Virginia Traditions: Virginia Work Songs

by Virginia Traditions

Overview

Virginia Work Songs, another release in the impressive Virginia Traditions series put together by the Blue Ridge Institute for Appalachian Studies at Ferrum College in Ferrum, VA, collects field recordings of singing watermen, factory workers, crab pickers, and gandy dancers from the 1930s, combining them with more recent field material from the 1970s and 1980s, to create an intriguing document of labor-related songs from the region. Many of the older recordings presented on the disc are difficult to hear, sounding a bit like voices singing in a tin hut during a hailstorm, but their historical and archival value offsets that somewhat. Even with those unavoidable sound problems, this is a fascinating survey of secular unaccompanied singing (since not everything here is technically a work song), ranging from the absolutely terrifying fire and brimstone solo gospel version of "The Man Was Burning" recorded by Joe Lee in 1936 to the polished group singing of William Thompson and crew on two pieces, "Every Mail Day" and "Lazarus," recorded in 1980. Casual listeners may find Virginia Work Songs tough to bear at times, but this is truly America singing (albeit 70 some years ago), and its archival value is immense. ~ Steve Leggett

Product Details

Release Date:	10/01/2013
Label:	Smithsonian Institution
UPC:	0093073000725
Rank:	153725

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Ernest "Juice" Johnson Jr.   Primary Artist
Everette Ware   Primary Artist
Lemuel Jones   Primary Artist
Robert Brown   Primary Artist
Willie Williams   Primary Artist
Ed Lewis   Primary Artist
Audrey Davis   Primary Artist
Willie Wynn   Primary Artist
John Ball   Primary Artist
Richie Ramsay   Primary Artist
Aurelius Henderson   Primary Artist
Raleigh Griffin   Primary Artist
Captain Matthew Gaskins   Primary Artist
Beulah Brown   Primary Artist
Crew Of The Charles J. Colonna   Primary Artist
Crew Of The Barnegat   Primary Artist
George Goram   Primary Artist
J. Kirby   Primary Artist
Joe Lee   Primary Artist
Creola Johnson   Primary Artist
Rosa Wilson   Primary Artist
Rev.Timothy Hayes   Primary Artist
Walter Kegler   Primary Artist
William "Strutcher" Johnson   Primary Artist
William H. Thompson   Primary Artist
John Williams   Primary Artist
E.B. Chewning   Primary Artist
John Mantley   Primary Artist
James Wilson   Primary Artist
Lee Wynn   Primary Artist
Lucy Smith   Primary Artist
Cedric Meekins   Primary Artist
Lucy Scott   Primary Artist
Lena Thompson   Primary Artist
William Carter   Primary Artist
Nathaniel McKelvin   Primary Artist
Ruth Coston   Primary Artist
Virginia Traditions   Primary Artist

Technical Credits

Joe Lee   Performer
Lemuel Jones   Performer
Michael Schlesinger   Reissue Producer
Ed Lewis   Performer
John Ball   Performer
Vaughan Webb   Reissue Producer
William Thompson   Performer
R. Brown   Performer
John Mantley   Liner Notes
James Wilson   Performer
William Carter   Performer