Joe Weed Swanee: Music Of Stephen Foster CD

Swanee features vocals and instrumentals performed by the most popular and acclaimed artists of today's contemporary acoustic music scene, including:Tim O'BrienLaurie LewisJay Ungar & Molly MasonNorton BuffaloTony TrischkaRob IckesJohn ReischmanMarty AtkinsonTodd PhillipsJoe CravenListen for yourself, and discover why Swanee's early reviews are all glowing!"Assembled by producer Joe Weed and performed by an all-star ensemble of old-time acoustic players ... the arrangements presented on this album are simplicity personified: voice and guitar, lonesome harmonica solos, sad fiddles and fast-break mandolins. For those interested in American music, this is required listening."Dan Aquilante"All-American and All Right"The New York PostJuly 3, 2001"This is the first all-Foster CD in 10 years, and the first with this type of performance since the start of bluegrass, country, folk, and the other styles represented by the fine contemporary musicians assembled for this collection. For the thousands of times I've heard these songs, some of Joe Weed's arrangements are already vying as my favorites."Deane L. RootDirector, Center for American MusicStephen Foster MemorialUniversity of Pittsburgh"Simply put, 'Swanee' is the rarest of gems. Producer Joe Weed has created a collage of some of the planet's greatest traditional players and Foster's finest, most lasting works. This thoughtful and tastefully done project deserves a space in everyone's home music library."Ray EdlundHost/Producer, "Pig in a Pen"KPFA-FMBerkeley, CA"This album can easily stand beside other traditional music classics like the "Oh Brother Where Art Thou" soundtrack. This is not only the best tribute to Foster's music that I have ever heard, it is a strong and engaging piece of Americana in its own right."Charles WolfeProfessor of English, Middle Tennessee State Universityrenowned author and writer on traditional folk and american music"Producer and guitarist Joe Weed ... has released a stirring new collection of Foster songs, recorded with the help of folk's finest, including Tim O'Brien, Laurie Lewis, Sarah Elizabeth Campbell, Joe Craven and Jay Ungar. ... Weed and his collaborators handle these songs with the reverence they deserve. The disc's crystalline production and moving performances should make this the definitive Stephen Foster collection."Wallace BaineSanta Cruz SentinelMay 31, 2001"The performances are highly accomplished, nuanced, and uniformly sensitive to historical performance practices all the while being deliciously attractive to contemporary ears. Joe Weed's production is a marvel of great music and great music-making."Dale CockrellProfessor of MusicologyVanderbilt University"Joe Weed's "Swanee" is valuable and welcome because the full range of Stephen Foster's compositions, from minstrel show tunes to parlor ballads, has not previously been available on a single, in-print CD."Ken EmersonAuthor, Doo-dah! Stephen Foster and The Rise of American Popular Culture

Performers include: Norton Buffalo, Todd Phillips, Laurie Lewis, Molly Mason, Tim O'Brien, Tony Trischka, Rob Ickes, Jay Unger, Joe Craven, Sarah Elizabeth Campbell, Joe Weed.