Search - Dave Van Ronk :: The Mayor of MacDougal Street: Rarities 1957-69

The great Van Ronk, one more time

Jerome Clark | Canby, Minnesota | 04/24/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Dave Van Ronk died on February 10, 2002, remembered only by friends and acquaintances who knew him as a one-of-a-kind character, and by the (only relatively) larger world of folk-music fans and scholars as an important figure in the mid-century revival. That revival produced, most famously and lastingly, Bob Dylan, whose genius Van Ronk was the first to recognize.



Van Ronk's role as a figure in America's cultural history and as influence on the direction of its popular music seems only now to be coming into scrutiny and appreciation. Perhaps in death Van Ronk will be more famous than he was when he was alive. I hope so.



This CD is a companion piece to his recently published posthumous memoir of the same title, written with music journalist Elijah Wald. Though often pigeon-holed as a blues singer, Van Ronk had a range of musical interests, prominently including traditional jazz, theater songs, singer-songwriters, and non-blues folk. This retrospective, taken from private and concert recordings from 1957 to 1969, is one that all Van Ronk fans will want to have. It showcases a dizzying range of material, from a serious reading of "On Top of Old Smoky" to unaccompanied ballads like "The Cruel Ship's Captain" to the scatological humor of "Shaving Cream." Not to mention Brecht-Weill's "As You Make Your Bed" and Joni Mitchell's "Both Sides Now," the latter a true stunner, perhaps the finest version ever recorded by anybody, including its composer. Or the biting and very, very funny parody of the Stalinists who dominated the '50s urban-folk movement, "Way Down in Lubyanka Prison," set preposterously and hilariously to the "Columbus Stockade" melody.



In a small number of instances, the sound quality is not good. One wishes, for example, that Van Ronk had recorded the Bahamian spiritual "All My Trials" in a studio. The jazz-band version of "Salty Dog" was recorded in a studio, but so badly as to be all but unlistenable. Still, Wald, who produced the disc and chose the selections, has done his best with what he had. If there is a Dave Van Ronk revival, maybe it will start here."

The Foundation Of Folk

D. Sean Brickell | gorgeous Virginia Beach, VA United States | 05/02/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Make yer best claims about who's been the most influential artist in folk music. But if you're realistic and serious, either at the top or pretty-damn-close will be Dave Van Ronk. Here are 19 superlative reasons why. Rediscover the depth and emotion simple music can evoke. Or if you're uninitiated, you won;t find a better jumping-in point anywhere.



And anyone who sez it's possible to name the best tracks on this CD obviously needs to listen just a touch longer to every one of 'em. Top-notch start to finish."

Van Ronk was the boss!!

Paul Hislop | 04/28/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Dave Van Ronk's voice was amazing, you'll never forget it, and his music and songs are so varied you won't believe he could make you angry on the one hand and make you cry on the other. Don't even get me started about how he could make you laugh. This CD is a smorgasbord of styles and genres, spanning ballads, rock, blues, traditional folk and political song. They are all from 1957 to 1969 and have never been released, except the one oddity from a weird stereo recording session in New York City. You have to hear Van Ronk's version of "Both Sides Now" which Joni Mitchell has called her favorite of all time, even better than her own version. This truly astonishing compilation has come out at the same time an amazing memoir entitled "Dave Van Ronk: The Mayor of MacDougal Street" has been published by DaCapo. Check it out in the book section."