Folk music! Who you like? (1 Viewer)

[sonicboom]

Who are your favorite folk singers?

 

[sonicboom]

 

[superchuck500]

Bob is the

 

[sonicboom]

Bob is the

I like Dylan also.

 

[guidomerkinsrules]

We could have had a prep thread trying to define folk, and then ranking
Like Scarborough Fair might be the only S&G song I’d call folk
But also maybe Tracey Chapman is folk - maybe 10,000 maniacs and Suzanne Vega are

But, gun to my head
Best folk song - Tangled up in Blue
Best album - Springsteen’s Seeger Sessions
Best group - Peter, Paul & Mary

 

[nolaspe]

Dave Grohl...

 

[Andrus]

Off the top of my head, Jim Croce, James Taylor, Bread, America, Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkle, Carli Simon, Cat Stevens, Joan Baez, Gordon Lightfoot, Don McClean, Joni Mitchell, Crosby Stills and Nash (and for a time Young), Harry Chapin, and John Denver. A few were borderline pop bands/artists but it seemed to be folk to me, at least.

 

[LA_Steve]

Atm The Proclaimers

 

[Zack Lee]

Sixto




for those who have not seen this documentary, run (don't walk ) to blockbuster

 

[Zack Lee]

and love this song

 

[BigOdin504]

Jimmy Rodgers, woodie Guthrie, Joni Mitchell, Pete seager

 

[El Caliente]

There have been a lot of great musicians and songs listed, so I won’t name Guthrie, Dylan, S&G (or anyone that Andrus listed, though I grew up listening to all of that in our home).

But there was a “super group” (though that term is used loosely I suppose to describe the individuals in the group) that came out with an album well over a decade ago called “the Monsters of Folk”. It consisted of M Ward, Jim James, Coner Oberst, and Mike Mogis.

The lone album that they produced was great, and I could listen to it all day as if it were any one of S&G’s albums. They were supposed to put out another album sometime after the initial one had received such success, but it never happened.

They did a live show at Austin City Limits and it was great. I’ve included it below.



Also, do the Mamas and the Papas count as folk music? That entire period of music was just wild.

 

[El Caliente]

Bob is the

I had a seasoned co-worker who grew up in the late 50s early 60s when Dylan was getting started. He said that Dylan wasn’t as much a musician as he was a marketing genius.

I don’t know, or care about how Dylan got so big, all I know is he has put out great music.

It’s still so interesting to me how folks like Dylan, Simon and Garfunkel, and other Jewish musicians had to change their names in order for record companies to produce their music

 

[tenordas]

and love this song

I love Joan Armatrading, though I don't think I'd ever categorize her music as folk. While she tends to defy categorization, I'd probably most agree with calling her jazz fusion.


For my money, the Guthries (both father and son) and Pete Seeger are pretty much the definition and height of folk music. Dylan follows very closely. None of those guys were very good singers, but they were fantastic poets, story tellers, and song writers, which is what really counts when it comes to folk music.
There are many great folk artists I love like PP&M, Joan Baez, Joanie Mitchell (who, like Armatrading, tends to defy categorization as she does more than folk music), Jim Croce, Don McClain, CSNY, etc., but IMHO Woody, Arlo, Pete, and Bob are the "Mount Rushmore" of the genre, at least in the era of recorded music.

 

[superchuck500]

I had a seasoned co-worker who grew up in the late 50s early 60s when Dylan was getting started. He said that Dylan wasn’t as much a musician as he was a marketing genius.

I don’t know, or care about how Dylan got so big, all I know is he has put out great music.

It’s still so interesting to me how folks like Dylan, Simon and Garfunkel, and other Jewish musicians had to change their names in order for record companies to produce their music

I'd say it's pretty clear from the first several years of Dylan recording that he wasn't much of a musician - but he was a great lyricist. He was out to emulate Woody Guthrie as best he could and Guthrie, as most all folk I suppose, wrote commentary on life as he saw it . . . how the songwriter, with a touch of everyman, fits into the world and the challenges he faces. I suppose that's the essence of folk and Dylan embraced it, it's exactly what he wanted to be.

Oddly enough, I think his distinctive vocals (often disliked by many to this day) made him different and that helped him. I don't really know what makes a folk singer in the early 60s good (or not good) at marketing but he certainly was the right person at the right time. But his lyrics are just outstanding and think that's really hard to dispute.