Alan Lomax: A Life of Sound
During the 1930s and '40s, Alan Lomax and his father John Lomax traveled throughout the American South searching for the work songs, spirituals and folk tales that gave the region it's unique identity. They met with field hands, prisoners and former slaves, and heard the songs they had been singing for decades, unaware of the sudden craze for jazz and blues music. The rich archive of American music the Lomaxes recorded ultimately set the standard for folk authenticity that invigorated the folk revival of the 1960s. In this musical montage of images taken on Alan Lomax's journeys through the South, we see the fading traditions of the region that Lomax sought to capture. For more on Lomax, read David Yaffe's article in this week's issue of The Nation. Video produced by Frank Reynolds, with images and songs courtesy of the Lomax Collection at the Library of Congress. For more videos, visit TheNation.com
About Alan Lomax
Alan Lomax (; January 31, 1915 – July 19, 2002) was an American ethnomusicologist, best known for his numerous field recordings of folk music during the 20th century. He was a musician, folklorist, archivist, writer, scholar, political activist, oral historian, filmmaker and son of folklorist John Lomax. Lomax produced recordings, concerts, and radio shows in the U.S. and in England which played an important role in preserving folk music traditions in both countries and helped start both the Ame...
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