Recorded in 1957 and early 1958 by
Mike Seeger
,
Freight Train and Other North Carolina Folk Songs and Tunes
collects the influential debut sides cut by a then-62-year-old
Elizabeth Cotten
; even decades after their first release, they remain a veritable primer in the art of finger-picked style guitar playing. The quaint, homespun quality of the material -- much of it recorded at
Cotten
's home with her grandchildren looking on in silence -- adds immensely to its intimacy and warmth; the sound quality varies wildly from track to track, but the amazing instrumental work shines through regardless on tracks like the opening
"Wilson Rag"
and the now-standard "Freight Train." ~ Jason Ankeny