Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues

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Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues
Image:Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues CD cover.jpg
Studio album by Odetta
Released	1956 (original), February 6, 1996, February 1, 2005 (re-releases)
Recorded	San Francisco, California, September 1956
Genre	Folk, Blues, Vocal, Calypso
Label	Tradition Recordings TLP 1010 (LP) Rykodisc 1004 (1996 CD) V.I. Music 450661 (2005 CD)
Producer(s)	Dean Gitter
Odetta chronology
The Tin Angel (Odetta & Larry) (1954)	Sings Ballads and Blues (1956)	At the Gate of Horn (live) (1957)
Original cover (1956)
Image:Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues original cover 1956.jpg
The vinyl cover of Ballads and Blues
Original back cover
Image:Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues - original back cover.jpg
Introduction by producer Dean Gitter

Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues is the debut solo album by American folk singer Odetta, first released in 1956.

Contents 1 Background 2 Miscellanea 3 Personnel 4 Track listing 5 External links

Background

• Like much of Odetta's early work, Ballads and Blues combines traditional songs (e.g. spirituals) with blues covers.

• Some songs on this album were also recorded for Odetta & Larry's 1954 album The Tin Angel
  • "Santy Anno"
  • "'Buked and Scorned"
  • "Another Man Done Gone"
  • "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands" (although it only appears as a bonus track on this album)

• The initial vinyl release has tracks 1-8 as side A, then tracks 9-16 as side B (the "Spiritual Trilogy" being counted as one track, a medley).

• The 'enhanced' CD version of this album, released in 2005, contains four bonus tracks and has a slightly different cover (with a different photo of the singer).

Miscellanea

• Bob Dylan singled this album out as one of his favorites by Odetta; indeed, it was albums like this that inspired him to play folk music instead of rock 'n' roll^[1].

Personnel

• Odetta Holmes (vocals, acoustic guitar, hand claps)

Track listing

Tracks marked [*] are 2005 CD bonus tracks, not on original vinyl release.

1. "Santy Anno" (traditional) – 1:55
2. "If I Had a Ribbon Bow" (traditional) – 2:42
3. "Muleskinner Blues" (Rodgers) – 2:51
4. "Another Man Done Gone" (traditional) – 2:11
5. "Shame and Scandal" (traditional) – 2:23
6. "Jack o' Diamonds" (traditional) – 3:15
7. "'Buked and Scorned" (traditional) – 2:40
8. "Easy Rider" (traditional) – 5:06
9. "Joshua" (traditional) – 1:53
10. "Hound Dog" (traditional) – 3:50
11. "Glory, Glory" (traditional) – 2:12
12. "Alabama Bound" (Ledbetter) – 1:42
13. "Been in the Pen" (traditional) – 2:32
14. "Deep Blue Sea" (traditional) – 3:00
15. "God's Gonna Cut You Down" (traditional) – 1:51
16. Spiritual Trilogy: "Oh, Freedom", "Come and Go With Me", "I'm on My Way" (traditional) – 6:06
17. "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands" [*] (traditional) – 1:53
18. "Take This Hammer" [*] (Ledbetter) – 3:27
19. "Deep River" [*] (traditional) – 3:00
20. "Chilly Winds" [*] (traditional) – 2:41

Wikipedia information about Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues". It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer). Help contribute to Americola and edit this article.