Home in this world : Woody Guthrie's Dust bowl ballads

"There's been no shortage of tributes to the original American journeyman, Woody Guthrie. That's easy to understand; after all, with the exception of the late Pete Seeger, Guthrie remains the most hallowed folksinger this country's ever produced ... This latest compilation culls a varied cast of current artists to cover these so-called "Dustbowl Ballads," a series of songs that detailed the horrors and hardships encountered by those living in the drought-stricken Southern Plains during the debilitating dust storms of the 1930s. Though these songs reference that particular time and place, each of these current covers captures the essence of Woody's approach- simple, straightforward, and without any frivolous embellishment".

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"Home in This World: Woody Guthrie's Dust Bowl Ballads may not be as revelatory as the original album, but it's still quite good and serves a worthwhile purpose. The Dust Bowl Troubadour still has much to teach us about the damage we do to the Earth and ourselves. We need to care for the land and each other to make the world a better place. We may no longer be living in the Great Depression, but there are strong correspondences between them that we ignore at our peril".

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