Original Folkways Recordings of Doc Watson and Clarence Ashley

Smithsonian Folkways SF CD 40029/30

Format: 2-CD, Album, Compilation
Country: US
Released: 1994
Genre: Folk, World, & Country
Style: Folk, Country
[Tracklist]
Disk One
101 Crawdad Song (3:35)
102 Sitting on Top of the World (3:09)
103 Lee Highway Blues (1:44)
104 Free Little Bird (2:09)
105 The Coo-Coo Bird (2:36)
106 Rising Sun Blues (2:58)
107 Looking Towards Heaven (2:30)
108 Rambling Hobo (1:30)
109 Rambling Hobo (1:38)
110 Shady Grove (1:31)
111 Cumberland Gap (2:23)
112 Tough Luck (2:28)
113 Humpbacked Mule (1:30)
114 My Home's Across the Blue Ridge Mountains (2:50)
115 Way Down Town (2:31)
116 Banks of the Ohio (4:14)
117 Little Sadie (2:22)
118 Carroll County Blues (1:42)
119 Cluck Old Hen (1:48)
120 Chilly Winds (Lonesome Road Blues) (2:40)
121 Sweet Heaven When I Die (2:40)
122 Fire on the Mountain (1:24)
123 Will the Circle Be Unbroken (3:23)
124 Daniel Prayed (2:56)
125 Amazing Grace (3:53)
Disk Two
201 Sally Ann (2:34)
202 Richmond Blues (1:36)
203 Old Ruben (2:03)
204 Willie Moore (3:34)
205 Walking Boss (1:51)
206 Shout Lulu (1:27)
207 Keep My Skillet Good and Greasy (2:08)
208 Pretty Little Pink (2:29)
209 Run, Jimmie Run (3:09)
210 Hick's Farewell (5:25)
211 The Old Man at the Mill (1:58)
212 A Short Life of Trouble (3:22)
213 Brown's Dream (1:43)
214 Footprints in the Snow (2:45)
215 I'm Going Back to Jericho (1:54)
216 Peg and Awl (2:14)
217 Maggie Walker (2:56)
218 God's Gonna Ease My Troublin' Mind (3:07)
219 I Saw a Man at the Close of Day (2:41)
220 Handsome Molly (2:16)
221 John Henry (3:44)
222 Honey Babe Blues (3:46)
223 Wayfaring Pilgrim (2:45)
[Credits]
Doc Watson (guitar/banjo/harmonica/vocals) Clarence Ashley, Dock Walsh and Jack Burchett (banjo/vocals) Fred Price (fiddle/vocals) Arnold Watson (banjo/harmonica/vocals) Gaither Carlton (banjo/fiddle) Garley Foster (harmonica/guitar/vocals) Clint Howard (guitar/vocals) Jack Johnson (banjo) Tommy Moore (washboard) Jean Ritchie (vocals) Ralph Rinzler (guitar)
Field Worker, Recorder, Producer, Compiler and Liner Notes: Ralph Rinzler, Producer and Compiler: Matt Walters, Photographer and Recorder: Eugene Earle, Producer and Compiler: Jeff Place, Designer: Carol Hardy, Mastering Engineer: Alan Yoshida
[Notes]
With 20 previously unreleased performances, many rare photos, and producer Ralph Rinzler's comprehensive notes, this is the definitive collection of two earlier volumes entitled Old Time Music at Clarence Ashley's. These LP's introduced the world to Doc Watson and played an important role in the folk revival of the '60s. Featured are Gaither Carlton, Clint Howard, Fred Price, Jack Burchett, and others. Compiled by Ralph Rinzler, Matt Walters and Jeff Place. Annotated by Ralph Rinzler.

The Watson Family

Smithsonian Folkways Recordings - SFW40012

Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Mono
Country: US
Released: 1990
Genre: Folk, World, & Country
Style: Folk
[Tracklist]
01 Groundhog (2:19)
02 Every Day Dirt (2:06)
03 Bonaparte's Retreat (1:28)
04 The House Carpenter (4:30)
05 I'm Troubled (2:41)
06 Your Long Journey (2:35)
07 When I Die (2:15)
08 The Train That Carried My Girl From Town (2:18)
09 Down The Road (1:40)
10 The Lone Pilgrim (3:05)
11 Texas Gales/Blackberry Rag (1:55)
12 Darling Corey (2:36)
13 The Triplett Tragedy (5:28)
14 Muddy Roads (1:28)
15 The Lost Soul (2:58)
16 Keep In The Middle Of The Road (1:13)
17 The Old Man Below (1:33)
18 Pretty Saro (1:41)
19 Cousin Sally Brown (2:18)
20 Look Down That Lonesome Road (2:05)
21 Doodle Bug (1:00)
22 Rambling Hobo (1:39)
23 The Cuckoo Bird (3:03)
24 Frosty Morn (1:41)
25 Shady Grove (2:23)
26 Southbound (2:40)
[Credits]
Doc Watson (guitar/banjo/harmonica/mandolin/autoharp/vocals) Merle Watson (guitar/banjo) Gaither Carlton (banjo/fiddle/vocals) Dolly Greer (vocals) Sophronie Miller Greer (vocals) Annie Watson (vocals) Arnold Watson (banjo/harmonica/vocals) Rosa Lee Watson (vocals) Willard Watson (banjo) Ralph Rinzler (guitar)
Recorder: Ralph Rinzler, Eugene W. Earl, Archie Green anf Peter Peter Siegel, Liner Notes: D. K. Wilgus assisted by Ralph Rinzler and Eugene W. Earl, Photographer: Robert Yellin
[Notes]
Doc Watson, grandfather of the folk revival movement, has had a profound influence on American traditional music. Not only did he pioneer the playing of fiddle tunes on a flattop guitar, but through his incessant touring has brought traditional music to a larger audience. This Smithsonian Folkways release captures not only Doc Watson, but almost a dozen family members at the height of their power and has been deservingly hailed as a classic recording. Right from the opening track, "Old Groundhog," Watson and family send the listener on an amazing journey into the American musical past and present. Incidentally, their performance of "Old Groundhog" is certainly the equal of Bascom Lamar Lunsford's "I Wish I Was a Mole in the Ground," in terms of surreal country, capturing as it does race relations, commentary on shoe strings, as well directions for catching a groundhog. On "The House Carpenter," a weepy tale of that conflates religious and personal love, a haunting female voice sings almost off-key accompanied only by a fiddle that doubles on the melody. On the instrumental "Bonaparte's Retreat," Watson offers a droning, sea shanty-influenced version of this song staple of Mississippi river communities. Some of the family's best work is found in the spirituals scattered about the album. "When I Die" features a beautiful, uplifting three-part harmony, as does "The Lost Soul," which contains the wickedly abject refrain, "I'm paying now/the penalty." A fabulous record that's a must-listen for any serious fan of American music. -- AllMusic Review by Brian Whitener