The Simmons family occupied a unique role in the thousands of country/folk albums that were being produced to meet the folk music craze of the 1950s through the 1970s. While most of those albums were being recorded by city dwellers who happened to know about and play old-time tunes, the Simmons family was living in rural Stone County, Missouri, just as they had for generations. This gave them an edge that city folk artists (especially before the Internet) could not compete with, since the family learned truly obscure folk songs from other nearby musicians that almost no one else would be familiar with (for example, when was the last time anyone in the past four decades recorded "Lord Lovelle?")
The other aspect of the family that made them so special is that besides being a family act, they made their living by owning a music shop. Most of the country/folk music family acts were remnants of the early 1900s through the Great Depression (they certainly were not common in the 1970s!), and even those musical families of the past tended to be composed of day laborers who performed music at night and during social gatherings. In other words, music was their pastime, not their career. The Simmons family was one of just a handful of family acts who made music their career, and that is certainly reflected in the high quality of their playing and their creative arrangements on this LP.
Considering that my last post featuring mountain dulcimer was by city dweller Neal Hellman, I wanted to post this album to give listeners an understanding of how different rural artists can sound compared to the more widely-recognized city artists, even when performing the same kind of music! In my opinion, the Simmons family style of playing sounds a lot like that of Fiddlin' Powers & Family, a country musical group popular in the 1920s whose sound was characterized by a laid-back feel, but with much gusto underneath it and a high degree of overall musical skill.
The Simmons family released several albums during their time with Dancing Doll Records, but this album appears to have been their best-seller. While there are some classic folk songs on it that virtually every country music fan knows ("Ragtime Annie", "Wildwood Flower", etc.), they are still just as delightful to listen to as the more obscure tunes ("Come thy Fount", "Lord Lovelle", etc.)
Check out this clip from YouTube to hear it for yourself!
The songs on this album are as follows:
1. "The Arkansas Traveler"
2. "Bury Me Under the Weeping Willow"
3. "Green Corn"
4. "Buffalo Girls"
5. "The Carol of the Birds"
6. "Wildwood Flower"
7. "Greensleeves"
8. "Come thy Fount"
9. "Ragtime Annie"
10. "Red Wing"
11. "Down on the Banks of the Old Ohio"
12. "Turkey in the Straw"
13. "The Rosewood Casket"
14. "Un-Cloudy Day"
15. "The Eighth of January"
16. "Lord Lovelle"
17. "Pretty Mary"
18. "The World is Not My Home (I'm Just Passing Through)" Download (28.3 MB, 128 kbps)
Continuing the foray into my Record Store Day 2017 musical finds, I am presenting an underrated album by the folk musician Neal Hellman (1948-) that simultaneously is one of the best old-timey albums to listen to, yet has one of the most atrociously cartoonish album cover designs ever - which, as far as country music albums go, is truly saying something.
Unless you are a folk or country musician of a certain age, it is quite unlikely that you have known of Neal Hellman prior to reading about him here. Born in New York and having his formative years shaped during the post-war folk music revival, Hellman has worked as a country music performer, educator, author and (strangely enough) children's entertainer for almost 40 years. Starting as a music teacher/recording artist, this LP is one of his earliest releases and features some fine collaboration with other musical artists such as banjoist George Stavis and dulcimer player Michael Rugg. However, it was not until 1993 when Hellman got his "big break", after he and fellow musician Joe Weed wrote the score for Princess Furball, a 1993 kids' video that won an American Library Association Commendation. Shortly thereafter, he founded the record label Gourd Music, producing over thirty critically-acclaimed folk and country albums, and where he still works today.
This album offers a wealth of old-time tunes, including a few freshly-revived military ballads (such as "Bonnie Blue Flag" and "Graycoat Soldiers") as well as containing one of the eeriest gospel tunes I have ever heard that also happens to be one of the few recordings available featuring a musical saw as the primary instrument ("I am a Little Scholar")! Unlike dozens of other old-timey albums recorded during the 1980s, this album thankfully does not have any strange pop-synth arrangements, talkboxes or similar crap added to the background. If anything, Hellman's arrangements rival more that of a "wall of sound", somewhat reminiscent of a Phil Spector (1939-) influence had Spector decided to work with acoustic instruments instead of orchestral duplication of parts (and, you know, not murdered anyone either...)
Check out a few clips below to hear it for yourself (each link opens the Dropbox media player in a new window)!
1. "Betty Likkens"/"Cluck Old Hen"/"West Virginia Gals"
2. "Bonnie Blue Flag"
3. "Colored Aristocracy"
4. "Ducks on a Pond/Boatin' up Sandy"
5. "Graycoat Soldiers"
6. "I am a Little Scholar"
7. "Indian Nation"
8. "John Henry"
9. "Old Dog Blue"/"The Arkansas Traveler"/"The Eighth of January"
10. "On a Cold Winter's Night"
11. "The Oot-Pick Waltz"
12. "Scotland"
13. "Seven Bridges Road"
14. "Shortnin' Bread" Download (36.4 MB, 128 kbps)
Today is the first day of September, which means we North Americans are now officially in autumn! Early autumn happens to be my favorite season, when it is still warm enough to do outdoor activities yet cool enough that the worst of the mosquitoes are gone, the tourists have left and, most importantly,the bluegrass and folk music festivals begin! (At least they do here in the Twin Cities metro area, I don't know about the rest of Hicksville Minnesota...)
This EP is one of many kick-ass country music finds that I uncovered at Hymie's Vintage Records during this year's Record Store Day. While the vinyl itself has seen better days (and better styli!), it still plays loud and clear enough to display the unbelievable talent of The White Oak Mountain Boys and The Sunny Mountain Boys, both studio bands contracted to King Records in the mid-to-late 1950s. This EP happens to be a compilation or "sampler" of sorts, likely for promotional and broadcast use by King Records, which at the time was starting to wind down production of its Country & Western division.
Side A showcases the talents of banjoist Leon Jackson and the regrettably-forgotten fiddler Johnny Bryant, with all three tracks composed by Jackson. Side B showcases the talents of guitarist Jimmy Martin (1927-2005) and mandolinist Bob(by) Osborne (1931-), with all three tracks composed by the pair. Considering that Martin and Osborne went on to much greater fame than Bryant and Jackson ever did, it is curious that they were relegated to Side B on this record. Regardless of the reason why, this is a great EP that is certain to be a favorite of any bluegrass fan!
Check out these clips from YouTube to hear it for yourself!
The tracks on this EP are as follows:
1. "White Oak Mountain Breakdown"*
2. "Love, Please Come Home"*
3. "Leon's Breakdown (Buttahatchee)"*
4. "My Lonely Heart"#
5. "She's Just a Cute Thing"#
6. "You'll Never be the Same"# *Performed by The White Oak Mountain Boys [w/Leon Jackson & Johnny Bryant] #Performed by The Sunny Mountain Boys [w/Jimmy Martin & Bob Osborne]
Spanning over ten octaves in at least seven different type classifications, the human voice is the most fantastic instrument of all. It can be heard above a full orchestra with no extra amplification needed, as well as alter its tone and expressions to degrees greater than even what the largest pipe organ is capable of producing!
It can also sound worse than an orgy of beached, dying whales.
Compared to just two years ago, the average American is now familiar with the life and times of Florence Foster Jenkins (photographed in costume on the cover, 1868-1944), thanks to the biographical film released last fall starring Meryl Streep (1949-) as the fabulously unskilled "singer". Likening herself to such legendary sopranos as Luisa Tetrazzini (1871-1940) and having a more-than-passing knowledge of music thanks to receiving frequent piano lessons before suffering an arm injury, Jenkins recorded several discs for Melotone Records during the WWII era with her (reluctant) pianist and musical coach, Cosmé McMoon (born Cosmé McMunn, 1901-1980). These recordings - while being "so bad they're good" - do demonstrate that she was capable of making insightful artistic choices to the repertoire with her voice, but delivered them in an extremely distorted (dare I say warped) manner. Nevertheless, she was a huge hit among recital audiences during her life, and when asked about her thoughts on her own performances, she cheerfully replied, "People may say I can't sing, but no one can ever say I didn't sing!" She died at the age of 76 from complications resulting from advanced syphilis.
The life and times of soprano Jenny Williams and baritone Thomas Burns, in contrast, are quite difficult to discern as of this writing. The liner notes state they were two amateur vocalists living in the New York City area who recorded four tracks from Charles Gounod (1818-1893)'s opera Faust. They wanted to use the tracks for their own personal promotions (only God knows why!), but eventually agreed to let RCA Victor include the tracks in this LP. There is no other information I can find about what became of Williams or Burns, but suffice it to say, without their - ahem, unique musical contributions - to this album, they would never have received infamy.
I found this LP at a garage sale many years ago, and bought it for the ridiculous cover as well as to be able to brag to fellow collectors that I have a Florence Foster Jenkins record (her records are, extremely understandably, not that common). This LP is great for a quick laugh, and as my summer full of classical music and opera draws to an end, it is the perfect way to close this month of The Retro Echo; future posts will instead be oriented towards other musical genres and releases by artists of the past.
Check out a few clips from YouTube to hear all of these unforgettable singers for yourself!
From the liner notes on the back cover:
Few artists ever gave such unalloyed pleasure as Florence Foster Jenkins, yet this extraordinary soprano had the wisdom not to overdo a good thing. She emphatically declined to appear in New York oftener than once a year and rarely anywhere else except such favored centers as Washington and Newport. For years her annual recital at the Ritz-Carlton was a private ceremonial for the select few--her stubbornly loyal circle of clubwomen and the adventurous cognoscenti. If the latter at times displayed an unmannerly lack of restraint they were nonetheless faithful. Music critics covered the event in precisely the same reverse English with which they frequently, though perhaps less intentionally, leave a baffled public speculating as to what actually did happen the night before. Then the word began to get around. Tickets became harder to come by than for a World Series. Finally, on the evening of October 25, 1944, Madame Jenkins took the big step. Forsaking the brocade atmosphere of a fashionable hotel ballroom, she braved Carnegie Hall. There are those who claim that her death one month and a day later was the result of a broken heart--as unlikely as the story that her career was all a huge joke at the public's expense--a pretty expensive joke, incidentally, since Carnegie Hall was sold out weeks in advance and grossed something like $6,000. Moreover, the late Robert Bagar wrote in the New York World-Telegram: "She was exceedingly happy in her work. It is a pity so few artists are. And the happiness was communicated as if by magic to her hearers..." No, Madame Jenkins died full of years--76 to be exact--and, it is safe to say, with a happy heart. Neither her parents nor her husband gave any encouragement whatever to her musical ambitions, but with her divorce and the money inherited from her father, a Wilkes-Barre banker and lawyer who had served in the Pennsylvania legislature, she was free to turn her sights on New York. She broke into print in 1912 as chairman of the Euterpe Club's tableaux vivants. She was also glad to foot the bill for the annual spree of her Verdi Club. The lavishness of this entertainment may be guessed from the name under which it went--"The Ball of the Silver Skylarks." All this gave free rein to her hair for costume design, a faculty that was to prove almost as startling as her vocal flights. No Jenkins recital was accompanied by less than three changes. In "Angel of Inspiration" a very substantial and matronly apparition, all wings and tinsel and tulle, made its way through potted palms to the curve of the grand piano. Small wonder the late Helen Hokinson was an ardent Jenkins fan. Her method of ticket distribution was also unique and a model of straightforward dealing. In the hands of the scalpers those coveted pasteboards would have brought ten times the price. It is doubtful, however, if this was the reason she insisted on personal application to the genteel midtown hotel where she had rooms. Toying with the tickets as Rosina might with her fan she would inquire: "Mr. Gilkey, are you a--a newspaperman?" "No. Madame Jenkins," the applicant replied quite soberly, "a music-lover." "Very well," the diva beamed. "Two-fifty each, please. Now would you like some sherry?" Would he? Who wouldn't sit down for a friendly glass with this phenomenon in the musical life of our time? It is too bad she did not record her favorite encore, "Clavelitos", a number she invariably had to repeat. A contemporary account describes Madame Jenkins as appearing in a Spanish shawl, with a jeweled comb and, like Carmen, a red bloom in her hair. She punctuated the rhythmic cadences of the song by tossing tiny red flowers from her pretty basket to her delighted hearers. On one occasion the basket in a moment of confusion followed the little blossoms into the audience. It too, was received with spirit. Before she would do the repeat her already overworked accompanist had to pass among the jubilant groundlings and retrieve the prop buds and basket. The enthusiasm of the audience at this point reached a peak that beggars description. After a taxicab crash in 1943 she found she could sing "a higher F than ever before." Instead of a lawsuit against the taxicab company, she sent the driver a box of expensive cigars. Although high coloratura was Madame Jenkins' particular province, she also ventured into the quieter realm of lieder. She opened her 1934 program with "Die Mainacht" of Brahms. Under the title was this quote: "O singer, if thou canst not dream, leave this song unsung." Nobody will ever say Florence Foster Jenkins couldn't dream. For some time there has been wide demand for a reissue of this Florence Foster Jenkins album, but it was felt that an attraction should be found to couple with the soprano's recordings. If it is impossible to predict where the lightning of genius is going to strike, how much less predictable is the urge to artistic endeavor. One day with no advance warning whatever Jenny Williams and Thomas Burns walked into RCA Victor's Custom Record Department. The records they wanted to make were to be for their own use but eventually they agreed to the public issuance of the material on this disc. The English translations are their own and speak for themselves - also for the cause of opera in English. As Madame Jenkins found her way to the recording studios from the concert hall, perhaps Miss Williams and Mr. Burns, with the start they may surely expect from this disc, will one day attempt to fill, in a measure, the gap left by Madame Jenkins' departure from the musical scene. Francis Robinson Assistant Manager of the Metropolitan Opera (1952-76) and author of "Caruso: His Life in Pictures"
The tracks on this album are as follows:
1. "Adele's Laughing Song"*
2. "Biassy"*
3. "Charmant Oiseau"*
4. "The Queen of the Night's Aria"*
5. "The Bell Song"*
6. "Like A Bird"*
7. "The Musical Snuff-Box"*
8. "The Jewel Song"#
9. "Emotions Strange"#
10. "Valentine's Aria"#
11. "Final Trio"#
*Performed by Florence Foster Jenkins [w/Cosmé McMoon at the piano] #Performed by Jenny Williams & Thomas Burns
Most people will know, or at least have heard of in passing, the "big" Mozart (1756-1791) operas like The Magic Flute, The Marriage of Figaro and Don Giovanni if they are asked about them. But how many of those same people will also mention The Abduction from the Seraglio (or, in its original German, Die Entführung aus dem Serail) in the same breath? Likely very few, for this challenging and vibrant opera has always taken an ill-deserved back seat to Mozart's more publicized works.
Composed in 1782 at the bequest of Austrian emperor Joseph II (1741-1790), it was initially designed as an entertaining Turkish/Ottoman Empire comic opera. However, what sets it apart from many of his other operas is the fact that it is an unexpected work of fantastic exuberance. The characters all develop surprising emotional complexities as the opera goes on, and Mozart always considered it among his best works. The story is based on the libretto of the 1781 operetta Belmont und Constanze by Christoph Bretzner (1748-1807), but Mozart, with the help of fellow librettist Gottlieb Stephanie (1741-1800), tweaked the material to turn it into a masterpiece.
Contrary to conventional former belief among musical scholars, Joseph II did not complain to Mozart after the opera's premiere performance that he thought it had "too many notes!" What is now generally accepted is that Joseph II instead told Mozart he thought it had "an extraordinary amount of notes"; in other words, he was surprised at how well the performers sang the difficult arias (in particular, "Martern aller arten" and "O, wie will ich triumphieren"), which Mozart specifically wrote to take advantage of the talent possessed by many great singers of the era specially commissioned to premiere the opera. Regardless of the emperor's take on it, the opera was a great success among audiences and is still being performed to this day, albeit much less commonly than when it was new.
This 1954 studio album set (originally released on a double vinyl LP set, here presented in its reissued CD set from the mid-1990s) is one of the best - if not, the best - recording of The Abduction from the Seraglio. Under the baton of conductor Ferenc Fricsay (1914-1963), the album has an all-star case consisting of sopranos Maria Stader (1911-1999) and Rita Streich (1920-1987), tenors Ernst Haefliger (1919-2007) and Martin Vantin (1919-), basso Josef Greindl (1912-1993) and voice actor Walter Franck (1896-1961). They are accompanied by the RIAS Symphony Orchestra of Berlin and its chamber choir, which to this day remain a pinnacle among European classical musicians and singers.
I was first exposed to this album set in high school by a former music teacher, and have greatly enjoyed listening to it since! The only drawbacks of it is that not all the arias present in the opera were recorded on this set, and voice actors speak most of the libretto instead of the singers themselves (perhaps this was a cost-saving measure on the part of Deutsche Grammophon?) Even with these drawbacks, the album is still a very enjoyable listen! I insist that all fans of Mozart give it a listen, especially those only familiar with his "big" operas.
Check out these clips from YouTube to hear it for yourself! (Ignore the puppets in the first clip...)
The tracks on this album are as follows:
1. "Ouvertüre" 2. "Hier soll ich dich denn sehen...Aber wie soll ich in den Palast kommen?" 3. "Wer ein Liebchen hat gefunden" 4. "Solche hergelauf'ne Laffen" 5. "O wie angstlich" 6. "Versteckt euch, Herr...Singt dem grossen Bassa Lieder" 7. "Ach ich liebte, war so glücklich" 8. "Marsch! Trollt euch fort!" 9. "Durch Zärtlichkeit und Schmeicheln" 10. "Ich gehe, doch rate ich dir" 11. "Welcher Kummer herrscht in meiner Seele" 12. "Martern aller arten" 13. "Vivat Bacchus! Bacchus lebe!" 14. "So, gnädiger Herr, jetzt schnell" 15. "Das Fenster geht auf, Herr!" 16. "Bassa Selim lebe lange" 17. "Welche Wonne, welche Lust" 18. "Frisch zum Kampfe! Frisch zum Streite!" 19. "Wenn der Freude Tränen fließen" 20. "Ach! Belmonte! Ach, mein Leben!" 21. "Ich baue ganz auf deine Stärke" 22. "O, wie will ich triumphieren" 23. "Welch ein geschick!"/"Ha, du solltest für mich sterben!" 24. "Nie werd' ich deine Huld verkennen" 25. "Alleluja"* 26. "Tu virginum corona"* 27. "Exsultate, jubilate"* 28. "Fulget amica dies"* *From Exsultate, jubilate (K. 165) sung by Maria Stader Download (110.1 MB, 160 kpbs)
