Art takes a look at the album “Precious Memories” which was recorded by Jean Ritchie. In 1962, Art was asked to help put together a group of players in New York City to drive out to Long Island and put together a CD of folk songs with singer Jean Ritchie. While this CD was somewhat criticized for Ritchie’s recording of “hillbilly music” with no named players when folks like The New Lost City Ramblers were available, this CD has since become a well-respected document of Ritchie’s ability to interpret songs she learned as a child in Kentucky.

Art looks back to his hometown of Indianapolis and some of his first field recordings in the late 1950s and early 1960s. During that time, Art became interested in some of the acoustic blues artists including Guitar Pete, Scrapper Blackwell, and Shirley Griffith among others. Aside from sharing the music, Art also shares some stories including how he was able to get Scrapper Blackwell to sing and how Bob Dylan would pester Art for the inside story on what Scrapper was like as a man and a musician.

After a few days of teaching banjo at Midwest Banjo Camp 2011, Art returned to the South and stopped by the AM 1690 studios itching to play some of his favorite banjo tunes and share some camp stories. Art plays songs in a variety of styles including his favorite banjo tune “Deadheads and Suckers.”

Art pays tribute to the music made by various Native American tribes throughout the country. Most often associated with war dances, Art looks at the music aside from these dances which includes storytelling songs, ballads and even a contemporary blues number

Art looks at the career of blues and gospel musician Rev. Gary Davis. As an infant in Laurens, South Carolina, Davis was mistakenly given medicine to help his vision that led to him going blind at a young age. Much like many other Southern African-Americans who went blind at a young age, Davis turned to music as a way of helping him cope with a life that included his other seven siblings dying at a young age and his father being shot when Davis was 10 years old. As a figure in the folk revival of the 1950s and 1960s in New York City, Davis spent time teaching emerging musicians like David Bromberg, Dave Van Ronk, Ernie Hawkins and Stefan Grossman. This segment not only cover the gospel music that Davis is most often associated with, but also some of the secular blues that Davis could play just as well.

Art takes a look at one of his recordings with Howard Finster from 1984. This segments focuses on one track from the recording that has Finster recalling events from his childhood. While in previous segments we have heard Howard’s music and his signature animal calls, this track features Finster as a storyteller, a yodeler, a singer and of course features his ability to communicate with nature through his signature animal calls. Stories range from how he “got right” and how his discovery of electricity led to great pranks with chickens, dogs and young neighborhood girls.