The Days Of Old In The Old West- The "Black Cowboy" And His Songs Via Smithsonian/Folkways

The Days Of Old In The Old West- The "Black Cowboy" And His Songs Via Smithsonian/Folkways

By Sarah Lemoyne

Recently in a film review of Joan Crawford and Sterling Hayden’s iconic and twisted Western cowboy classic Johnny Guitar I noted that I had heard on National Public Radio a piece about the work of a member of the Carolina Chocolate Drops who I do know putting together a compilation of recordings, originals and his own take, of the black cowboy song experience for Smithsonian/Folkways titled Black Cowboy.  I mentioned and gave that film as a prime example of how the black cowboy had been written out of everything from dime store novels to “oaters.” That was not the case and the black cowboy in the post-Civil War, post-hell Reconstruction period in its aftermath played an honorable role in “taming the West.” Listen up.        

Here is the link:

http://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2018/04/23/black-cowboys-music-dom-flemons