Songcatcher II: The Tradition That Inspired the Movie

The first Songcatcher album contained both traditional Appalachian folk ballads and modern songs inspired by the movie of the same name and performed by contemporary female singers, including Iris DeMent, Julie Miller, and Emmylou Harris. The engaging Songcatcher II, however, is a step back in time. The album's 17 recordings date back to the early 1960s folk-music boom, when long-forgotten singers like Dock Boggs, Clarence Ashley, and Almeda Riddle were rediscovered by a new generation of music lovers. They sang ancient English and Scottish ballads that had been brought over to America and passed down through the ages, bleak songs about love, infidelity, God, and murder. Boggs, recorded live at the Newport Folk Festival, offers his bone-chilling version of "Oh Death"; Riddle, who lived her entire life in Greer's Ferry, Arkansas, sings the creepy "Babes in the Woods," in which two children get lost outdoors and die; Roscoe Holcomb, for whom the phrase "high, lonesome sound" was invented, is downright otherworldly as he accompanies himself on banjo on "Little Birdie." The four tracks by Doc Watson, including the lovely "Pretty Saro," come from his early Vanguard albums, which have long been accessible on compact disc, but most of these recordings haven't been available in years, if ever. Culled from Vanguard's extensive archives, they offer a tantalizing glimpse of the label's rich heritage. --David Hill Amazon.com

Handed down.

I grew up here in southern Kentucky along the Cumberland Gap. This music rings in my childhood memories. My Mama and aunts and cousins sittin around on the porch of Aunt Marthys playin an singin these and other songs. Some words are different from the ones recorded (Songcatcher) like the song of Barbry Allen. But these are songs that I now sing with my daughters and hope they sing with theirs someday. I hope they won't be lost. August 8, 2008

Songcatcher II

very good - a requested birthday gift, so it was wanted. Thank you.
Lorna Doone Duterrow February 11, 2008

folkmusic

I watched the movie, Songcatcher, and became interested in the music. Folk music, like this, is purely American. It may have its foundations in many cultures, but its roots are here, just like America. This compilation is one of several I own, and it is a very good, diverse sampling of this soulful, heartfelt music. I throughly enjoy it. March 25, 2007

Response to Appalachian Music

This is a beautifully executed movie that brings home the traditions of Appalachian music to those of us intrigued by but with little knowledge of this lovely old music -- and the way of life of those who sing it. March 8, 2007

Songcatcher II-The tradition that Inspired the movie.

Bought as a gift for my mother who loved the movie and music from the soundtrack. She said it is not at all like what the movie or soundtrack sound like. If you love original soundtrack you may not like the very bleek lyrics or non-lyrical "songs" on this CD. January 15, 2007

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