which allows Seeger to infuse a communal feeling to his works as well as feminine voices to balance his own more masculine voice. Seeger plays his own instruments, usually just the banjo or guitar he is known for playing. There is an additional harmonica on "Oh Yes I'd Climb (The Highest Mountain For You). This is in addition to Seeger's guitar, so it is not like he is shirking his musical duties on the track. While Seeger sings and plays an instrument, he is not involved in the production of Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs.

Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs is a general folk album, which means it is not a themed album. As a result, songs deal with war ("Waist Deep In The Big Muddy"), the effects of war ("My Name Is Liza Kalvelage), and generally the American experience ("East Virginia"). Seeger makes a typical folk plea for peace ("Down By The Riverside") but also sings of love ("Oh Yes I'd Climb (The Highest Mountain For You)"). He also fills an extensive track with exploring the nature of wisdom on "Seek And You Shall Find."

Instrumentally, Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Song is very much a typical folk rock album, up to and including the presence of an instrumental track, a banjo number called "Nameless Lick." And while "Over The Hills" begins and ends with Seeger playing a lone woodwind (it sounds like an ocarina) most of the music is banjo and guitar driven. He uses the banjo solely for punctuation on songs like "East Virginia" and the instrumentation accompanying his voice on "My Father's Mansion's Many Rooms" is almost entirely absent. On songs with minimal instrumental accompaniment, Seeger's voice carries the tune almost entirely.

As for Pete Seeger's vocals, Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Song continues a strong tradition in the folk music genre - and in Seeger's repertoire - Pete Seeger's vocals are clear and often emotive. On "My Name Is Liza Kalvelage" and "Last Night I Had The Strangest Dream," Seeger's vocals have a quiet sadness to them that is - quite amazingly - never so quiet as to make the lines indecipherable. Seeger articulates equally well when he is quiet and sad as when he is energetic and eager (as he is on "East Virginia"). Seeger has a tenor voice that keeps perfect pitch and he is predictably wonderful with his voice on Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs.

Lyrically, Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs has a lot going for it. When the songs are not repetitive, as "Last Night I Had The Strangest Dream," Seeger makes poignant statements. Chief among these is his brilliant song "My Name Is Liza Kalvelage." On that song, he sings a musical storysong about a German after World War II and he relates and observes, "I said I was a child or at most a teenager / But that only extended the questioning / They'd ask where were my parents, my father, my mother / And to this I could not answer a thing / The seed planted there at Nuremberg in 1947 / Started to sprout and grow / Gradually, I understood what that verdict meant to me / When there are crimes that I can see and I can know / And now I also know what it is to be charged with mass guilt" ("My Name Is Liza Kalvelage"). There are no mainstream artists that perform that kind of musical social commentary today and Seeger's works on this album are a breath of fresh air for those looking for smart music.

Waist Deep In The Big Muddy And Other Love Songs is a good folk album for anyone looking to hear what folk music is. Seeger is a great artist and for those who already like folk, this has a decent amount of variety. The musical storysongs have a strong sense of values to them and they work quite well to pass those ideas on to the next generation. It's hard to ask for more.

The best song is "My Name Is Liza Kalvelage" and I'm not wild about how "Seek And You Shall Find" plays over many listens.

For other Pete Seeger albums, please check out my reviews of:
American Industrial Ballads
We Shall Overcome: The Complete Carnegie Hall Concert June 8, 1963
God Bless The Grass
Stories & Songs For Little Children
The Best Of Pete Seeger (Vanguard)
Pete
If I Had A Hammer: Songs Of Hope And Struggle
Folk Songs For Young People
Greatest Hits (Brazilian Import)
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 1
American Favorite Ballads, Volume 5
Seeger & Hester
At 89

6/10

For other music reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!

© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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