A BRIDGE FROM APPALACHIA
Guitars and banjos made the Folk Era boom. But from out of the hills and hollows, one woman brought a “mountain zither.”
I DREAMED I SAW JOE HILL
Labor history is an American tapestry of struggle and strikes. But some stories are told in song. . .
SAILING DOWN PETE'S GOLDEN RIVER
When the Hudson got filthy, a man with a banjo got busy. And The Clearwater set sail.
THE REAL RHIANNON
Part folkie, part music scholar, Rhiannon Giddens is a walking American songbook.
HANK WILLIAMS -- SON OF A GUN
Many songwriters write but only a handful embody the music, the life, the legend. Happy 100th, Hank!
GENTLE ON THE RIVER
“Gentle on My Mind” made him famous but John Hartford’s heart was always on the Mississippi.
SWEET HONEY'S ENDURING ROCK
From the trenches of Civil Rights to the concert stage, Bernice Johnson Reagon has sung the praises of black culture.
STEVE GOODMAN -- GOOD MORNIN' AMERICA
“Every audience was his,” Kris Kristofferson said, but no one knew Steve Goodman’s sad secret.
WOODY'S "OTHER NATIONAL ANTHEM"
On a winter night, alone and adrift, he checked into a fleabag hotel and began a new song. This land is your land, this land is my land. . .
CRADLE OF MOUNTAIN CULTURE -- APPALSHOP
Mocked, belittled, stereotyped, the folks of Appalachia had never told their own story until the birth of Appalshop.
THE REAL WOODSTOCK
The festival was 50 years ago and 50 miles away, but Woodstock, New York keeps the spirit alive.
ALAN LOMAX AND "WHERE THE SONGS LIVE"
The songs came and went but Alan Lomax hunkered down and caught them — for all time and for all people.
AMERICA'S DIY MUSIC -- JUG BAND
Got the blues? Listen to its offspring and try not to smile. And hear six jug band tunes in “I Hear America Singing.”
"SHENANDOAH" AND THE ATTIC OF OUR PAST
A shrill song is stuck in our heads. Once it plays out, we should listen to the old tunes.
THE SOUL OF A MAN
The guitar growls, moans, weeps. A bass riff surrenders to a squeal of pain. . .
ELIZABETH COTTEN -- THE WOMAN WHO PLAYED UPSIDE DOWN
Elizabeth Cotten charmed audiences with her "Freight Train" and her unique picking.