Overview

Gone to the Country chronicles the life and music of the New Lost City Ramblers, a trio of city-bred musicians who helped pioneer the resurgence of southern roots music during the folk revival of the late 1950s and 1960s. Formed in 1958 by Mike Seeger, John Cohen, and Tom Paley, the Ramblers introduced the regional styles of southern ballads, blues, string bands, and bluegrass to northerners yearning for a sound and an experience not found in mainstream music. Ray Allen interweaves biography, history, and music criticism to follow the band from its New York roots to their involvement with the commercial folk music boom. Allen details their struggle to establish themselves amid critical debates about traditionalism brought on by their brand of folk revivalism. He explores how the Ramblers ascribed notions of cultural authenticity to certain musical practices and performers and how the trio served as a link between southern folk music and northern urban audiences who had little previous exposure to rural roots styles. Highlighting the role of tradition in the social upheaval of mid-century America, Gone to the Country draws on extensive interviews and personal correspondence with band members and digs deep into the Ramblers' rich trove of recordings.

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9780252035609

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Reviews

A richly compelling, thoughtful, and enjoyable book on folk music and its 'revival.' Allen also draws upon the complex world at large by touching on topics such as the Cold War, Vietnam, the folk revival, issues of authenticity, the Civil Rights Movement, and the impact of independent record companies. Kip Lornell, author of The NPR Curious Listener's Guide to American Folk Music While the number of studies addressing the folk revival has increased steadily over the past fifteen years, this is the first scholarly work to focus on the cultural impact of a single performing group. Gone to the Country is a fascinating read. Michael Scully, author of The Never-Ending Revival: Rounder Records and the Folk Alliance

Author Information

Ray Allen is a professor of music and American studies at Brooklyn College, City University of New York. His coedited collections include Ruth Crawford Seeger's Worlds: Innovation and Tradition in Twentieth-Century American Music and other works.

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