New Wave Outpost Forum

Is this just way way too off topic around here? Any folks have some fav folk or folky songs? I dig these tracks for things like hiking up in the Berkshires or sitting by the Housatonic River and stuff like that. Anyone else? I'm a total noob so would love some essential recommendations.

Mazzy Star - Flowers in December
Peter Rowan - Caribbean Woman (from Awake Me in the New World...a trip of an album)
Nick Drake - Hazey Jane I (I honestly don't think there has EVER been a sweeter vocal)
Badly Drawn Boy - Stone on the Water
Simon & Garfunkel - Homeward Bound
Amos Lee - Keep It Loose, Keep It Tight (seriously virtuous new artist)

Check out Jason Ringenberg's (lead singer of Jason & The Scorchers) solo record "A Pocketful Of Soul", one of those albums that caught me at the right time, I'm not sure I played a CD so often, particularly For Addie Rose (his daughter), The Price Of Progress and an awesome cover of Guadalcanal Diary's Trail Of Tears. Highly recommended and fits my description of folk music!

We consider these songs as folk music in our country:

1. A Horse With No Name - America
2. Dust In The Wind - Kansas
3. Leader Of The Band - Dan Fogelberg
4. Miles Away - Colin Blunstone
5. Seasons In The Sun - Terry Jacks
6. Vincent - John Denver
7. Torn Between Two Lovers - Mary McGregor
8. Bob Dylan Songs
9. Joan Baez Songs

The woman who shares an office with me is REALLY into Contemporary Folk. It appears that there is as much controversy about what & who "is" folk music, as there is with what & who "is" New Wave. She tells me that there are huge fights on their websites - just like us!

The only group I can remember her listening to is Eddie From Ohio. They weren't bad - I think they reminded me of the Judybats, but less zany. I know she likes Dar Williams, Jason Mraz & some of the other more popular/mainstream singers.

If she comes in today, I'll ask her for recomendations.

I really like Natalie Merchant's 2003 release "The House Carpenter's Daughter" where she does traditional and contemporary folk tunes. And yes, a few years back I jumped on the bandwagon and bought the "O Brother Where Art Thou" soundtrack.

I really like all of Five for Fightings stuff. Dude can write a tune.

"You just pick a chord, go twang, and you've got music." ~ Sid Vicious

Okkervil River
Akron/Family

and for something totally indescribable yet cool as fuck:

The Benders (especially "Donna Lee")

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Damien Rice - O
Kings Of Convenience - Quiet Is The New Loud

are two of my fav "folky-acoustic" CD's

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I went through a folk-phase about 6 months ago. Couldn't hear it enough. But OLD folk. Original recordings by Leadbelly, Woody Guthrie, Dock Boggs, the Watson Family.

Harry Smith's "Anthology of American Folk Music" is just chock full of interesting material. It's a 6-CD set with terrific liner notes.

All this stuff was borrowed from the local Library, by the way.

My idea of contemporary folk is early Dylan, I guess. "The Freewheeling Bob Dylan" is a great album. Tracks like 'Masters of War' and 'A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall' still hold weight and make sense today.

[quote]Originally posted by Blir
[br]Is this just way way too off topic around here? Any folks have some fav folk or folky songs?

[/quote]

Way off topic for sure Blir. I like it.

A few of my favorite folky sounding songs.
Traffic - John Barleycorn
Ellis Paul - Take Me Down
Cheryl Wheeler - When Fall Comes to New England
The Shins - New Slang (kind of folky)
CSNY - Helplessly Hoping (always loved the harmonizing in this song )
The Greatful Dead - Box of Rain

Black Rebel Motorcycle club "Howl". When this cd came out it threw me for a loop. They did a 180 from heavy Psychedelic guitar driven rock to folk rock. It's as close to folk as I'm willing to get.

My favorites would be:

The Incredible String Band
Donovan
Aztec Two-Step
Lindisfarne (quasi-folk)
Do'a
Natalie MacMaster (she's more traditional Irish-Scottish music)

It's really hard to say as I'm not terribly fond of folk as a whole. But I like the occasional song.

<p align="justify">I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Neo-Folk/Death In June[}:)] Kudos on the Mazzy Star mention, although I read on AMG she's categorised on something like "Neo-Psych"... I dun care. She sounds beautiful[:p]

Not a fan in general, but I LOVE:

Kendra Smith
(used to be in the Dream Syndicate, then went solo, then formed Opal, and then Opal's members formed Mazzy Star.) HEAVENLY!