New York, NY (Top40 Charts) On Feb. 16, Smithsonian Folkways Recordings will release 'Barbara Dane: Hot Jazz, Cool Blues and Hard-Hitting Songs' plus a special vinyl reissue of the historic 1966 LP 'Barbara Dane and The
Chambers Brothers.'
The 2-disc retrospective honors one of the unsung champions of American music. This career-spanning collection reflects over 60 years of the eclectic musical history of this trailblazing folk, blues and jazz singer and offers unparalleled insight into the living legend cited as an inspiration by
Bob Dylan and Bonnie Raitt, and whose own early mentors included Pete Seeger and Count Basie.
Barbara Dane was a rising star in the late 1950s, performing and recording with many of the greats of jazz and blues including Louis Armstrong, Earl Hines and Jack Teagarden. She counted Langston Hughes and Lenny Bruce among her fans and was the first white woman to grace the cover of Ebony Magazine. An activist since her teens in Detroit, she was outspoken in her views on race and social justice and was unwilling to make the kind of compromises demanded by the music business of the day.
Inspired by the intensification of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s and the growing opposition to the Vietnam War, Dane turned away from the lure of fame and celebrity, striking out on her own path and dedicating her life to singing for peace and social justice. She shared the stage with Seeger, Joan Baez, Phil Ochs and Reverend Frederick Douglass Kirkpatrick at numerous massive peace rallies in Washington D.C. and was acclaimed as "the voice of the other America" by European audiences, a symbol of opposition to the Vietnam War. In 1966,
Barbara became the first American musician to tour post-revolutionary Cuba, and in the early 1970s, she founded the groundbreaking Paredon Records (now part of the Smithsonian Folkways collection) with longtime partner Irwin Silber, documenting the music of the 1970s resistance and national liberation movements worldwide. Praised as a "People's Singer," Dane has long been "a versatile voice with a political purpose" (NPR) and remains a "symbol of resistance" even into the 21st century.
Barbara Dane's "pure, rich voice" (TIME) sings out in a broad range of styles on this diverse 38-track collection, which includes 13 never-before-released recordings featuring collaborations with Lightnin' Hopkins, the
Chambers Brothers, Doc Watson, Pete Seeger,
Memphis Slim & Willie Dixon and more. Created in collaboration with the
Barbara Dane Legacy Project, this album celebrates her 90th birthday.
Marking the milestone, Smithsonian Folkways is also releasing a vinyl reissue of the 1966 LP, 'Barbara Dane and The
Chambers Brothers.' This seminal recording reflects the music and spirit of the "Freedom Summer" of 1964, when civil rights activists from all over the country concentrated their energy on registering black voters in the South.
"I hope my abiding love for our benighted country is apparent," says
Barbara in a message to listeners, "along with my steadfast support of the people who suffer and struggle every day to keep it going. I hope you notice that it is possible to speak your mind to the world and still survive."
This celebration of
Barbara Dane is just one of the many exciting albums Smithsonian Folkways is releasing in celebration of its 70th anniversary. Smithsonian Folkways is dedicated to supporting cultural diversity and increased understanding among people through sharing music, spoken word and sound around the world.
'Barbara Dane: 60 Years of Hot Jazz, Cool Blues and Hard-Hitting Songs' Track List:
Disc 1
1. I Am A Weary and Lonesome Traveler
2. Way Behind the Sun
3. Victim to the Blues
4. Working People's Blues
5. Come By Here
6. It Isn't Nice
7. Deportes
8. I Don't Want Your Millions, Mister
9. Ballad of Richard Campos
10. Join the GI Movement
11. Song of the Coat Makers
12. Mill Worker
13. Working-Class Woman
14. Truck-Driving Woman
15. Sometimes I Believe She Loves Me
16. Let Me Be Your Rag Doll
17. Mother Earth
18. The Ones Who've Gone Before Us
Disc 2
1. Trouble in Mind
2. Basin Street Blues*
3. Why Don't Do Right?*
4. MY Melancholy Baby*
5. Mama Yancey's Advice
6. Ain't Gonna Give Nobody None of my Jellyroll
7. Please Don't Lose Your Mind*
8. Walking Blues*
9. King Salmon Blues
10. Good Morning Blues*
11. Gipper Gate Blues
12. Boulevard of Broken Dreams
13. Study War No More*
14. This
Little Light of Mine*
15. You Don't Know Me/You Don't Know my Mind*
16. Salty Dog Blues*
17. Only a Pawn in Their Game*
18. Solidarity Forever*
19. We Shall Not Be Moved*
20. Oh, Had I a Golden Thread*
* denotes previously unreleased track
'Barbara Dane and the
Chambers Brothers' Track List:
Side A
1. It Isn't Nice
2. You've Got To Reap What You Sow
3. You Can't Make It By Yourself
4. Pack Up Your Sorrows
5. I Am A Weary And A Lonesome Traveller
Side B
1. We'll Never Turn Back
2. Come By Here
3. Freedom Is A Constant
4. Go Tell It The Mountain
About Smithsonian Folkways Recordings:
Going into its 70th year, Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, the "National Museum of Sound," makes available close to 60,000 tracks in physical and digital format as the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian, with a reach of 80 million people per year. A division of the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, the non-profit label is dedicated to supporting cultural diversity and increased understanding among people through the documentation, preservation, production and dissemination of sound. Its mission is the legacy of Moses Asch, who founded Folkways Records in 1948 to document "people's music" from around the world. For more information about Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, visit folkways.si.edu
