John Hartford In Concert; Vassar Clements In Concert

The two latest video releases of the concerts produced by Ohio University during the early 1980s feature two well-known performers. John Hartford, musician, singer, songwriter ("Gentle On My Mind"), and steamboat captain, was recently featured on Ken Burns' The Civil War series. In John Hartford In Concert, he plays the fiddle, banjo, and guitar on a wide variety of songs, encompassing both the playful ("Don't Leave Your Records In the Sun") and the thoughtful ("A Six O'Clock Train And a Girl With Green Eyes"). In between songs, Hartford is interviewed at the wheel of his steamer, the Julia Belle Swain (which is also the title of one of his songs). Other songs include: "Long Hot Summer Days," "Presbyterian Guitar," "In Tall Buildings," "Miss Ferris" (a tribute to the grade-school teacher who awakened in Hartford his lifelong interest in the river and steamboats, and was also, according to Hartford, "a dead shot with a piece of chalk"), "Let Him Go On Mama," "Steamboat Whistle Blues," and "Wolves A-Hollering," among others. Vassar Clements In Concert features the virtuoso fiddler and his band playing at the Lone Star Cafe in New York. A teenage protégé of bluegrass great Bill Monroe, Clements performs a variety of tunes in a range of styles, from the classic fiddler anthem "Orange Blossom Special" to the Miles Davis jazz instrumental "Move." In between songs, the video cuts to the tour bus, where Clements talks about his childhood, his first appearance on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry, and his time spent on the road. Other tunes include: "Will the Circle Be Unbroken?" "Handcuffed to a Heartache," "There'll Be No Teardrops Tonight," and "Prove To the World," among others. Both titles are recommended. (See COUNTRY BLUES GUITAR for availability.)