ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music, Vol. 4

Okay, kiddo, imagine you love stories very much. You really enjoy hearing stories from your grandparents about their past adventures and experiences.

Now, imagine there was a man named Harry Smith who loved stories too, but not just any stories, he loved folk music. But what is folk music? Folk music is music that is passed down by people from generation to generation, like a story that is told over and over again.

So, Harry Smith collected all of these folk music stories that he could find and put them into a special book and called it the "Anthology of American Folk Music". He also put them on a special CD so that people all over could listen to them.

But, like any good storyteller, Harry Smith was not content with just putting out one book, he had to tell even more stories. This is where "Volume 4" comes in. This is a special addition to the original book with even more stories, songs, and tunes that Harry Smith found in his quest to gather all the folk music he could.

So, in this book and CD, you can hear all kinds of stories and songs from people who lived a long time ago, like cowboys and farmers, and learn about their lives and what was important to them.

So that's the Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music, Vol. 4 - a very special collection of stories told through music that people can enjoy for many years to come, just like you enjoy hearing stories from your grandparents.