Books and Recordings

Books and Recordings

Books are available at almost every singing location throughout the year. They can also be purchased online at the following link:

Recordings:

Old Harp Singing: 1951– This recording features seventeen singers from Wear’s Valley and the surrounding areas in Sevier County and Blount County. This same group traveled to Columbia University in New York to sing at a festival in 1951. Familiar names like Burl and Mae Adams, Luke and Lena Headrick can all be heard on this recording. Experienced singers and listeners will notice the difference in pitch, tempo, etc. of the songs compared to how they’re sung today. This recording is also available on Spotify

The Happy Hollow Harp Singers-  From the archives of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress via the University of Tennessee, these recordings feature a small group of singers from Wear’s Valley and the surrounding areas. Originally recorded in 1948, this is the oldest known available recording of the Old Harp tradition.

Headrick Chapel in Wear’s Valley-  Thanks to the work of well known shape note singers and historians, Nathan Rees and Jonathon Smith, these recordings were made at the annual singings held at Headrick Chapel in Wear’s Valley, Tennessee. Their website, shapenotecds.com, offers free downloads of shape note recordings from across the country. The harp singing at Headrick Chapel was first organized around 1910. Now part of the Wear’s Valley Convention, it is one of the most highly regarded singings of the year. Click the following links to listen to recordings from various singings in Wear’s Valley over the past several years.