Hi folks:

I'm glad to see all the praise for Dick's work, but I don't think it's
necessary to diss the Harry Smith AAFM in consequence. They're two very
different things. The Smith anthology came out just as the folk revival
of the 1950s was gathering steam, and was a very important source for
many of the participants. It got 78s back in print and in front of the
ears of performers and listeners at a time when only a few collectors
could hear them. It may be flawed, but it has an important place in our
musical history. (And the records weren't a random selection; they were
carefully chosen and sequenced. Smith's criteria were eccentric and
esoteric, but he was very definite about using particular recordings in
a particular order.)

The Spottswood series is incredibly valuable, and a brilliant survey of
the variety of our music. It's not as obviously accessible as the Harry
Smith, and it came out as the second revival (of the early 1970s) was
beginning to lose steam, so it didn't have the impact that the Harry
Smith had. Tremendous music, and a brilliantly done job on the notes,
but mosts of the discs work better if you know something about the field
already; they don't have the popularization function that the Harry
Smith had. Like I said, two very different things, from two very
different eras.

Peace,
Paul