This newly remastered six-CD box set is a reissue of the six-LP set compiled by folk archivist Harry Smith in 1952. Some of the many artists influenced by this collection of field recordings from the '20s and '30s are Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Jerry Garcia, Joan Baez and Peter, Paul & Mary. The ANTHOLOGY contains a 100-page booklet that incorporates Smith's original annotations, archival photos, graphics and testimonials by well-known musical figures including Elvis Costello, Dave Van Ronk and Eric von Schmidt. The final disc of this 6 CD set contains a multimedia portion which provides a hypertext essay of images, text, and additional information.

Recorded between 1926 and 1932. Includes liner notes by Greil Marcus, Anthony Seeger, Amy Horowitz, Jon Pankake, Luis Kemnitzer, Moses Asch, Harry Smith, Neil V. Rosenberg and Jeff Place.

Digitally remastered by Dave Glasser and Charlie Pilzer.

ANTHOLOGY OF AMERICAN FOLK MUSIC won the 1998 Grammy Awards for Best Album Notes and Best Historical Album.

This is an Enhanced CD, which contains both regular audio tracks and multimedia computer files.

Personnel: Clarence Ashley (vocals, guitar, banjo); Garley Foster, Will Shade (vocals, guitar, harmonica); Clifford Breaux, Coley Jones, Julius Daniels, Dick Justice, Ashley Thompson, Furry Lewis, Henry Thomas , Didier H‚bert, Cleoma Breaux Falcon, Bill Reed, James Touchstone, Jim Jackson, Ken Maynard, Mississippi John Hurt, Preston Young, Tewee Blackman, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Blind Willie Johnson, Charley Patton (vocals, guitar); Ramblin' Thomas (vocals, bottleneck guitar); Chubby Parker, Dock Boggs, Richard Burnett, Gus Cannon, J.P. Nestor, Uncle Dave Macon, Bascom Lamar Lunsford, Charlie Poole, Buell Kazee (vocals, banjo); Sara Carter (vocals, autoharp); Yank Rachell (vocals, mandolin); Arnold Williamson, G.B. Grayson, Ophy Breaux, Uncle Eck Dunford (vocals, fiddle); Ben Ramey (vocals, kazoo); Versey Smith, Bessie Johnson (vocals, tambourine); Clarence Nelson, Ernest Phipps, The Elders McIntorsh and Edwards' Sanctified Singers, A.P. Carter, Sally Sumler, Angeline Johnson, Rev. D.C. Rice, Kelly Harrell, Alabama Sacred Harp Singers (vocals); Alfred Steagall, Elijah Avery, Roy Harvey, Sam McGee, Sleepy John Estes, Will Weldon, Charlie Burse (guitar); Vol Stevens (banjo, mandolin); Delma Lachney, Leonard Rutherford, Posey Rorer, Andrew Baxter, Norman Edmonds, Prince Albert Hunt's Texas Ramblers (fiddle); Ernest V. Stoneman, Noah Lewis (harmonica); Jab Jones (piano).

Liner Note Authors: Jon Pankake; Chuck Pirtle; Eric Von Schmidt; Luis Kemnitzer; Greil Marcus; Luc Sant‚; Jeff Place; John Fahey; Kip Lornell; Moses Asch; Peter Stampfel; Neil V. Rosenberg.

Recording information: Atlanta, GA (08/09/1923-??/??/1932); Bristol, TN (08/09/1923-??/??/1932); Camden, NJ (08/09/1923-??/??/1932); Chicago, IL (08/09/1923-??/??/1932); Dallas, TX (08/09/1923-??/??/1932); Johnson City, TN (08/09/1923-??/??/1932); Memphis, TN (08/09/1923-??/??/1932); New York, NY (08/09/1923-??/??/1932); Rich (08/09/1923-??/??/1932); St. Louis, MO (08/09/1923-??/??/1932).

Editor: Peter Seitel.

Originally released in 1952 as a quasi-legal set of three double LPs and reissued several times since (with varying cover art), Anthology of American Folk Music could well be the most influential document of the '50s folk revival. Many of the recordings that appeared on it had languished in obscurity for 20 years, and it proved a revelation to a new group of folkies, from Pete Seeger to John Fahey to Bob Dylan. The man that made the Anthology possible was Harry Smith, a notoriously eccentric musicologist who compiled 84 of his favorite hillbilly, gospel, blues, and Cajun performances from the late '20s and early '30s, dividing each into one of three categories: Ballads, Social Music, and Songs. Smith sequenced the three volumes with a great amount of care, placing songs on the Ballads volume in historical order (not to be confused with chronological order) so as to create an LP that traces the folk tradition, beginning with some of the earliest Childe ballads of the British Isles and ending with several story songs of the early 20th century. The cast of artists includes pioneers in several fields, from the Carter Family and Uncle Dave Macon to Blind Lemon Jefferson, Mississippi John Hurt, and the Alabama Sacred Harp Singers. Many of the most interesting selections on the Anthology, however, are taken from artists even more obscure, such as Clarence Ashley, Bascom Lamar Lunsford, and Buell Kazee. After the Anthology had been out of print for more than a decade, Smithsonian/Folkways reissued the set in a six-disc boxed set, with the original notes of Harry Smith, as well as a separate book of new reminiscences by artists influenced by the original and a wealth of material for use in CD-ROM drives. ~ John Bush

This six-CD box set is nothing less than a blueprint for virtually every form of 20th Century pop music. A staggering compendium of the varied but closely connected styles of early American music, the ANTHOLOGY collects folk, blues, hillbilly, and church music to present a textured and unbelievably rich tapestry. This collection's worth as both a historical document and a source of infinite delight cannot be overstated. Folk archivist Harry Smith envisioned the project and compiled these 78s in 1952. His choice of material reveals not only his impeccable taste but also the spirit of true democratic humanity, manifested and reflected in song.

Recorded largely in the rural South of the early '20s and '30s, the ANTHOLOGY covers forlorn ballads of lost love, Creole chants, Christian hymns, deep swamp blues, novelty songs, political music, and innumerable tunes that dazzle with their melodic and rhythmic charms and risks. Included here are many legends of roots music, including The Carter Family, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Charlie Patton, Dock Boggs, and Mississippi John Hurt, as well as dozens of others less heard. Make no mistake. This definitive examination of the roots of America's musical family tree is of monumental importance. It belongs in every music lover's library.

Rolling Stone (5/13/99, p.52) - Included in Rolling Stone's "Essential Recordings of the 90's."

Rolling Stone (9/18/97, pp.101-102) - 5 Stars (out of 5) - "...it is impossible to overstate the historic worth, sociocultural impact and undiminished vitality of the music in this set, and of Smith's idiosyncratic scholarship and instinctive wisdom....a bedrock of our national musical identity..."

Spin (1/98, p.88) - Ranked #1 on Spin's list of "Top 10 Reissues."

Spin (10/97, p.139) - "...an exhaustively annotated six-CD set that has no competition as reissue of the year....between strength of material and force of vision, [Harry Smith] did nothing less than create a canon. At a time when folk music [included] Leadbelly, Woody Guthrie,...and the Lomax corpus, Harry Smith convinced the world that there was something far weirder and more exciting..."

Entertainment Weekly (9/19/97, p.85) - "...this definitive collection of blues, country, and gospel recordings inspired the American folk revival after its release in 1952. Now painstakingly remixed and remastered...ANTHOLOGY retains the primitive power of those seminal 78s while meeting the more exacting audio standards of the digital age." - Rating: A