VA - Folk Duets (1998)

Frequently albums created from old material for the "nostalgia market" contain considerable second rate material. That is not true of this collection. Ian & Sylvia were the most prominent duo in the folk music era - they are represented by 5 tracks. Geoff and Maria Muldaur were best known as members of the Jim Kweskin Jugband where their duets were high points of the albums. Mimi & Richard Farina were less well known - primarily due to Richard's death which had a stiffling impact on the duo - but they are still represented by 4 tracks. From a more country orientation there are the duo's of Flatt and Scruggs as wells as Doc Watson and Merle Travis. The remainder of this collection are names big in the solo market - Joan Baez, Donovan, Bob Dylan, Pete Seeger, Judy Collins, Theodore Bikel… One could scarcely build a better cross-section of the best of the folk duets of the era. Mimi and Richard Farina's "Pack Up Your Sorrows" is a splendid rendition that often gets forgotten among the other excellent renditions. Their Bold Marauder is a dark gem that would fit well with some of the current Celtic resurgence. Doc Watson and Merle Travis' Roll in My Sweet Baby's Arm is another gem forgotten among the many renditions. The weakest piece is Judy Collins & Theodore Bikel's The Greenland Whale Fisheries … simply because it remains simply one of several excellent interpretations. When Collins/Bikel can be the low point, one is speaking of an excellent album.

Tracklist:

01. Ian and Sylvia - Early Morning Rain
02. Ian and Sylvia - For Lovin' Me
03. Ian and Sylvia - You Were on My Mind
04. Ian and Sylvia - Someday Soon
05. Ian and Sylvia - Four Strong Winds
06. Mimi and Richard Farina - Pack up Your Sorrows
07. Mimi and Richard Farina - The Falcon
08. Mimi and Richard Farina - Bold Marauder
09. Mimi and Richard Farina - Hard-Loving Loser
10. Joan Baez and Donovan - Colours
11. Joan Baez and Bob Dylan - It Ain't Me Babe
12. Joan Baez and Mimi Farina - Catch the Wind
13. Bob Dylan and Pete Seeger - Playboys and Playgirls
14. Geoff and Maria Muldaur - That's When I'll Come Back to You
15. Geoff and Maria Muldaur - Chevrolet
16. Doc Watson and Merle Travis - San Antonio Rose
17. Doc and Merle Watson - Roll in My Sweet Baby's Arms
18. Bob Gibson and Hamilton Camp - Well, Well, Well
19. Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs - Salty Dog Blues
20. Judy Collins and Theodore Bikel - The Greenland Whale Fisheries