{"podcast":{"title":"American Songcatcher","slug":"american-songcatcher-688699","podcast_index_feed_id":688699,"rss_url":"https://rss.libsyn.com/shows/597330/destinations/5194670.xml","website_url":"http://www.americansongcatcher.com","image_url":"https://static.libsyn.com/p/assets/2/a/3/8/2a38672ff32e18e2d959afa2a1bf1c87/AS-20251023-n6dhvh57fq.png","author":"Nicholas Edward Williams","episode_count":53,"summary":"Tracing the roots of American music from its cultured past to artists playing it forward, folk musician, musicologist and host Nicholas Edward Williams takes listeners on a unique documentary-style podcast experience. Dive into the stories of centuries-old Traditional songs and migrants who carried their musical heritage here, and uncover the lives of pioneers and integral musicians who created and shaped styles such as Bluegrass, Ragtime, Jazz and Swing, Country, Gospel, Blues, Old-Time, and the Folk music that's derived from it all. Here's to the songs of old, may they live on forever.","last_synced_at":"2026-09-10T08:21:59.502875+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-songcatcher-688699"},"episode":{"title":"S3:E4 // Bascom Lamar Lunsford & A Living Tradition","slug":"s3-e4-bascom-lamar-lunsford-a-living-tradition","published_at":"2024-03-21T10:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-songcatcher-688699/s3-e4-bascom-lamar-lunsford-a-living-tradition","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-songcatcher-688699","url":"https://a1526ccb-749b-4804-ba7b-a9ed7525149e.libsyn.com/s3e4-bascom-lamar-lunsford-a-living-tradition","audio_url":"https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/a1526ccb-749b-4804-ba7b-a9ed7525149e/371654689-44100-2-0e2b8546a8f22.m4a?dest-id=5194670","summary":"Today, we proudly present something a little different on American Songcatcher. Instead of the usual documentary podcast-style piece, this is a compilation of field recordings I did in Buncombe and Madison Counties just outside of Asheville, NC. Considered the mecca of the long held traditions in ballad singing and old-time mountain music, this area is also home to the \"Minstrel of the Appalachians\", one of the most important yet lesser-known figures in folk and old time music, Bascom Lamar Lunsford - who was born on this day 142 years ago. Over the last year, I was fortunate enough to visit North Carolina several times, to visit with Bascom's old home and talk with head of the non-profit that now owns it, perform at the annual Lunsford Festival at Mars Hill University, and witness the return of filmmaker David Hoffman, who first filmed Bascom in the 1964, and was coming back to visit the area for the first time in the nearly 60 years since. This is a window into a living tradition. GoFundMe for Bascom's Home Restoration (for the Pondering Bascom non-profit) Documentaries mentioned: Music Makers of the Blue Ridge - David Hoffman (1965) Madison County, North Carolina - Where Music History is Alive (2023) ⁠ Special thanks to: Rare Bird Farm Golden Shoals Madison County Mars Hill University Tim Duggan David Hoffman Support Educational Programming: Make a Tax Exempt Donation Join the Patreon Community Send a one-time donation via Venmo or PayPal Follow American Songcatcher on Instagram Credits: Nicholas Edward Williams - Production, research, editing, recording and distribution","meta_description":"Today, we proudly present something a little different on American Songcatcher. Instead of the usual documentary podcast-style piece, this is a compilatio…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3206,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/american-songcatcher-688699/episodes/s3-e4-bascom-lamar-lunsford-a-living-tradition/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-songcatcher-688699/s3-e4-bascom-lamar-lunsford-a-living-tradition.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}