Celebrate May Day With 21st Century Troubadour Adam Miller, opens a new window
The American Labor Movement of the 19th and 20th century was a singing movement. This program features sing-along folk songs about the people who built America and their struggle to improve the conditions of their labor.
Folk Songs of the American Labor Movement
Tuesday, May 1, 2018 at 7:00PM
May Day History
May Day, also known as International Workers Day, opens a new window, has its origins in the struggle to win the eight-hour day.
Although not widely celebrated in the United States, the observance commemorates events which took place in Chicago’s Haymarket Square, opens a new window on May 1, 1886 when organizers called a general strike in support of the eight-hour work day.
Miller’s folk songs and ballads are the songs of America’s heritage: a window into the soul of our nation in its youth. Immersed in the Oral Tradition, opens a new window, Miller is mostly self-taught and learns just about everything by ear. Throughout his long career, he has documented and kept alive the thousands of songs and stories he has collected in his travels. Some of these forgotten songs, like “The Frog Song,” are so obscure that no one else sings them anymore.
Frank Hamilton, opens a new window, co-founder of the Old Town School of Folk Music, opens a new window in Chicago and former member of the folk quartet The Weavers, opens a new window says:
“His performance is truly entertaining and riveting. He’s doing a real service for folk music: defending the Treasury of American Tradition.”
Do you have a favorite folk song? Share with us in the comments below.
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