The Rose Grew Round the Briar, Vol. 1: Early American Rural Love Songs (1997)

About this title: Despite its subtitle -- Early American Rural Love Songs -- Yazoo's The Rose Grew Round the Briar features at least as many falsehearted lovers and broken relationships as requited love affairs and happy romance. Indeed, the emotional power of so many of these recordings stems from entwined themes of love and death, illustrated by the ballad metaphor of the rose and the briar. The selections by Clarence Ashley and Dock Boggs are as stark depictions of forsaken, shaken, and demented lovers as the best pieces in those men's repertoires. Especially haunting are the eerie harmonies of the lesser ... read more

Tracks:

1. I Went to See My Sweetheart
2. Dark Holler Blues
3. I Do Blues [Wilkins]
4. What Will I Do, for My Money Is All Gone
5. The Old Fashioned Cottage
6. Lonesome Man Blues [Parth]
7. Little Maggie With a Dram Glass in Her Hand
8. False Hearted Lover's Blues
9. Brooklyn Blues (45th Street Blues) [Gibson]
10. Stolen Love
11. Shady Grove [Traditional]
12. Down on My Bended Knee
13. I Truly Understand That You Love Another Man
14. Pretty Gal's Love, A
15. Drive Away Blues [Public Domain]
16. A Short Life of Trouble
17. Going to Germany
18. Dark Eyes
19. Lulu Wall
20. Lost Lover Blues [Kimbrough]
21. Don't Say Goodbye
22. Hobo from the T & P Line, Pt. 2
23. Barbara Allen [Traditional]

Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is further described below.