They All Played for Us: Arhoolie Records 50th Anniversary Celebration

On February 4, 5, and 6, 2011, a musical festival was held in the San Francisco Bay Area to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Arhoolie Records and to honor Chris Strachwitz for documenting and preserving traditional music that helped define Americana roots music.

Over the three-day festival, some 70 musicians performed Tejano, Cajun, zydeco, country and urban blues, folk, gospel, and jazz music. Among the performers were Santiago Jimenez Jr., Ry Cooder, the Creole Belles, the Savoy-Doucet Cajun Band, Barbara Dane, the Treme Brass Band, Country Joe McDonald, Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands, the Campbell Brothers, Los Cenzontles, and Taj Mahal.

The recorded performances were edited into almost five hours of music and released in a box set composed of four CDs and a 192-page book in 2013. Among the standout performances are “Vigilante Man” by Ry Cooder, “Sally Gooden” by Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands, “Trouble in Mind” with Barbara Dane, “In My Girlish Days” by Suzy Thompson, and “A Jazz Funeral” with the Treme Brass Band.

Track Listing

101	Introduction, Vol. 1	Nick Spitzer	00:06
102	Ay Te Dejo En San Antonio	Santiago Jimenez Jr. y la familia Peña-Govea	02:59
103	Viva Seguín	Santiago Jimenez Jr. y la familia Peña-Govea	03:33
104	Voy Caminando	Los Cenzontles	02:52
105	El Chuchumbe	Los Cenzontles	03:39
106	Vigilante Man	Ry Cooder	06:46
107	Wooly Bully	Ry Cooder	03:06
108	Let Me Fall	Any Old Time String Band	02:42
109	Long Lost Lover Blues	Any Old Time String Band	05:12
110	C-U-B-A	Any Old Time String Band	04:55
111	I've Got What It Takes	Any Old Time String Band	04:22
112	Bee la Manche	David Doucet	03:47
113	La Valse a Pop	David Doucet	02:49
114	Boudreaux / J'ai Été Au Zydeco	David Doucet	06:24
115	The Free Mexican Air Force	Peter Rowan	04:07
116	Break My Heart Again	Peter Rowan	05:11
117	O My Malissa	Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands	02:47
118	Here Today	Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands	05:44
119	Sally Gooden	Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands	05:06
201	Texas Blue Bonnets	Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands	04:13
202	I Bid You Goodnight	Ensemble	03:05
203	Introduction, Vol. 2	Nick Spitzer	00:36
204	Oh By Jingo	The Goodtime Washboard 3	03:22
205	Pasadena	The Goodtime Washboard 3	03:02
206	Oakland	The Goodtime Washboard 3	03:04
207	Step It Up and Go	The Goodtime Washboard 3	02:52
208	Le Fond De Culottes & La Danse De La Misere	Creole Belles	02:11
209	Separation Waltz	Creole Belles	02:59
210	Tes Parents Ne Veulent Plus Me Voir	Creole Belles	02:07
211	Joe Simien Special	Creole Belles	01:45
212	My Bucket's Got a Hole in It	Barbara Dane and Bob Mielke's Jazz All Stars	05:00
213	Make Me a Pallet on the Floor	Barbara Dane and Bob Mielke's Jazz All Stars	05:51
214	Milenburg Joys	Barbara Dane and Bob Mielke's Jazz All Stars	06:58
215	Trouble in Mind	Barbara Dane and Bob Mielke's Jazz All Stars	05:29
216	Midnight Blues / Closer to the Ground	Toni Brown and Terry Garthwaite	10:40
217	Port Arthur Blues	Savoy-Doucet Cajun Band	04:00
218	Marie	Savoy-Doucet Cajun Band	05:03
301	Midland Two Step	Savoy-Doucet Cajun Band	04:09
302	I Made a Big Mistake	Savoy-Doucet Cajun Band	05:03
303	Amede Two Step	Savoy-Doucet Cajun Band	05:16
304	Parade	The Treme Brass Band	01:13
305	Jazz Funeral	The Treme Brass Band	06:48
306	My Bucket's Got a Hole in It	The Treme Brass Band	07:00
307	Welfare Blues	The Treme Brass Band	04:35
308	When the Saints Go Marching In	The Treme Brass Band	06:18
309	I Don't Drink No Whiskey	Suzy and Eric Thompson	03:11
310	In the Pines	Suzy and Eric Thompson	04:51
311	In My Girlish Days	Suzy and Eric Thompson	03:22
312	Lake Arthur Stomp	Suzy and Eric Thompson	02:59
313	I Feel Like I'm Fixin' to Die Rag	Country Joe McDonald	03:12
314	Save the Whales	Country Joe McDonald	04:44
315	Oklahoma Hills	Country Joe McDonald	02:19
316	End of My Journey	Campbell Brothers	09:42
401	Going Home on the Morning Train	Campbell Brothers	06:26
402	Jump for Joy	Campbell Brothers	06:15
403	México Americano	Los Cenzontles	02:59
404	Prenda del alma	Los Cenzontles	03:57
405	Arizona, estado de vergüenza	Los Cenzontles	04:00
406	Puno de tierra	Los Cenzontles	03:38
407	Lapin Dans Son Nique	The Savoy Family Band	04:10
408	Little Black Eyes	The Savoy Family Band	04:20
409	Quo Faire	The Savoy Family Band	05:00
410	Reno Waltz	The Savoy Family Band	03:47
411	Eunice Two Step	The Savoy Family Band	06:36
412	Blues with a Feeling	Taj Mahal	05:33
413	Roscoe's Mule Down in Roscoe's Barn	Taj Mahal	03:15
414	Fishing Blues	Taj Mahal	03:09
415	Corinna	Taj Mahal	04:06
416	The New Hula Blues	Taj Mahal	04:09
417	Goodnight, Irene	Ensemble	03:52