14 - "When I'm Gone, Gone": South Carolina, 1934–1940
28m
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Been All Around This World
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(Scroll down for playlist and links to resources mentioned.)
This episode provides an introduction to the singers and sites visited by John A. Lomax in the Palmetto State between 1934 and 1940, on the occasion of...:
The American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress, the Association for Cultural Equity, andthe Charles Joyner Institute for Gullah and African
Studies at Coastal Carolina University are pleased to announce that the
entirety of John A. Lomax's historic South Carolina recordings—made between 1934 and 1940 under the aegis of the Library of Congress' Archive of Folk Song—are now freely available online via the Lomax Digital Archive. [Access the collectionhere.] This collaboratively produced catalog provides free access to more than 12 hours of historic audio, accompanied byextensive descriptive metadata, documenting a diversity of Black and white folk and vernacular music in the Palmetto State: spirituals, hymns, blues, lullabies, ballads, children's game songs, work songs, as well as stories and personal narratives.
John A. Lomax made several trips to South Carolina as a guest of folklorist
Genevieve W. Chandler in coastal Murrells Inlet, who introduced him to some of the renowned singers in the Gullah community there: among them Zackie Knox, Lillie Knox, and "Mom" Hagar Brown. Also representing Gullah traditions of the region in these recordings are Caesar Roper and the Wadmalaw Island singers who participated in Rosa Warren Wilson's "Plantation Echoes" program, which Lomax recorded in Columbia in 1937. White singers also contributed to the sessions at Chandler's home with children's songs, contemporary hillbilly numbers, and ballads. Lomax recorded incarcerated men and women—at the Reid Farm in rural Kershaw County; at the state penitentiary in Columbia; and in a "convict camp" in Anderson County—singing group work songs, sacred pieces, and the occasional blues. Two WPA ditch-digging crews appear in these recordings, one from the Murrells Inlet area and the other from Clemson; this latter group Lomax recorded at the home of South Carolina journalist and memoirist Ben Robertson. Only a fraction of these recordings have ever been published or otherwise made available publicly.
(The Murrells Inlet and WadmalawIsland material was processed with the support of aNational Historic Publications and Records Commissiongrantwith Coastal Carolina University.)
Playlist (links to catalog records in the Lomax Digital Archive):
*Zackie Knox: When I’m Gone, Gone, Gone
*Lillie Knox: I Know My Time Ain't Long
*Hagar Brown: Stay In the Field
*Jonesie Mack, James Mack and Nick Robison: Corrine, Corrina
*Capitol City Laundry Quartet: Ezekiel Saw the Wheel
*Minnie Floyd: Time Enough Yet
*Mike Maybank and group: See John the Writer
*Cleve "Dynamite" Wright & Slick Owens: Ain’t No HeavenOn the County Road
*D.W. White & People’s Burial Aid Choir: I’ll Be Standing at the Station
Works cited:
*Coming Through: Voices of a South Carolina Gullah Community from WPA Oral Histories. U. of South Carolina Press, 2008.
*Alan Lomax's 1983 Johns Island recordings. (Perhaps strangely, Alan didn’t visit South Carolina on his 1959 and 1960 trips through the American South, although he does appear as an announcer on aFolkways LPdocumenting the 1964 folk festival on Johns Island that featured the singers of the Moving Star Hall - like Benjy Bligen, Bertha Pinckney, and Janie Hunter - who appear in the '83 footage. That festival was organized by Guy and Candie Carawan, who also compiled the gorgeous book “Ain't You Got A Right to the Tree of Life," consisting of narrative segments by Johns Islanders and photographs by Bob Yellin.)
*The Oxford American piece about Rosa Warren Wilson and “Plantation Echoes” has gone missing from their online archives between the recording of this episode and compiling these notes. If anyone turns up a link, please let us know!
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22 - When I Get Home: Sacred songs from the 1939 Texas recordings
The last episode of our survey of John A. and Ruby T. Lomax's 1939 Texas recordings features highlights of sacred performances in the collection.
1) Eulalia Martinez, Paola Lopez, Genoveva Lopez: Gloria a Diós en las alturas (Sugarland,Fort Bend County,Texas,April 23, 1939)
2) Gonzalo Lopez, Cleofe Lopez: Vela por tu amante (Sugarland,Fort Bend County,Texas,April 23, 1939)
3) Iron Head Baker: This Heart of Mine (Camp #4, Ramsey State Farm, Otey, Brazoria County, Texas, April 23, 1939)
4) Columbus Christopher, Wallace Chains, W.S. Harrison (Jaybird), Sylvester Jones (Texas Stavin’ Chain), Wade Bolden (Monkey): Jesus Getting Us Ready for that Great Day (Camp #4, Ramsey State Farm, Otey, Brazoria County, Texas, April 23, 1939)
5) Smith Casey & Unidentified man: When I Get Home (Dormitory, Clemens State Farm, Brazoria, Brazoria County, Texas, April 16, 1939)
6) Unidentified women: It's A Blessing Just to Call My Savior's Name (Goree State Farm for Women, Huntsville, Walker County, Texas, May 14, 1939)
7) Alvin Brown, William Brown, Terrell Conley, and Eugene Blacker: Ride on King Jesus (State Penitentiary (The Walls), Huntsville, Walker County, Texas, May 13, 1939)
8) Henry Truvillion: Ride on Mighty Rider (The Mighty Rider) (The home of Henry Truvillion, Burkeville, Newton County, Texas, May 16, 1939)
21 - Songs of Christmas, Midwinter, and New Year
An admittedly cursory holiday mix presenting performances from our new digital release, "Songs of Christmas, New Year, and Midwinter from the Lomax Collection," availablenow on the Lomax Archive'sBandcamp pageas well as the streaming services.
We invite you to pair this mix with our older holiday-themedepisode, which features other related material (if some occasional overlap) and the complete "Sing Christmas" program. This ambitiousradio broadcast was produced by Alan for the BBC on Christmas Day 1951, and featured regional Yuletide traditions transmitted via live hook-ups all across Britain.
1) Vera Ward Hall: No Room at the Inn story / song (The home of Vera Ward Hall, Livingston, Sumter County, Alabama, October 10, 1959).
2) United Sacred Harp Musical Association: Sherburne (56th Annual United Sacred Harp Musical Association Convention, Corinth Baptist Church, Fyffe,Dekalb County,Alabama,September 12, 1959)
3) Steven Wright: Jingle Bells (New York City, New York, 1950)
4) Group from Sangonera la Verde, Murcia: Rondalla (En tu puerta está la Virgen) (Monteagudo,Murcia,Región de Murcia,Spain, December 14, 1952)
5) Alice Gibbs and group: Today, Today is Christmas Day (Sint Eustatius,Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba, 1967)
6) Kate Nicholson and group: Tàladh Chrìosda (Christ's lullaby) (A cΘilidh at the home of Dr. MacLean, Daliburgh,Eilean Siar,Scotland,United Kingdom, June 21, 1951)
7) Miquel Bonet and group -Caramelles (The Seven Joys of Mary, part 1) (Village church patio, Sant Josep, Ibiza,Illes Balears,Islas Baleares, Comunidad Autónoma de las,Spain, July 18, 1952)
8) Norman Edmonds and the Old-Timers -Breaking Up Christmas (Probably the home of George Stoneman, Hillsville,Carroll County,Virginia, August 28, 1959)
9) Bartolomeo Angelitti -Venite Adoremus
10) Joy Bells -Jingle Bells (Gingerland,Saint George Gingerland,Nevis,Saint Kitts and Nevis, July 11, 1962)
11) Group from Positano, Campania -Capo d'anno > Tammuriata
12) Vera Ward Hall -Last Month of the Year (Alan Lomax's apartment, 3rd Street, New York City,New York, May 1, 1948)
20 - Inspiration: Instrumentalists from the 1939 Texas recordings
Fiddlers, harp blowers, and guitarists recorded by John A. and Ruby T. Lomax during their 1939 Texas field-trip.
1) Frank Goodwyn & Manuel Salinas: Chinese Breakdown (Falfurrias, Brooks County, Texas, April 29, 1939)
2) Lake Porter: The Lost Girl (Falfurrias, Brooks County, Texas, April 29, 1939)
3) Lake Porter: Drunken Hiccups (Falfurrias, Brooks County, Texas, April 29, 1939)
4) Elmo Newcomer: Rye Whiskey (The home of Elmo Newcomer, Pipe Creek, Bandera County, Texas, May 3, 1939)
[see here for Newcomer's later Cro-Mart release of "Rye Whiskey."]
5) Elmo Newcomer: The Old Grey Mare (The home of Elmo Newcomer, Pipe Creek, Bandera County, Texas, May 3, 1939)
6) Clinton Saathoff, and Otis Evans: Eeph Caught A Rabbit (Pipe Creek, Bandera County, Texas, May 4, 1939)
7) Pop Warner: Inspiration (State Penitentiary [The Walls], Huntsville, Walker County, Texas, May 11, 1939)
[see here for the fine Marshall Project piece on prison radio, which includes a discussion of "Thirty Minutes Behind the Walls" and the Ace Johnson photo discussed in the episode.]
8) Ace Johnson: Rabbit in the Garden (Dormitory, Clemens State Farm, Brazoria, Brazoria County, Texas, April 16, 1939)
9) Ace Johnson: Train song (Dormitory, Clemens State Farm, Brazoria, Brazoria County, Texas, April 16, 1939)
10) Smith Casey: East Texas Rag, (Dormitory, Clemens State Farm, Brazoria, Brazoria County, Texas, April 16, 1939)
11) L.W. Gooden: Clemens Rag (Dormitory, Clemens State Farm, Brazoria, Brazoria County, Texas, April 16, 1939)
Bed Music:
Wilbert Gilliam: Long Freight Train Blues (State Penitentiary [The Walls], Huntsville, Walker County, Texas, May 11, 1939)
19 - Go to Sleepy Little Baby: Lullabies from the Alan Lomax Collection
The Lomax Collection reflects a variety of human experience—from the sacred to the profane, from the rural to the urban, and from the public square to the domestic scene. The Lomaxes recorded lullabies all over the world, creating a record of the universality of these particularly intimate moments between parents and children. This episode gathers some of our favorite lullabies from the archive, and is part of a larger project on the subject, which includes an exhibit on the Lomax Digital Archive and a compilation pairing archival recordings with new interpretations by contemporary artists.
For information on the performers, old and new, and the songs, visit the accompanying exhibit on the Lomax Digital Archive:archive.culturalequity.org/go-to-sleepy. The compilation is available via our Bandcamp page:https://alanlomaxarchive.bandcamp.com/album/hush-the-waves-are-rolling-in-lullabies-from-the-alan-lomax-collection.This project was made possible with support from the Mid-Atlantic Arts Council and by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
Show Notes:
1) Elizabeth Cronin - Dance To Your Daddy (The home of Elizabeth Cronin, Ballymakeery, County Cork, Ireland, January 24, 1951)
2) Jean Ritchie - Dance To Your Daddy/Hush Little Baby (Alan Lomax's apartment, 3rd street, New York City, May 14, 1949)
3) Carmen Martínez - Durme meu filliño (Soutoxuste,Pontevedra,Galicia,Spain, November 23, 1952)
4) María Escrihuela - Nana Nanita (Tavernes de Valldigna,Valencia,Valencia,Spain, August 5, 1952)
5) Unidentified women - Iavnana (Republic of Georga, August 1, 1964)
6) Vera Ward Hall - Come Up, Horsey (Alan Lomax's apartment, 3rd St, New York City, New York, May 1, 1948)
7) Bessie Jones - Go To Sleepy Little Baby (Saint Simons,Glynn County,Georgia, October 12, 1959)
8) Bruna Bazil - Night, Night, Night (Massacre,Saint Paul Parish,Dominica, June 24, 1962)
9) Bruna Bazil - Little Baby I Want You to Sleep (Massacre,Saint Paul Parish,Dominica, June 24, 1962)
10) Unidentified women - Cântec De Leagan (I) (Drăguș,Brașov,Transylvania,Romania, August 1, 1964)
11) Unidentified women - Cântec De Leagan (II) (Drăguș,Brașov,Transylvania,Romania, August 1, 1964)
12) Unidentified woman - Ninna Nanna (Baiardo, Imperia, October 9. 1954)
13) Natale Rotella - Ninna Nanna (Feroleto Antico, Calabria, August 5, 1954)
14) Francesca Chilona - Che Bera Sta Figghiola (Cardeto, Calabria, July 27, 1954)
15) Sidney Hemphill Carter - Didn't Leave Nobody But The Baby (Probably the home of Sidney Hemphill Carter, Senatobia,Tate County,Mississippi, September 26, 1959)
Bed Music:
K.B. Singh, Harry Naran, Bully Naran, Mrs. Afrose Mohammed - Lullaby (Pasea Village,Tunapuna/Piarco,Trinidad and Tobago, May 7, 1962)
Niña de la Puebla - Alborada de villancicos (Andalucía, Spain, September 20, 1952)
W.D. Stewart (Bama), Robert Sanders (Yancey) - Bye Bye Baby (Lambert Camp, Parchman Farm (Mississippi State Penitentiary) Sunflower County,Mississippi, November 1, 1947)
18 - Long Hot Summer Days: Work songs from the 1939 Texas recordings
This second episode exploring the 1939 Texas recordings of John A. and Ruby T. Lomax focuses on work songs: selections of "river songs" sung by Black men incarcerated in the prison-farms of the Texas Department of Corrections, as well as pieces from free-world agricultural settings and the railroad section gang.
1) Alan Lomax interview with Charles Kuralt, 1991 (watch the complete interview here)
2) Tommy Woods & group: Go Down Old Hannah (Dormitory, Clemens State Farm, Brazoria, Brazoria County, Texas, April 16, 1939)
3) Clyde Hill & group: Long Hot Summer Days (Dormitory, Clemens State Farm, Brazoria, Brazoria County, Texas, April 16, 1939)
4) Charles Eckhardt: Calling the animals, (Pipe Creek, Bandera County, Texas, May 4, 1939)
5) Henry Truvillion: calling track (Truvillion’s home, between Newton and Burkeville, Texas, May 16, 1939)
6) Jose Suarez: Cotton-pickers corrido (The home of J.K. Wells, Brownsville, Cameron County, Texas, April 26, 1939)
7) John Lowey Goree, Who Curled Your Hair, Who Combed Your Bangs (At Goree's home, 2908 Jackson St, Houston, Harris County, Texas, April 12, 1939)
8) Mose “Clear Rock” (or “Wyandotte”) Platt: Ain’t No More Cane on the Brazos (Hotel Blazilmar, 107 Porter Street, Taylor, Williamson County, Texas, May 10, 1939)
9) Unidentified men: Hammer Ring (Dormitory, Clemens State Farm, Brazoria, Brazoria County, Texas, April 16, 1939)
Bed Music
Smith Casey: East Texas Rag (Dormitory, Clemens State Farm, Brazoria, Brazoria County, Texas, April 16, 1939)
Elmo Newcomer: Unfortunate Puppy (The home of Elmo Newcomer, Pipe Creek, Bandera County, Texas, May 13, 1939)
L.W. Gooden, Ace Johnson: Mama Don't Allow (Dormitory, Clemens State Farm, Brazoria, Brazoria County, Texas, April 16, 1939)