DEC 27th ~ The Almanac Singers to "A Mighty Wind" ~ Folk groups of the Revival

Nick Noble took us on a wonderful journey through the history of folk groups (trios and more) of the Folk Revival, filling us in on the interesting interconnections of personnel. As always, Nick supplemented our collection from his own and played a fabulous amount of music, from rarely heard versions of traditional songs to many number one and top 10 hits on the pop charts. Below are some fun videos of the Weavers, the Limeliters, The Tarriers and the Byrds reunion singing with Bob Dylan.

Bob Franke

http://www.bobfranke.com/default.htm


"It's his integrity. I always think of Bob as if Emerson and Thoreau had picked up acoustic guitars and gotten into songwriting. There's touches of Mark Twain and Buddy Holly in there, too." -- Tom Paxton

"While fans from Claudia Schmidt to June Tabor may have...incredible taste in picking songs...when they sing Massachusetts-based Bob Franke's tunes, neither they nor anyone else can come close to the emotional (and spiritual) depth Franke brings to his understated songs of the heart, from 'Hard Love' to 'The Great Storm Is Over'. He continues also to dig into Robert Johnson's blues, and songs that offer hilarious uses of everything from bicycle repair to computers as metaphors for sex. In the folk singer-songwriter realm, Franke is simply the best." Express, Berkeley, California

"In the folk singer-songwriter realm, Franke is simply the best." Larry Kelp, Express, Berkeley, CA

" . . . a singer-songwriter unsurpassed for his lyrical grace . . . one of our wisest and most spiritually graceful songwriters" The Boston Globe, Boston, MA

"...a standard of songs that most writers can only dream about, and admire in drop-jawed silence" Folk Roots

Bob's Latest Recording is "The Other Evening in Chicago."
See the article about Bob entitled "Bob Franke: Patience is a Virtue" in the Spring 2005 issue of Sing Out Magazine.

Bob's New Blog: The Song Journal
Bob has started a blog called The Song Journal (http://www.songjournal.blogspot.com), which is a way for him to offer "miscellaneous news and writing by Bob Franke, mostly about songs as a portable art form, and the process of creating them and enabling them to do their work in the world."

In 2003, Kathy Mattea covered Bob's song "Straw Against the Chill" on her second Christmas album, "Joy For Christmas Day."

In the spring of 2004, Peter, Paul and Mary released "Alleluia, The Great Storm Is Over" on their CD "In These Times."

New friend - old music

New friend of the Folk Revival Nick Noble has sent us some
videos.

He will be co hosting and playing some Hannukah songs tomorrow night
December 6th 2007 9PM.



Below

From the ORIGINAL Highwaymen. Recorded on 05-05-07 at Spearfish, South Dakota.
"Michael" a traditional Georgia Sea Island spiritual, was a #1 hit for the Highwaymen in 1961 (and throughout much of the world-- their "Michael" is the most successful traditional recording by a folk group of all time). Here it is sung by the original Highwaymen (Burnett, Fisher, Trott, Butts, with Johann Helton on bass) at a recent concert (2006) in the Dakotas.



Huddie Ledbetter's (Leadbelly) "Cotton Fields" was a Top 20 hit for the Highwaymen in 1962. Here sung by the original Highwaymen (from l to r: Bob Burnett-- VP of Bank of America in RI; Dave Fisher-- professional musician; Steve Trott-- Federal Appeals Court Judge on the 9th Circuit; and Steve Butts-- retired college administrator; with bassist Johann Helton of Boise, ID). They are seen here on the 2002 PBS Special "This Land is Your Land-- the Folk Years".