Diverse voices bring alive Woody Guthrie's dustbowl songs
C. R. Greyraven | Forest Falls, CA | 08/21/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"One of my favorite albums. Woodie Guthrie wrote true folk songs. The diverse voices of currently-celebrated folk singers honor his impact on American music. You get a folk sampler of these many talented voices, plus a whirlwind tour of depression-era history, workingman sentiment, politics, etc. The songs are emotionally powerful, spanning a full range from joyous celebration or playful humor to righteous anger or heartbreaking pathos."
Not quite a complete trbute
Mr. R. Brailey | Edinburgh, Lothian United Kingdom | 09/07/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"As much as I love both albums, which I have treasured for a long time, this collection is sadly missing two songs. The version of Vigilante Man by Richie Havens is a great omission considering it is probably the only version available. The other song by Odetta would had made this collection truly complete.
With so many re-issues of LP's onto CD formatt I would had expected a better presentation of two unique events for the fans of Woody's music & those performers who took part.
I have given it 4 stars although without the missing songs I would not buy it."
Proper tribute to a legend
Walter W. Kennedy Jr. | 04/02/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"As a Woody fan for many years,I've had this recording in every possible form and still love it.Aside from marking Dylan's first performance since his accident in '67, the rest of the line-up is filled with people who belong there.Many tributes have performers who have no reason (other than internal politics)to be included.These performances show people who knew and loved Woody and his songs.Not important but the previous reviewer states that the excluded songs were not written by Woody but by the performers.That is most certainly WRONG."Vigilante Man" by Richie Havens,"So Long (It's Been Good To Know Yuh)" by Judy Collins and "Why Oh Why" by Odetta are all written by Woody obviously.This comes from the original album.The truth shall set you free....."
Incredible superstar gathering
pspa | Boston, MA USA | 02/25/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Amazing! Baez, Collins, Dylan, Paxton and so many more folk rock icons, all in one fabulous concert recording. The singing and playing are uniformly impassioned and excellent, with some of the greatest performances of Woody Guthrie songs ever, in particular Judy Collins singing Deportee so movingly, Tom Paxton brilliantly performing the mock epic Biggest Thing Man Has Ever Done, a great Grand Coulee Dam by Dylan himself, and the list goes on and on. The sound quality is pretty good, but the performances are in a class by themselves. Strongly recommended for all lovers of folk music."