Poplore: Folk and Pop in American Culture

Rating:
Summary: Making sense of popular folk song
Review: Although Professor Bluestein establishes a new area of study called poplore, this book is not new. Rather it reflects the author's many years of study and work as a modern folklorist. His efforts to bridge the gap between committed folksinging activists and folklore should inspire considerable scholarship although I have read that the book went unnoticed by the academic folklore circles in the states. It's a shame because by reconsidering the life and work of artists such as Pete Seeger and Jean Ritchie, Bluestein reacquaints with the essence of people's song in the US context. Just as Huddie Ledbetter's opus, both in prison and beyond, served to establish an American genre in Lomax, the work of Bluestein's "poplorists" shows us how Leadbelly's legacy will live on. The introductory section on Herder, Whitman and Emerson is fascinating. This is very interesting study and I found it invaluable for my own PhD dissertation research at a Spanish university.