VA - The Greatest Songs Of Woody Guthrie (1972)

There are two reasons why calling this album “The Greatest Songs of Woody Guthrie” rather than some variation on the greatest hits idea makes sense. First, Guthrie was out singing these songs before there ever were any Billboard charts to help defiine exactly what constituted a hit. Second, although this album starts with Guthrie himself singing “This Land Is Your Land,” clearly his most famous and most popular song, the track shifts to the song being sung by the Weavers. Guthrie sings a few songs and few duets, but mostly his songs are sung by other artists. So what we have here is a tribute album, originally a double-album now on a single CD, that represents some of the best first and second generation folk singers who followed in the path blazed by America’s troubadour.

The first generation would be those artists that actually got to play with Guthrie, which would be not only the Weavers with Pete Seeger (the artist who most closely followed in Guthrie’s footsteps), but also Cisco Houston, Sonny Terry and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott. The next generation is represented on the album by Odetta, Joan Baez, and Country Joe McDonald. Yes, there is an authenticity to hearing Guthrie sing his songs that nobody else can touch, but there is something to be said for other artists replacing his rawness with more of the inherent beauty of his songs (the same way Peter, Paul & Mary did for Bob Dylan). The track information above is incomplete, so here is who sings what on “The Greatest Songs of Woody Guthrie”:

1. “This Land Is Your Land” by Woody Guthrie/The Weavers

2. “Do Re Mi” by Cisco Houston

3. “So Long, It’s Been Good To Know Yuh” by The Weavers

4. “Pastures Of Plenty” by Odetta

5. “Deportee (Plane Wreck At Los Gatos)” by Cisco Houston

6. “900 Miles” by Cisco Houston

7. “Roll On Columbia” by Country Joe McDonald

8. “Hard, Ain’t It Hard” by Woody Guthrie & Cisco Houston

9. “Dirty Overhalls” by Woody Guthrie

10. “Riding In My Car (Take Me)” by Woody Guthrie

11. “Ship In The Sky” by Cisco Houston

12. “The Sinking Of The Reuben James” by The Weavers

13. “Rambling Round Your City” by Odetta

14. “Jesus Christ” by Cisco Houston

15. “When The Curfew Blows” by Country Joe McDonald

16. “1913 Massacre” by Ramblin’ Jack Elliott

17. “Talking Fishing Blues” by Ramblin’ Jack Elliott

18. “Curly Headed Baby” by Cisco Houston

19. “Jackhammer John” by The Weavers

20. “The Great Historical Bum” by Odetta

21. “Pretty Boy Floyd” by Joan Baez

22. “Buffalo Skinners” by Jim Kweskin

23. “Hard Travelin’” by Woody Guthrie, Cisco Houston & Sonny Terry

A folk-music delight from beginning to end!

VA - The Greatest Songs Of Woody Guthrie (1972)

(192 kbps)