Funding for Down Home Radio is provided in part by The Puffin Foundation and by Echoes of the Ozarks Vol. 2 – another great old record
Continuing with Down Home Radio’s “Awesome Out of Print Records” series – On today’s show I play one record straight through. Its an old County Records LP I picked up called Echoes of the Ozarks Vol. 2, released in 1970. I really like this record, there is some great string band music on here. It was an unexpected treat. I got it somewhere for cheap, didn’t look at it closely at all, figured it would be only mildly interesting. Then I put it on and haven’t been able to stop listening since. I particularly love Reeves’ White County Ramblers use of the old fashioned pump organ in their sound. Apparently they usually used piano, but used the organ because that’s all they had at the recording studio. Glad they did! Its great.
The record features: Reeves’ White County Ramblers, Luke Highnight’s Ozark Strutters, Dr. Smith’s Hoss Hair Pullers, A.E. Ward & His Plowboys, and Fiddlin’ Bob Larkan & Family. All great bands and hard to find. If anybody has volume 1, send it my way! This is an excellent compilation.
CLICK HERE to download this record cut up into tracks.
See below for liner notes and more track information:
Click on image to enlarge
December 3rd, 2008 at 8:07 am
For those interested to hear more of this great music, County Records has re-released this compilation in two cds… By the way, i’m looking for a County lp that has not been re-edited in cd,it’s called “Old-time fiddling from old New-England” by the Riendeau Family. Maybe you have it?
December 3rd, 2008 at 12:41 pm
Cool, didn’t realize they’d rereleased it on CD. I don’t have “Old-time fiddling from old New-England” but will definitely look out for it.
December 3rd, 2008 at 2:45 pm
Great one, Eli. County did do those CD reissues but for whatever reason left off the choicest material from Vol. 3 in the LP series – namely the two earth-shaking Weems String Band sides and the Carter Brothers & Son’s impossibly catchy “Nancy Rowland”: “Had a dog, his name was Rover / When he died he died all over.”
January 14th, 2009 at 6:34 pm
Another fine record! Thanks! I have a shameless request — do you have any of Obray Ramsey’s Prestige LPs? I really like his cuts on “Banjo Songs of the Southern Mountains.” His solo LPs are selling for well over $100, if you can even find one. He recorded three:
PR-INT 13009 Obray Ramsey – Jimmie Rogers Favorites
PR-INT 13020 Obray Ramsey – Folk Songs From The Three Laurels
PR-INT 13030 Obray Ramsey – Great Smokies Songs
If you have any of these, I’d love to hear them!