A significant strand of American music, especially in the folk and blues arenas, relates to what came to be known as protest songs when opinions on a number of key social and political issues during the post-war era - civil rights, nuclear disarmament, industrial justice and more - found a unified voice in the musical protest movement. However, this was nothing new, and many of the songs associated with this era came from earlier decades, as blues singers chronicled experiences of racial prejudice, poor rural folk sang about the privations of the Depression, industrial workers railed against exploitation, and gospel singers sought solace in spirituals. This 50-track 2-CD set brings together a selection of recordings which, one way or another, relate to the idea of songs as a medium of protest and social and political commentary, with the later incarnations representing the early stirrings of the classic folk protest movement which crystallised in the early '60s in the hands of Bob Dylan, Joan Baez and others - one or two of their early recordings are included here. Many of the noted voices of protest are featured here - Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Paul Robeson, Josh White - along with folk artists who embraced the cause like Odetta, Nina Simone, Harry Belafonte and many more, plus some of the more obscure but no less important recordings that set the tone and led the way for later artists. It's a fascinating and we hope inspiring collection, which tells many a story.

Tracklist:

Billie Holiday - Strange Fruit
Southern Sons - Go Down Moses
Leadbelly - The Bourgeois Blues
Josh White - Uncle Sam Says
Paul Robeson - Song Of Freedom
Pete Seeger ; The Almanac Singers - Dear Mr. President
Woody Guthrie - This Land Is Your Land
Tom Glazer - We've Got A Plan (G.I. Joe And The C.I.O.)
Sir Lancelot - Atomic Energy
Mahalia Jackson - Amazing Grace
Brownie McGhee, Sonny Terry, Coyal McMahan - I Shall Not Be Moved
Big Bill Broonzy - When Do I Get to Be Called a Man?
The Ramparts - The Death of Emmett Till Parts 1 ; 2
The Weavers - Which Side Are You On
Cisco Houston - The Great American Bum
Brother Will Hairston (Hurricane Of The Motor City) - The Alabama Bus Parts 1 ; 2
Nat King Cole - We Are Americans Too
Odetta - Spiritual Trilogy: Oh, Freedom, Come and Go With Me, I'm on My Way
The Caravans - We Are Soldiers In The Army
Oscar Brand - Fair And Free Elections
Joan Baez - All My Trials
Harry Belafonte - Oh Freedom
Sister Rosetta Tharpe - This Little Light Of Mine
Soul Stirrers - Free At Last
Bob Dylan - The Gospel Plow
Bob Miller - The Rich Man And The Poor Man
Paul Robeson - Joe Hill
Josh White - Defense Factory Blues
Dave McCarn - Cotton Mill Colic
Bob Hill - Pity The Downtrodden Landlord
Furry Lewis - Judge Harsh Blues
Big Bill Broonzy - Black, Brown And White
Southern Sons - Lift Every Voice And Sing
Laura Duncan - I've Got A Right
Woody Guthrie, Cisco Houston, Leadbelly, Sonny Terry - We Shall Be Free
Almanac Singers - We Shall Not Be Moved
Earl Robinson - The House I Live In
Pete Seeger - Talking Atom
Nina Simone - Brown Baby
Staple Singers - I've Been Scorned
Cisco Houston - Soup Song
Dave Van Ronk - Please See That My Grave Is Kept Clean Dave Van Ronk
Mahalia Jackson - Go Tell It On The Mountain
Sam Cooke - Steal Away
Odetta - If I Had A Hammer
Judy Collins - Wars of Germany
The Weavers - Last Night I Had the Strangest Dream
Kingston Trio - Where Have All the Flowers Gone?
Bob Dylan - Song To Woody
Guy Carawan - We Shall Overcome

UPC: 824046343422
Label: Acrobat
Release Date: 8.5.22
Format: CD

Songs Of Civil Rights & Protest / Various - Songs Of Civil Rights & Protest / Various (CD)