Folkways Records founder Moses Asch turned the music business model on its head. He avoided hit makers and catered to unknown musicians. He dug into vanishing traditions around the world to harness music and sounds that inspire people. Artists like Woody Guthrie and Lead Belly can still be heard on this original indie label with the mission of gathering sound and spreading it to the people.
WORLDS OF SOUND
This is the story of the little record label that could. Smithsonian Folkways is the place where a world of sound is at your fingertips.
MUSIC FOR THE PEOPLE
If you have ever listened to Lead Belly, Pete Seeger or Woody Guthrie, then you must know Moses Asch. Discover the man behind the music.
WORLDS OF SOUND BOOK Richly illustrated with images from the Folkways archives, Worlds of Sound is a treat a for music lovers. Hardcover; PP: 304; 10" x 8" $35.00
The songs title refers to its origins as a blues song about gambling. This 1925 recording made the song a standard that survived into the bluegrass era.
John Cohen recorded the band of Sacsamarca in a Peruvian village. He saw clear parallels between the Peruvian band and small hillbilly bands of the United States.
John Cohen recorded these musicians in Hazard, Kentucky in 1959. Cohen said "Their music reflects a way whole way of life, a total experience of hard work and hard living."
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PLAY ON, JOHN Before Bob Dylan, there was John Cohen, who saved and celebrated traditional American Folk Music.
