Coming in 2024
Part of Bloomsbury’s 33 1/3 Genre Series
Folk music of the 1960s and 1970s was a genre that was always shifting and expanding, yet somehow never found room for so many. In the sounds of soul-folk, Black artists like Terry Callier and Linda Lewis began to reclaim their space in the genre, and use it to bring their own traditions to light- the jazz, the blues, the field hollers, the spirituals- and creating something wholly new, wholly theirs, wholly ours.
This book traces the growing imprints of soul-folk and how it made its way from folk tradition to sub-genre. Along the way, it explores the musicians, albums, and histories that made the genre what it is.
Reviews
“A compelling book that progressively reframes how to approach genre as a form of expression, documenting a rich history that needs to be known, understood, and respected. A richly rewarding read.” — Bradley Morgan, author/host of New Books in Music
“33 1/3 has spun off a new side series about different music styles and scenes called Genre. This vital entry discusses the Black artists of the 60s and 70s folk music boom. It also traces their influences and illustrates beautifully how those sounds gradually reverberated across all of American music, even as their creators were marginalized.” — Skylight Books, staff pick
“Soul-Folk, looks at the work of Black artists in the 1960s and 1970s as they remade and reimagined what folk music could sound (and look) like. Beyond her beautiful discussions of artists both well-known and unjustly obscure, Jackson draws together centuries of history and music to position soul-folk not just as a phenomenon of its moment but as a crucial link in the long legacy of Black cultural innovation.” —Charles L. Hughes, No Fences Review/author of Country Soul: Making Music and Making Race in the American South