Folk and blues remain vibrant and alive today and have been enjoying a new boom as audiences rediscover such blues performers as Robert Johnson, John Lee Hooker, and Bessie Smith, and folk artists like Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, and Bob Dylan. The excitement and impact of these musical forms are the focus of this extensively revised and updated third edition of Folk and Blues: The Encyclopedia. It covers a spectrum of artists, from the pioneers at the turn of the twentieth century to the stars of today: Keb' Mo', Altan the Chieftains, Ani DiFranco, Ry Cooder, Sarah McLachlan, Wilco, John Prine, and Los Lobos, to name a few. Folk and Blues: the Encyclopedia contains:

-Interviews with many of today's top artists
-Extensive awards information from the Grammys, the Folk Alliance, and the Blues Foundation
-Photos of the most important folk and blues artists of the twentieth century
-The first comprehensive index of folk and blues music

Unlike any other book currently on the market, Folk and Blues: The Encyclopedia covers the rich roots of American music, as pioneered by African Americans and European immigrants, and its influence on almost every facet of today's popular music around the globe. This encyclopedia provides insight into why folk and blues are distinct fields of their own but interact in many ways to provide important additions to America's musical heritage. This is a unique and highly readable reference that belongs on the desks of music critics and music lovers everywhere.