Singing Family of the Cumberlands
Description
"Foreword by Charles Wolfe Jean Ritchie, the youngest of fourteen children born and raised in Viper, Kentucky, is considered one of the greatest balladeers in this century. Her performances have influenced the resurgence of interest in folk music and given audiences a glimpse into the heart of Appalachia. Jean Ritchie's Swapping Song Book brings together twenty-one songs from the Cumberland Mountains of Kentucky. Many are old songs, brought over by settlers from Scotland, Ireland, and England. CProduct Details
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About the Author
Jean Ritchie continues to perform at folk festivals, to record, and to publish music.
Reviews
"Ritchie writes as she sings -- naturally and with an instinctive sense for rhythms. Her story of her rearing in the hill-circled town of Viper is simple, vivid, and moving.... A beautiful story of American living." -- New York Herald Tribune
"The Ritchies are rare peope, of sturdy poineer stock. Jean Ritchie sees them fondly, and the reader is likely to share her warmth." -- New York Times Book Review
"The remarkably gentle nature of the book seems even more remarkable when on considers its locale -- the stern, rugged Cumberland Mountains, a stratified rock escarpment in the Appalachian Range. Seen through the gracious prose of Jean Ritchie, however, the cruel, forbidding mountains become kindly shields against the bustling outside work." -- Saturday Review of Literature
"The rich headnotes and photographs speak to the regional culture, the history of the songs and the family's life of simple, enduring values." -- Come-All-Ye
"What a pleasure it is to have this book back in print... each time I open it and re-read the lyrics, I can hear, in my mind's ear, Jean Ritchie's voice, as so many have heard it, clear, calm, and strong." -- Paintsville Herald
" Singing Family of the Cumberlands, her memoir about growing up in Perry County, is considered a gem of Appalachian literature." -- Jason Howard, Kentucky Living
""Ritchie writes as she sings -- naturally and with an instinctive sense for rhythms. Her story of her rearing in the hill-circled town of Viper is simple, vivid, and moving.... A beautiful story of American living."" -- New York Herald Tribune
""The Ritchies are rare peope, of sturdy poineer stock. Jean Ritchie sees them fondly, and the reader is likely to share her warmth."" -- New York Times Book Review
""Her memoire about growing up in Perry County is considered a gem of Appalachian literature."" -- Kentucky Living
"Birth, death, marrying, first love, going to the settlement schools -- the full round of living is here. Jean writes with such tenderness at times that one murmures an apology for intruding on the family circle." -- Chicago Tribune
