The Folkways Collection, Episode 4

Episode 4 seemed to be very different from Episode 3. It's not that it wasn't interesting, but it seemed a little bit formulaic and tired. The show played part of a song from Harry Smith's "Anthology of American Folk Music," then dissected it. I really liked the music that they played, especially the Canon Jugstompers "Minglewood Blues."

Beyond that, I think that the sheer influence that the anthology had on future folk musicians is incredible. When Smith explained the work at the 1991 Grammy's, he seemed to realize the affect that his collection had on musicians. This became even more evident when coupled with Eagan's (a current musician and student of the genre) reccomendation of the anthology.

In conclusion, I hope that the 5th (and later) installments of "The Folkways Collection" are more like the third than the fourth, but I really couldn't complain with the quality of music presented in this episode.