The Carter Family are among the most important artists in the entire history of popular music.

They were pioneers in writing and recording folk and country music for the commercial market, and their huge output of songs and recordings has become a major influence on music that has come after them in bluegrass, country, gospel, folk, skiffle, pop and rock. Acrobat has recognised their importance by creating two 6CD sets to present the primary element of their recorded output – those recordings between 1927 and 1941 featuring the original incarnation of the group, A.P. Carter, his wife Sara Carter, and his sister in-law Maybelle Carter.

Their first recordings were made in Bristol, Tennessee, under producer Ralph Peer who was seeking new talent for the relatively embryonic recording industry on August 1, 1927. The session also included recordings made by Jimmie Rodgers. This first of the sets addresses the years from 1927 to 1934, in a 125-track collection featuring just about all their releases from this era on the Victor, Montgomery Ward and Bluebird labels. It features their famous hits from these years, including Bury Me Under The Weeping Willow, Keep On the Sunny Side, Wildwood Flower, I’m Thinking Tonight Of My Blue Eyes, Little Darling Pal of Mine, Worried Man Blues, and Lonesome Valley along with other classics like My Clinch Mountain Home, Foggy Mountain Top, John Hardy and Jimmie Brown The Newsboy.

These two highly significant releases will give enthusiasts the chance to have a comprehensive collection of the first era Carter Family recordings, complete with Acrobat’s usual substantial booklet with comprehensive discographical information and detailed narrative.

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