The New Lost City Ramblers - Always Been a Rambler
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- Опубліковано 28 вер 2024
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The Arhoolie Foundation Presents: A film by Yasha Aginsky. This hour-long documentary celebrates fifty years of the New Lost City Ramblers (Mike Seeger, John Cohen, Tracy Schwarz and Tom Paley.) Among the first urban musicians to seriously pursue the old-time music traditions of the American South, the New Lost City Ramblers became stars of the 1960s folk revival, appearing at Newport Folk Festival and touring widely in the U.S. and Europe. They inspired generations of younger musicians to explore America’s traditional music, from elder statesman Bob Dylan to banjo virtuoso Bela Fleck to the contemporary African-American string band the Carolina Chocolate Drops, all of whom participated in the film.
ALWAYS BEEN A RAMBLER reveals the Ramblers as musicologists as well as expert musicians, showing them side-by-side with traditional musicians including Dock Boggs, Maybelle Carter, and Doc Watson. Beginning with archival footage of the early NLCR from their start in the late 1950s, the film shows the Ramblers with some of their mentors. Octogenarian banjo picker George Landers gently teases the young acolytes in between tunes, and a Greenwich Village jam session features Clarence Ashley with a young Doc Watson. Nearly fifty years later, the Ramblers chat with musician friends including Doc Watson, Maria Muldaur, and Del McCoury.
Live footage of onstage performances, rehearsals, and informal music-making are combined with a wealth of archival material, with footage of the New Lost City Ramblers as a trio and with other musicians, both well known (“Freight Train” composer Elizabeth Cotten, Mike’s older brother Pete Seeger) and obscure (octogenarian banjo picker George Landers). Extensive use of stills paints a portrait of earlier musical eras: rare late 1800s photos of rural American string bands, photos from the first wave of 1920s commercially-recorded old time music, folk music parties of the 1950s that gave rise to the New Lost City Ramblers, family photos from Seeger, Cohen and Schwarz, and photos of some of the 1960s and 70s old time string bands that were inspired by the Ramblers.
Director Yasha Aginsky has combined backyard and living room music sessions, live festival and concert performances, and informal interviews with a wealth of archival footage, photos and music to create a portrait of these men who have devoted their lives to the pursuit of the old-time music of the American South. The film includes more than fifty old-time songs by more than fifty old-time musicians, played on all kinds of American folk instruments, including fiddle, banjo, jew’s harp, autoharp, mandolin, guitar, Cajun accordion, and even spoons. In addition to the New Lost City Ramblers themselves, some of the other musicians appearing in the film include Clarence Ashley, the Balfa Brothers with Nathan Abshire, Maybelle and Sara Carter, Elizabeth Cotten, Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard, Foghorn Duo, Rayna Gellert, David Grisman, Roscoe Holcomb, Pete Seeger, Ricky Skaggs, and many other contemporary and historical masters of old time music. Directed, edited and written by Yasha Aginsky Narrated by David Holt Produced by Chris Strachwitz, Suzy Thompson, and Tom Diamant
See more at arhoolie.org/
Great to again see this well done and well edited film about a delightful musical trio who via their own superb musicianship, energy and devotion to authenticity and who made many 1000s of so called "folk music" lovers aware of the delights of authentic southern old time mountain music! Helping to produce this film almost killed me until my friend and partner in Arhoolie Records, Tom Diamant introduced us to the late generous founder of San Francisco's Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, Warren Hellman who finally made the film a reality with his generous contribution!
I've just now realized at age 53 that possibly the single most influential band for my very musical extended family is these guys. I don't know why it's taken me so long to ask where they got that tune from, and the New Los City Ramblers are such a primary source for so many of my favorites. I grew up spoiled and indulged in old-time and never inquired as to the source until I realized how little of my people's is actually recorded. This is priceless.
Christmas season of '63 (probably), there was a Seeger Family Concert tour. My mother bought two tickets--I was shocked! We went to Symphony Hall in Boston (She loved that place and the music normally played there.). Pete's crowd of "rabble rousers" were fascinating to Mom, at intermission it was ,"Let's go out in the lobby and look at the people.". So Pete and his long neck banjo and wonderful 12 string did his set. Then sister Peggy, with her new husband, Ewan McColl, a wonderful english traditional singer, did their set. Then the noted intermission. Then three guys made at least three trips apiece onto stage to put instruments on tables set up behind the mics. Lots of instruments. Oh, and this was back in the day of Tom Paley, later replaced by Tracy. They played, then all changed instruments, and played again (repeat). That went on, and my mother, who knew music, was quite impressed with the musicianship of the three. One song, they were a bit confused. Part of sorting that out was that two just exchanged the instruments they had standing at the mics and played the song! In January, the NLCR played at Elliott House at HAVAHD University. She got more tickets and made sure Dad heard them. My birthday is in March and I got an autoharp!! Folk music got their seal of approval. More than 57 years later I have owned some three dozen guitars (Now have 7: 3 twelves, 1 eight, and 3 six stringers), 2 dozen banjos (now have 5 varied 5 stringers). ANd more happiness than is legal in some states! I am a Yankee boy who listened to the NLCR. Thank you, boys, for so much happiness in my life. OH, That fateful night in Boston, they threatened to play 3 songs they did not play... 1. "It's so Lonesome in the Saddle Since My Horse Died", 2. "Our Old Cow Wouldn't Give Milk So We Had To Sell Him" and darn, I can't bring the third to mind right now. It'll pop up once I hit the Comment button........ I still play some of those tunes. Wonderful.
It's good seeing John alive again. His was a terrible loss for me and our friends.
Thank you so much! I've been waiting YEARS to see this!!!
I went to that 2d concert of the Friends of Old Time Music, when I was living in New York. Doc Watson played fiddle lines on guitar behind Clarence Ashley and blew we aspiring guitarists away. I would hang out with Cohen at Washington Square on Sundays, and was a major fan of Paley's guitar technique. Some of us old farts still get together in late September on the Square, but not in 2020. Couldn't get a permit.
Great doc. Their diversity of stringband styles is a tonic for the uniformity of current oldtime string band formats which combine oldtime fiddle and banjo lead with bluegrass guitar and bass backup played at lightening speeds.
6:30 Whose version of Colored Aristocracy is that?
Bill C Malone, premiere scholar of country music, wrote Music From the True Vine. Specifically about Mike Seeger.
We learn about his love for Old Time Music from childhood to the Ramblers and later
We also learn of the time when he heard Bill Monrie and others becoming excluded from mainstream country as rock began
Through liner notes on Folkways and his conbections with real country folks and college types he heloed begin Blurgrass Music
A great book
I’m 81 and first saw the New Lost City Ramblers at a U of Chicago midwinter 1963 or 4? Folk Festival. My mentor, Archie Green, got the U of I Folksong club to invite them to Urbana. I am not a musician, but I am the daughter of a coal miner. Thanks for this
Thank you! The first concert I ever attended was The New Lost City Ramblers, in a big college gym in California around 1964, when I was about 11. It was my introduction to seeing and hearing the mandolin, banjo, guitar and fiddle. It changed my life, though I never bought any of their albums and sort of forgot about them and thought they were just sort of like the Kingston Trio or something. This movie was so helpful in correcting that. Now I’m retired, and I play old time and bluegrass mandolin in several groups, and I own all the Foxfire books about Appalachian ways. I guess I have these guys to thank. I’ve been playing the guitar fifty years now, and they started me on it.
Beautiful detailed documentary! Thank You for sharing.
Love this. Well done and interesting. They were at the beginning of my old time music love affair - mostly saw them at Brandywine Friends Mountain Music Festivals but also parties and smaller venues. I have much of their recorded music and bought their children's record for my kids in the 80's. Thanks so much for this wonderful project.
I was lucky enough to have seen their farewell tour and then see them twice more. It was an ongoing farewell. Saw Mike solo too. Amazing.
Been a fan since their 2d show with the Carleton family @ NYU. Fabulous film!
I really enjoyed this look into the band. I just wish I could have seen them perform.
HARD
AWESOME video upload
Thank you for this.
This was amazing to watch! Thank you 😊