Hazel Dickens
Encyclopedia
Hazel Jane Dickens was an American bluegrass
singer, songwriter, double bassist and guitarist. She was the eighth child of an eleven-child mining
family in West Virginia
. Her music was characterized not only by her high, lonesome singing style, but also by her provocative pro-union
, feminist
songs. Cultural blogger John Pietaro noted that "Dickens didn’t just sing the anthems of labor, she lived them and her place on many a picket line, staring down gunfire and goon squads, embedded her into the cause." The New York Times extolled her as "a clarion-voiced advocate for coal miners and working people and a pioneer among women in bluegrass music".
. She met Mike Seeger
, younger half-brother of Pete Seeger
and founding member of the New Lost City Ramblers
and became active in the Baltimore
-Washington
area bluegrass
and folk music
scene during the 1960s. During this time she also established a collaborative relationship with Mike Seeger's wife, Alice Gerrard
, and as "Hazel & Alice" recorded two albums for the Folkways
label: Who's That Knocking (And Other Bluegrass Country Music) (1965) and Won't You Come & Sing for Me (1973). Dickens and Gerrard were bluegrass bandleaders at a time when the vast majority of bluegrass bands were led by men. According to Bill Warren, her "music, and especially her songwriting, assumed an even more political cast almost as soon as she began pursuing a solo career."
Dickens appeared in the documentary Harlan County, USA
and also contributed four songs to the soundtrack of the same film. She also appeared in the films Matewan
and Songcatcher
.
"Legendary bluegrass singer Hazel Dickens passed away this April after a lifetime fighting for social justice in Appalachia. Her legend lives on as hundreds mobilize for the march on Blair Mountain, a five-day, fifty-mile action calling for an end to mountaintop removal, strengthened labor rights, and investment in sustainable jobs. Join us for a special night of music honoring Hazel and those who will walk in her footsteps during the March on Blair Mountain."
The goals of the march are consistent with Dickens' longstanding involvement with environmental justice, with the announced goals of to preservation of Blair Mountain, abolition of mountaintop removal, strengthening of labor rights, and an investment in sustainable job creation for all Appalachian communities.
Bluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
singer, songwriter, double bassist and guitarist. She was the eighth child of an eleven-child mining
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
family in West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
. Her music was characterized not only by her high, lonesome singing style, but also by her provocative pro-union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
, feminist
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
songs. Cultural blogger John Pietaro noted that "Dickens didn’t just sing the anthems of labor, she lived them and her place on many a picket line, staring down gunfire and goon squads, embedded her into the cause." The New York Times extolled her as "a clarion-voiced advocate for coal miners and working people and a pioneer among women in bluegrass music".
Career
Dickens was born in Mercer County, West VirginiaMercer County, West Virginia
-External links:* * * * * * *...
. She met Mike Seeger
Mike Seeger
Mike Seeger was an American folk musician and folklorist. He was a distinctive singer and an accomplished musician who played autoharp, banjo, fiddle, dulcimer, guitar, mouth harp, mandolin, dobro, jaw harp, and pan pipes. Seeger, a half-brother of Pete Seeger, produced more than 30 documentary...
, younger half-brother of Pete Seeger
Pete Seeger
Peter "Pete" Seeger is an American folk singer and was an iconic figure in the mid-twentieth century American folk music revival. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, he also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of The Weavers, most notably their recording of Lead...
and founding member of the New Lost City Ramblers
New Lost City Ramblers
The New Lost City Ramblers is a contemporary old-time string band that formed in New York City in 1958 during the Folk Revival. The founding members of the Ramblers, or NLCR, are Mike Seeger, John Cohen, and Tom Paley...
and became active in the Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
-Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
area bluegrass
Bluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
and folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
scene during the 1960s. During this time she also established a collaborative relationship with Mike Seeger's wife, Alice Gerrard
Alice Gerrard
Alice Gerrard is an American bluegrass singer, banjoist, and guitar player. She performed in a duo with Hazel Dickens and as part of The Back Creek Buddies with Matokie Slaughter....
, and as "Hazel & Alice" recorded two albums for the Folkways
Folkways
Folkways can refer to:*Folkways —theory by the sociologist William Graham Sumner.*Folkways Records—a record label founded by Moe Asch....
label: Who's That Knocking (And Other Bluegrass Country Music) (1965) and Won't You Come & Sing for Me (1973). Dickens and Gerrard were bluegrass bandleaders at a time when the vast majority of bluegrass bands were led by men. According to Bill Warren, her "music, and especially her songwriting, assumed an even more political cast almost as soon as she began pursuing a solo career."
Dickens appeared in the documentary Harlan County, USA
Harlan County, USA
Harlan County, USA is an Oscar-winning 1976 documentary film covering the "Brookside Strike" or "Bloody Harlan", an effort of 180 coal miners and their wives against the Duke Power Company-owned Eastover Coal Company's Brookside Mine and Prep Plant in Harlan County, Kentucky in 1973...
and also contributed four songs to the soundtrack of the same film. She also appeared in the films Matewan
Matewan
Matewan is an American drama film written and directed by John Sayles, illustrating the events of a coal mine-workers' strike and attempt to unionize in 1920 in Matewan, a small town in the hills of West Virginia....
and Songcatcher
Songcatcher
The film's score was written by David Mansfield, who also assembled a roster of female country music artists to perform mostly traditional mountain ballads. Some of the songs are contemporary arrangements, and some are played in the traditional Appalachian music style. The artists include Rosanne...
.
Memorial concert
Extolling that "music saves mountains", fans and supporters of Dicken's activism announced a special memorial entitled "Tribute to West Virginia Music Legend Hazel Dickens" at the Charleston, West Virginia Cultural Center June 5, 2011. The text is replicated verbatim:"Legendary bluegrass singer Hazel Dickens passed away this April after a lifetime fighting for social justice in Appalachia. Her legend lives on as hundreds mobilize for the march on Blair Mountain, a five-day, fifty-mile action calling for an end to mountaintop removal, strengthened labor rights, and investment in sustainable jobs. Join us for a special night of music honoring Hazel and those who will walk in her footsteps during the March on Blair Mountain."
The goals of the march are consistent with Dickens' longstanding involvement with environmental justice, with the announced goals of to preservation of Blair Mountain, abolition of mountaintop removal, strengthening of labor rights, and an investment in sustainable job creation for all Appalachian communities.
With Alice Gerrard
- Who's That Knocking (1965)
- Strange Creek Singers (Arhoolie, 1970) – Also with Mike Seeger and Tracy Schwarz
- Won't You Come & Sing for Me (1973)
- Hazel & Alice (Rounder Records, 1973)
- Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard (Rounder Records, 1975)
- Hazel Dickens & Alice Gerrard – Pioneering Women of Bluegrass (Smithsonian FolkwaysSmithsonian FolkwaysSmithsonian Folkways is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution. It is a part of the Smithsonian's Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, located at Capital Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. The label was founded in 1987 after the family of Moses Asch, founder of Folkways...
, 1996) – Re-mastered and re-sequenced compilation of first two albums
Solo albums
- Hard Hitting Songs for Hard Hit People (Rounder Records, 1981)
- By the Sweat of My Brow (Rounder Records, 1984)
- It's Hard to Tell the Singer From the Song (Rounder Records, 1986)
- A Few Old Memories (Rounder Records, 1987) – Compilation "best of" first three albums
Compilations
- Rounder Old-Time Music (1987)
- Mountain Music Played on the Autoharp (Folkways RecordsFolkways RecordsFolkways Records was a record label founded by Moses Asch that documented folk, world, and children's music. It was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution in 1987, and is now part of Smithsonian Folkways.-History:...
, 1962) - American Banjo: Three-Finger and Scruggs Style (Smithsonian Folkways, 1990)
- Don't Mourn—Organize!: Songs of Labor Songwriter Joe Hill (Smithsonian Folkways, 1990)
- Blue Ribbon Bluegrass (1993)
- The Old Home Place: Bluegrass and Old-Time Mountain Music (1993)
- Live Recordings 1956–1969: Off the Record Volume 1 (Smithsonian Folkways, 1993)
- Old-Time Music on the Air, V. 1 (1994)
- Hills of Home: 25 Years of Folk Music on Rounder Records (1995)
- Hand-Picked: 25 Years of Bluegrass on Rounder Records (1995)
- Songs of the Louvin Brothers (1997)
- They'll Never Keep Us Down: Women's Coal Mining Songs – Re-issued under the title: Coal Mining Women (1997)
- Blue Trail of Sorrow (2001)
- There Is No Eye: Music for Photographs (Smithsonian Folkways, 2001)
- Classic Mountain Songs from Smithsonian Folkways (Smithsonian Folkways, 2002)
- Bluegrass Mountain Style: Over 60 Minutes of Classic Bluegrass from Rounder Records (2002)
- Mama's Hand: Bluegrass and Mountain Songs about Mother (2002)
- Classic Bluegrass from Smithsonian Folkways (Smithsonian Folkways, 2002)
- Mountain Journey: Stars of Old Time Music (2005)
- Classic Bluegrass Vol. 2 from Smithsonian Folkways (Smithsonian Folkways, 2005)
- Harlan County USA: Songs of the Coal Miner's Struggle (2006)
- Classic Labor Songs from Smithsonian Folkways (Smithsonian Folkways, 2006)
- Masters of Old-time Country Autoharp (Smithsonian Folkways, 2006)
Films in which Dickens appears
- Hazel Dickens: It's Hard to Tell the Singer from the Song (2001). Directed by Mimi Pickering (AppalshopAppalshopAppalshop is a media, arts, and education center located in Whitesburg, Kentucky, in the heart of the southern Appalachian region of the United States....
). - MatewanMatewanMatewan is an American drama film written and directed by John Sayles, illustrating the events of a coal mine-workers' strike and attempt to unionize in 1920 in Matewan, a small town in the hills of West Virginia....
(1987). Directed by John SaylesJohn SaylesJohn Thomas Sayles is an American independent film director, screenwriter and author.-Early life:Sayles was born in Schenectady, New York, the son of Mary , a teacher, and Donald John Sayles, a school administrator. He was raised Catholic and took to labeling himself "a Catholic atheist"...
. - SongcatcherSongcatcherThe film's score was written by David Mansfield, who also assembled a roster of female country music artists to perform mostly traditional mountain ballads. Some of the songs are contemporary arrangements, and some are played in the traditional Appalachian music style. The artists include Rosanne...
(2000). Directed by Maggie Greenwald.
Films in which Dickens contributes to the soundtrack
- Harlan County U.S.A. (1976). Directed by Barbara KoppleBarbara KoppleBarbara Kopple is an American film director, primarily known for her work in documentary film.-Biography:She grew up in Scarsdale, New York, the daughter of a textile executive and studied psychology at Northeastern University, after which she worked with the Maysles Brothers.Kopple has won two...
. - Coalmining Women (1982). Directed by Elizabeth Barret. Whitesburg, Kentucky: Appalshop.
- MatewanMatewanMatewan is an American drama film written and directed by John Sayles, illustrating the events of a coal mine-workers' strike and attempt to unionize in 1920 in Matewan, a small town in the hills of West Virginia....
(1987). Directed by John SaylesJohn SaylesJohn Thomas Sayles is an American independent film director, screenwriter and author.-Early life:Sayles was born in Schenectady, New York, the son of Mary , a teacher, and Donald John Sayles, a school administrator. He was raised Catholic and took to labeling himself "a Catholic atheist"...
. - SongcatcherSongcatcherThe film's score was written by David Mansfield, who also assembled a roster of female country music artists to perform mostly traditional mountain ballads. Some of the songs are contemporary arrangements, and some are played in the traditional Appalachian music style. The artists include Rosanne...
(2000). Directed by Maggie GreenwaldMaggie GreenwaldMaggie Greenwald is an American film, television director and screenwriter.She is most recognized for writing and directing Songcatcher and The Ballad of Little Jo...
. - Black Lung (2006). Directed by Shane Roberts.
External links
- [ Allmusic]
- Dickens Discography at Smithsonian FolkwaysSmithsonian FolkwaysSmithsonian Folkways is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution. It is a part of the Smithsonian's Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, located at Capital Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. The label was founded in 1987 after the family of Moses Asch, founder of Folkways...
- Dickens performs "Fire in the Hole"
- Dickens performs "Hills of Galilee"