VA - Troubadours: Folk and the Roots of American Music, Part 4 (2014)

In another fine box set series from reissue specialists Bear Family Records, the history of the American folk ballad tradition is chronicled on Troubadours: Folk and the Roots of American Music. From the dawn of the recording era and the rural Appalachian singers of the 1920s through the pop-crossover singer/songwriters of the '70s, the traditions of storytelling, political statements, and personal introspection have remained a common thread throughout folk music's history. The fourth and final collection of this series stretches into the '70s and encompasses artists who crossed into the pop world and beyond. Rod McKuen, John Denver, Joni Mitchell, Harry Nilsson, and Gordon Lightfoot are all represented on this eclectic volume. It also explores the changing face of troubadours in country music with artists like Townes Van Zandt, Mickey Newbury, and Kris Kristofferson.