The Original Folkways Recordings of Doc Watson and Clarence Ashley, 1960-1962 is one of the essential documents of the American folk revival, reissued by Smithsonian Folkways in 1994 from sessions organized by Ralph Rinzler at Ashley's home in Tennessee. Clarence Ashley, best known for his spare, eerie rendition of "The House of the Rising Sun," was discovered performing at regional events; it was at these sessions that a young Doc Watson — then a working musician playing electric guitar at dances — was first recorded on acoustic instruments for a national audience. The recordings reveal Watson's astonishing technical facility and ear, and they document a moment of transition: the folk revival discovering living practitioners of older string-band and ballad traditions. The album's historical importance exceeds even its considerable musical pleasure.
Tracklist
- 1 Crawdad Song alt version 2:31
- 2 Sitting on Top of the World alt version 1:59
- 3 Lee Highway Blues 1:45
- 4 Free Little Bird 2:09
- 5 The Cuckoo alt version 2:49
- 6 Rising Sun Blues 2:58
- 7 Looking T'ward Heaven 2:31
- 8 Rambling Hobo - 1 1:30
- 9 Rambling Hobo - 2 1:39
- 10 Shady Grove alt version 2:59
- 11 Cumberland Gap alt version 3:44
- 12 Tough Luck 2:29
- 13 Humpbacked Mule 1:30
- 14 My Home’s Across the Blue Ridge Mountains alt version 2:42
- 15 Way Down Town 2:32
- 16 Banks of the Ohio alt version 4:12
- 17 Little Sadie alt version 2:46
- 18 Carroll County Blues 1:43
- 19 Cluck Old Hen alt version 2:35
- 20 Chilly Winds (Lonesome Road Blues) 2:40
- 21 Sweet Heaven When I Die alt version Doc Watson 2:41
- 22 Fire on the Mountain alt version 2:04
- 23 Will the Circle be Unbroken alt version 5:38
- 24 Old Daniel Prayed alt version 2:25
- 25 Amazing Grace alt version 2:57
- 26 Sally Ann alt version 3:01
- 27 Richmond Blues 1:36
- 28 Reuben’s Train alt version 3:34
- 29 Willie Moore 3:35
- 30 Walking Boss alt version 1:52
- 31 Shout Lulu 1:27
- 32 Skillet Good and Greasy 2:08
- 33 Fly Around My Pretty Little Miss alt version 2
- 34 Run, Jimmie Run 3:09
- 35 Hicks' Farewell 5:26
- 36 The Old Man at the Mill alt version 1:58
- 37 A Short Life of Trouble 3:22
- 38 Brown's Dream 1:44
- 39 Footprints in the Snow alt version 2:39
- 40 I'm Going Back to Jericho 1:55
- 41 Peg and Awl 2:15
- 42 Maggie Walker Blues 2:56
- 43 God's Gonna Ease My Troublin' Mind 3:07
- 44 I Saw a Man at the Close of Day 2:41
- 45 Handsome Molly alt version 2:03
- 46 John Henry alt version 3:12
- 47 Honey Babe Blues 3:47
- 48 Wayfaring Pilgrim 5:05