WASHINGTON D.C. (CelebrityAccess) — On July 6th, Smithsonian Folkways will mark the 75th anniversary of the founding of the independent Folkways Records by Marian Distler and Moses Asch with a special event featuring performances by Jake Blount, No-No Boy, and a screening of Early Abstractions, short films by Harry Smith.
The event, “Folkways at 75,” will be free and open to the public, taking place on the National Mall in Washington D.C. as part of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival.
Additionally, Smithsonian Folkways is teaming up with the Brooklyn Folk Festival for a weekend of programming celebrating the 75th anniversary of the icvonic label. Performers announced for the event include artists who recorded on Folkways, such as Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Alice Gerrard, Sonia Sanchez, and Peggy Seeger, to newer artists currently releasing music on Smithsonian Folkways, including Blount, Dom Flemons, Charlie Parr, and the Down Hill Strugglers.
There will also be multiple tributes to Folkways compiler Harry Smith, including a performance by The Fugs and a Q&A with author John Szwed. Other workshops and conversations will be announced soon. For details, tickets, and more information: https://brooklynfolkfest.com/
As well, Smithsonian Folkways will re-press and re-issue numerous classic Folkways titles, packaged in the classic black tip-on jackets with wrap-around, paste-on artwork.
Upcoming releases include Charles Bogert’s The Sounds of North American Frogs, which captures field recordings of frogs across North America, which will be made available for the first time since 1958. Other re-issues include The New Lost City Ramblers with Cousin Emmy, works by Sarah Webster Fabio; Jujus/Alchemy of the Blues and Together to the Tune of Coltrane’s “Equinox,” and albums by Elizabeth Cotten, Doc Watson, and Lightnin’ Hopkins.
