Monday Music: Rhiannon Giddens Talks about Southern Music

Rhiannon Giddens talks to David Holt about how Southern music came about from a convergence of music from the British Isles and Africa to make its distinctive mark on American music.

 

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Leaning Donnie Fritz, an Alabama Music Legend

We lost a songwriter last week, Alabama's own Donnie Fritz, born in Florence, Alabama near Muscle Shoals, he was involved in many of the early songs and recordings created in the Shoals music industry. He formed his own bands and played keyboard for Kris Kristofferson. He also starred in a few if Sam Peckinpah's films. As a song writer, Fritts is known for "We Had It All", recorded by Ray Charles, Willie Nelson and many others, "You're Gonna Love Yourself In The Morning", "Breakfast In Bed", and "Choo Choo Train". (see Alabama Music Hall of Fame)

In the short film, Undeniably Donnie - A Film About Donnie Fritts, The Alabama Leaning Man, many musicians, from Willie Nelson and John Prine to John Paul White and Jason Isbell talk about the musician and his legacy.

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Monday Music: An African-American Music Tradition

This week, Not Dark Yet will be featuring insights into our shared American history as we commemorate the 400th anniversary of slavery in America. Sadly, even after the Civil War officially ended slavery, the U.S. prison system managed to continue the slave tradition well into the 20th Century. Prison work songs are examples of how a people working in bondage and under duress gained strength in holding onto musical traditions from their African homelands.

The YouTube site states that this was "recorded with outside's work conditions in Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman in 1947."

Recorded over 60 years ago at Parchman Farm "these songs belong to the musical tradition which Africans brought to the New World, but they are also as American as the Mississippi River."
- Alan Lomax

Monday Music: Foreign Affair (Manhattan Transfer)

Some absolutely super vocalization from Manhattan Transfer from their 1979 studio album, Extensions. The song, "Foreign Affair" is by Tom Waits. I recommend headphones to get the full benefit of the marvelous sound of this recording.

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Monday Music: Stardust

In the movie Men in Black there is a scene in which Tommie Lee Jones' character is showing Will Smith's character some new technology recently acquired from space aliens which will provide a more compact and efficient way of recording music. "I guess I'll be buying the White Album again," Tommie Lee Jones added.
Although I do have the Beatles' "White Album" on CD, Willie Nelson's Stardust is one I have listened to on vinyl, cassette, and CD.

Recorded in 1978, Willie Nelson's rendition of old standards demonstrated that American music has certain essential characteristics that cross all genres, and there are things about every genre that everyone can enjoy. Here is the title track, "Stardust," written by the great Hoagy Carmichael.