At only $12 each, these compilations are essential additions to any music collection.
The Classic series is an enjoyable introduction to the diverse repertoire of American music available from Smithsonian Folkways Recordings. Each CD explores the breadth and depth of a genre while the notes trace its significance within American musical heritage. Longtime lovers of American roots music and newcomers alike find value and enjoyment in the Classic series. Compiled and annotated by GRAMMY award winning Smithsonian Folkways Archivist Jeff Place, award winning bluegrass radio presenter Lee Michael Demsey, blues historian Barry Lee Pearson, and others, the series has produced compilations of bluegrass, folk, blues, maritime, old-time, and mountain music. Look for more Classic titles each year.
Classic Piano Blues from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40194 (2008)
Storyville nightclubs, Beale Street juke joints, gambling houses, barrelhouse bars in the lumber and turpentine camps of East Texas—these were the places African American read more...
Classic African American Gospel from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40194 (2008)
Spirituals, guitar evangelists, "shout" bands, quartets, and choirs sing out the sacred sounds of African American gospel music. This Smithsonian Folkways "Classic" spans over read more...
Classic Old-Time Fiddle from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40193 (2007)
Old-time fiddler Jake Krack and Folkways archivist Jeff Place compiled and annotated this collection of vintage Southern Appalachian string read more...
Classic African American Ballads from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40191 (2006)
Classic African-American Ballads is a sampling of an important, historic, and engaging slice of America's Black music read more...
Classic Canadian Songs from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40539 (2006)
Canadian identity was once truly a mosaic - of disparate regions and small communities widely dispersed over a vast and inhospitable landscape. Classic Canadian Songs from Smithsonian Folkways showcases the rich musical traditions from generations read more...
Classic Labor Songs from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40166 (2006)
Songs of the American labor movement over the 20th century called for just wages, dignity, and a fair shake. They voiced grievances, affirmed the value of the worker to society, and expressed hope for life in a more just world. Classic Labor Songs read more...
Classic Railroad Songs from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40192 (2006)
As 19th-century America expanded, so too did the "ribbons of iron" that crisscrossed the vast landscape and sparked the imagination of music-makers. Work songs, ballads recounting riveting exploits, and instrumental echoes of the once familiar sounds of the steam locomotive read more...
Classic Bluegrass Vol. 2 from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40163 (2005)
Compiled from over 40 years of classic bluegrass recordings on the Folkways and Smithsonian Folkways labels, Classic Bluegrass, vol. 2 showcases many of the key artists who shaped the sound of this internationally-acclaimed read more...
Classic Southern Gospel from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40137 (2005)
Showcasing some of the best in bluegrass gospel and country gospel from the Smithsonian Folkways archives in a single, special priced album. The music's plain-spoken, direct, and earnest style stokes it with power and appeal, whether performed read more...
Classic Folk Music from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40110 (2004)
We often take for granted the supremacy of artists such as Doc Watson, Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Lead Belly, Big Bill Broonzy, Brownie McGhee, and other folk music legends. Classic Folk sheds new light on the success of the urban intellectual-driven movement read more...
Classic Maritime Music from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40053 (2004)
More than just sea chanteys, maritime musical tradition encompasses an ocean of songs from people who have lived and worked on the water. Onboard are Folkways favorite singers-Dave Van Ronk and the Foc'sle Singers, Lead Belly, and Paul Clayton read more...
Classic Old-Time Music from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40093 (2003)
This collection of old-time social and instrumental string-band music spotlights instrumental prowess. Old-time music features playing styles that pre-date bluegrass, emerging from the string band tradition stretching back to the early years read more...
Classic Blues from Smithsonian Folkways Vol.2
SFW CD 40148 (2003)
For over a century, the blues have continually forged new musical alliances and pushed against boundaries, reaping rich harvests from infusions of diversity, innovation and vitality. With a spark of rock, or a nod to jazz, the blues stay true in spirit read more...
Classic Blues from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40134 (2003)
A living and dynamic tradition, blues is forged in hard times but powerful enough to bring on the good times. Legends such as Lead Belly, Memphis Slim, Big Bill Broonzy, Elizabeth Cotten, Sonny Terry, and Brownie McGhee, among others formed read more...
Classic Mountain Music from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40094 (2002)
Riding the wave of the renewed interest in traditional American music, Classic Mountain Songs From Smithsonian Folkways Recordings showcases a handful of the greatest mountain ballads as performed by some of the most influential folk singers read more...
Classic Bluegrass from Smithsonian Folkways
SFW CD 40092 (2002)
It all began in 1956 with the release of the historic Folkways album American Banjo: Three-Finger and Scruggs Style (SFW 40037), the first-ever full-length bluegrass LP. From that point on, Folkways Records was synonymous with great bluegrass read more...