The Old, Weird America: Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music (Excerpts)
The Old, Weird America: Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music
In 1952 renowned musicologist, filmmaker and painter, Harry Smith went through his vast collection of blues, old-time country, Cajun, and gospel 78s to compile the groundbreaking Anthology Of American Folk Music box set, which had a profound influence on musicians such as Bob Dylan, The Grateful Dead, Led Zeppelin and Bruce Springsteen.
Now, The Harry Smith Project: Anthology Of American Folk Music Revisited, a 2-CD/2-DVD box set culled from a series of concerts staged by Hal Willner that took place in 1999 and 2001, pays tribute to Harry Smith and his influential Anthology. Features Beck, Nick Cave, Elvis Costello, Steve Earle, Beth Orton, Lou Reed, Sonic Youth, Richard Thompson, Wilco and others.
Prepare for an eclectic journey through The Old, Weird America. Rani Singh's new documentary film tracks the history of Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music from its initial compilation of 78 records from rural Americana to its release on Folkways Records in 1952. Instrumental in helping inspire the urban folk revival of the 1960s, the Anthology continues to influence modern music.
An incredible set of interviewees reveal the lasting impact of the Anthology and the remarkable personality of Harry Smith. After the box set's re-release on CD in 1997, Hal Willner's Harry Smith Project concerts celebrated Smith's idiosyncratic vision, from Nick Cave's cathartic take on spirituals to Lou Reed's mesmerizing evocation of Blind Lemon Jefferson.
The film includes rare archival footage, performances, and interviews with Elvis Costello, Beck, Sonic Youth, Beth Orton, Philip Glass, David Johansen, John Cohen, Greil Marcus, and more. Join us for a wild ride through a remarkable musical.
Filmmaker, musician, painter, mystic, and string collector—Harry Smith wore many hats during his long, eventful life as a key figure of underground culture through the latter half of the twentieth century. In this jubilant documentary, director Rani Singh hones in on Smith's incalculably influential Anthology of American Folk Music, a remarkable and enduring collection of blues and country classics recorded by the likes of Blind Lemon Jefferson, Roscoe Holcolmb, the Carter Family, and the Memphis Jug Band between 1927 and 1934. Smith, an insatiable amateur musicologist, picked up these rare recordings while still in high school, eventually amassing a collection of more than eight thousand "round black ghosts" (in the words of Smith aficionado Greil Marcus) and releasing the best of the bunch on his Anthology in 1959. Singer/songwriter Bob Neuwirth notes that these songs are about "life, death, blood, betrayal, murder, intoxication" and every one of the seven deadly sins. Upon the collection's rerelease in 1997, music tribute impresario Hal Wilner organized a series of concerts featuring some of today's most gifted artists taking a crack at their favorite Anthology tracks. Singh has assembled concert footage, interviews, and archival images into a fittingly celebratory, rockin' doc. Transcendent performances by Beth Orton, DJ Spooky, Sonic Youth, Kate and Anna McGarrigle, Lou Reed, Philip Glass, Richard Thompson, Emmylou Harris, Beck, and Nick Cave highlight the proceedings, and just wait until you hear Elvis Costello tear into "The Butcher Boy." The Old, Weird America is a testament to Smith's impeccable taste in music and that music's enduring appeal and relevance. As Marcus says, " The weirdness means the story will always be new."
—Steven Jenkins, San Francisco Film Society
—Steven Jenkins, San Francisco Film Society
Harry Smith Archives
Writer, Director, Producer: Rani Singh
Co-producer: Adam Hyman
Associate producer: Nick Amster
Editors: Iain Kennedy, Tim Tobin
Online editor, Color grading, Digital mastering: François Maurin
Writer, Director, Producer: Rani Singh
Co-producer: Adam Hyman
Associate producer: Nick Amster
Editors: Iain Kennedy, Tim Tobin
Online editor, Color grading, Digital mastering: François Maurin
Sound Design: Anthony Marinelli
Sound mixer: Clint Bennett
Assistant sound engineer: Beau Bonetti
Additional sound mixer: Damien Rasmussen
Associate sound: David Streja
Sound mixer: Clint Bennett
Assistant sound engineer: Beau Bonetti
Additional sound mixer: Damien Rasmussen
Associate sound: David Streja
90min.