North America music reviews

Though the two "Sacred Spirit" CD's continue to be my favorite AmerInd music, this one is almost equally well done. Spotted Eagle's flute provides the leading motif on all the tracks, joined by muted drums, traditional chant (as in "Bii'saao'beh" and "Brother, Father, Warrior, Son"), and contemporary European instruments. Most are slow and contemplative, but "House Made of Dawnlight" makes me imagine dancers moving lightly over grass (perhaps Native pixies, if there are such things), and "Little Ritual," with its deep-toned male-chorus chanting, sounds like just that. I'll be looking for more CD's by this artist.

I had been looking for native american chants and also some soothing music to listen to. Wandering around the store looking at covers wasn't any help. I happened upon this CD and with the aid of other reviewers here and also being able to listen to parts of a few songs here, decided to buy. I enjoy the entire CD (rare for me). I've found that I don't want a whole CD of chants now. This CD shouldn't offend anyone's ears, it is so easy to listen to.

Douglas Spotted Eagles' Closer to Far Away album is one filled with music that aids one on their journey, whether it be a healing journey, one of introspection, one of dreaming or any other personal journey. His music strikes a chord and keeps on striking deeper and deeper if you open yourself up to it.

The quality of songs on this album is fantastic. The Carter canon of music is worth any trouble you have to go to to hear it. Unfortunately, I don't think that these are the best records of many of these songs. To my ear, they often sound like they have performed the songs once too often and the music sounds tired.

Just for fun, listen to some of the amazon.com samples of the same songs, on different albums, and you'll hear the difference. My advice, try to buy the original recordings.

Nonetheless, this body of work is incredible, and I would recommend that anyone try to acquaint themselves with the music.

Let me first say that this collection of recordings is wonderful. It is the first Carter Family CD I have ever heard.
But, since then, I have heard ealier versions of the songs, and later versions, and have come away a little confused. Their voices on the Columbia recordings are much lower (which at first I thought was cool that Sara sounds like a man) and the tempos are slower. I can only assume that the tape speed is considerably out of whack. Does anyone else know anything about this? I know that Columbia has made this mistake before, most notably on Mile Davis' "Kind of Blue".
Still, the Carters are the real deal. Virtually any of their recordings are fabulous.

After watching the PBS special about the Carter family, and loving their music from my childhood, I wanted to hear again the many wonderful songs and sounds. I have always loved hearing the autoharp.
The cd is great.

If I were stranded on a turtle island and I could only bring along 10 cds, this would be on my list. Whomever chose the songs that ended up on this collection is also welcome on my island. :)

The music is fairly far reaching in its scope with the possible exception of all the vocalists being female. From some traditional songs with only a drum accompanyment to contemporary poetry atop music, this CD has burned itself into my own mind with its lyrical and intriguing music.

I'm not all about native American music. Still, this CD makes me want to hear more. Simply stated, it is excellent.

I purchased this Cd with the hopes of hearing the Native American laguages spoken or in this case sung. This is a great Cd. I have learned the words and now sing along. I only wish that they had provided a translation page so that I knew what I was singing. This is a must have for anyone that loves native music or just loves great music.

An excellent sample of songs from the North American continent.
The CD contains some excellent tracks and is a very good starting point from which albums of the artists featured here can then be purchased, for example Sharon Burch, Walela and Joanne Shenandoah.
However the album works well as a collection in its own right with a suitably varied colection of cntemporary North American women artists.
A CD that will bring joy to the ear from the sheer beauty of the music.

Since my youth I have had an ear for roots music, whether I was conscious of that fact or not. The original of that interest first centered on the blues, then early rock and roll and later, with the folk revival of the early 1960's, folk music. I have often wondered about the source of this interest. I am, and have always been a city boy, and an Eastern city boy at that. Nevertheless, over time I have come to appreciate many more forms of roots music than in my youth. The subject of the following review is an example.

With the recent Johnny Cash movie biography Walk the Line the Carter Family has again come into greater public prominence. And rightly so. The trio performing simple country (or better rural) music mainly composed by A.P. Carter evokes, if not a simpler time, then in any case, a simpler type of music. While I cannot listen endlessly to such music at one sitting about one-half a cd at a time works. Why not the whole cd? There is a very similar melody and guitar line to their work in most songs. The value of each song sometimes gets lost in the basic repetition.

A note on subject matter- The bulk of the songs concern home, hearth lovesickness and religion as might be expected from mountain people. And that is okay. This reviewer, although not a religious man, can appreciate the simple, fundamentalist but very personal religion evoked here. Not to romanticize the simple rural folk of the past but I do not believe that the religious sentiments expressed here are the same as those of religious fundamentalists today who want to ram a theocracy down our throats in the United States today.

As a Christmas present to myself, I purchased the two JSP boxed sets, The Carter Family, 1927-1934 and The Carter Family, Volume 2, 1935-1941. I have been playing them non-stop for the past four days, and I am absolutely thrilled with both of them.

The RCA Victor sides were issued "complete" a few years ago by Rounder records. The Rounder releases are supposed to be re-mastered, yet they don't sound any better than the tracks presented in the JSP collections. And the JSP collections include complete information on the original recording dates, which the Rounder releases do not. Finally, one reviewer here observed that the sleeve notes for the JSP Box sets are minimal; that's true, but when compared to the Rounder releases, I find that the JSP releases actually proffer a bit more biographical information, and better details on the records.

The first set (1927-1934) pretty much covers almost all of the original Victor sides; I have carefully compared the first set with the Rounder series (I have all nine titles in the Rounder releases) and I have only found two or three tracks that are missing from the JSP sets. This is The Carter Family, country music's first family, as they should be heard. Sara's singing is strong and clear; Maybelle's guitar playing is amazing, and A. P.'s harmonious accompaniment is wonderful. The early years are raw and unpolished, but that adds to their aesthetic artistry, and actually enhances their simple charm.

But Volume 2, (1935-1941) is truly exciting for the bulk of material that has not been available of CD before. This box contains the balance of the RCA Victor sides not included in the first set, but also includes dozens of later recordings originally issued on the ARC and Decca labels (Decca owned both). These recordings are completely glorious, and floored me when I heard them (and I've been a fan of "roots" music for many years). The sound is amazing, and the performances, both in terms of instrumental skill and vocal harmony, are far more polished than the early Victor sides. Aside from an MCA (Decca) issue in the "Country Music Hall of Fame" Series and an issue from Sony Special Products on the Country Label, these songs have been totally neglected as CD issues. Between the two JSP sets, the material covered represents about 90% of the original Carter Family records that I am aware of, although there may be many more that are lost forever. This is not likely to be corrected anytime soon. Decca Records is notorious for neglecting to reissue historic recordings, which is a real shame. I wish I had a dollar for every artist I have on a Decca vinyl that has not seen a CD release. Decca has released many historic Jazz recordings on the "Decca Jazz" label, but aside from the Country Music Hall of Fame series (a limited anthology series) it has not seen fit to issue much of the classic country music rotting in its vaults. And there are probably thousands of wonderful popular music recordings in Decca's vaults that may never see the light of day on CD, either. Concurrent with these recordings, the Carter Family also spent years performing live concerts on "border radio". Many transcripts of these fine performances were made, and a few have been made available on obscure labels. But the JSP sets contain most of their studio sessions.

For anyone who doesn't know, the original Carter Family practically invented country music. Sara and Maybelle, who were cousins, married the Carter brothers, A.P. and Ezra, and a musical family was born. They found their way to the 1927 "talent auditions" conducted by Ralph Peer, which also "discovered" Jimmie Rodgers, the Father of Country Music. I often say that if Jimmie Rodgers was the father, than the Carter Family were the mothers. The original group (Sara, Maybelle and Alvin Pleasant) split up in 1941, never to record together again (aside from the wonderful "Historic Reunion" album that Maybelle and Sara recorded in 1965). For many years, Maybelle continued to tour and record with her daughters, June Helen and Anita, under the name of the Carter Family. Of course, June later married Johnny Cash, who toured with June for years; this association helped keep interest in the Carter Family legacy alive for many years.

I have to honestly say that I can't remember when I last enjoyed a boxed set so thoroughly. The simple, pure singing of the original Carter Family is truly wonderful. Their harmony is amazing, their playing incredible. One is always conscious while listening to them that these are self-taught musicians, yet their professionalism is obvious. As I write these words, my stereo is pouring forth their 1935 version of Are You Lonesome Tonight, a song that became a multi-million seller for Elvis Presley 25 years later. I prefer the Carter Family version. You may too.

This is a wonderful collection of the Carter Family. Anyone who has an interest in old time traditional country music will enjoy this. All three members were self taught musicians. We do not see the like of these folks anymore.

The Carter Family has often been called the first family of country music, and no better argument for this claim can be made than this massive 12 CD set. Recorded for a variety of record companies between 1927 and 1941, this set includes all of the studio recordings made by the trio before they went their separate ways. The box set includes a 220 page, hardcover book that includes all known photographs of the Carters, as well as program notes, song lyrics, an essay from noted country music scholar Charles Wolfe, and a discography. For the uninitiated, the Carter Family were from the Clinch Mountain area of Virginia. The group consisted of leader A.P. Carter on backing vocals, wife Sara Dougherty Carter on lead vocals, guitar and autoharp, and Sara's cousin Maybelle Addington Carter on lead guitar and harmony vocals. When the Victor recording company placed adds in Virginia and Tennessee newspapers in the summer of 1927 for musical talent, dozens of local acts appeared and many were recorded. The Carter Family was chosen, as was the soon-to-be legendary Singing Brakeman, Jimmie Rodgers. These recording sessions, often called the Bristol (TN) Sessions, are cited by many as the birth of country music as we know it, incorporating old time string band and folk music with such later developments as blues, ragtime and jazz.

Both the Carters and Rodgers went on to sell hundreds of thousands of 78 RPM records in the late twenties. The Carter Family traveled and performed widely, and their careers even survived the Great Depression. After recording dozens of sides for Victor, the Carters moved on to ARC, Decca and Bluebird. All of the music was memorable, and all of it is preserved here. The sound is rough in spots but better than any previous reissues. Only the Victor sides (about half of this compilation) have been reissued in their entirety, so this is the first CD reissue for many of these recordings. The Carter's mid-Thirties work is some of their finest, and its a pleasure to finally have all of these sides reissued.

The Carter Family's music influenced many other musicians in the Thirties and Forties, and they continued to be a force in later decades as well. The folk revival of the Sixties so a particular renewal of interest, and as late as the 1970s Johnny Cash featured Maybelle Carter and her daughters (including Cash's wife, June Carter) in his recordings and stage shows.

The German company, Bear Family Records, has done their usual excellent work in compiling this release. Sure, its expensive, and its a lot of music from a single act, but serious scholars of American music will consider this set essential. The Carter Family's legacy has never seemed greater than it does on this fine set.

This is it. A superb box-set. Bear-Family did it again ! A must for any ( Original ) Carter Family-fan.

There is little to say about the music that folks looking at this set don't already know. It's nice to have all Carter recordings available in a package of this quality. I also believe the remastering is an improvement on the Rounder series and the book has some interesting information and is very good quality. This set does indeed anchor any collection of old time or early country music.

This is Jeff Ball's best work to date, including his newest CD, Windtamer. From the very beginning, the music calms and relaxes. I used this CD to calm my baby when he had colic as a newborn. It never failed to calm him and put him asleep. If you like the cedar flute, you'll love this CD. Buy it today. You won't be disappointed.

Never heard of Jeff until a friend of Jeff's gave me this tape to hear knowing I loved Native American. I have played it over and over. REVERENCE is one of my favorite tapes. It broke and I even taped it together so I could play it (missing some songs though) Would like to here more by him. Please let me know where to obtain them.

This has to be the best release in years in the Adult Contemporary/Easy Listening/New Age arena. The songwriters all produce deeply moving pieces that transport the listener to a different place. The explanation for each song truly lends the guiding hand in that journey and matches the emotion generated completely. These guys have a very promising future. BRAVO!

For all of you who just got turned on to "O Brother" etc., this is a great 2nd step. This album features the earliest records made by Sara, A.P. and Maybelle - before their radio show and before national fame. This is country music before there was country music, hovering somewhere between the twilight of Anglo-Scots balladry and the invention of Country & Western. The family did not write even one of these 16 tracks (although A.P. took credit for several), but they might as well have - no one has ever done them better. Just listen to Maybelle's classic guitar work on "Wildwood Flower," or those harmonies on "River of Jordan" and you'll see why every folk, bluegrass, country and old time musician in the world pays homage to the Carters.

The paradox of these early recordings is the polish of the playing (again, particularly the guitar work) coupled with the rawness and energy of the performances. No record producer had yet had a chance to tinker with the sound and the result is entrancing.

My personal favorites on the disc, aside from the original versions of "Wildwood Flower" & "Keep on the Sunny Side," are "Bury Me Under the Weeping Willow" (high and tight harmonies with some dynamite bass string guitar solos) and "John Hardy Was a Deperate Little Man," a period ballad that has been largely forgotten.

For anyone ready to take the plunge into roots music, you'll find no better recording.

This is it, the beginning of time as far as country music is concerned. It's important to remember that this is music from another world and values, long ago and far away; before advanced science and aesthetics and before information overload intruded, accessible now only through these recordings. It's also important to remember that the participants were quite young at the time-Maybelle was still a teenager and her cousins Sara and A.P. were in their mid-twenties and mid-thirties, respectively. Because of all this, the topics available were God, the life-to-come, forsaken love, Mother and Father, my old Clinch Mountain home, and most of the rest of Dixie, in just about that order, but thinking about it, is there really much else in life? Maybelle was already a budding guitar master and Sara's vocals, in a higher register than later years, gradually draw you in and hook you permanently and the primitive recording techniques actually helps the other-worldly quality of the songs and harmonies. I do wish Charles Wolfe would expand his invaluable liner notes for the series into a full-fledged biography, concentrating on the personalities involved, particularly the relationship between Sara and A.P.

This is it, the beginning of time as far as country music is concerned. It's important to remember that this is music from another world and values, long ago and far away; before advanced science and aesthetics and before information overload intruded, accessible now only through these recordings. It's also important to remember that the participants were quite young at the time-Maybelle was still a teenager and her cousins Sara and A.P. were in their mid-twenties and mid-thirties, respectively. Because of all this, the topics available were God, the life-to-come, forsaken love, Mother and Father, my old Clinch Mountain home, and most of the rest of Dixie, in just about that order, but thinking about it, is there really much else in life? Maybelle was already a budding guitar master and Sara's vocals, in a higher register than later years, gradually draw you in and hook you permanently and the primitive recording techniques actually helps the other-worldly quality of the songs and harmonies. I do wish Charles Wolfe would expand his invaluable liner notes for the series into a full-fledged biography, concentrating on the personalities involved, particularly the relationship between Sara and A.P.

it took a little while to get used to, but this is truly superb rock-jazz-indian music fusion - ideal for a Sunday afternoon!

The CD is great!! Perfect to pop in the CD player after a hard days work. The sound is soothing.

Anthony Hindson, when asked to describe the album, called it "Turn of the century rock and raga...perhaps." While there certainly are historical references, the album sounds fresh and explores new territory. "Strewth" is a highlight with stellar musicianship from Shankar and Zakir Hussain. "Sunjog Variation" conjures up the fondest memories of the dearly departed Tony Williams. This is an album for the adventurous soul.

The original trio's 20-track Chicago session for ARC in October, 1940. It was their first studio session since leaving Decca in June, 1938. This set is immeasurably better than their previous ARC output (1935) in that the songs are new to their recorded repertoire, and, even today, sound fresh. The recording quality is very good, and the remastering work of Nick Shaffan and Mark Wilder has made the sound clear and clean. The songs themselves span the range expected from a Carter Family session. There is the old folk song, Black Jack David ( often known as 'Black Jack Davy'), the traditional sounding 'Beautiful Isle O'er The Sea', with its tuneful collection of unrelated verses, and the western tinged 'Buddies in the Saddle', from the pen of Maybelle. Religious material is, as usual, well represented, and there is also an A.P. solo in 'I Found You Among The Roses'. This is a love song, given an almost innocent charm by A.P.'s faltering tones. I liked this one, and 'Little Poplar Log House On The Hill', with its catchy, immensely hummable tune. My favourite is 'Bear Creek Blues', which uses much the same tune as their 'Coal Miner's Blues', recorded for Decca in June, 1938. Maybelle's intricate guitar work is pure joy. This is a superb album, both for Carter fans, and for fans of great country music.

This music hits close to the heart of us who worked the soil and lived by the sweat of our brow. The messages are close to home. Harry Summers record collector from Lancaster, PA USA

I hear devout religion, hard work at low pay, and families gathering to keep close. In this big country, the ethnic name may be different, maybe the words aren't english, but it works. Country music forever!

I listened to the samples at B&N before I got this cd, but it sounds much different than I expected. It's like a combo of native american sounds with techno. It's not bad, but I plan to resell.

Another out of this world CD. I run in the early morning with this CD, before the sun.
Very freeing.
Nice beat.
Brings back thoughts of lives before.
If you are looking for an astral/ native american CD. One to let go in, to breath into and let go.

If you are into breathing......it's time to take off!

This outstanding work refreshingly moved me. I believe that understanding the concept of oneness, that we are all connected, all living things, in a very real sense, enables you to connect with what is being given here. The harmonic beauty touches you on this level. Whatever label society has given you for your "nationality", once you get beyond the symbol of what the world says you are - to WHO YOU ARE - the beauty takes on a deeper meaning. This is a must listen to piece, way beyond anything I have yet heard. I'd give it 10 stars if I could. Enjoy.