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Before I knew that information, whether it is true or not, I would have sworn on that proverbial stack of bibles that she was from the hills and hollows of Harlan County, Kentucky or somewhere nearby. The Carter Family, Maybelle and Sara Carter, June Carter Cash, Jean Ritchie and so on. I am sure that there are others whom I could have included without doing an injustice but I wanted to make this point.
Welch's that I ever heard), longing and, of course, out in those lonely hills facing an inscrutable god, death. Welcome to the mountain music tradition. And then there are the songs of lost, like "Orphan Girl" (the first song of Ms. well you know the rest.
That task has been made infinitely easier by the emergence over the past decade or so of Gilliam Welch in order to keep this mournful mountain music alive. What gives her more, much more is her voice and her song selection as she goes through the mountain women's litany of troubles: not enough money, two many kids, a hard-drinking, two- fisted man who takes out his frustrations on. What they all have in common is that they form part of the line of our common mountain music heritage. That gives her plenty of credibility in my circles.
And that is the rub here. Just as the folk revivalists of the 1960's searched for roots musicians (once they knew they were still alive and kicking and waiting, just waiting, for a second chance) to emulate and then extend those musical traditions today there is a need for develop a new generation of mountain music singers. This CD under review, "Revival", from 1996 is my prima facie case for that last statement.I do not, honestly, know the details of this singer's background although I have heard that she is from some upscale background in California.
I'd reccomend this album. Strange that a guy who owns the entire Black Sabbath collection also digs Gillian Welch, but I do. This is my favorite album from Welch. Orphan Girl, Annabelle, One more dollar, and Tear my stillhouse down are all favorite songs of mine.
I found so many other good tracks on there too, though. The song means so much to me. I bought this cd after losing my daughter in a car accident. I wanted to be able to listen to the song Annabelle, on the cd.
Copy/Paste the link.http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001IDENSS/ref=pe_19690_11070910 What a classic album. little known fact- Gillian recently sang a tune with a new band called The Deep Vibration, and it's available on Amazon right now for free download believe it or not.
Worth every penny. Not really what I was expecting with a title like "Revival", but then again, who expects upbeat from Gillian Welch. Several gems.
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