Ry Cooder is known as a virtuoso on almost every stringed instrument, and on Into the Purple Valley, he demonstrates this ability on a wide variety of instruments.
The main focus of the music here is on the era of the Dust Bowl, and what was happening in America at the time, socially and musically.
Songs by Woody Guthrie, Leadbelly, and a variety of others show Cooder's encyclopedic knowledge of the music of this time, combined with an instinctive feel for the songs.
'Phenomenal' is the descriptive word to describe his playing, whether it is on guitar, Hawaiian "slack key" guitar, mandolin, or the more arcane instruments he has found.
This is a must for those who love instrumental virtuosity, authentic reworkings of an era, or just plain good music.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | How Can You Keep Moving (Unless You Migrate Too)Agnes "Sis" Cunningham | Ry Cooder | Play | 02:28 | 5 MB | 0 MB |
| 2 | Billy the KidTraditional | Ry Cooder | Play | 03:48 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 3 | Money HoneyJesse Stone | Ry Cooder | Play | 03:29 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 4 | F.D.R. in TrinidadFitz Maclean | Ry Cooder | Play | 03:05 | 7 MB | 0 MB |
| 5 | Teardrops Will FallDickey Doo, Marion Smith | Ry Cooder | Play | 03:05 | 7 MB | 0 MB |
| 6 | Denomination BluesGeorge Washington Phillips | Ry Cooder | Play | 04:00 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 7 | On a MondayLead Belly | Ry Cooder | Play | 02:57 | 6 MB | 0 MB |
| 8 | Hey PorterJohnny Cash | Ry Cooder | Play | 04:42 | 10 MB | 0 MB |
| 9 | Great Dream from HeavenJoseph Spence | Ry Cooder | Play | 01:55 | 4 MB | 0 MB |
| 10 | Taxes on the Farmer Feeds Us AllTraditional | Ry Cooder | Play | 03:56 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 11 | Vigilante ManWoody Guthrie | Ry Cooder | Play | 04:15 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 37 mins | 86 MB | |||||
| 0 mins | 0 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dave Bhang | Typography |
| 2 | George Bohannon | Horn |
| 3 | Johnny Cash | Composer |
| 4 | Ry Cooder | Arranger, Bass, Guitar, Mandolin, Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 5 | John Craviotta | Drums |
| 6 | Agnes "Sis" Cunningham | Composer |
| 7 | Joe Lane Davis | Horn |
| 8 | Jim Dickinson | Piano, Producer |
| 9 | Dickey Doo | Composer |
| 10 | Chris Ethridge | Bass |
| 11 | Marty Evans | Photography |
| 12 | Woody Guthrie | Composer |
| 13 | Milt Holland | Guest Artist, Percussion |
| 14 | Gloria Jones | Vocals |
| 15 | Jerry Jumonville | Saxophone |
| 16 | Jim Keltner | Guest Artist |
| 17 | Lead Belly | Composer |
| 18 | Claudia Lennear | Vocals |
| 19 | Fitz Maclean | Composer |
| 20 | Van Dyke Parks | Keyboards, Producer |
| 21 | George Washington Phillips | Composer |
| 22 | Fritz Richmond | Bass |
| 23 | Mike Salisbury | Design |
| 24 | Marion Smith | Composer |
| 25 | Joseph Spence | Composer |
| 26 | Jesse Stone | Composer |
| 27 | Traditional | Composer |
| 28 | Lenny Waronker | Producer |
| 29 | Donna Washburn | Vocals |
| 30 | Donna Weiss | Vocals |
| 31 | Ike Williams | Horn |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |