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This is a good, straightforward recording of Odetta's April 8, 1960, Carnegie Hall concert, which featured support from Bill Lee on string bass. (Incidentally, Lee -- father of Spike Lee -- is surely one of the unheralded heroes of the 1960s folk revival, contributing session work to many recordings and helping to expand the parameters of folk's sound from basic solo acoustic guitar accompaniment.) She's joined on the last four numbers by the Choir of the Church of the Master. While it's not certain that Odetta's versions of "If I Had a Hammer," "John Riley," "John Henry," and "No More Auction Block" (all done here) were the most influential of the folk revival, certainly she was an important populariser of these and similar songs.
Tracklist
A1 If I Had A Hammer
A2 I'm Going Back To The Red Clay Country
A3 When I Was A Young Girl
A4 Gallows Pole
A5 God's A-Gonna Cut You Down
A6 John Riley
A7 John Henry
B1 Joshua Fought The Battle Of Jericho
B2 All The Pretty Little Horses
B3 Prettiest Train
B4 Meeting At The Building
B5 No More Auction Block For Me
B6 Hold On
B7 Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child
B8 Ain't No Grave Can Hold My Body Down