Fast Folk Musical Magazine records, 1982-2002, bulk 1982-1995
date: label: Date
content: 1982
label: Date
content: 1982-2002
label: Date
content: bulk 1982-1995
label: Date
content: 20th century
name: label: Creator
content: Fast Folk Musical Magazine
label: Creator
content: Hardy, Jack 1947-2011
label: Creator
content: Meyer, Richard A.
label: Subject
content: Fast Folk Musical Magazine
notes: label: Notes
content: The Fast Folk Musical Magazine (which also operated under the name The CooP: Fast Folk Musical Magazine from 1982-1983) was a non-profit organization that published recordings with an accompanying magazine from 1982-1996. Fast Folk began as an outlet through which singer-songwriters could perform, as there were few venues that booked folk singers in New York City during that time period. Jack Hardy (1948- ) headed this endeavor in the Speakeasy club, sharing space with a belly dance club and a falafel restaurant. A musician's co-op was created at the Speakeasy, meaning that everything in the club was to be done by the musicians, from booking to cleaning. The first show by the musicians' co-op at the Speakeasy was in September of 1982. It was considered the best place for a musician to get a gig if he or she did not already have a record deal.
label: Notes
content: Richard Meyer (b. 1952), who eventually became editor of Fast Folk in 1985, joined the project shortly after its inception as a performer, writer and graphic designer for the magazine. Jack Hardy introduced himself to Meyer at a concert and invited him to sign up for the Songwriter's Exchange; another project organized by Hardy in which musicians performed songs for each other that they had recently written. Slowly, the number of people working on Fast Folk grew and Meyer trained others to do what he did. An important part of the organization was its community-oriented system; it was almost entirely run by an ever-changing group of volunteers, some of whom stayed longer than others. As the staff at Fast Folk increased, it became continuously involved in shows such as the annual Bottom Line shows, the Greenwich Village Folk Festivals and the Bob Dylan Imitators Contest, which were used as fundraisers.
label: Notes
content: Fast Folk provided a good way for musicians to be able to make their own record or to be part of a record. Many recording artists such as Lyle Lovett, Tracy Chapman, Michelle Shocked, Christine Lavin, Suzanne Vega and Shawn Colvin recorded some of their first songs with Fast Folk. While some musicians eventually became commercially successful, Fast Folk consistently stressed that this was not their organization's objective. By releasing many different artists' work on each recording, Fast Folk strove to expand the collective horizons of their audience and spread the power of individual songs as opposed to individual artists. Songwriters were incorporated into an issue of Fast Folk by sending in demo tapes or by being heard by Hardy and Meyer at a Songwriters' Exchange or other performance. The Fast Folk committee also had a significant input as to who was on each album. The magazine was used as an outlet for discussing current issues of songs and songwriting across the country, as well as reviewing albums and interviewing artists. Many issues were devoted to the music of different sections of the United States such as Boston, Los Angeles and the Pioneer Valley in Massachusetts. The issues of Fast Folk were sold mostly through subscription, but also at the Speakeasy club. Around the time Richard Meyer contacted the Smithsonian, Fast Folk stopped producing records and magazines, mostly due to a lack of volunteers with enough time to devote to a business of Fast Folk's size.
label: Notes
content: A finding aid for the business records and an inventory of the audio/video materials are available.
label: Notes
content: The Smithsonian Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections acquired these materials in 1999, when Fast Folk Musical Magazine donated its records to the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage. In 1996, Richard Meyer, on behalf of Fast Folk Musical Magazine, contacted Anthony Seeger, then Director of Smithsonian Folkways Records, offering the Fast Folk materials to the Smithsonian. After several years of correspondence, the Smithsonian received the collection. The Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage agreed to keep the recordings available commercially and to retain the records in the archive, as well as to leave Fast Folk with the option to restart publication of the magazine.
label: Summary
content: The Fast Folk Musical Magazine records, which date from 1982-2002, document the activities of Fast Folk Musical Magazine. The collection is comprised chiefly of audio/video materials and the paper business records of the company. Audio and video materials include phonograph records, reel-to-reel tapes, VHS videotapes, audiocassettes, digital audiotapes, compact discs and miscellaneous audio material. The paper records include press materials related to Fast Folk and Fast Folk recording artists, magazine source materials, recording agreements, lyrics, artist biographies, photographs, financial documents, correspondence, planning for events and other miscellany. Additionally, there is a Fast Folk t-shirt and a bag of Fast Folk pencils, pens and erasers.
label: Cite as
content: Fast Folk Musical Magazine records, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution
label: Repository Loc.
content: Smithsonian Institution, Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, 600 Maryland Ave., S.W., Suite 2001, Washington, D.C. 20024. Call 202-633-7322 for appointment. Fax: 202-633-7019. Email: rinzlerarchives@si.edu
place: label: Place
content: United States
topic: label: Topic
content: Folk music
label: Topic
content: Popular music
label: Topic
content: Folk singers
label: Topic
content: Popular music--Publishing and writing
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections
objectType: label: Type
content: Audio cassettes
label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Audiotapes
label: Type
content: Business records
label: Type
content: Compact discs
label: Type
content: Contracts
label: Type
content: Correspondence
label: Type
content: Digital audio tapes
label: Type
content: Ephemera
label: Type
content: Financial records
label: Type
content: Phonograph records
label: Type
content: Photographs
label: Type
content: Videotapes
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Access by appointment only. Contact the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections at 202-633-7322 for additional information
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Copyright restrictions apply. Contact the archives staff for information
physicalDescription: label: Physical description
content: Phonograph records
label: Physical description
content: Reel-to-reel audiotapes
label: Physical description
content: VHS videotapes
label: Physical description
content: Audiocassettes
label: Physical description
content: Digital audiotapes
label: Physical description
content: Audiotapes (AMPEX 467)
label: Physical description
content: Compact discs
label: Physical description
content: Business records 720 folders
label: Physical description
content: (59.02 cubic feet)