Folk

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It was Louis Armstrong (or Leadbelly, depending on whom you believe) who came up with the famous final word on the definition of folk music: ‘It’s ALL folk music … I ain’t never heard no horse sing.…’ The quote has been repeated ad nauseam throughout the years, but it has not prevented strenuous debate about the meaning of folk music in every country in which it is performed. Which is every ...

Source: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Music, general editor Paul Du Noyer
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Sometimes called ‘the African John Lee Hooker’, Ali ‘Farka’ Touré (1939–2006) was a Malian singer and guitarist, and one of Africa’s most renowned musicians. Many consider his music to be a bridge between traditional Malian music and its presumed descendant, the blues. The interplay of rhythm and sound in Touré’s music was similar to John Lee Hooker’s hypnotic blues style. Both singers combined a deep-voice delivery with mid-tempo, foot-stomping rhythms, often ...

Source: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Guitar Heroes, consultant editor Rusty Cutchin
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(Vocals, b. 1970) Damon Gough’s charming Badly Drawn Boy alter ego found initial (if cult) success on the roster of the UK’s DIY Twisted Nerve label. A folk singer with allusions of grandeur, Gough sidestepped the tag of troubadour by soundtracking the About A Boy film (2002) and steadily learning to incorporate string sections and orchestras into his sound. He leapt from alternative oddball to daytime radio staple with ease, losing ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
101 Words Read More

(Vocals, b. 1970) By making music that incorporates eclectic influences from folk, hip hop, rock, electronica and studio prowess, Beck Hansen has become one of the most influential American solo artists. Early EPs, albums and singles like the classic ‘Loser’ were released on a variety of labels. When Beck signed to Geffen he retained the unheard-of right to release material on other labels. Odelay (1996) delivered every promise. Mutations (1998) was ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
94 Words Read More

A founding member of the band Pentangle, Bert Jansch (b. 1943) was born in Glasgow. He was heavily influenced by the guitarist Davey Graham and folk singers such as Anne Briggs. He has recorded 25 albums and toured extensively, influencing artists like Jimmy Page, Ian Anderson, Nick Drake and Neil Young. Jansch earned a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2001 BBC Folk Awards. Jansch was raised in Edinburgh. As a teenager, ...

Source: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Guitar Heroes, consultant editor Rusty Cutchin
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(Guitar, vocals, 1893–1958) A powerful guitarist and prolific composer, Big Bill Broonzy linked the Mississippi delta blues of Robert Johnson with the electrified Chicago sound of Muddy Waters and others. Broonzy was recognized early on by the nascent folk music movement in the 1940s. Underappreciated in America, he gained a wide following in Europe through live performances and made lasting impressions on guitarists like George Harrison and Eric Clapton, who recorded ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
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Next to The Beatles, Bob Dylan was the most influential artist of his generation, writing and performing songs whose poetic, sometimes-abstract, often-philosophical lyrics of astute commentary and therapeutic introspection spoke to the masses during an era of social unrest, political upheaval and radical change. While cross-pollinating folk and country with electric rock, Dylan elevated the role of the singer-songwriter and, in so doing, introduced an entirely new dimension to popular music. From ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
1605 Words Read More

(Singer-songwriter, 1936–73) Aged 20, New York-born Walden Robert Cassotto’s chart career started with the novelty million-seller, ‘Splish Splash’. Leading The Rinky Dinks, he next charted with ‘Early In The Morning’ (later a hit for Buddy Holly), and in 1957 ‘Queen Of The Hop’ also sold a million. His major breakthrough was 1959’s million-selling ‘Dream Lover’, followed by his Sinatra-esque US/UK No. 1 cover of ‘Mack The Knife’, the first of several ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
138 Words Read More

Blue-eyed soul and country guitarist and singer-songwriter Bonnie Raitt was born in Burbank, California in 1949, the daughter of Broadway vocalist John Raitt and pianist-singer Marge Goddard. At the age of eight, she was given a Stella guitar as a Christmas present, which her parents insisted she play at family gatherings. Raitt became a devotee of blues and folk music at 14 upon hearing an album recorded at the Newport Blues ...

Source: Rock Guitar Heroes, consultant editor Rusty Cutchin
378 Words Read More

Spanish guitar legend Carlos Montoya (1903–93) helped propel the flamenco style of music from accompaniment for gypsy folk dances and songs to a serious and internationally popular form of guitar music. Montoya was born into a gypsy family in Spain. He studied guitar with his mother and a local barber, eventually learning from professionals and becoming an expert on the history of flamenco. His uncle, Ramon Montoya, was a successful ...

Source: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Guitar Heroes, consultant editor Rusty Cutchin
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(Vocals, b. 1946) Born Cherilyn Sarkasian La Pier in California, her early career yielded hits such as ‘All I Really Want To Do’ (1965) and ‘Gypsys, Tramps And Thieves’ (1971), alongside successes with husband, Sonny Bono (‘I Got You Babe’, ‘All I Ever Need Is You’). She emphasized her Native American heritage on ‘Half-Breed’ (1973) and ‘Dark Lady’ (1974); but apart from 1979’s ‘Take Me Home’ the next decade was a ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
170 Words Read More

(Guitar, producer, 1924–2001) Tennessee-born Chester Burton Atkins, whose father was a music teacher, was one of the most influential twentieth-century guitarists, and was initially influenced by the finger- and thumb-picking country-style playing of Merle Travis. Signed to RCA from 1947, he made scores of mainly instrumental albums, and in 1955 became the head of RCA’s new Nashville studio, producing artists signed to the label, and working with numerous country artists including ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
164 Words Read More

(Singer-songwriter, b. 1973) Irish singer-songwriter Rice finally broke into the mainstream in 2002 after years of busking around Europe. His debut album O charted at UK No. 8; the mellow, Irish folk-inspired tracks proved a hit with the public. His second effort, the equally obscurely titled 9, fared better, making No. 4 in the UK while also reaching No. 22 in the Billboard 200. His honest, melancholy acoustic songs have set ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
94 Words Read More

Davey Graham (b. 1940) (originally Davy Graham) is a guitarist who is credited with sparking the folk-rock revolution in the UK in the Sixties. He inspired many of the famous fingerstyle guitarists, such as Bert Jansch, John Renbourn, Martin Carthy, Paul Simon and even Jimmy Page, who heavily based his solo ‘White Summer’ on Graham’s ‘She Moved Thru’ The Bizarre/Blue Raga’. Graham was born to a Guyanese mother and a Scottish ...

Source: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Guitar Heroes, consultant editor Rusty Cutchin
350 Words Read More

(Vocal/instrumental group, 1978–86) The brainchild of Kevin Rowland, Dexy’s bagged a UK No. 1 with the punky, singalong soul of ‘Geno’ (1980). The manifesto album Searching For The Young Soul Rebels (1980) backed it up. After internal disruptions, a Celtic element was added, and the stomping anthem ‘Come On Eileen’ from the 1982 album Too-Rye-Ay became a global No. 1. ‘Jackie Wilson Said’ charted in 1982, but a disappointing 1985 album, ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
95 Words Read More
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