Track Listings (18) - Disc #1| All Artists: Stephen Foster, Various Artists Title: Beautiful Dreamer - The Songs of Stephen Foster Members Wishing: 5 Total Copies: 0 Label: Emergent Release Date: 8/24/2004 Genres: Folk, Special Interest, Pop Styles: Traditional Folk, Comedy & Spoken Word Number of Discs: 1 SwapaCD Credits: 1 UPC: 635759159428 |
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Search - Stephen Foster, Various Artists :: Beautiful Dreamer - The Songs of Stephen Foster
 | Stephen Foster, Various Artists Beautiful Dreamer - The Songs of Stephen Foster Genres: Folk, Special Interest, Pop
Although America's first great songwriter, Stephen Collins Foster, died 140 years ago, his legacy lives on in the hundreds of songs he left behind. Beautiful Dreamer: The Songs of Stephen Foster was recorded to celebrate h... more » |
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Album Description Although America's first great songwriter, Stephen Collins Foster, died 140 years ago, his legacy lives on in the hundreds of songs he left behind. Beautiful Dreamer: The Songs of Stephen Foster was recorded to celebrate his enormous gift to American culture. Foster's compositions (including "Oh! Susanna," "My Old Kentucky Home," "Camptown Races," "Jeanie With The Light Brown Hair" and "Hard Times Come Again No More") are woven into the fabric of our national identity, yet most music fans today know little about him. Foster has been unjustifiably overlooked in recent decades. No collection of his music recorded by contemporary artists has existed until now. Although tribute albums have become much too common, this project's historical significance distingusihes it from a crowded field. Beautiful Dreamer: The Songs Of Stephen Foster is a collection of Foster's most beloved compositions ? and lesser-known exquisite parlor songs of his day ? sung by some of today's most respected musical artists. The album includes songs by: Raul Malo, Alison Krauss with Yo Yo Ma, Edgar Meyer and Mark O'Connor, BR549, Alvin Youngblood Hart, Judith Edelman, The Duhks, John Prine, Henry Kaiser, Beth Nielsen Chapman, David Ball, Michelle Shocked & Pete Anderson, Grey De Lisle, Mavis Staples, Ollabelle, Roger McGuinn, Suzy Bogguss, Will Barrow and Ron Sexsmith. All of the proceeds from Beautiful Dreamer: The Songs of Stephen Foster will benefit American Roots Publishing, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving American regional culture through literature and art. Goals are accomplished by supporting artists who honor regional culture through their work and by linking them with communities in focused educational programs. Similar CDsSimilarly Requested CDs
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CD ReviewsBeautiful Dreamer thisisgibbie | Indianapolis | 10/18/2004 (5 out of 5 stars) "Just flew in from London the other day and listened to this CD through the whole flight (thanks to United Airlines). So many good songs, so well done. "Beautiful Dreamer" and "Slumber My Darling" open the recording by Raul Malo and Alison Krauss (etc.) respectively. Including Krauss, favorite songs are: "Ah, May The Red Rose Live Always!" by Suzy Bogguss, very beautiful; "Jeanie With the Light Brown Hair" by Roger McGuinn, very excellent Byrdsy interpretation; Holiday Scottisch by Will Barrow. "No One To Love" by Judith Edelman wins for the most haunting interpretation and tightest recording. "Don't Bet Money on the Shanghai" by BR5-49 for funniest. Not dismissing the others, which make quite a bouquet of songs. "My Old Kentucky Home" by John Prine and "In The Eye Abides The Heart" by Beth Nielsen Chapman also win high kudos. This is a great compilation! " Exquisite, and enlightening LangMat | Watsonville, CA USA | 11/13/2004 (5 out of 5 stars) "Foster songs weren't new to me-- growing up, I heard my grandmother sing them, and sang them in school "assemblies." But this CD showed me how little I knew about the range of his works. No big fan of the "country" sound, I nevertheless enjoy the performances on this CD that use that style. All the performances evoke the emotional sense of the music,. Curious to find out more about the man and his times, I read Ken Foster's Stephen Foster biography, "Doo Dah", and recommend it to those who'd like to know the historical context of Foster's music." Energy level is high on this exhilarating tribute J. Ross | Roseburg, OR USA | 10/12/2004 (4 out of 5 stars) "Playing Time - 62:28 -- As one of America's greatest songwriters, Stephen Collins Foster created a legacy that lives on in the hundreds of songs he left us. Although he died at only age 37 in 1864, Foster crafted many masterpieces that are presented here such as "Beautiful Dreamer," "Oh" Susanna," "Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair," "My Old Kentucky Home," "Camptown Races," "Old Folks at Home," and "Hard Time Come Again No More." Besides some of the more familiar compositions, there are many others that are less often heard on this generous disc that exceeds an hour of fine music. The tunes make up part of the intricate patchwork of our national musical identity. It's high time that we rediscover this important part of our essential American heritage.
Contemporary artists do an exceptional job with their interpretations and arrangements of Foster's songs on Beautiful Dreamer. These beloved parlor songs are presented by some highly-respected musicians that represent diverse genres, yet acoustic instrumentation is very central to most offerings. Some of the participating artists include John Prine, Raul Malo, Alison Krauss, Alvin Youngblood Hart, BR5-49, Judith Edelman, Mavis Staples, Michelle Shocked, David Ball, The Duhks, Grey DeLisle, Roger McGuinn, Beth Nielsen Chapman, Ollabelle, Suzy Bogguss, and Ron Sexsmith. Two instrumentals ("Autumn Waltz" and "Holiday Schottisch") are performed by Henry Kaiser and Will Barrow, respectively. The energy level is high on this exhilarating tribute. Thus, the well-executed album is able to keep the music fresh sounding whether covering a plaintive folk ballad or an uptempo toe-tapper. Proceeds from the sale of this album benefit American Roots Publishing, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving American regional culture through literature and art. Liner notes, lyrics and credits are plentiful in the CD's 24-page jacket. (Joe Ross) " |
