Ruairidh Grieg asked about source recordings, to which Paul J. Stamler
replied:

Look for recordings from the "Southern Journey" series of field 
recordings by Alan Lomax, now being reissued on Rounder. Also obtain a 
catalog from Smithsonian/Folkways of their reissues of the Folkways 
label. You need to sort through that one carefully to separate out the 
source singers from revivalists, some of whom may sing in more 
contemporary styles, but there are treasures there. Their website:

http://www.si.edu/folkways

A few gems:

Horton Barker: Traditional Singer
Clarence Ashley: The Original Folkways Recordings
Dock Boggs: The Folkways Years
Dillard Chandler: The End of an Old Folksong
Roscoe Holcomb: The High Lonesome Sound
Frank Proffitt: Sings Folk Songs
Doug & Jack Wallin: Family Songs & Stories from the North Carolina Mountains
Various artists: Old Love Songs & Ballads from the Big Laurel, North Carolina

Actually we are doubly blessed by mad-as-a-hatter Rounder, which is
re-releasing the Library of Congress' 1942 et seq. series of field
recordings, starting with _Anglo-American Ballads_, Vol. I (Rounder 1511).  
This has such unsurpassed gems as Texas Gladden singing "The House
Carpenter" (Child 243); Woody Guthrie's "The Gypsy Davy" (Child 200), E.C.
Ball's "Pretty Polly" (learned from a commercially released 78 yet!),
etc., etc.  The liner notes are exceptional.

Ed




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