The Big Ballad Jamboree Book

A southern literary master's captivating novel about the rise of a Nashville-bound singer as "hillbilly" evolves into "country." 1998, 296 pp.,

Library Journal

New Deal politics and social upheaval subsequent to World War II push civilization on the Appalachians of 1949 North Carolina, forcing the region's folk music to evolve from its roots in English balladry into slick, radio-driven hillbilly music. Raised with the folk tradition, Cissie Timberlake and Danny MacGregor, off-and-on sweethearts and one-time members in the same hillbilly band, struggle to bring some order to this musical evolution. Choosing academia as her arena, Cissie teaches at a local university and codifies regional folk songs for her master's degree, while Danny maintains a connection with traditional music by composing new ballads. Using humor and an intimate knowledge of the country music scene of the mid-1900s, Davidson (1893-1968), an Agrarian essayist and poet mentor to Robert Penn Warren, explored the negative effects of modernity on the South in this, his only novel, which was discovered by his granddaughter in the family files. -- Robert Jordan, University of Iowa, Iowa City