http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/31/arts/music/the-alan-lomax-collection-from-the-american-folklife-center.html?hp

John,

Thank you very, very much for posting this.

I have been a folk music lover since I was a teenager (although I had knock-down battles with my father who was convinced they were all Communists and I would follow suit -- especially Pete Seeger). I have been slowly converting my LPs to digital (at the current rate of progress I will probably die before I finish). Just last week I converted two of Lomax's works and took pictures for the album covers for my iPod. A lot of his stuff was recorded through the Library of Congress. These two albums were done in 1964 and have 3 LPs in each set, and are recorded in mono, the standard in those days (even the first Beatles albums were in mono before stereo came along). This is going to save me a bunch of time and looks like a lot can be downloaded for free. Here are the covers and I have several more to go.

Woody Guthrie!?
Sure there's not a Marxist hiding somewhere under that desert-tanned hide of yours Nick?

But seriously, Alan Lomax turned me on to so much great music as well- big Leadbelly fan here, Woody too.
Very nice to see that full digital versions will be available; this is really cool.

Craig,

I'm full surprises, aren't I :)

No surprise that I hate Rap, Hip-Hop, and Punk among others. And No, I never, ever bring a music machine hiking. I also am a big fan of R&B, Jazz, Mowtown, and most Rock until around 1980; it gets rather selective after that. Also love musicals. Here is a trivia question -- you can't look it up on the Web -- what musical did Lee Marvin and Clint Eastwood star in together?

The Stones. Pink Floyd. The Beatles. The Kinks. Class structure begets the Surf in' Bird and Thomas Pynchon.Beach bums floated toward mountains always.

I know the answer.......

(Did I beat B.G.?)

I was born under a wandering star

I too know the answer.

I want to say 1969. Does that sound right?

Ken knows :)

You sir have excellent taste. How about Cream and The Byrds to the list.

OK, I will play. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band also sang and acted in this movie. What song did they sing? What two outdoor areas was the musical filmed? I will add the Weavers, Peter, Paul and Mary, Chieftains, and Joan Baez to the folk list.Clint and Lee lack major singing skills (they speak sing) but I enjoy less than perfect artists.

Bill, since I have the original LP sound track I won't answer.

How about some lesser known artits of the time or whose musical roots were plant somewhat in folk? I can start it off.

Buffy St. Marie
Hoyt Axton
Buffalo Springfield
John Prine
Bread
David Allen Coe
Laura Nyro
Cat Stevens
Sugarloaf
Leon Redbone

Nice list! I have a few of those on LPs. Love the album cover art. Thanks for waking up some old gray matter.

WHOA!!! 17,000 songs streaming for free?? That is awesome. I got into the various artists that Lomax recorded a few years ago. Being in my 20's and from New Jersey, I'm not quite sure how it happened but it did.

Some of my favorites that I think are worth checking out would be George Stoneman (and the Stoneman family in general), Hobart Smith, and Mississippi Fred McDowell.

Edited by gregpphoto on 01/31/2012 00:53:31 MST.

Not only the album artwork, but many came with booklets or even posters. I still have a turntable and sometimes listen to them when working in my home office. It is a pain that they only play about 15 minutes on each side, which is why I am slowly digitizing them. CDs are quick and easy to convert.

Dang. Woke up this morning with that song in my head. Now I'll have to watch that movie again..

"John Prine"

Classic. His recent live albums are well worth the cost - fabulous stuff.

"Bread"

You've got to be kidding me! One of the original syrup bands. One listen and you can go into insulin shock! ;-)

"Cat Stevens"

His "Teaser and the Firecat" and "Tea for the Tillerman" still get regular play on my Sonos.

"David Allen Coe"

He lived what Johnny Cash sang!

Nick, instead of taking pictures of your albums. An easier process would be to use ratemymusic.com or discogs

Both sites have high quality scans of the artwork, reviews, track listings etc
Just drag and drop

Nick, I'm actually doing somewhat of a reverse of what you're doing. When there is an album I want, I buy the actual vinyl album and nowadays it usually comes with an mp3 download. I've got albums from Radiohead, Oasis, and various other artists. My birthday present from my wife a few years back was a brand new turntable. I don't do that with all my music because it would just be too expensive, but if there's an album I'm really wanting, I'll search out the vinyl. I haven't bought a CD in 5 years, and I think they'll go the way of the VHS at some point. They're already heading down that path.

I've also got some original oldies in my collection (to list a few)

Edited by T.L. on 01/31/2012 07:38:27 MST.

Muddy Waters. wow, it's been a while since I've thought of him. Or heard his music.

Thanks for posting that. :)