Discover America (album)
| Discover America | ||||
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| Studio album by Van Dyke Parks | ||||
| Released | 1972 | |||
| Length | 37:09 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. | |||
| Producer | Linda Perry, Durrie Parks | |||
| Van Dyke Parks chronology | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |
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| Rolling Stone | (Not Rated) |
| Pitchfork | (8.5/10) |
Discover America is the second studio album by Van Dyke Parks released by Warner Bros. in 1972. Its sound is a major departure from his debut record, Song Cycle (1967), featuring all cover versions of previously written songs.
The album mostly features songs popularized by early Calypso musicians, as well as songs by Allen Toussaint ("Occapella" and "Riverboat"), Little Feat ("Sailin' Shoes"), John Philip Sousa ("Stars and Stripes Forever") and one song of unknown origin ("Be Careful").
The title of the album is derived from the poem "I Am Waiting" by Lawrence Ferlinghetti.
Most of the album's songs were originally written by early Calypso musicians between the 1920s and 1940s, but had fallen into the public domain by the time Discover America was recorded in 1972. As such, nearly all of the songs are listed as "Public domain; arranged & adapted by Van Dyke Parks." Lyrical themes run a wide range of American history, from John Jones, to early 20th-century musicians Bing Crosby and The Mills Brothers, actor Jack Palance, and political figures Franklin Roosevelt and J. Edgar Hoover.
Parks would continue his study of Calypso and Caribbean music on his third album, Clang of the Yankee Reaper, released in 1975. Throughout the 1970s, Parks acted as producer on Calypso albums for other artists, including The Esso Trinidad Tripoli Steel Band's Esso in 1971, and The Mighty Sparrow's 1974 album, Hot and Sweet.
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