Artists

Here are a few favorite artists.  If searching for an artist's web site, try Google.

Artists Online
Many links to folk artist pages, and very useful for artists you may not already know.
Altan
One of the great Irish traditional groups, Altan has a huge following around the world.  If you get a chance to see them, don't miss it.
Baez, Joan
Lots of information about this famous folk singer, on her official page.   Includes lyrics to her own songs.
Steve Baughman
A Bay Area based Celtic guitarist, Steve is one of the primary exponents of "Orkney tuning" (CGDGCD), a wonderful melodic tuning.  He is also the author of several Mel Bay books about fingerstyle guitar.
Beamer, Keola
Keola is one of Hawaii's most prominent singer-songwriters, and is also a well-known slack key guitarist.
Beatles
Along with Bob Dylan, the most influential musicians of the last 50 years.  Finding a good Beatles web site is a challenge.  Try The Internet Beatles Album and Steve's Beatles Page.
Block, Rory
Rory is a delta blues influenced guitar player and singer.  Along with Bonnie Raitt, she is one of the most accomplished women in acoustic (or any) music.
Bok, Gordon
Gordon Bok grew up around the boatyards of Camden, Maine, and sailed on the lovely old schooners that hail from that port.  His songs and singing reflect that history.
Brady, Paul
An Irish singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist, Paul Brady first came to prominence in the 1970's as a traditional perfomer, recording with fiddler Tommy Peoples and with Andy Irvine.  In the 1980's, he released some wonderful rock and roll records, and lately has had his songs covered by people like Bonnie Raitt, with whom he sang his song "Luck of the Draw" on her album of the same name.
Brozman, Bob
Bob Brozman is "Mr. National Steel Guitar."  A prolific recording artist and performer, he also teaches in a variety of styles.  It's hard to describe, so just look at the site.  If you want to learn a lot about slide guitar, get his slide tapes from Homespun Tapes.   If you want to learn a little about chord theory and jazz/blues progressions, he also has a tape set for that.  Both are terrific, and he is a very effective teacher.
Byrds
Three fan pages include Byrdmaniax, Byrds Online Home Page, and Byrd Watchers, and you should not miss Roger McGuinn's Home Page, which he maintains.  One of the great American bands of the 60's and early 70's, the Byrds was a band created by a bunch of folk and bluegrass musicians, plus a drummer.  Their first single, Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man," introduced a sound never before heard on radio -- a true folk-rock sound.   Three of the five orginal members, Roger McGuinn, David Crosby and Chris Hillman, continue to make great music in other groups.
Chieftains
The Chieftains are THE traditional Irish band, over 40 years in existence, with almost 40 albums, including at least 6 Grammy winners.
Clannad
Another well known Irish band, whose music is characterized by a blending of contemporary and traditional sounds.
Clark, Guy  
One of the most prolific Texas singer/songwriters.
Cockburn, Bruce
A wonderful singer/songwriter from Canada.  If you are a Dylan or Springsteen fan, but haven't listened to Cockburn, you should run out and find something quickly.
Collins, Judy
A remarkable presence, much more than a folksinger, she has a pure voice and an exquisite taste in song.  There is also a terrific Judy Collins Fan Site, with an abundance of very good information, including detailed album notes.
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
Starting with the Byrds, the Hollies and Buffalo Springfield, these guys are a prime source from which much modern "acoustic" popular music springs.
Davis, Reverend Gary
Another important figure in the world of American acoustic blues, Reverend Davis has had tremendous influence on touring blues musicians throughout the world.
Dover, Connie
Fine Celtic singer from the U.S.
Dylan, Bob
bobdylan.com is the official site, and includes a complete chronological and alphabetical listing of all albums and songs, together with lyrics to all of the songs he wrote.  Bob Links is another fine link site.  Last, but certainly not least, for guitar players there is a tremendous web site called My Back Pages.   Developed by a Swedish fellow named Eyolf Østrem, he has collected lyrics to all of the songs, with chords, together with a tremendous amount of academic analysis of Dylan's music.  Highly recommended -- this is a remarkable resource.
Earle, Steve
Singer/Songwriter from Texas who now lives in Nashville.  His songs are often magnificent.
Fleck, Bela and the Flecktones
Bela Fleck is a master banjo picker, whose early years found him playing with a band called New Grass Revival.  It's almost impossible to describe Bela's music or the sound of the Flecktones, but they should not be missed.
Franke, Bob
A fine singer/songwriter. Among many very good songs, he's written "The Great Storm is Over" and "Hard Love," both of which have been sung around the world.  His web site is maintained by the creator of FolkBlues.Com, so go there right now!
Goodman, Steve
My all time favorite singer/songwriter, from Chicago, whose most famous song is "City of New Orleans." I learned a ton about guitar playing and having fun playing music by listening to and watching Steve.  He died of leukemia in 1984, but there is still great interest in his music. He was a terrific stage performer and a musician's musician. This web site has a huge amount of information about him.  If you have no Goodman music, buy the 2 CD set called "No Big Surprise," which his wife put together and released in the 1990's.  It has one disc of studio cuts and one disc of live cuts, and has a very fine booklet with it, chock full of stories, including some by his old buddy, John Prine.
Grateful Dead
Okay, they are really known as a rock and roll band, but the Grateful Dead grew out of Bob Weir and Jerry Garcia's interest in folk music.  In fact there is a great amount of Jerry Garcia acoustic music being released and  distributed by the great mandolinist and Garcia pal David Grisman.   The link above is to the Official Grateful Dead site, but you should also look at The Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics, an absolutely amazing source of information about this remarkable band.
Gregson, Clive
Born and raised in Manchester, England, Clive is an accomplished guitar player, singer/songwriter, and record producer, whose work with Gregson & Collister was described by Rolling Stone as "the state of the art in British folk-rock".  He was also a member of the Richard Thompson Band.
Grier, David
A fine flatpicker.
Griffith, Nanci
Nanci Griffith is an Austin, Texas based singer/songwriter, is distinguished by the respect she shows for the music she plays, whether her own or someone else's.
Grisman, David
Perhaps the finest and most versatile mandolin player in the world today.  David has done a tremendous amount of work to preserve some of the best acoustic music in the world, primarily through his own label, Acoustic Disc.
Guthrie, Arlo
Since the 1960's, Arlo has been an important figure in American folk music.  His web site subtitle is "Home of America's Favorite Undead Folksinger."
Richie Havens
Richie has also been around since the 1960's, and was a major figure at Woodstock.  His guitar method is most unusual, and he explains it at the site.
Johnson, Robert
One of the seminal figures in tradition American blues, Robert Johnson was a Mississippi delta blues performer, who only recorded about 41 tracks in his rather short life.  However, those tracks and his style have had an impact on most blues and rock and roll performers up to the present.  This is an academic site, apparently the result of some course work at the University of Virginia.  Very complete and very detailed, including lyrics to Johnson's songs.
Kahn, Si
A community organizer in labor rights and peace activites, Si is also a terrific songwriter and performer. 
Kaplansky, Lucy
Lucy is a wonderful singer of original songs.
Keelaghan, James
Calgary-based Canadian folksinger.
Koerner, Spider John
As a member of Koerner, Ray and Glover in the 60's, John was part of a great expansion of awareness of blues music.  He's still at it, with recordings and live performance.  I never get tired of seeing him play, including his annual appearance at the Twin Cities Battle of the Jug Bands, in the persona of "Outdoor John and the Sears Catalog."
Knopfler, Mark  
The leader of the great rock band Dire Staits, Mark Knopfler has written for movie soundtracks, in addition to creating a number of wonderful solo projects and projects with others such as Chet Atkins.  Great guitar player, with a sensibility toward acoustic guitar.
Lightfoot, Gordon
This page is unofficial, but as official as it gets, and does offer a fair amount of Gordon information.
Lindley, David
David worked for many years as a sideman with Jackson Browne, and the characteristic slide guitar sounds often heard on Jackson's earlier albums is the playing of David Lindley.  David is an amazing multi-instumentalist, with a depth of interest and ability to play music from around the world which is unparalleled.
Lovett, Lyle
This wry fellow has created a large catalog of interesting music.  He sometimes is categorized as a country performer, but he's really most influenced by singer/songwriters.
McCutcheon, John
A versatile musician of many styles. Probably the premier hammered dulcimer player in the world.
McGann, John
John is a professional musician and music transcriber, but his site also offers links and tips for guitar players.
McGarrigle, Kate and Anna
Wonderful singers from Canada.
McGuinn, Roger  
Co-founder of the Byrds, this is Roger's own site, which he maintains.  Home of the Folk Den, where he has posted around 100 public domain recordings of traditional folk songs. 
Mitchell, Joni
"Joni Mitchell is a songwriter, singer, musician, poet and painter. Her output of 20 albums over 30 years is widely regarded as one of the most significant and consistent collections of work by any artist of her generation. Her unique interpretation of divergent styles creates an intriguing, often unclassifiable musical landscape, captivating music lovers and keeping pundits guessing."
Morrison, Van
One of the world's great voices.  This site, which may not be official, is extensive, and includes lyrics.
Mustard's Retreat
Michael Hough and David Tamulevich have been playing music together all over the USA for more than 30 years.  They are terrific, energetic performers, with a huge repertoire of traditional and newer folk songs, including many they have written.
O'Brien, Tim
It's hard to summarize Tim's work.  He's everywhere -- on his own records and recordings by others.  Listen to old Hot Rize albums, his solo works, the Crossing albums, and on and on.  Great range and taste.
Paxton, Tom
Writer of countless wonderful songs, like "Ramblin' Boy," "Last Thing on My Mind," and "Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound," Tom came out of the 1960's Greenwich Village folk scene.  His albums number near 40 and counting.  
Prine, John - Oh Boy Records
A true original.
Prine, John - Prine Shrine
An unofficial, but very information-rich site. Includes lyrics and chords to pretty near every song Prine ever recorded.  Lots of trivia, too.
Raitt, Bonnie
An original modern blueswoman, whose heart has always seemed to be in the music, not in the music business.
Roches, The
Three sisters who write and sing wonderful songs.
Rogers, Garnet  
Brother of Stan Rogers, a powerful singer and songwriter.
Rogers, Stan  
Wonderful Canadian singer and writer of songs who passed away in 1983.
Rush, Tom
From this web site:  "Tom Rush's music includes healthy doses of both folk and blues influences. He also was the first major artist to record the songs of a then-unknown Joni Mitchell, and also recorded a number of songs from such emerging singer/songwriters of the time as Jackson Browne, Eric von Schmidt and Eric Kaz. Rush's own compositions are still lauded for their poignant, undeniable lyrics."
Seeger, Pete
It would be hard to talk about modern American folk music without mentioning Pete Seeger.  His influence is remarkable, his commitment to both the music and to social justice are unflagging.  There are many great Pete Seeger recordings, but a favorite recent disc is simply called "Pete," which won a Grammy for Best Traditional Folk Album in 1996.
Silverstein, Shel
Known mainly for his children's books, Shel was also a terrific poet and songwriter, and was particularly good at writing very funny lyrics.  Johnny Cash had a monster hit with Shel's "A Boy Named. Sue."  He wrote many songs for Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show, a 70's era popular band.  You should not miss "The Three-Legged Man," which Steve Goodman recorded.   This site is a good place to view some of this work.
Smith, Michael Peter
No, not the Christian singer.  Mike Smith wrote one of the all-time great tunes, "The Dutchman," which Steve Goodman first recorded, followed by many others.  "Michael has extensive experience as a songwriter, concert artist and recording artist. The Dutchman and Spoon River have become standards in the folk repertoire. He also has several excellent theatre projects to his credit, including his award-winning work in Frank Galati's The Grapes of Wrath, which toured internationally ten years ago."  Michael is also one of the instigators of Weavermania, a group consisting of four veterans of the Chicago folk scene who have joined forces to reproduce as closely as possible the original songs and sound of The Weavers.
Smothers Brothers
Very funny guys, and darned good musicians, too, although Tom may now be as well known for his Yo-Yo prowess.  These guys were hosts of a very funny and irreverent (and politically controversial) TV variety show during the early 1970's, and had writers the likes of one Steve Martin working for them.
Taylor, James
This unofficial site lists tours, plus a lot of information about James.
Taylor, Livingston
Brother to James, but with his own style, Liv has a nice site to visit.
Ultimate Band List
Despite the goofy name, if you are looking for information about almost any musician or band, you should try start with UBL.
Wainwright, Loudon
"Everybody has a web site but that's all Greek to me; I don't own a computer and I hate that letter "e."" (Loudon, from "The Last Man on Earth").  A most eccentric singer/songwriter.
White, Clarence
Clarence White had a great impact on countless guitar players, from his earlier work in bluegrass with the Kentucky Colonels to his later work with the Byrds.  Though he died after being hit by a car in 1973, there are at least two pages which tell about him, the one listed above and here's another one.   Both are part of Byrds pages.
White, Roland
Clarence White's brother, and a wonderful musician in his own right.
Williams, Robin and Linda
A long-time association with Garrison Keillor and his "Prairie Home Companion" radio show has provided a terrific showcase for this couple, who've been performing all over the country for nearly 30 years.  Whether on their own, or as part of the Hopeful Gospel Quartet (with Keillor and Kate MacKenzie), these two are not to be missed.
Wolf, Kate
The late Kate Wolf was a gifted writer and performer of folk songs, and her music lives on.