Work songs, common in many traditions, often improvised and typically sung at a tempo that matches the task, help keep the workers productive, happy and connected. In 1959, Lomax had visited Parchman Farm State Penitentiary in Mississippi and recorded a group of prisoners, led by James Carter, a man who had left home at 13 and seen a lot of prison time, singing a “bad man ballad” while chopping logs in time. It’s credited for turning many people on to country music, and you don’t have to visit too many hip urban households before you find a much-played copy.įor inspiration, Burnett scoured the Lomax archive, unearthing one particular gem, a recording of a prison work song. The soundtrack was a huge success, winning Burnett a Grammy for Album of the Year in 2001, and selling millions. Burnett obviously considered the film, with its depression-era Mississippi setting, and the Coens’ aim of making the music an integral part of the story, as a great opportunity to share his love of American folk songs. For their film O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Joel and Ethan Coen called on the services of the respected artist and producer T-Bone Burnett, another great champion of forgotten folk music. His enormous collection of recordings is now in the hands of the Library of Congress.Īnother source of unsung musical heroes is the world of film, particularly the role of Music Producer, who is typically buried deep in the closing credits, although sometimes a higher-profile artist is brought in to work behind the scenes sourcing music. Many of the folk music traditions he documented died out soon after.
#Lazarus song portable
Armed with a portable tape recorder, Lomax spent several decades from the 1930’s travelling the United States, along with many other parts of the world, recording and archiving musical traditions from the tail end of the days when music was a participatory tradition and every town had its own distinct musical style. One such unsung hero is the American ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax. In our rush to idolise our favourite singers or composers, we miss some other great contributors to musical culture.