The world of music lost two giants last Friday, July 19, in Alan Lomax and Dave Carter.
Alan Lomax (along with his father, John Lomax) recorded a gigantic treasure trove of folk music from all over the US and beyond; without him, scores of songs that most of us know would never have been heard by most of us--songs like "Rock Island Line" and "Home on the Range," for example. Perhaps more significantly, he made some of the first recordings of Muddy Waters and Woody Guthrie. The Folk Revival of the 1950s and 60s probably wouldn't have happened without him. You may have heard a couple of his recordings on the O Brother Where Art Thou Soundtrack; they've also been playing a number of these field recordings on WWOZ in the last few days. May his legacy never be forgotten.
Dave Carter wasn't quite as well-known in many circles, but he was well on his way to being there, and then some. In the past several years, I have come to know a whole slew of brilliant songwriters, but I have to say that Dave Carter was the brightest light of all of them. I mean, he made most of us look like utter fools--not just because he could rhyme "orange" and "door hinge ("The River Where She Sleeps")," but because his songs possessed a tremendous depth way uncommon to most songwriters in our day and age--and I dare say in any era ("When I Go" and "The Mountain," to name two). His three recordings with Tracy Grammer are some of the best of the last four or five years in folk music. I am forever grateful for having known him, for his genuine warmth and generosity, and for his many words of encouragement. I will miss him more than I can ever begin to say. Visit Dave and Tracy's web site.
Posted by gina at July 24, 2002 05:32 PM