Current Events > 7 Days of Folk

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Disclaimer: As always, this is purely for entertainment purposes. I do this because I like to share music with this forum, and I actively encourage discussion and discourse about the genres I put on display.

Welcome, once again, to another "7 Days of" topic brought to you by yours truly. After the monumental "Month of Metal," I took November off to rest my brain. That said, I'm back with another genre of music across the following seven days to highlight a number of artists I feel are worth viewing and discussing. December feels like an appropriate time of the year to cover the cold exterior, yet warm and cozy center of folk music. It's often bitter, it's often sweet, it's often bittersweet and I hope at least one person here comes away with an artist they, hopefully, seek more of in their own time. And with that, let us begin!
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Day One: Iron & Wine - Promising Light

Taking his stage name from a dietary supplement he discovered in a supermarket while shooting a film, Sam Beam began recording softly plucked ditties late 2002 on a four track recorder at home. The works, of which, were to later find backing rhythms by the band Calexico, but it never happened and the demos were released as finished works instead. It was for the best, ultimately, since "The Creek Drank The Cradle" went on to universal, widespread acclaim and it launched his musical career.

What began as intimate, unplugged b-sides of an alt country singer songwriter that never was would later blossom into well polished and more confident hymns with 2004's "Our Endless Numbered Days," and beyond into even more developed and eccentric entries that saw Sam's creativity teeter between jazz, blues, and even pop. But it's today's entry from the aforementioned 'Creek' that solidifies, in this user, Sam's core sentimentality; an acoustic guitar, and a soft voice that weave together to form the shape of a warm, comforting flame.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGZUowGrtvk

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tag

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I love old school stuff like Phil Ochs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4MAF1o1AMs

I also love folk punk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQTByqc1clA
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https://youtu.be/MPuAOF3TiLk

https://youtu.be/uTYf_G6__S0

https://youtu.be/4XGJT5vEe9I

https://youtu.be/SrsGpPA5TBA


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Day Two: Robbie Basho - Blue Crystal Fire

Born an orphan and adopted by the Robinson family of Baltimore, Maryland, Basho (who took his last name from the Japanese poet Matsuo Basho) had an early interest in music but it wasn't until he became acquainted with the likes of John Fahey and picked up the acoustic guitar that he began to take serious the art he was quickly immersing himself in. Shortly after college, Basho took a deep interest in Asian art and culture.

Basho was eclipsed and overshadowed by his contemporaries while he was alive, but since the millennium there's been a renewed interest in his work and life. In 2015, a documentary detailing his life and career was produced and showcased at the Raindance Festival, and was nominated for several awards. Basho was a fairly prolific musician while alive, and he sought to establish the steel string as a staple of concert instruments along with creating a raga system for America. These days, Basho is considered one of the foremost authorities on the style of American primitive guitar.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYaGChm8RWw

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https://youtu.be/lwYxnpoB3gc

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the 60s-70s british folk scene is one of the best musical periods ever

https://youtu.be/fO1G1_v3BRs

https://youtu.be/f49jLbCl3mo

https://youtu.be/SacU_M1seD4


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HotLap posted...

https://youtu.be/lwYxnpoB3gc

Hey, thanks for this. It's pretty great!

ultimate reaver posted...

the 60s-70s british folk scene is one of the best musical periods ever

For sure, and this week I'll be taking a look at it from both sides of the pond so to speak.

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]

I'm glad I could do him justice. The guy was certainly unique, and his stylings on "Blue Crystal Fire" always felt like you were staring into some crackling fire, or hearing the rumblings of some far off, but coming still locomotive. It was ominous, and beautiful.

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Bump for later

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Day Three: Sibylle Baier - The End

Sibylle Baier isn't exactly a renowned musician. In fact, in her life upon this earth she only has one LP that was ever released - and that was at the behest of J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. providing the Orange Twin record label the apparent gift he received of Sibylle's son that digitally compiled her privately recorded tunes in the early 70s in a vacation around Europe with her best friend and ripped them to CDs to give to family.

In 2006, those recordings were released for a wider audience through the aforementioned label. In those days of recording, Baier appeared in several German programs including the 1973 film 'Alice in the City,' and her music was featured in several other films. But that's where Baier's career effectively ended. She eventually moved to America, where she instead focused on raising a family.

Baier's style is minimal, featuring only her voice and a nylon-string guitar on most of the album. Her hushed vocals and ominous laden plucking belies a certain bittersweetness that lingers in her work, sounding reminiscent of what Nick Drake was putting out during his final days on the Earth.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqNptrRg5AI

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Day Four: Jackson C. Frank - Just Like Anything

If folk music is a genre that traditionally leans into and extracts value from personal hardship, then Jackson C. Frank may very well be a masterclass in the art of sorrow. While this user can't and won't try to establish every languishing detail of Jackson's tragic life, for doing so would be a disservice to a musician that ultimately deserves to be remembered for his unmatched lyricism and spectacular skill as a guitarist, this user will, at the very least, divulge in some details that are necessary to accessorize the summation of his worth to the musical world.

A furnace explosion in Jackson's childhood elementary school would be the catalyst for much of what would occur later in his life. The explosion set the stage as it resulted in the death of fifteen students, including his childhood sweetheart, Marlene Dupont. The explosion itself landed Jackson in the hospital with significant and lifelong injuries. It was during this time he was introduced to the guitar, and after some encouragement through his idol, Elvis Presley, and receiving a settlement check of roughly $900,000 in today's money around the age of 21 Jackson would attempt to break into music.

At the time of Woodstock and the exploding folk scene in England, Jackson would spend a fair bit of time overseas playing and building a repertoire with several influential acts - including one Paul Simon who would go on to produce Jackson's one and only LP. As with most album releases covered in this thread, it received little fanfare.

In his later years, Jackson would become close friends with misery and loss. He married in England, produced a son and daughter, only to lose both. One, to cystic fibrosis and the other to divorce. He was also a frequent inhabitant in behavioral wards and mental institutions, suffering from schizophrenia and various other illnesses. Jackson was also, unfortunately, frequently vagrant and homeless. He would die an ignoble death from pneumonia and cardiac arrest in 1999.

Jackson's life is one of heartbreak and misfortune, but it's not without its admirers. He would be frequently covered by his contemporaries, including Simon and Garfunkel, and Nick Drake. And while Jackson never saw any sort of legitimate legacy while he was alive, his skill at crafting beauty with his voice and guitar never went truly unnoticed. Here's to you, Jackson. I sincerely hope you have found peace in the afterlife.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-NUkxCOUAc

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Day Five: Connie Converse - One By One

The life of Connie Converse is a bit enigmatic. Born Elizabeth Eaton Converse, she was raised in a fairly strict Baptist household and excelled at her academic studies. She was valedictorian of her high school, and received numerous awards including an academic scholarship to the college she attended for two years before moving to New York City during the 1950s.

It was during this time that she picked up the nickname of 'Connie' and began playing the guitar for friends and acquaintances. She tried to make a name for herself, but quickly grew disillusioned when nothing really materialized aside from a brief appearance on 'The Morning Show' in 1954, hosted by Walter Cronkite. By 1961, she left the city and moved to Michigan.

She worked for The Journal of Conflict Resolution for several years before the company was auctioned off to Yale, much to Converse's dismay. In 1974, Converse left several messages for her family before packing everything in her vehicle and disappearing. And that's how Connie's existence essentially ends. No one has seen or heard from her since. Her family hired a private investigator to locate her, but he noted that even if he did find her he couldn't simply bring her back - it was her decision to leave. Her brother believes she committed suicide, but no evidence has come forth.

Connie's style is, as seen in this topic, minimal. She's one of the earliest instances of the 'singer-songwriter' genre, and Connie's uncharted foray into music is not lost on some folks, as she's seen as something of a pioneer for women in the genre.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L94IeXr2J-8

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Day Six: Abner Jay - St. James Infirmary Blues

If there's one trait about Abner that can be easily distinguished, it was his sheer determination and fortitude to sell himself and his music. Learning traditional folk songs and how to play the banjo at an early age from his grandfather (who was a slave in Washington County, Georgia), Abner would go on to play local minstrel and medicine shows as young as five years old, and would continue to play in his increasing age across the country.

Abner described himself in many ways, most often in a self-deprecating fashion to accompany his shows as he toured. One leaflet in particular described him with numerous boasts, until it reached the end and it read 'WORLD'S WORSE BUSINESS MAN.' Abner considered himself "the last working Southern black minstrel." His music was considerably secular, touching on subjects such as sex, the war in Vietnam, depression, and recreational drug use. His track, "Cocaine" in particular espoused the benefits of having "something to pep him up," but by the same token he warned of it and lamented the widespread use in "The Reason Young People Use Drugs."

Abner would continue playing until his death in 1993. He believed his music would one day command great prices, and it would but only sometime after his death - until most of his work was compiled and released to the public on a standard LP in 2003, and again in 2009.

Abner's command of the banjo is fascinating. His fingers tend to produce deep, almost threatening echoes as they move across the strings. He may seem fairly indicative of contemporary blues players, but his individual style made him something of an "American Master," and set apart from everyone else. Record label owner Eric Isaacson said of Abner that he saw himself as a gatekeeper, a troubadour for a forgotten music. I would concur.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwLI9zov3Qo

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Oh cool! There's a song I like by The Bridge City Sinners that I didn't realize was a cover until now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsELOAvR-mE

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bump for later tonight

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Day Seven: Nick Drake - From The Morning

Perhaps this was prophetic. After all, this user has mentioned the man several times over the course of this thread. Or perhaps it's pure coincidence. Either way, Nick Drake absolutely deserves a mention. A resident of Burma, Nick would only live for a scant little while before possibly dying by suicide via an overdose of an antidepressant. A shy recluse, Nick's career, though dotted with success to be sure, was always on a downward slope. As with many others presented in this thread, Nick barely met any acclaim or financial success while he was alive.

His final album, 'Pink Moon,' was decidedly stripped back. It consisted entirely of an acoustic guitar, and Nick's voice - save for the piano on the title track. Perhaps it was indicative of his increasing depression, but the lyrics to 'Pink Moon' and even the title itself, is and are reminiscent of oncoming tragedy. But today's track, the final track, and the final track of Nick's legacy, is a track of sheer hope and inspiration. It's the one piercing ray of sunshine in an ever encompassing pitch black sky. Perhaps Nick intended for his legacy to end on such a high note so as to encourage and embolden others.

His influence and legacy has had and continues to have a lasting impression in the music industry. Everyone from Kate Bush to Robert Smith of The Cure (in fact, the band's name is taken from one of Nick's songs, "Time Has Told Me"). It took some 40 years before Nick would have the acclaim and notoriety he so desperately deserved, but it's some 40 years too late. At the very least, Nick's day finally dawned - and it indeed was beautiful.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jEfbKmTx_oE

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