Charles Coon

Protobilly: The Minstrel and Tin Pan Alley DNA of Country Music 1892-2017 Produced by Henry H. Sapoznik, Dick Spottswood, David Giovannoni 3 CDs - 81 selections - 42 never before reissued - 72 page illustrated book Foreword by Dom Flemons - Opening essay Henry H. Sapoznik Track annotations Henry H. Sapoznik and Dick Spottswood Audio transfers by Doug Benson - Design by Andrew Roberts

Banjos tend to have four or five strings (the top fifth string is known as a ‘drone’). The strings are stretched over a skin, not unlike a drum, which allows the strings to resonate loudly. The earliest forms of Banjo were fashioned by African Americans who had retained the knowledge (before their displacement) of very similar African instruments such as the ‘Kora’, which has strings stretched over a guord. The banjo occupied a central place in African American traditional music and Dixieland Jazz entering into the mainstream of popular culture with the minstrel shows of the 19th Century, it also plays a central role in the Folk culture of rural white Americans in Bluegrass and Mountain music. The Banjo, as well as the fiddle, is the mainstay of American old time music.

Five CD set. "If you write the truth and you're writing about your life, it's going to be country. It'll be country 'cause you're writing what's happening. And that's all a good song is." - Loretta Lynn. Country Music, the eight-part, 16-hour film by Ken Burns, chronicles the creation of a truly American genre of music through the songs and stories of it's greatest trailblazers. Country Music: A Film By Ken Burns (The Soundtrack) includes more than 100 timeless classics as heard in the film, including songs by The Carter Family, Jimmie Rodgers, Bill Monroe, Bob Wills, Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Charley Pride, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton and many more. This deluxe set includes 68 pages of liner notes and rarely seen archival photos, documents and memorabilia.

Amazon Review by Stuart Jefferson
If you're a blues fan chances are you're already familiar with (if you don't already own) some/many/all of these albums. But if you don't own these sets (or have only a few) this is a good way to own all 20 albums in one nice, neat box. The sound is the same as the individual albums which is very good for the various periods when these tracks were originally recorded. The jackets are fairly thick cardboard and are reproductions of the original covers. The outer box is also of good quality. There's a 34 page booklet that has a few paragraphs on each disc, and track lists, but no detailed liner notes to really put this music into some kind of perspective, but information on these artists and styles is available in various blues books/encyclopedias and on the internet.

There is something inherently objectionable when a billionaire acquires an artistic masterpiece by say, Leonardo DaVinci or Claude Monet, only to sequester it from public view. You might feel the same about Julius Hemphill‘s recordings Dogon A.D. (1972) and ‘Coon Bid’ness (1975). Both five star recordings, now out of print, cost a small fortune to acquire. Years ago saxophonist Tim Berne, a disciple of Hemphill, endeavored to rescue the saxophonist’s Blue Boyé (1977) by rereleasing it in 1999 on Screwgun records. In that same spirit, this seven-CD boxset delivers seven-and-a-half hours of Hemphill’s music. The kicker is that it is all previously unheard and unreleased until now. The boxset is a labor of love from another Hemphill disciple and former band mate…

Anton Sanko is a music composer, orchestrator and producer born in New York City. He has been writing music for picture for over 25 years. He is currently working on an adaptation of Chekhov’s “The Seagull”, starring Annette Bening and Saoirse Ronan, directed by Michael Mayer. He has recently scored “Jackals”, a thriller starring Johnathon Schaech, Stephen Dorff and Deborah Kara Unger directed by Kevin Greutert; “Big Bear”, a comedy starring and directed by Joey Kern, also starring Pablo Schreiber and Adam Brody; “Raiders!: The Story of the Greatest Fan Fiction Ever Made”, directed by Jeremy Coon and Tim Skousen; and “The Drowning”, a thriller starring Julia Stiles and Josh Charles, directed by Bette Gordon.

COUNTRY MUSIC – A Film By Ken Burns (The Soundtrack) showcases essential recordings, drawn from the nearly 600 music cues used in the documentary, covering the wide historic terrain of 20th century American country music. A tree with deep roots and ever-expanding branches, American country music evolved from songs passed down from generations of settlers and slaves until 20th century recording technology made it possible for hundreds and thousands (if not millions) of listeners to share the same musical experience on a record.

Jodi Proznick is a Canadian jazz bassist and educator. When she was thirteen, she began playing double bass and was taught by her father. She won the General Motors Award of Excellence in 1993, then attended McGill University. After graduating, she worked in Montreal with Kelly Jefferson, Ranee Lee, and André White.

There is something inherently objectionable when a billionaire acquires an artistic masterpiece by say, Leonardo DaVinci or Claude Monet, only to sequester it from public view. You might feel the same about Julius Hemphill‘s recordings Dogon A.D. (1972) and ‘Coon Bid’ness (1975). Both five star recordings, now out of print, cost a small fortune to acquire. Years ago saxophonist Tim Berne, a disciple of Hemphill, endeavored to rescue the saxophonist’s Blue Boyé (1977) by rereleasing it in 1999 on Screwgun records. In that same spirit, this seven-CD boxset delivers seven-and-a-half hours of Hemphill’s music. The kicker is that it is all previously unheard and unreleased until now. The boxset is a labor of love from another Hemphill disciple and former band mate…