𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝

Vashti Bunyan as seen on her mid-60s demos album Some Things Just Stick In Your Mind

By definition, Folk music is a genre of music that combines traditional folk elements with contemporary genres. Some of the most popular folk subgenres today are Indie Folk and Folk Rock; 60 or so years ago the most popular folk subgenres were Psychedelic and singer/songwriter. Some of the pioneers of modern Folk as we know it are people you've probably heard of, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, and so on. I first discovered the genre after being introduced to Fleet Foxes by my sister, then later hearing "I'd Like To Walk Around In Your Mind" on an 8tracks mix. I'd never quite heard music that seemed to represent my feelings so specifically. I've always said I want to run into the forest and never come back, or that I would gladly go back in time and live my life there... this music represents that for me. A callback to tradition and a lost connection to each other and our planet. 

My playlist is designed to be listened to on shuffle so that you can find sounds that please you, rather than listening to them in chronological order. I doubt many people do that as a default but you never know... My favorite thing to do is put it on shuffle while sitting in the sun or at the lake, it's the perfect soundtrack for frolicking in nature!! Even though I love contemporary folk, this playlist also refrains from including contemporary artists (besides a couple Vashti Bunyan albums I couldn't stop myself from including) as an introduction to the genre from its beginnings! Rather than including more mainstream artists, I focused on underrated or perhaps unseen pioneers of Folk. 

Some of my favorites in the list: Vashti Bunyan (singer/songwriter), Robbie Basho (singer/songwriter), Oriental Sunshine (Psychedelic), Moondog (singer/songwriter + experimental), Shirley Collins (traditional), and lastly, Magnet (Medieval Revival, traditional).I'll also be continuing to add to the playlist, so if you have any suggestions I'd love to hear them! For now, enjoy...