FRC607– Indian Creek Delta Boys–(From the collection of Ray Alden) 

Indian Creek Delta Boys – FRC607

Proclaimed the “Official Traditional Illinois Old-Time String Band” by the state’s 82nd General Assembly, the Indian Creek Delta Boys of Charleston, Illinois were active from the 1970s through the 1990s. The band’s backbone was formed by brothers Garry and Steve Harrison. Garry began fiddle at age 16 with instruction from his father Cliff while Terry, […]

FRC608– Chirps Smith –(From the home recordings of Chirps Smith) 

Chirps Smith – FRC608

Lynn “Chirps” Smith was born and raised in downstate Illinois. As a young man, he played with the Indian Creek Delta Boys (FRC607) and learned fiddle tunes directly from old-timers, including Harvey “Pappy” Taylor and Noah Beavers. This homemade music was transported to the Midwest by homesteaders who, bringing their fiddle tunes with them, multiplied […]

Our Collectors

Since FRC started in 2004, we have made available the recordings of many collectors of traditional music. To date these include (with CDs they contributed to):

Ray Alden

Excerpts from the November 2003 Banjo Newsletter interview with Ray Alden BN: Did you grow up with Appalachian music? RA: Mountain music wasn’t exactly the rage with the southern Italians from my Bronx neighborhood.  Do-wop was the music I grew up with.  Just ahead of me in school were Dion and the Belmonts.  A guy […]

Teodar Jackson – Texas Fiddler

Teodar Jackson – African-American Fiddling from Texas – FRC728 by Dan Foster Teodar Jackson (1903-1966) was an old-time fiddler with deep roots in Texas. He was born in Gonzales County where his family had farmed since his grandfather came there from Mississippi sometime after the Civil War. African Americans numbered roughly a third of the […]