On this episode, The Kitchen Sisters introduce us to Chris Strachwitz, a song catcher, dedicated to recording the traditional, regional, down home music of America, his adopted home after his family left Germany at the close of WWII. Mance Lipscomb, Lightnin’ Hopkins, Mississippi Fred McDowell, Big Mama Thornton, Clifton Chenier, Rose Maddox, Flaco Jimenez… the list is long and mighty.
Chris Strachwitz is a keeper. His vault is jam-packed with 78s, 33s, 45s, reel-to-reels, cassettes, videos, photographs — an archive of all manner of recordings. And an avalanche of lifetime achievement awards — from the Grammy’s, The Blues Hall of Fame, The National Endowment for the Arts – for some 60 years of recording and preserving the musical cultural heritage of this nation through his label, Arhoolie Records.
Featuring interviews with Linda Ronstadt and Bonnie Raitt.
The Kitchen Sisters Audio Festival is a month of Bay Made episodes featuring the work of the Bay Area's own Kitchen Sisters.
Over the course of the month, we will dig deep into their 40-plus year archive of audio gems: profiles of everyday people just outside the frame of history. And we'll talk with them about their mission, their connection to the Bay Area, lessons they've learned and stories they can't get out of their minds.
Want more stories from The Kitchen Sisters? You can dig into their entire archive at kitchensisters.org and subscribe to The Kitchen Sisters Present podcast wherever you get your podcasts.