Alexander

From now on, I'll post the blog updates on the "Anthology" thread, and the new episodes of the podcast here. New all-blues New Year's episode is up today! You can hear the first three episodes below: Episode 3 - The Holiday Episode Episode 2 Episode 1

Today's update features Wlliam and Versey Smith's "When That Great Ship Went Down," recounting the 1912 "Titanic" disaster...

"It's spelled Raymond Luxury-Yacht, but it's pronounced "Throat-Warbler-Mangrove.""

New update today! Today we listen to Mississippi John Hurt's version of "Frankie."

I'm sorry to hear this. She had a hell of a ride, though... My wife's grandmother died at 97 and my grandmother is still going strong at 91. Long life can be a curse, as well as a blessing. My grandmother complains (in a humorous fashion) about how she hadn't planned on living this long, and that it's really messed her finances up. She recently used her age to get out of Jury Duty. Her comment: "Why would they want 91-year-olds serving on juries, anyway? They'd just fall asleep...or die." Seriously, my condolences. Remember the good times...

I picked this up last year, I think. I think it's terrific. Now, I'm a big Christmas album fan. I've got TONS of them (so many I can't listen to them all in the month leading up to Christmas!). What I love about this one is that it's made up entirely of original material. Not one "traditional" song. Great stuff!

Today's "Anthology" update covers the assassination of President William McKinley by anarachist Leon Czolgosz, the subject of Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers version of "White House Blues."

"Thirty-nine today, sound as a bell, apart from my old weakness, and intellectually I have now every reason to suspect at the . . . (hesitates) . . . crest of the wave--or thereabouts. Celebrated the awful occasion, as in recent years, quietly at the winehouse. Not a soul. Sat before the fire with closed eyes, separating the grain from the husks. Jotted down a few notes on the back on an envelope. Good to be back in my den in my old rags. Have just eaten I regret to say three bananas and only with difficulty restrained a fourth. Fatal things for a man with my condition. (Vehemently.) Cut 'em out! (pause.) The new light above my table is a great improvement. With all this darkness around me I feel less alone. (Pause.) In a way. (Pause.) I love to get up and move about in it, then back here to . . . (hesitates) . . . me. (pause.) Krapp." - Samuel Beckett, "Krapp's Last Tape."

New post on Where Dead Voices Gather. Today we discuss the story of Stackalee, a.ka. Stagger Lee, a.k.a. Lee Shelton whose story is told by Frank Hutchison...

Saw it with my daughter a couple of weeks ago and I wholeheartedly agree. Great film, great performances, great characters, wonderful setting, and amazing music. I like the fact that Randy Newman wrote the songs for this one. Less "show-tune-y" than previous Disney films.

Who needs a left hand anyway? Seriously, I'm glad to see you back, Randy, and I hope you continue to thrive!

Update! "Gonna Die With My Hammer In My Hand" by the Williamson Brothers and Curry.

I always enjoyed her work in "Sin City." RIP

Today's update features the first Carter Family track to appear on the "Anthology," "John Hardy Was A Desperate Little Man."

Even before I saw the words "Captain Nemo," my first thought was "Wow! Totally steampunk!"

The new podcast episode is up! This week's show is a special holiday episode featuring music by Bessie Smith, Nat King Cole, Count Basie, Fiddlin' John Carson, as well as Christmas music from Puerto Rico and the Ukrane. Check it out!

Ahhhh, get over it. I can't stand it when people don't like how popular the things they like become. "Man, Nirvana used to be great. Then "Smells Like Teen Spirit" came out and they totally sold out." KOB is a great album. Everybody has a right to like it.

The new "Anthology" post is up! Check it out!

This was one of the very first jazz albums I ever owned, and certainly the first time I had (knowingly) listened to either Getz or Evans (not to mention Elvin Jones). I've always LOVED this album, even after I heard all of their other works...

A new "Anthology" post to go with organissimo forum's new look!

Chuck's objections aside, here's the second podcast! This week we listen to music from Trinidad, India, Brazil, and Tonga, as well as songs by the Carter Family, Duke Ellington, and Charlie Patton.

Why is the dude dressed up as Hank Williams, Jr.?

Get it. Get it now if you don't have it. And read my blog... Hee, hee...

Great piece, Allen. Thanks for posting this. Of course, I have that collection, and it is wonderful...

I am aware, of course, that this is a very complex issue and my take on it in the first post was simplistic. I guess what I meant was simply that I've decided to stop trying parse out what attitude informed what performance. Once again, I think that it is a mistake to say that all blackface performers were mean-spirited or that they were engaging in vicious parody. Joel Chandler Harris, the author of the "Uncle Remus" stories (which - remember - have largely been removed from children's reading lists on the grounds that they are racist), had a deep love of the African-American stories and culture he had been exposed to in his childhood. Was there an element of condensation in that love? Well, sure, but you can't argue that he wasn't writing "from his heart."