There Is No Eye: Music for Photographs

by John Cohen

Overview

This various-artists folk compilation is a companion CD to John Cohen's book of photographs, There Is No Eye. Cohen, as many people interested in the music assembled here will already know, is not just a photographer, but also a filmmaker, producer, and musician who was a founding member of the New Lost City Ramblers. Whether or not you have the book (and some photos are included in the liner notes), this is a good anthology, though so eclectic that there aren't any particularly strong conceptual threads connecting the tracks (seven of which were previously unissued). Undoubtedly, the song to attract the greatest interest will be Bob Dylan's "Roll on John," a previously unreleased performance of a traditional song from a 1962 New York radio show. It's a decent selection that's in line with Dylan's early folk phase, but just one of about a couple of dozen tracks spanning the 1940s to the early 21st century. There are blues from Reverend Gary Davis and Muddy Waters; a previously unissued "John Henry" by Bill Monroe, from Cohen's 1962 film The High Lonesome Sound; folk revival legends Elizabeth Cotten, Doc Watson, and Roscoe Holcomb; bluegrass by Hazel Dickens & Alice Gerrard; gospel, a Peruvian stringband, and more. There's even beatnik jazz by David Amram ("Pull My Daisy," from the soundtrack to the film of the same name), and "Love My Darling-O," sung by folklorist Alan Lomax himself. The New Lost City Ramblers are represented by "Buck Creek Girls." The music is, for the most part, well-recorded, and it makes for an above-average sampler of various folk styles (mostly, but not exclusively, American), due to its variety and quality. ~ Richie Unterberger

Product Details

Release Date:	11/06/2001
Label:	Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
UPC:	0093074009123
Rank:	133409

Tracks

1. Thank You Lord  -  Gospel Church Harlem
2. If I Had My Way  - Gary Davis  - Lou Klein
3. Have You Ever Been Mistreated  - Yvonne Hunter
4. I Can't Be Satisfied  - McKinley Morganfield  - Muddy Waters
5. Roll on John  - Bob Dylan
6. Man of Constant Sorrow  - Roscoe Holcomb  -  Traditional
7. Hicks Farewell  - Gaither Carlton  - Doc Watson
8. Come All You Tenderhearted  - Carter Stanley
9. Young But Growing  - Mary Townsley
10. TB Blues  - Hazel Dickens  - Alice Gerrard
11. John Henry  -  Monroe  -  Traditional
12. Sally Goodin  - Eck Robertson
13. Twin Sisters  - Sidna Myers
14. Sally Johnson  - Charlie Higgins  - Dale Poe  - Wade Ward
15. Pull My Daisy  - David Amram
16. So Long: Go  - Rufus Cohen  - Wade Patterson  - Rufus Cohen  - Wade Patterson
17. Who'll Water My Flowers  - Sonya Cohen  - Dick Connette  -  Last Forever
18. Oh Babe, It Ain't No Lie  - Elizabeth Cotten
19. Ramblin' Round  - Woody Guthrie  - Huddie Ledbetter  - Alan Lomax
20. Love My Darling-O  - Alan Lomax
21. Buck Creek Girls  -  New Lost City Ramblers
22. Paloma Blanca  -  Huayno Stringband
23. Kitchen Girl  -  Sweet's Mill Band

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Wade Patterson   Primary Artist,Primary Artist
Mary Townsley   Primary Artist
Yvonne Hunter   Primary Artist
Rufus Cohen   Primary Artist,Primary Artist
Gospel Church Harlem   Primary Artist
Alice Gerrard   Primary Artist
Sweet's Mill Band   Primary Artist
Last Forever   Primary Artist
Huayno Stringband   Primary Artist
Sonya Cohen   Primary Artist
Wade Ward   Primary Artist
Dale Poe   Primary Artist
Rev. Gary Davis   Primary Artist
Woody Guthrie   Primary Artist
The New Lost City Ramblers   Primary Artist
Roscoe Holcomb   Primary Artist
Alan Lomax   Primary Artist
Muddy Waters   Primary Artist
Sidna Myers   Primary Artist
David Amram   Primary Artist
Bob Dylan   Primary Artist
Doc Watson   Primary Artist
Carter Stanley   Primary Artist
Gaither Carlton   Primary Artist
Dick Connette   Primary Artist
Hazel Dickens   Primary Artist
Bill Monroe & His Bluegrass Boys   Primary Artist
Eck Robertson   Primary Artist
Elizabeth Cotten   Primary Artist
Charlie Higgins   Primary Artist

Technical Credits

John Cohen   Compilation Producer,Concept,Engineer,Producer,Annotation,Photography
Jeff Place   Archivist
Rufus Cohen   Performer
Judy Barlas   Coordination
Mary Monseur   Production Coordination
Carla Borden   Editorial Assistant
Wade Patterson   Performer
Stephanie Smith   Archivist
Woody Guthrie   Composer,Performer
John Smith   Marketing,Promotions Director
Pete Reiniger   Mastering
Peter Siegel   Engineer
Huddie Ledbetter   Composer
The New Lost City Ramblers   Performer
Roscoe Holcomb   Performer
Ronnie Simpkins   Audio Supervisor
McKinley Morganfield   Composer
Rev. Gary Davis   Composer
Alan Lomax   Composer,Performer
Muddy Waters   Composer,Performer
Traditional   Composer
Bob Dylan   Performer
Doc Watson   Performer
Carter Stanley   Performer
Gaither Carlton   Performer
Lou Klein   Composer
Dick Connette   Performer
Dan Sheehy   Production Supervisor
Hazel Dickens   Performer
D.A. Sonneborn   Production Supervisor
Eck Robertson   Performer
Elizabeth Cotten   Performer
Charlie Higgins   Performer
Wade Ward   Performer
Sonya Cohen   Performer
Chris Stachwitz   Engineer