Tag Archives: Alan Lomax

This Historic Day In Music: John & Alan Lomax Meet Huddie Ledbetter – Take 3

Posted on July 16, 2020 by sixstrstories

In early June, 1933, Texas-based Folk song collector John Lomax and his 18-year-old son Alan drove out of Dallas on a mission. They were going on “the first major trip in the United States to capture black folk music in … Continue reading →

Posted in Posts with Video, This Historic Day In Music | Tagged Alan Lomax, Angola Penitentiary, Document Records, John Lomax, Lead Belly, Library of Congress | Leave a comment

The Ballad of “Wayfaring Stranger”

Posted on January 19, 2020 by sixstrstories

Ballad: “A poem or song narrating a story in short stanzas, or verses.” Verse 1 I’m just a poor wayfaring stranger, a traveling through this world of woe But there’s no sickness toil or danger in that bright land to … Continue reading →

Posted in Posts with Audio, Posts with Video, The Ballad Series | Tagged Alan Lomax, American Folklife Center, Charles Seeger, Charlie D. Tillman, Chasing The Rising Sun, Francesco Turrisi, Going Over Jordan, Jerry Silverman, Jerry Silverman's Folk Song Encyclopedia, John F. Garst, John Lomax, Joseph Bever, L.L. McDowell, Library of Congress, Our Singing Country, Over Jordan, Poor Wayfaring Stranger, Rhiannon Giddens, Ruth Crawford Seeger, Ted Anthony, The American Folklife Reading Room, The Christian Songster, The Hymn, The Revival, The Wayfaring Pilgrim, Times of Refreshing, Todd Harvey, Vaughan's Texas Quartet, W.T. Dale, Wayfaring Stranger | 2 Comments

Walkin’ Blues

Posted on January 20, 2019 by sixstrstories

It was a Saturday morning in the middle of January. I was out for a long walk with my favorite accompaniment: my iPod classic, set to “Shuffle Songs,” playing through my Sony headphones. I’d been serenaded by Billie Holiday, The … Continue reading →

Posted in Posts with Audio, Random Topics | Tagged Acoustic Guitar, Alan Lomax, Blues Guitar, Four O'Clock Flower Blues, Library of Congress, Mississippi Blues, The Land Where The Blues Began, William Brown, Willie 61 Blackwell, Willie Blackwell | 5 Comments

This Historic Day In Music: Georgia Turner & The Rising Sun Blues (Yes, again.)

Posted on September 15, 2017 by sixstrstories

I love this story. In September of 1937, Alan Lomax and his wife, Elizabeth, took a song-collecting trip through the mountains of Kentucky. Alan had recently been appointed as the Assistant in Charge of the Archive of Folk Song of … Continue reading →

Posted in Posts with Audio, This Historic Day In Music | Tagged Alan Lomax, Chasing The Rising Sun, Georgia Turner, House of the Rising Sun, Library of Congress, Library of Congress Archive of Folk Song, Rising Sun Blues, Ted Anthony, Todd Harvey | Leave a comment

Two Days In New York City

Posted on March 26, 2016 by sixstrstories

I’ve written about days like this before: days that are pinpoints on the timeline of music history, when paths crossed and discoveries were made. Days that changed lives and (ultimately) changed music. For instance… August 1, 1927: The day that … Continue reading →

Posted in Random Topics | Tagged A Grapes of Wrath Evening, Alan Lomax, American Folk-music Revival, American School of the Air, Forrest Theater, Huddie Ledbetter, John Steinbeck Committee for Agricultural Workers, Lead Belly, Library of Congress, Mecca Temple, Mordecai Bauman, Pete Seeger, Why Do You Stand There In The Rain?, Will Geer, Woody Guthrie | 1 Comment

September’s Songs

Posted on September 25, 2015 by sixstrstories

On the sixstr stories calendar of historic days in music, no month has as many dates commemorating individual pieces of music than September. Here’s the list! (Happy listening!) September 4th On this date in 1962, The Beatles – 21-year-old John … Continue reading →

Posted in Posts with Video, Random Topics | Tagged Alan Lomax, Ashley & Foster, Black Bottom Stomp, Georgia Turner, James Taylor, Jelly Roll Morton, Jelly Roll Morton and His Red Hot Peppers, Love Me Do, Oh Susanna, Rising Sun Blues, Stephen Foster, T-Bone Walker, The Beatles, They Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday's Just As Bad) | Leave a comment

This Historic Day In Music: John & Alan Lomax Meet Huddie Ledbetter

Posted on July 16, 2015 by sixstrstories

This is a reprise of a post that originally appeared on sixstr stories in July, 2010. In early June, 1933, Texas-based Folk song collector John Lomax and his 18-year-old son, Alan, drove out of Dallas on a mission. They were … Continue reading →

Posted in This Historic Day In Music | Tagged Alan Lomax, Huddie Ledbetter, John Lomax, Lead Belly, Library of Congress | Leave a comment

This Historic Day In Music: Georgia Turner Sings Her Favorite Song For Alan Lomax

Posted on September 15, 2013 by sixstrstories

I woke up this morning with an idea for a blog post. I worked on the idea off and on in my head all day as I did chores, ate lunch, drove to and from Portsmouth and then mowed the … Continue reading →

Posted in Posts with Video, This Historic Day In Music | Tagged Alan Lomax, Georgia Turner, Middlesboro Kentucky, Rising Sun Blues | 1 Comment

A Trip To The Library

Posted on July 19, 2013 by sixstrstories

Eighty years ago this month, in July of 1933, musicologist John Lomax and his 18-year-old son Alan met and recorded Huddie Ledbetter, a singer and 12-string guitarist, at the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, West Feliciana Paris, Louisiana. Huddie, who … Continue reading →

Posted in Random Topics | Tagged Alan Lomax, Angola Penitentiary, Field Recording, John Lomax, Lead Belly, The American Folklife Reading Room, The Library of Congress, Todd Harvey | 1 Comment

a sixstr stories “interview”

Posted on July 21, 2012 by sixstrstories

Today, we’re talking with Alan Lomax. Mr. Lomax is the founder of The Association for Cultural Equity and former Assistant in Charge of the Archive of Folk Song of the Library of Congress. He is a highly respected folklorist, ethnomusicologist … Continue reading →

Posted in Random Topics | Tagged Alan Lomax, Lead Belly, Library of Congress Archive of Folk Song | Leave a comment