In 1992 the University of Arkansas Press released a bold and unparalleled two volume collection of previously “unprintable” American folksong from the decades long Ozark fieldwork of self taught folklorist Vance Randolph, 1892-1980. Randolph didn’t actively seek out material of an overtly sexual or salacious nature, but unlike his colleagues in the field, he didn’t try to avoid or whitewash it either. As a result, some 20% of what he found over the years was deemed unprintable during his lifetime. Its publication constitutes a significant corrective to the myth of a nation of “folk” who sang about absolutely everything except, for some reason, that which is most intimate and fundamentally human. Tim Eriksen has been recording and presenting selections from Randolph’s collection since shortly after its publication, and will share stories, songs and perspective on the ethics and aesthetics of presenting them alongside other examples of traditional and popular song.