About the American Patchwork Series
From 1978 to 1985 Alan Lomax traveled the American South and Southwest with a television crew to document regional folklore with deep historical roots. From the resulting 500 hours of footage Lomax wrote, produced, directed, and narrated five one-hour documentary films focused on African American, Appalachian, and Cajun music and dance:
The Land Where the Blues Began
Jazz Parades: Feet Don't Fail Me Now
Cajun Country
Appalachian Journey
Dreams and Songs of the Noble Old
These five films were broadcast on PBS in 1991 under the title "American Patchwork Series." The series title and the films themselves illustrate Alan Lomax's conviction that “America has a patchwork culture made of the dreams and songs of all its people.”
