Lee Zimmerman Talks Americana With Library Of Congress

01-27-2025

(BJM) When one is recognized for his or her efforts, it becomes cause for a special celebration. Consequently, when East Tennessee writer, reviewer and author Lee Zimmerman was selected to be interviewed by the Library of Congress for his book, Americana Music - Voices Visionaries and Pioneers of an Honest Sound, it became a significant milestone in a journey that began with the publication of his book by Texas A&M University Press in 2019.

"I couldn't be more delighted," Zimmerman said. "This book was the culmination of years of research and devotion to a musical pursuit, and to be recognized by the Library of Congress is not only a singular honor, but more than I could ever have hoped for."

As Zimmerman explains in his discussion with the Library of Congress' Cary O'Dell, the book explores the wide gamut of sounds and styles in an attempt to share a definitive understanding of the term "Americana" as it applies to a burgeoning trend in American popular music. It's a movement that continues to expand and develop, winning new audiences and engendering fresh, innovative artists at an exponential rate.

"In its strictest sense, it is a blanket term for bluegrass, country, mountain music, rockabilly, and the blues. Nevertheless, with roots in Appalachia, the Mississippi Delta, New Orleans, the Piedmont, Memphis, and the prairies of Texas and the American West, it can prove difficult to define," Zimmerman continued. "By a broader definition, it can encompass roots rock, country rock, singer/songwriters, R&B, and their various combinations. Bob Dylan, Hank Williams, Carl Perkins, and Tom Petty can all lay valid claims as purveyors of Americana, but so can Elvis Costello, Solomon Burke, and Jason Isbell. Americana is new and old, classic and contemporary, trendy and traditional."

Mining the firsthand insights of those whose stories help shape the sound-people such as Ralph Stanley, John McEuen (Nitty Gritty Dirt Band), Chris Hillman (Byrds, Flying Burrito Brothers), Paul Cotton and Rusty Young (Poco), Shawn Colvin, Kinky Friedman, David Bromberg, the Avett Brothers, Amanda Shires, Ruthie Foster, and many more-the book provides a history of how Americana originated, how it reached a broader audience in the '60s and '70s with the merging of rock and country, and how it evolved its overwhelmingly populist appeal as it entered the new millennium.

The transcription of Zimmerman's interview can be found here.