Colonial & Revolution Songs American History Through Folksong

I bought this for my family years ago to learn more about US history. Now it's time to share with the next generation. My grandchildren enjoy this with their parents.

This collection is a very good primary source record for the songs which would otherwise be inaccessible. However! Some background is helpful, but two thirds of it is background noise. Also, the musicians and the musicianship leaves a lot to be desired. These are average amateur performers; I am in an early music group and we're a lot better than these guys!

This is a wonderful way to make history come alive for our homeschool family. I admit some of the songs are borderline for young children so I'll give caution to listen first if you're concerned. They got past our censorship but each family is different. We found them a wonderful way to make American history come alive with the common man's music, rather than just the classical studies.

I got this CD set thinking that the narrated sections were on tracks that I could skip if I wanted to. This is not the case. To listen to the music you have to sit through the dialogue. Great for teaching kids American history, but not for just demonstrating the songs of the time. They really should have kept it separated (or used detailed liner notes).

We are a homeschooling family studying American history. My kids listened to this CD over and over. What a great way to learn about history. The authors do a great job of including the meaning and contexts of the numerous songs in this collection. I highly recommend this collection for anyone looking to make history more than simply reading a textbook!

Short and informative narritive between songs which is neither overly long nor sickenly sweet. The numbers all tend to be plain in the style of the day. The vocal arrangement could use a little more variety. But while the voices are not Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald, they are certainly adequate and pleasant to listen to. It is well worth the price.