American Favorite Ballads, Vol. 1
In 1957, at the dawn of the urban folk revival, Moses Asch's Folkways  label issued the first of Pete Seeger'sAmerican Favorite Balladsseries.  Marketing these albums to schools and libraries, Folkways served to document a  range of great American folk songs that had remained popular with children since  the previous century. Now Smithsonian Folkways has reissuedAmerican Favorite  Ballads, Vol. 1--five volumes were released between 1957 and 1962--in an  expanded edition that adds extra tracks taken from some of Seeger's other LPs  from the same era. Although this is not explicitly a children's album (the  sordid murder depicted in "Frankie and Johnny" is hardly kid-friendly), Seeger's  performances have a jaunty sing-along quality that still appeals to younger  listeners. Seeger's intent was to introduce these classic songs to a new  audience, but his use of banjo as a backing instrument proved almost as  influential. His idiosyncratic picking unexpectedly launched a fad among  up-and-coming folk groups like theKingston Trio, and just  about every band from the period added a Vega Pete Seeger model banjo to its  lineup. Though many of the songs onAmerican Favorite Ballads, Vol. 1will be very familiar, Seeger's unabashed joy in singing them is infectious and  will have even the most curmudgeonly listener itching to sing along with him.--Michael Simmons