Free Music!

Folks, I've never been one to download someone else's music for free. Some people consider it illegal. But I do enjoy listening to old records and if I can get 'em for free, so much the better. I thought I'd share a link to bunch of old time music compiled by the good people over at The Old Time Hearld. It's got all kinds of goodies from the great radio station, WFMU in New Jersey, Alan Lomax's archives and even a site called the Honking Duck. This music was recorded long ago and aside from these online archives, may only be available on the original 78s. Click here for links to all the freebies.

Over the past couple years I've turned into a certified Western Swing nut. Western Swing was a popular form of music emerging in the '20s and fading from the public eye by the late '50s/early 60s. With influences ranging from swinging jazz to cowboy, hillbilly, polka and country music, the large, multi-piece western swing orchestras of the day dominated the airwaves and dance halls from Tulsa to San Diego. I think of it as cowboy jazz: sophisticated yet light hearted. Fathered by stars of the genre such as Bob Wills, Milton Brown, Cliffie Stone and Spade Cooley, Western Swing brought together top notch, inventive musicianship, wholesome, cornball lyrics and a dance-able beat. Instrumentally, the focus moved from horns, accordions and fiddles in the early '30s to amplified electric guitar (thank you Charlie Christian) and non-pedal/lap and pedal steel guitar in the '40s. Instrumentalists like Leon McAullife, Joaquin Murphy, Merle Travis and Jimmy Wyble pushed the limits of what was possible on amplified strings. Check out this link to another fellow blogger, Western Swing on 78. He's also got a listing of current bands playing this music. Great stuff!