Stream Anaïs Mitchell & Jefferson Hamer’s Child Ballads

Folk singer/songwriter Anaïs Mitchell found inspiration for her collaboration album with longtime friend Jefferson Hamer in books —  namely, the Francis J. Child Collection of Ballads. After reading these, the two musicians picked out seven ballads, and made a very organic and acoustic recording of their choices.

Mitchell has done just about everything in the folk world, from catching Ani DiFranco’s eye and gaining a record contract to creating what is known as a “folk opera” (Hadestown) which debuted in 2006. She has toured with names like Bon Iver and has previously collaborated with artists such as DiFranco and The Low Anthem.

With a resume as varied as that, it’s no surprise that Mitchell would then move to an album inspired by books. Pairing with Hamer was a natural choice since they had talked about their mutual love for the collection years ago.

Hamer is a natural collaborator and brings a background of Celtic music with him to the album, which is already receiving rave reviews from critics. Stream it below.

NORTH AMERICAN TOUR:

3/19 – Doug Fir Lounge – Portland, OR

3/20 – The Triple Door – Seattle, WA

3/21 – Rogue Folk Club – Vancouver, BC

3/22 – The Green Frog – Bellingham, WA

3/23 – Morso Wine Bar – Gig Harbor, WA

3/24 – Wildwood Hotel – Willamina, OR

3/26 – Freight & Salvage – Berkeley, CA

4/10 – Club Passim – Cambridge, MA (2 shows)

4/11 – Caffe Lena – Saratoga Springs, NY

4/12 – Hooker-Duhman Theater  – Brattleboro, VT (2 shows)

3/13 – The Parlor Room – Northampton, MA (2 shows)

4/14 – Narrows Center for the Arts – Fall River, MA

4/16 – Joe’s Pub – New York, NY

4/17 – Joe’s Pub – New York, NY

4/18 – Hamilton College – Clinton, NY

4/19 – Tin Angel – Philadelphia, PA

4/21 – Jammin Java – Vienna, VA

5/14 – Higher Ground – Burlington, VT

5/15 – Ninth Ward – Buffalo, NY

5/16 – The Ark – Ann Arbor, MI

5/17 – Redamte Coffee House – Madison, WI

5/18 – Old Town School of Folk – Chicago, IL

5/19 – The Pabst Theater – Milwaukee, WI

5/20 – Cafe Paradiso – Fairfield, IA

5/24 – L2 Arts and Culture Center – Denver, CO

5/25-5/26 – MeadowGrass Music Festival – Colorado Springs, CO

5/31 – Nelsonville Music Festival – Nelsonville, OH