Worlds of Sound
Ciara HaskettAnthropology 377
Ball State UniversityApril 26, 2010
Book Information
• Worlds of Sound– Richard Carlin– Collins Publishing • 2008
– 304 pages
Book Thesis
• Richard Carlin seeks to provide a history of Folkways Records, outlining important individuals along with the social and cultural outcomes produced by the existence of a “different” kind of record label.
Folkways?
• Folkways Records were created in 1940 by Moses Asch.
• Primary goal of Folkways Records: to create an “encyclopedia of sound.”
Moses Asch
Social and Cultural Implications of Folkways
• Moses Acsh created a record company that recorded all sound. All musicians were welcome, regardless of skin color.
• Early records put out by Folkways were Jazz records, employing the “unemployable” according to other record companies of the time.
A Look at Chapter 3: Lasting Friendships
• Chapter examines the close friendship of three individuals who made a huge contributions to folk music.
• Woody Guthrie, Leadbelly, and Pete Seeger
Woody Guthrie
Leadbelly
Pete Seeger
Professional Use?
• The book is not written for professionals, it simply seeks to tell the story of Folkways.
• My use of the book is merely for the historical aspect of it. The book tells another side to Woody Guthrie while offering a glimpse into his friendships with Leadbelly, Pete Seeger, and above all Moses Asch