Cultural production, media, and meaning

Danaher, William F.; Roscigno, Vincent J.

doi:10.1016/j.poetic.2003.12.004

Cited by 7 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…Both fields and canons are contested terrain -even after they have become established, they remain open to the continued influences of history, social processes, organisations and struggles between key actors (Binder 1993;Peterson 1997;DeNora 2002;Roscigno and Danaher 2004). For example, when Zora Neale Hurston's novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, was published in 1937, it attracted little critical attention, sold poorly and went out of print until the mid-1960s.…”

Section: 'He Got Better Things For You': the Interplay Between Contenmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Celebrating the reissue, Fricke (1997, p. 101) reported in Rolling Stone, 'Today, it is impossible to overstate the historic worth, sociocultural impact and undiminished vitality of the music in this set Roscigno and Danaher 2004). Concurrent with the reissue, musicians, scholars and journalists widely acknowledged the Anthology as a significant cultural document: one that they claim informed, and helped to form, the urban folk revival of the late 1950s and 1960s.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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‘Must Be Born Again’: resurrecting the Anthology of American Folk Music

Skinner¹

2006

Pop. Mus.

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Since the 1997 reissue of the 1952 Anthology of American Folk Music by Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, journalists, scholars and musicians have promoted this collection as the 'founding document' (Marcus 1997) and 'musical constitution' (Cantwell 1996) of the urban folk revival of the 1950s and 1960s. This reception differs markedly from that of its original issue, which sold few copies and attracted only minor critical attention. This article provides an account of the transformation in the Anthology's cultural status -showing that the canonisation of the Anthology stems not just from its content, but from the interplay of its content and its sociohistorical context. I identify some of the factors that influenced the retrospective consecration of the Anthology, including the important work of key people, the growth of a new field ('Americana' music) and changes in the organisational structures of the recording industry.This study addresses this dramatic shift in the valuation of the Anthology and highlights factors that contributed to the transformation of its status between 1952 and 1997. The organisation of the essay follows several threads over time -thereby showing the 'tapestry' of forces at play. I begin by turning to a literature concerned with issues of cultural production, including processes that underlie valorisation of cultural products. I then situate the Anthology in its broader sociohistorical contextcomparing reviews that were written about the Anthology at the time of its reissue with those from the time of its original release; reviewing primary documentation concerning its production, sales and marketing; and evaluating the important roles played by key actors, including Asch and Smith. I next suggest that the emergence of new criteria for evaluating 'folk' and 'roots' music influenced the reception of the 1997 Anthology reissue.

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Section: 'He Got Better Things For You': the Interplay Between Contenmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%