Cisco Houston Web Site

On CD

That's Why We're Marching

Smithsonian/Folkways

1996

Track Listing:

  1. Freedom Road: Josh White
  2. Talking Sailor (Talking Merchant Marine): Woody Guthrie
  3. The Ballad of October 16: The Almanac Singers
  4. Billy Boy: The Almanac Singers
  5. Plow Under: The Almanac Singers
  6. I'm Gonna Put My Name Down: Tom Glazer
  7. What are We Waiting On?: Woody Guthrie
  8. Citizen C.I.O.: The Union Boys
  9. The Sinking of the Reuben James: Woody Guthrie
  10. You Better Get Ready: The Union Boys
  11. If You Want to Do Your Part: Lead Belly
  12. Move Into Germany: The Union Boys
  13. So Long, It's Been Good to Know You (War Version): Woody Guthrie and Cisco Houston
  14. The Martins and the Coys: The Union Boys
  15. Hitler Song: Lead Belly
  16. Sally Don't You Grieve: Woody Guthrie and Cisco Houston
  17. Jimmy Longhi Story: Vincent "Jimmy" Longhi
  18. When the Yanks Go Marching In: Woody Guthrie, Cisco Houston, and Sonny Terry
  19. Round and Round Hitler's Grave: The Almanac Singers
  20. Fuhrer: Josh White
  21. Miss Pavlichencko: Woody Guthrie
  22. National Defense Blues: Lead Belly, Sonny Terry, Brownie McGhee, Willie "The Lion" Smith, and George "Pops" Foster
  23. Gee, But I Want to Go Home (Army Life): Lead Belly
  24. Looking for a Home: Pete Seeger
  25. Now That's It's All Over (He'll Go Back to Selling Shoes): Pete Seeger

Review

Chuck Myers

Good compilation albums tell a story. It's not a story that can be told by any single song on the compilation, but a story that recognizes each song as a vital part of something larger. Good compilation albums find a big truth within the voices of small songs.

That's Why We're Marching finds the big truth within 25 small songs. The individual songs might be about political hypocrisy, racial inequality, unions, war, or Fascism, but the big picture is about love. Each of these songs is about a powerful love for the poor people and the tortured people and the neglected people and the black people and the Russian people and the Jewish people and the people who worked in factories and the people who joined unions and the people who bought war bonds and the people who enlisted and the people who fought and the people who buried their children and the people who sacrificed their own lives in order to help save the lives of strangers who were being slaughtered on the other side of some mighty big oceans. These are songs of love for all of those people and countless others.

The songs on That's Why We're Marching might be about politics and race and war and fighting and dying and working. The album, though, is simply a collection of great love songs.

For Chuck's full review, go to his web site: Here. Other Cisco stuff there as well. Thanks Chuck! Hope to hear more from you!

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