Folk Music

Is anything that uses acoustic instruments considered folk ? The term folk music seems to not work as easily as it once did. Are there many dirt floor folkie types left or have they morphed into suburban expensive guitar players ?

I don't listen to much folky stuff but there are still some recognized artists out there:

Will Oldham (Palce, Bonnie "Prince" Billy)
Iron & Wine
Bon Iver

One of my favourite albums of the decade, Sung Tongs by Animal Collective could be described as a kind of modern folk but it is too heavily infused with psychadelia to be classified as folk, in my opinion.

Originally posted by buckky
Is anything that uses acoustic instruments considered folk ? The term folk music seems to not work as easily as it once did. Are there many dirt floor folkie types left or have they morphed into suburban expensive guitar players ?

The thing about folk music is it evolves. Technique on instruments keeps getting better, and you have to spend more time learning an instrument nowadays. You have virtuoso's like Rory Block on acoustic guitar playing old country blues, you have Martin Simpson following the British tradition of Martin Carthy who upped the technique of folk guitar, and there are still plenty of black blues players like Keb Mo who play in the old tradition. There are thousands of folk players who never are heard outside of a local folk fest or pub but have great talent. Try listening to Greg Brown, or John McCutcheon or Debby McClatchy or Doc Watson or Mike Seeger or Kristine Olsen or Sylvia Herold (who played in my band Southwind a long time ago)
or Peggy Seeger, a great banjo player, or Kristina Olsen (here is her web page, great singer, player: http://www.kristinaolsen.net/
or a recent singing project including Sylvia, Inharmoysway on CDbaby:
http://cdbaby.com/cd/inharmonysway they don't use instruments at all on that project, just voices. Folk music is very much alive but the musicians have just gotten a lot better.

Folk music is rampant out here in Portland, Or. It is cool and hip to be twentysomething, live in this city and pretend you went through the great depression.(although our economy now is approaching). On that note however there are some great musicians who have made a name for themselves despite the fad. M. Ward and Kate Mann are two that come to mind.

Originally posted by StTito
Folk music is rampant out here in Portland, Or. It is cool and hip to be twentysomething, live in this city and pretend you went through the great depression.(although our economy now is approaching). On that note however there are some great musicians who have made a name for themselves despite the fad. M. Ward and Kate Mann are two that come to mind.

These folks locals? M ward any relation to Wade Ward, a pretty famous player from 50 years ago or more.

Originally posted by StTito
Folk music is rampant out here in Portland, Or. It is cool and hip to be twentysomething, live in this city and pretend you went through the great depression.(although our economy now is approaching). On that note however there are some great musicians who have made a name for themselves despite the fad. M. Ward and Kate Mann are two that come to mind.

Is M Ward related to Wade Ward, a famous player from last century. Kate Mann, I went to her myspace site, she has a lot more friends than me on my site! and M Ward has 47,000 friends! Not bad for a folkie! I have less than 1,000. At first I thought Kate had not uploaded any music for the player but then realized, I am at work and the work comp does not have flash enabled, it shows sometime and sometimes not.

Originally posted by sonhouse
The thing about folk music is it evolves. Technique on instruments keeps getting better, and you have to spend more time learning an instrument nowadays. You have virtuoso's like Rory Block on acoustic guitar playing old country blues, you have Martin Simpson following the British tradition of Martin Carthy who upped the technique of folk guitar, and there ...[text shortened]... t, just voices. Folk music is very much alive but the musicians have just gotten a lot better.

What I'm asking is this though. Can any song become a folk song ? If I play a Glen Miller tune on the acoustic guitar does it turn into folk. Does the instrumentation make it folk or not folk ? Does folk music have to be about social concerns or tales of the down and out ? I love folk music, but the labels become confusing.

Originally posted by sonhouse
Is M Ward related to Wade Ward, a famous player from last century. Kate Mann, I went to her myspace site, she has a lot more friends than me on my site! and M Ward has 47,000 friends! Not bad for a folkie! I have less than 1,000. At first I thought Kate had not uploaded any music for the player but then realized, I am at work and the work comp does not have flash enabled, it shows sometime and sometimes not.

I'm not sure about the relation. And I must say I had an ulterior motive when I mentioned Kate. I played bass on her last album

Originally posted by StTito
I'm not sure about the relation. And I must say I had an ulterior motive when I mentioned Kate. I played bass on her last album

Do you have a myspace site of your own? I work midnight shift and for some reason the comp I use doesn't have sound, might just be a setting, but I have problems listening at work, we have some slack time right now, usually busy. Have you heard my own myspace stuff? I compose folk-like melodies for acoustic instruments.

Originally posted by sonhouse
Do you have a myspace site of your own? I work midnight shift and for some reason the comp I use doesn't have sound, might just be a setting, but I have problems listening at work, we have some slack time right now, usually busy. Have you heard my own myspace stuff? I compose folk-like melodies for acoustic instruments.

I have the same problem with my flash player, but I'll try and remember your site when I get home. My other stuff is more rock oriented I am not a member of the bands anymore. The Very Foundation and The Wanteds both on Myspace if your so inclined.

Originally posted by buckky
What I'm asking is this though. Can any song become a folk song ? If I play a Glen Miller tune on the acoustic guitar does it turn into folk. Does the instrumentation make it folk or not folk ? Does folk music have to be about social concerns or tales of the down and out ? I love folk music, but the labels become confusing.

its a good question, because the actual musical dynamics which give folk music its distinctive flavor (the musical scales etc) are quite distinctive, although they may differ from culture to culture. you may indeed play it in a folk style, just as many take songs and do punk covers, i suppose you could do the same with glen miller on the banjo. forget about labels, if you like Scottish/Irish folk music in either English or Gaelic then i have uploaded some to this site which you may listen to - hope you enjoy - regards robbie.

there is also some other stuff in there but for the most they are folk, Celtic, Scots Irish etc etc regards robbie.

http://www.humyo.com/1308699-131287037

Originally posted by sonhouse
Do you have a myspace site of your own? I work midnight shift and for some reason the comp I use doesn't have sound, might just be a setting, but I have problems listening at work, we have some slack time right now, usually busy. Have you heard my own myspace stuff? I compose folk-like melodies for acoustic instruments.

send me the link so that i can check it out please.

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
send me the link so that i can check it out please.

It's just myspace.com/donjenningsguitar
Not much rock I'm afraid, just fingerpicking and slide guitar and stuff.

Originally posted by sonhouse
It's just myspace.com/donjenningsguitar
Not much rock I'm afraid, just fingerpicking and slide guitar and stuff.

They are beautiful, I could listen to this forever! Are these self compositions? there is some Irish in there i can tell yah! do i have permission to send the link to my friends?

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
They are beautiful, I could listen to this forever! Are these self compositions? there is some Irish in there i can tell yah! do i have permission to send the link to my friends?

They are my compositions, thank you! The only one not mine is the dulcimer piece features two tunes, one is a Breton tune, ancient one actually, called Andro and my reply to it. My tune begins first then goes into Andro. I learned that from a very talented musician, Yves Chandon, who played in our little band in Scottsdale Arizona, Sugarloaf mountain string band. He is also a semiconductor process engineer for Motorola in Grenoble France. Andro is around the same age as another ancient tune Nonesuch. Those 4 pieces come from my self produced CD which still needs art work to complete. I have given a few out to close friends, like George Winston, a close friend from our Venice Beach days in the '70s. Another friend, Jodee James, a local NJ singer of Welsh songs, says she plays my CD almost every morning! I recorded a track for one of her upcoming CD's. She is a very dynamic singer and plays very unusual tunings on guitar. She also uses the computer mouse backwards🙂 You can send the link to whomever you like, I am not into this for the money, even though if I tried I could be a folkie millionaire, hehe, like that would ever happen🙂