If there is one organisation I simply love communicating with, and there are many, it’s the ​Smithsonian Folkways Institute. In my research of the blues they are a goldmine of information, not least in this case, Appalachian blues, a genre that comes in a variety of styles—vaudeville blues, piano blues and boogie, string-band dance blues, guitar and harmonica-based down-home blues, ragtime blues, East Coast rhythm and blues, and so-called white mountain blues and I quote: ‘The distant cousin of Delta Blues’    

Appalachian blues is simply a regional blend of European and African styles and sounds born at the cultural crossroads of railroad camps, mines, and rural settlements. Drawn from deep within the Folkways collection and from historic live recordings at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, the music of bedrock blues performers such as Pink Anderson, Lesley Riddle, Etta Baker, John Jackson, and Doc Watson shines bright, claiming Appalachia as a key cradle of American acoustic blues.

PDRP-Appalachian Blues production.