Ron's Top 10 Favorite Folk CD's of 2011

Okay, there are 12 CD's on my list of top 10.  Sue me.  Since folk music is such a diverse genre, and because we were blessed with so many great recordings during the past 12 months, I felt it was okay to add a couple of additional CD's to my list of personal favorites.  

I do not like to use the word "best", because each of these recordings strikes me in different ways and it is unfair to compare one to the other in that respect.  Suffice it to say that this list represents what I feel are important recordings of 2011 that showcase outstanding artistic achievement in our folk community.

Here they are:

ARI & MIA       "Unruly Hearts"

            self -www.ariaandmiafriedman.com

BEARFOOT    "American Story"

            Compass - www.compassrecords.com, www.bearfootband.com

BROTHER SUN           "Brother Sun"

            self - www.brothersunmusic.com

DAVID WAX MUSEUM "Everything is Saved"

            self - www.davidwaxmuseum.com

DISAPPEAR FEAR      "Get Your Phil"

            self - www.disappearfear.com

GILLIAN WELCH        "The Harrow & The Harvest"

            Acony Records - www.gillianwelch.com

JOE CROOKSTON     "Darkling & The Blue Bird Jubilee"

            Milagrito Records - www.joecrookston.com

JOEL MABUS             "American Anonymous"

            Fossil Records - www.joelmabus.com

JOHN MCCUTCHEON            "This Land: Woody Guthrie's America"

            self - www.folkmusic.com

THE ONCE      "Row Upon Row of the People They Know"

            Borealis - www.borealisrecords.com , www.theonce.ca

RED MOLLY   "Light in the Sky"

            self - www.redmolly.com

SPUYTEN DUYVIL      "New Amsterdam"

            self - www.spuytenduyvilmusic.com

DAVE VAN RONK TO BE THE BASIS OF A MOVIE???

Joel and Ethan Coen, the film making brothers who gave us movies such as "Fargo", "The Big Lebowski" and last year's critically acclaimed feature "True Grit", are working on their next feature - which appears to have a folk music theme, and potentially evolves around Dave Van Ronk.

According to the Los Angeles Times movie blog, the brothers Coen are drawing source material from Dave Van Ronk's posthumous memoir (completed by author Elijah Wald) "The Mayor of MacDougal Street." At a Lincoln Center event, the brothers told the audience that the movie will feature music performed with a "single instrument".

Details are scarce, but it appears that the film will be loosely based on the life story of Van Ronk, whose life and career placed him at the epicenter of the folk revival in Greenwich Village and he witnessed many of the events that lead to important social changes of the day - including the infamous Stonewall Riots. Readers of the book will certainly see the rich material that Dave's life offers for a film. The film will likely be a fictionalized version of his story and it could evolve into a character as rich as "The Dude" from Big Libowski with the great soundtrack that accompanied "Brother, Where Art Thou?".

UPDATE JUNE 28 - It appears that this film will NOT be about Van Ronk after all. Shortly after the above information began circulating, Entertainment Weekly ran a story that said:

" “A script which the Coens are working on and might do next takes place in Greenwich Village,” a spokesperson says. Though the life of the late 1960s folk singer Dave Van Ronk was reported as a possible basis for the film, the rep says, “Dave Van Ronk is not a character in it, though [the Coens] have read his memoir The Mayor of MacDougal Street for pleasure and inspiration.” "

Click here for the full story.

WFDU-FM's TRADITIONS Playlist for May 8, 2011

WFDU-FM's TRADITIONS Playlist for May 8, 2011
HOST: Ron Olesko

Sorry, just as with my homework back in grade school, I'm tardy in turning
in my playlists. Here they come...

My guest this week was Greg Klyma, who gave an outstanding performance in
our studio and shared a few cuts from his latest CD.

It was also Mother's Day, so a few songs for Mom were scattered throughout
the show.

(Tune in to TRADITIONS every Sunday from 3 to 6pm Eastern Time over WFDU-FM
89.1 in the NYC/Northern New Jersey area, or on the web at www.wfdu.fm where
our shows are archived for two weeks on the website. A Sing Out! Radio
Partner )

ARTIST Tune / Song
ALBUM LABEL - Website
Theme: HARVEY REID Dirty Dish Rag
Solo Guitar Sketchbook Woodpecker Records - www.woodpecker.com
CARTER FAMILY There's No One Like Mother To Me
The Carter Family - 1946-1941

Guest: Greg Klyma - performed live in the studio. Songs included
"Garbageman", "Good Luck John"(a Joe Crookston song), "Two Degrees in
Buffalo"
GREG KLYMA Limb
Pianomandonatoin self - www.klyma.com
GREG KLYMA Kale Store
Pianomandonatoin self - www.klyma.com

TOM CHAPIN My Mother's Quiet Eyes
The Turning of the Tide Sundance Music - www.tomchapin.com

TOM CHAPIN Life Grows On Give Peas A Chance
Sundance Music - www.tomchapin.com
RANI ARBO & DAISY MAYHEM Eve
Gambling Eden Signature Sounds - www.raniarbo.com
TIM GRIMM Better Days
Farm Songs Vault Records - www.timgrimm.com

DAVE ROWE Keeper of the Light
The Music Never Dies Outer Green Records - www.daverowe.com
SPUYTEN DUYVIL Judge Not
New Amsterdam self - www.spuytenduyvilmusic.com
BARNABY BRIGHT Yellow Moon
Wake the Hero self - www.barnabybright.com

SUZANNE VEGA The Queen and the Soldier
Close-up, Vol. 2, People & Places self - www.suzannevega.com
LISSA SCHNECKENBURGER Young Charlotte
Song self - www.lissafiddle.com

LOUDON WAINWRIGHT III Mother's Last Farewell Kiss
High Wide & Handsome, The Charlie Poole Project 2nd Story Records -
www.lwiii.com
ELLIS You Are Royalty To Me
Right On Time self - www.ellis-music.com

JOE CROOKSTON Darkling & The Bluebird Jubilee
Darkling & The Bluebird Jubilee Milagrito Records -
www.joecrookston.com
JOSH JOFFEN Liberty's Song
Postcard from Antigua self - www.joshjoffen.com
ALICA MCGOVERN Ruby Red Sky
Words Through the Seasons self - www.aliciamcgovernmusic.com

ABBIE GARDNER Hope
Hope self - www.abbiegardner.com
FRED GILLEN JR. Land of Hope
Match Against a New Moon self - www.fredgillernjr.com
JOAN BAEZ Requiem
Day After Tomorrow Razor & Tie - www.joanbaez.com

DAVID WAX MUSEUM Lavendar Street
Everything is Sacred self - www.davidwaxmuseum.com
BRIAN WRIGHT Maria Sugarcane
House on Fire Sugar Hill - www.brianwrightmusic.com
CHASING JUNE I'll Still Believe in You
Under the Slate Grey Sky self - www.chasingjune.com
=======================
Ron Olesko
WFDU-FM
1000 River Road
Teaneck, NJ 07666
www.ronolesko.blogspot.com
www.wfdu.fm