The Country, Folk & World Recommendation Thread

[Safar]

Albanian Folk Song - Jarnana (Albania)

Alycia plays a variety of styles of fiddle music ranging from foot stompin’ Celtic, to more eclectic music, and incorporates these diverse influences into her shows.
An engaging and entertaining selection from one of North America’s finest young fiddlers – …

Alycia Putnam - Trolley’s Reel / Dunmore Lasses / Balmoral Castle / Edinburgh Rock (Nova Scotia, Canada)

Ivo Papasov is a Bulgarian clarinetist. He leads the Ivo Papasov Wedding Band in performances of jazz-infused Stambolovo music, and is one of the premier creators of the genre known as "wedding band" music in Bulgaria, along with the violinist Georgi Yanev, saxophonist Yuri Yunakov and accordionists Neshko Neshev, Ivan Milev and Peter Ralchev.
"Ivo's album of wedding music, played first thing in the morning, provides thorough and long-lasting attitude adjustment for the busy executive." (Frank Zappa)

Ivo Papasov - Ivaylovsko Horo (Bulgaria)

[Buckeye Randy]

Sometimes you just have to raise your eyebrows and say, "Didn't see that coming".

Orville Peck & Willie Nelson - Cowboys Are Frequently Secretly Fond Of Each Other

[Safar]

Landless are Ruth Clinton, Meabh Meir, Sinead Lynch and Lily Power. They sing unaccompanied traditional songs from Irish, Scottish, English and American traditions in close four part harmony. Their repertoire features songs of love, death and lamentation, as well as work songs, shape-note hymns and more recently penned folk songs. Landless have performed in a variety of settings, both in Ireland and abroad, and are closely involved with traditional singing sessions in Dublin and Belfast.

Landless - The Fisherman's Wife (Ireland)

Spoiler for Landless - Via Extasia:

[Safar]

"Qawaali music," explains Bobby Friction, "Is the physical and musical manifestation of the Sufi religious tradition in South Asia. Powerful, poetic & transcendent, its hypnotic rhythms and melodies celebrate God, love and music as one."
Qawaali emerged in what is now India and Pakistan in the 13th century, in close association with the Sufi and their Islamic mysticism. Typically, there are a lot of people involved in a performance, with eight or nine players making music with harmoniums, tabla, dholak and other percussive instruments. There was a time when women were banned from performing Qawwali music, but things have changed.....
These dedicated women have been honing their Qawwali skills under the guidance of Tahir Qawwal at the esteemed Sama School of Music in Bali since 2020.

Ilahi Sufi Qawwali Women & Sunaz Hesari - Tumhein Dillagi (Pakistan/...)

.....A lead vocalist and a small team of side singers take turns weaving in several different melodies, some of which will be improvised. After a long, improvised introduction for the main song, the singers all join in and vie with each other as the song builds towards its crescendo and sudden, abrupt end.
It’s all about the build-up, so Qawwali songs are rarely short - there are no radio edits here. They can be anywhere between 15 and 30 minutes long, with one of the longest known Qawwali songs - Hashr Ke Roz Yeh Poochhunga by Aziz Mian Qawwal - being almost two hours long!

Hina Nasrullah - Sanson Ki Mala (Pakistan)

Nooran Sisters are Sultana Nooran (born 14 June 1992) and Jyoti Nooran (born 24 February 1994), an Indian devotional Sufi singing duo. Born to a family of Sufi musicians, they perform Sham Chaurasia gharana classical music, a family's style of singing in Hindustani classical music known for the singing of vocal duets.

Dama Dam Mast Kalandar - Nooran Sisters (India)

[Drjohnrock]

Originally Posted by Safar

Landless - The Fisherman's Wife (Ireland)

Spoiler for Landless - Via Extasia:

I really liked this. Thanks for posting it.

[Safar]

Musical group created in the city of Rosario, Argentina, with the aim of recreating (with much respect) classics of Jamaican music...
With a repertoire full of Reggae Roots, Rocksteady and Ska to dance to the rhythm of the "Roots Session" Orchestra.

Roots Session - Swing Easy (Argentina)

[Safar]

Lennie Hibbert (born Leonard Aloysius Hibbert, 12 November 1928 - 8 September 1984) was a Jamaican musician who was bandmaster at the Alpha Cottage School, and also a vibraphone virtuoso, recording two albums for Studio One.

Lennie Hibbert - More Creation (Jamaica)

[elliottsargent]

I've always been into folk -- especially indie folk -- but I could never really get into country. Does anyone have any indie folk stuff they'd recommend?

[Safar]

I'm curious as to how you would define "Americana", Safar. To me it's an all purpose category which includes a lot of musicians who would seem to not have a lot to do with one another, from purely acoustic music to performers like Gillian Welch to straight ahead rock and rollers like Webb Wilder. It's like, "we'll, we don't know what to call it--it's ot a clear cut category like counrty, folk, metal or punk, so let's just call it Americana."

Good point Drjohnrock.
When I first read the quote which I used for Gillian Welch, I hesitated for a second and thought, „isn´t Appalachian music, bluegrass and country included in Americana?“, but it was not enough not to post the quote, and not to think that the author probably knows something I don`t.
Personaly I would not use the term Americana. Mainly because it is still nebulous to me and also because I noticed it only a few years ago and have not become familiar with it since then.
I knew what bluegrass, folk, country was before I stumbled upon the word Americana, tried to guess the meaning, with the result that probably it is restricted to early US folk music ( Woody Guthrie, Carter family....).
Later did some research to broaden my understanding only to come to the conclusion, leave it to the locals.
If I try hard to define the word (that I hesitate to use), it would be (I know it´s more than the music) kind of roots music of the United States; if my narrow view makes sense. How large the span is, I have no idea.

[Safar]

May be it is of interest what HNA a German local newspaper wrote.
Whether it catches all aspects of the definition Americana I doubt.

For many years, country music suffered from an unattractive image: it stood for an arch-conservative attitude and for whiny songs that too often revolved around dusty country roads, pick-ups and cold beer. Country was the opposite of hip. The music industry also recognized this - and reacted accordingly. The rather one-dimensional musical style was opened up, hard rock guitars, thunderous drum sounds and even rapping country singers were incorporated into the traditionally more sedate sound. As a result, country was able to shed its conservative image to some extent - but also lost a large part of its musical identity in the process. Since the beginning of the new millennium, this vacuum has been filled by the newly created Americana music genre - a musical catch basin, not just for traditional country musicians. “Folk, rock'n'roll, blues and rhythm & blues musicians find their home in Americana,” says Jed Hilly, head of the Americana Music Association (AMA), which was founded in 1999. Musicians who prefer “fine art” to “commercial art” and who refer to American traditions in their songs.
Translated with DeepL.com (free version)