Folk music seems to experience a revival every decade or so; many younger audiences were first exposed to this genre thanks to O Brother, Where Art Thou? as its soundtrack.
Nickel Creek combined bluegrass, jazz and folk songs. Later came Gillian Welch – an expert singer/songwriter with an intimate voice who composed poignant songs about love, loss and grief.
Nickel Creek
Folk singers have long been active, but it wasn’t until the 2000s that folk music gained wide-spread exposure. O Brother, Where Art Thou brought traditional string music to a wider collegiate crowd and provided a springboard for acts like Nickel Creek to emerge.
Sean Watkins and Chris and Sara Thile began performing together during their preteen years, beginning by performing weekly at a San Diego pizza parlor. Soon thereafter, their music caught the attention of a Sugar Hill Records executive, who championed their first two albums–Nickel Creek (1999) and This Side (2002)–both which went on to top country charts and win Grammy awards, helping introduce contemporary folk music to an entirely new audience.
Once their band had parted ways, each member pursued solo careers: Thile created and hosted NPR variety show A Prairie Home Companion (later rebranded Live from Here) until 2020; Sara collaborated with husband Jon Foreman as part of duo I’m With Her to release numerous albums; additionally she released solo work such as A Dotted Line.
After Nickel Creek’s heyday, those who followed have found new audiences and kept the genre alive. Gillian Welch and Iris Dement are two such artists; both recorded earthy folk music faithful to Woody Guthrie’s legacy while Utah Phillips specializes in an American working-class culture-influenced folk style. Tom Paxton remains one of the premier protest song writers today with over 50 albums released to his credit and becoming a highly regarded folk singer of modern times.
Odetta
Odetta was among the first black women to make an impactful statement through folk music. Her gap-toothed smile and dramatic stage presence set her apart from white folk singers; yet she was an accomplished artist and political activist, embodying many ideals of civil rights movement such as MLK and Rosa Parks’ acknowledgements of her influence; in 1999 President Clinton honored Odetta with the National Medal of Arts award.
Odetta’s songs bridged personal and political, theatrical, and spiritual elements seamlessly, providing audiences with a truly transformative experience when witnessing her perform live. Odetta tapped into deep reservoirs of anger, channeling it through art to be used as an effective force for change.
She is widely considered one of the most influential women in folk music. Her legacy has inspired artists like Gillian Welch and Iris Dement to release albums inspired by Carter Family music and Woody Guthrie’s storytelling styles. Additionally, O Brother Where Art Thou’s success has lead to increased exposure of traditional folk music among younger audiences who may otherwise not have encountered it before.
Odetta has been honored with an induction into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame with a performance and touching video tributes from fellow musicians including Pete Seeger, Madeleine Peyroux, Janis Ian, Harry Belafonte, Joan Baez, Bob Dylan as well as members of Sweet Honey In The Rock and Josh White.
Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris, one of the most acclaimed female musicians to emerge on the folk music scene, has had an enormously profound effect on contemporary music as a singer-songwriter-producer. She has recorded in various genres but she remains best-known for her distinctive singing voice that can transform an atmosphere. Emmylou has served as a guide and inspiration to numerous folk music artists.
At the height of the folk music revival of the 1970s, she performed regularly at clubs in D.C. where she met Gram Parsons – whom she credits with mentoring her career. On her solo major label debut album Pieces of the Sky (1975), she explored universal themes such as love songs, mournful ballads and political protest.
She followed up her album release with a tour featuring Parsons’ backup band the Fallen Angels. On her 1976 release Elite Hotel she combined country and folk music, gathering songs by Patsy Cline, Buck Owens, and the Louvin Brothers among others.
Harris continued her musical experimentation with 1995’s Wrecking Ball album and later featured more songwriting-focused albums like Stumble into Grace (2000 and All I Intended to Be (2008). Additionally, Harris joined Dolly Parton and Linda Ronstadt on O Brother, Where Art Thou? (Grammy Award winning soundtrack) before teaming up with Rodney Crowell for Old Yellow Moon (2013) and The Traveling Kind (2015) recording sessions.
Gillian Welch
Gillian Welch is a modern folk singer influenced by traditional country and bluegrass music. She met David Rawlings at Berklee College of Music auditioning for a country band; together they’ve performed at Newport Folk Festival, Coachella Festival and MerleFest festivals; have shared stages with Emmylou Harris, Dwight Yoakam and Ryan Adams acts; as well as recording on numerous albums over time.
Revival and Hell among the Yearlings both received Grammy nods as best folk albums. Furthermore, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, The Horse Whisperer and Songcatcher all included songs by Welch as soundtrack contributions; additionally they have contributed tracks to several tribute albums to Gram Parsons such as Songs of Dwight Yoakam: Will Sing for Food and Return of the Grievous Angel).
Welch’s rootsy sound has captured the attention of numerous contemporary artists. Her music fuses heartbreaking authenticity from Appalachian tradition with punk rock arrangements and guitar styles from the ’80s and ’90s, drawing influence from artists such as Ani DiFranco, Tom Petty, the Decemberists, and Barry Gibb.
Ramblin’ Jack
Ramblin’ Jack had an enormous influence on American folk music. A true road warrior who embraced reinvention, he broke free of middle-class respectability at home to pursue life on the road and performing. Singing both Woody Guthrie songs as well as creating his own, Ramblin’ Jack helped spread American roots music far beyond Greenwich Village’s folk revival scene.
He embodied wanderlust and fascination for life around him, writing lyrics that explore universal themes. Additionally, he used his fame as a folk singer to advocate for causes including world hunger and AIDS awareness through song “Sprout and the Bean”, with its poignant imagery which can be read multiple ways from abortion to Christianity.
He influenced several generations of musicians, and his daughter created a documentary about him that won a Sundance prize in 2000: The Ballad of Ramblin’ Jack won Sundance on its release. It chronicles Ramblin’ Jack’s life through interviews with family members, rare film footage of folk artists, home movies and home video relics; an essential work that showcases both his legacy and impact in folk music as well as being an introduction to new listeners of folk. Ramblin’ Jack serves as an essential work that reminds listeners that great folk songs can motivate people towards exploring adventures; also serves as a reminder to remain true to yourself while remaining true to oneself when facing challenges in life – so important an influencer on folk music!
Richard Shindell
At its peak in the 2000s, folk music took on many diverse styles and sounds. Bands such as Nickel Creek, Freakwater and Handsome Family explored traditional folk structures and themes while creating their own songs; others such as Leonard Cohen, the Decemberists and Joanna Newsom embraced its spirit while adding their own modern influences; Newsom used her unique combination of harp, quirky fashion and unconventional performances to lend her music an irresistibly psychedelic quality while the Decemberists used subdued arrangements and mandolin and banjo sounds to invoke feelings of longing within listeners’ souls;
Shindell began his folk career with John Gorka and his Razzy Dazzy Spasm Band before hitting it big when Joan Baez chose three of his songs for her 1997 album Gone From Danger. Shindell is best known for creating songs that tell stories, juxtapose ideas, inhabit characters and vividly create worlds – this style can be found throughout his repertoire of work; his most recent release Careless stands as testament.
Shindell has long been recognized for his solo artistry; however, in more recent times he has also collaborated with singer-songwriter Lucy Kaplansky since their time spent playing Greenwich Village Fast Folk coffeehouse scene. Their songwriting talents make for an outstanding duo and they create stunning vocal harmonies which evoke feelings of both longing and nostalgia – their most iconic collaboration being folk rock standard “Wisteria,” an ode to lost loves that captures this sentimentality beautifully. Today Shindell divides his time between Hudson Valley New York and Buenos Aires