A series of humorous sketches and semi-abstract drawings are used to interpret three American ballads - “Acres of Clams”, “Old Dan Tucker” and “John Henry”. The artist, Alfred Kousel, has provided innumerable still sketches which combine colour, a feeling of strength and a variety of emotional effects in harmony with the moods and rhythms of the ballads. The ballads are sung by Cisco Houston.
Content notification
Our collection comprises over 40,000 moving image works, acquired and catalogued between the 1940s and early 2000s. As a result, some items may reflect outdated, offensive and possibly harmful views and opinions. ACMI is working to identify and redress such usages.
Learn more about our collection and our collection policy here. If you come across harmful content on our website that you would like to report, let us know.
How to watch
Collection
In ACMI's collection
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
010878
Language
English
Subject categories
Crafts & Visual Arts → Art and music
Crafts & Visual Arts → Drawing
Music & Performing Arts → Art and music
Music & Performing Arts → Folk music - United States
Music & Performing Arts → Music - Interpretation (Phrasing, dynamics, etc.)
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Colour
Holdings
16mm film; Access Print (Section 1)
16mm film; Limited Access Print (Section 2)