Folk Singer

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Work

Dave Van Ronk recorded Folk Singer in April 1962 at Van Gelder Studio, with Rudy Van Gelder as engineer. Shel Kagan produced. The record was released in November 1962 on Prestige International and reissued in 1963 on Prestige Folklore. Van Ronk plays alone, on guitar and vocals. The sessions also yielded Inside Dave Van Ronk.

The album has thirteen tracks, including "Cocaine Blues", "Fixin' to Die" and "He Was a Friend of Mine". Van Ronk plays them with a jazzy touch, which makes the record folk jazz. AllMusic gave it five stars, the only Van Ronk record to receive that rating. In 2017 Pitchfork included it in a list of the two hundred best albums of the 1960s. It was his third studio album and his first for Prestige.

Listening

Track list

1. 1He Was a Friend of Mine3:31Apple Music ↗
2. 2Motherless Child3:48Apple Music ↗
3. 3Stackerlee3:35Apple Music ↗
4. 4Mr. Noah1:31Apple Music ↗
5. 5Come Back Baby3:50Apple Music ↗
6. 6Poor Lazarus5:11Apple Music ↗
7. 7Samson and Delilah2:39Apple Music ↗
8. 8Cocaine Blues4:16Apple Music ↗
9. 9You've Been a Good Old Wagon2:22Apple Music ↗
10. 10Fixin' To Die2:55Apple Music ↗
11. 11Hang Me, Oh Hang Me3:10Apple Music ↗
12. 12Long John2:14Apple Music ↗
13. 13Chicken Is Nice2:32Apple Music ↗

30-second previews via Apple Music. Listen to the whole album on Apple Music ↗

Sources

1. Wikipedia (en): Dave Van Ronk
2. Wikipedia (en): Inside Dave Van Ronk