The material this great folksinger recorded for the Folkway archive has since the time of its initial release been re-released in so many forms that it could almost have been scattered to the wind, probably appropriate for folk music if not so darn confusing. The 60's folk revival saw a series of
Guthrie album releases, of which this one, known sometimes as "the green
Guthrie album" was the second volume in one particular concept of a collection. Folk songs or not,
Guthrie takes writing and publishing credit for all the titles, a very nice set of tunes indeed. Part of the fun is the accompaniment, if one can call it that, from two equally brilliant folk artists, the charismatic
Cisco Houston, who perhaps had a better singing voice than
Guthrie, and the harmonica whiz
Sonny Terry. This is one of the rare combinations of white folk and black blues artists, and it comes across extremely well. Highlights are the cowboy classic "Whoopee Ti Yi Yo, Get Along Little Doggies" and the lyrical "Danville Girl." This release came originally with a pamphlet of lyrics and music.