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The Best of the Vanguard Years
Odetta is one of the last American folk singers with ties to the authentic folk tradition. Mentored in the early '50s by Woody Guthrie cronies Ramblin' Jack Elliott and Pete Seeger (whose "If I Had a Hammer" is covered here in a strangely unmelodic manner), as well as Harry Belafonte, Odetta is easily identified by her husky voice--a strong influence on both Joan Armatrading and Tracy Chapman. While with Vanguard, she made a spiritual claim to tunes already associated with Leadbelly ("Midnight Special," "Cotton Fields"), not to mention slave spirituals, pop gospel ("He's Got The Whole World"), and even "Battle Hymn of the Republic." Classic rock fans will recognize "Down on Me," which was later electrified by Janis Joplin. The best tracks here, however, are the four unreleased gems that close the CD, running from terrific jazzy blues and R&B (including the great standard "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out") to her take on "House of the Risin' Sun." --Bill Holdship
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Tracks| 1 | Midnight Special | | 2 | Special Delivery Blues | | 3 | Special Delivery Blues | | 4 | Rambling Round Your City | | 5 | Cool Water | | 6 | Down On Me | | 7 | I've Been Driving On Bald | | 8 | Saro Jane | | 9 | Battle Hymn of the Republic | | 10 | If I Had a Hammer | | 11 | Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho | | 12 | Meetin' At the Building | | 13 | No More Auction Block for Me | | 14 | Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child | | 15 | Spoken Intro: He Had a Long... | | 16 | Another Man Done Gone | | 17 | He's Got the Whole World In His Hands | | 18 | Make Me A Pallet On Your Floor | | 19 | Livin' With the Blues | | 20 | Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out | | 21 | House of the Rising Sun |
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