Inventory of the Billy Faier Collection, 1955-2003

Collection Number 20380

unc seal
Manuscripts Department, Library of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Collection Information


Contact Information:
Manuscripts Department
CB#3926, Wilson Library
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC 27514-8890
Phone: 919/962-1345
Fax: 919/962-3594
Email: mss@email.unc.edu
URL: http://www.lib.unc.edu/mss/
Processed by
Elizabeth Matson
Date Processed
January 2004
Encoded by
Elizabeth Matson
Date Encoded
January 2004

Back to Top

Descriptive Summary

Repository
Southern Folklife Collection
Creator
Faier, Billy.
Title
Billy Faier Collection, 1955-2003
Call Number
20380
Extent
About 1,320 items (4.5 linear feet)
Abstract
Billy Faier of Woodstock, N.Y., taught himself to play the five-string banjo and was later involved in the folk music revival as a performer, songwriter, observer, writer, and radio disc jockey. Faier was a prominent member of New York City's Washington Square folk scene in the late 1940s and of the folk music scene on both coasts during the 1950s and 1960s. The collection documents the personal and professional activities of Billy Faier. There are also more general materials collected and generated by Faier about the folk music revival, the counter-culture movement, and other interests. Included are correspondence, writings, artwork, and other materials relating to Faier's work with Pete Seeger; song writing and theatrical performances; music; Woodstock, N.Y.; juggling; games; bicycling; hitchhiking; and alternative lifestyles in general. Audio recordings include live and studio performances of Faier and other musicians; interviews with Aunt Molly Jackson and Frank and Ann Warner; recordings of Faier's radio shows; documentation of social and political events; and dubs from old records.
Language
English.


Back to Top

Administrative Information

Restrictions to Access
This collection has restrictions to access. Please see details below or contact the Manuscripts Department for more information.
Usage Restrictions
Use of audio materials may require production of listening copies.
Provenance
Received from Billy Faier in June 2003 (Acc. 99533) and July 2003 (Acc. 99586). Received from William Ferris in May 2003 (Acc. 99515).
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], in the Billy Faier Collection #20380, Southern Folklife Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Copyright Notice
Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Back to Top

Online Catalog Headings

These and related materials may be found under the following headings in online catalogs.

Alternative lifestyles.
Banjo music.
Banjoists.
Bicycling.
Counterculture.
Faier, Billy.
Folk musicians--United States.
Folk music--United States.
Folk singers--United States.
Folk songs--United States.
Hitchhiking.
Jackson, Aunt Molly.
Juggling.
Radio programs--United States.
Seeger, Pete, 1919- .
Warner, Anne.
Warner, Frank.
Woodstock (N.Y.)--Social life and customs.
Back to Top

Biographical Note

Billy Faier was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., on 21 December 1930. He moved to Woodstock, N.Y., with his family in 1944 at age thirteen. Faier had his first contact with folk music in Woodstock and taught himself to play the five-string banjo. Dropping out of high school to pursue his music, Faier traveled with Ramblin' Jack Elliott across the country and was a prominent member of New York City's Washington Square folk scene in the late 1940s. In 1957 and 1958, Faier recorded Art of the Five String Banjo and Travelin' Man for Riverside. Involved with the folk music revival scene on both coasts during the 1950s and 1960s, Billy Faier worked in night clubs, wrote songs, transcribed music for Pete Seeger, performed and taught banjo, performed as an on-stage musician in theater productions in New York City, hosted radio shows on Berkeley's KPFA and New York City's WBAI, and wrote for and eventually edited Caravan: Folk Music Magazine.

Despite time spent in New York and Berkeley, Faier's home base for a large part of his life has been the town of Woodstock and the surrounding area where he built his home in Lake Hill, N.Y., and became an active community member and renowned as a local street musician. From this home base, his music career experienced a revival in the 1980s with performances at folk music festivals; a self-produced recording, Banjos, Birdsongs, and Mother Earth; and a self-produced re-release of his earlier albums on cassette.

Throughout his life, Faier has opted for a non-mainstream, alternative lifestyle. Besides song writing and playing banjo and guitar, Faier's eclectic interests include juggling, traveling, hitchhiking, Rubik's Cube, the game of Go, sailing, folklore, and writing.

Back to Top

Collection Overview

The collection documents the life of Billy Faier as a musician, songwriter, and player of the five-string banjo and his role as observer, writer, and documenter of culture, particularly of the folk music revival and the counter-culture. The collection reflects both Faier's professional and personal experiences and his eclectic interests and collections. It contains material relating not only to Faier but to the events, ideas, and interests of an era and generation as well.

Correspondence, 1959-2003, includes letters from Faier's girlfriends, friends, fans, fellow musicians, tenants, and individuals he met while traveling and performing. It documents Faier's music career encompassing song writing, including transcription work for Pete Seeger's The Goofing-Off Suite and Faier's published songbooks; roles as an on-stage musician in theatrical performances, including The Unsinkable Molly Brown on Broadway; prose writings about music and the folk revival; and promotional and business materials, including programs, publicity photographs, and mail order and sales records for his self-produced tapes. Audio recordings include live and studio performances of Faier and other musicians; interviews with Aunt Molly Jackson, Frank Warner, and Ann Warner; Faier's radio shows; social and political events; and dubs from old records. Material on Faier's general interests and collections includes the folk music revival, including an interview with Faier by Ronald D. Cohen; collected writings and artwork by others; games, such as Rubik's Cube and Go; fanzines, including Gigline, Rainbow Family of Living Light, and The Realist; and hypnosis and Silva Mind Control. Faier's skills and interests are reflected in material on juglature, a method he invented of transcribing juggling moves, classes he taught, and multiple drafts of two juggling books. Faier's active involvement in his most consistent home community, as well as personal material relating to his house, sailing vessel, and legal matters, are included in the Woodstock, N.Y., files. Also included are articles on traveling with a bicycle across the country, hitchhiking as a means of alleviating the energy crisis, and a personal journal from 1974.

Back to Top

Organization of Collection

1. Correspondence, 1959-2003 and undated
1.1. Charles, Gloria "Cosmo", 1979-1997 and undated
1.2. Faier, Gerry, 1981-1999
1.3. Wand, Christopher Nicklaus, 1985-2000 and undated
1.4. Landlord-Tenant Correspondence, 1993-1998
1.5. Other Letters, 1959-2003 and undated
2. Music Career, 1955-2002 and undated
2.1. Song Writing
2.1.1. Compositions and Arrangements by Faier
2.1.2. The Goofing Off Suite, 1956-1960 and undated
2.1.3. Billy Faier's Banjo Selections
2.1.4. Collected Song Writing
2.2. Theater Performances, 1960-1963 and undated
2.3. Music Writings, 1958-1968, 1997
2.4. Promotional Material
2.4.1. Clippings and Reviews, 1957-1981 and undated
2.4.2. Performance and Festival Programs, 1955-1990 and undated
2.4.3. Publicity Photographs
2.4.4. Posters and Fliers
2.4.5. Promotional Writing
2.5. Business Material, 1957-2002
2.5.1. Business Correspondence, 1957-1992
2.5.2. Mail Order and Sales Records for Tapes, 1987-2002
2.5.3. Contracts, 1957-1990
2.5.4. Winnipeg Folk Festival, 1981
3. Audio Recordings, 1957-2000 and undated
3.1. Billy Faier Music, 1957-2000 and undated
3.2. Recordings of Others, 1958-1982 and undated
3.3. Radio Shows, 1957 and undated
3.4. Disc Dubs
4. General Interests and Collections
4.1. Folk Music Revival
4.2. Collected Writings
4.3. Collected Artwork
4.4. Research, Recreational, Cultural Interests
5. Juggling
5.1. Juggling Notes
5.2. Juggling Research
5.3. Juggling Business
5.4. Juggling Manuscripts
6. Woodstock, N.Y.
6.1. General Community
6.2. Personal Material
7. Other Writings, 1974-1982 and undated
7.1. "Crossing the USA with a Bike," 1981-1982
7.2. Hitchhiking, 1980-1981
7.3. Journal, 1974
7.4. Other Writings
Back to Top

Items Separated

Items separated include photographs (P-4499 - P-4510), promotional buttons (MU-20380/1-4), oversized items (OP-20380/1-11), and audio recordings (FT-11303 - FT-11417; FT-11526 - FT-11531; FS-6904 - FS-6905; FD-789 -FD-793; FC-13785).


Back to Top

Detailed Description of the Collection

1. Correspondence, 1959-2003 and undated.

About 425 items.
Correspondence consists largely of letters to Billy Faier with some carbon copies of Faier's letters interspersed. The period covered spans from 1959 to 2003, with the bulk of the material dating from 1980 to 1999. Letters reflect not only the relationships and events of Faier's life, but also provide something of a portrait of a generation for those who were involved in and influenced by the folk music revival, counter-culture, and alternative lifestyles. While it is often difficult to make clear distinctions between personal, fan, and business correspondence as friends help arrange gigs, sponsors and fans become friends, fans and fellow musicians become correspondents, and fans offer business propositions, this series focuses on personal correspondence. See Series 2. Music Career for correspondence directly related to business matters. Faier's correspondents include girlfriends, friends, fans, fellow musicians, tenants, and individuals he met while traveling and performing, including hitchhikers he picked up. Correspondents of both short-term and long-term duration are included. Correspondence of note, either for its duration or the correspondent's relationship to Billy Faier, is separated out from the general correspondence and includes: Gloria "Cosmo" Charles (whose correspondence with Faier dates from the 1970s), Gerry Faier (Faier's mother), Christopher Nicklaus Wand (Faier's son), and Landlord-Tenant Correspondence (for Faier's Lake Hill, N.Y., house, which he often rented when he traveled).
Back to Top
1.1. Charles, Gloria "Cosmo," 1979-1997 and undated.
About 35 items.
Gloria "Cosmo" Charles is a former girlfriend who traveled with Faier to the west coast in the 1970s. She retained a strong and enduring friendship with Faier as evidenced through their correspondence, which dates from the late 1970s. Additional references to Cosmo Charles in the collection can be found in Other Writings and Audio Recordings.
Folder 1
Charles, Gloria "Cosmo"
Back to Top
1.2. Faier, Gerry, 1981-1999.
About 10 items.
Gerry Faier is Billy Faier's mother.
Folder 2
Faier, Gerry
Back to Top
1.3. Wand, Christopher Nicklaus, 1985-2000 and undated.
About 15 items.
Christopher Nicklaus Wand is Billy Faier's son with Barbara Wand. He started his correspondence with his father as a young man.
Folder 3
Wand, Christopher, Nicklaus
Back to Top
1.4. Landlord-Tenant Correspondence, 1993-1998.
About 5 items.
Billy Faier periodically rented out his house in Lake Hill, N.Y., when he went on extended travel for music performances and pleasure. Correspondence relating to these rental transactions is included here.
Folder 4
Landlord-Tenant Correspondence
Back to Top
1.5. Other Letters, 1959-2003 and undated.
About 360 items.
Correspondents include girlfriends, friends, fans, fellow musicians, and individuals Faier met while traveling or performing. The letters reflect not only the relationships and events of Billy Faier's life but provide something of a portrait of a generation for those who were involved in and influenced by the folk music revival and alternative lifestyles. While it is often difficult to make clear distinctions between personal, fan, and business correspondence as friends help arrange gigs, sponsors and fans become friends, fans and fellow musicians become correspondents, and fans offer business propositions, this series focuses on personal correspondence.
Folder 5
1959
Folder 6
1964
Folder 7
1977-1979
Folder 8
1980-1984
Folder 9
1985-1989
Folder 10
1990-1994
Folder 11
1995-1999
Folder 12
2000-2003
Folder 13
Undated

Back to Top

2. Music Career, 1955-2002 and undated.

About 420 items.
The creative aspects of Billy Faier's accomplishments as a musician are highlighted here in his song writing, theater performances, and music writing. The business aspects can be found in the promotional photographs, posters, business correspondence and writing, contracts, and Winnipeg Folk Festival material. Of particular note are the music transcription and notation work Faier did for Pete Seeger for The Goofing-Off Suite and Faier's involvement with Caravan: Folk Music Magazine. Additional material relating to Billy Faier's career as a musician and the folk music revival can be found in Series 3. Audio Recordings and Series 4.1. Folk Music Revival.
Back to Top
2.1. Song Writing.
About 170 items.
Songs written, composed, arranged, or transcribed by Billy Faier, as well as compositions by other composers that Faier collected. Included are complete scores of Faier's own songs, the first and second edition folios of banjo music selections from his album The Art of the Five String Banjo, and commercially published banjo music scores. Of particular note is music transcription and notation work Faier did for Pete Seeger, specifically for The Goofing-Off Suite.
Back to Top
2.1.1. Compositions and Arrangements by Billy Faier.
About 115 items.
Songs written, composed, or arranged by Billy Faier. Though much of the general material is unsigned, the songs in this series are presumed to be composed, arranged, or transcribed by Faier. Faier's work includes: arrangements and adaptations of other composers' songs, handwritten and typewritten lyrics, music in various stages of composition, and completed songs with lyrics accompanied by music notation organized by individual song titles. Compositions that clearly appear to have different authorship are included in 2.1.4. Collected Song Writing.
Folder 14
Arranged by Faier
Folder 15
General Lyrics
Folder 16
General Notation
Folder 17
General Notation (Notebooks)
Folder 18
Song: "Actions Speak Louder than Words"
Folder 19
Song: "Baby You Opened My Heart"
Folder 20
Song: "Bees to My Honey Blues"
Folder 21
Song: "Bright Angel Rag"
Folder 22
Song: "Daddy I Had a Dream"
Folder 23
Song: "Diane's Reel"
Folder 24
Song: "Doublethink"
Folder 25
Song: "Faier's Jig"
Folder 26
Song: "Folksinger's Heaven"
Folder 27
Song: "Funniest Thing"
Folder 28
Song: "G. V. Crawl"
Folder 29
Song: "Great Big Number"
Folder 30
Song: "Greatest Cycle" (OP-20380/1)
Folder 31
Song: "I Can Tell That You Love Me"
Folder 32
Song: "In Each Other's Arms"
Folder 33
Song: "Jigsaw Thing"
Folder 34
Song: "Short Suite"
Folder 35
Song: "The Song of the Coo-Coo"
Folder 36
Song: "Ten Times Around"
Folder 37
Song: "Together Free"
Folder 38
Song: "When You Have Found Your Superman"
Folder 39
Song: "Why Do I Make Mary Cry"
Folder 40
Song: "Wild Substance"
Back to Top
2.1.2. The Goofing Off Suite, 1956-1960 and undated.
About 25 items.
In the 1950s, Billy Faier did music transcription and notation work for Pete Seeger, particularly for The Goofing-Off Suite. Along with the music transcription, this series incorporates, as originally received, their correspondence on the project, which includes reference to the McCarthy trials Seeger was dealing with at the time. See also FT-11344 for a tape of music by Pete Seeger that Faier used for his transcription project.
Folder 41
Music Transcription for Pete Seeger
Back to Top
2.1.3. Billy Faier's Banjo Selections.
2 items.
Copies of Billy Faier's first and second edition folios of banjo music selections from his album The Art of the Five String Banjo.
Folder 42
Banjo Selections from The Art of the Five String Banjo
Back to Top
2.1.4. Collected Song Writing.
About 25 items.
Commercially published banjo music scores were collected by Billy Faier, as well as handwritten and typewritten lyrics and music compositions by other musicians and friends.
Folder 43
Collected Lyrics
Folder 44
Collected Music
Folder 45
Collected Banjo Songbooks
Back to Top
2.2. Theater Performances, 1960-1963 and undated.
About 30 items.
In addition to composing and performing as an individual musician, Billy Faier appeared in a number of theatrical productions, often as an on-stage musician. Material relating to these productions includes newspaper reviews, photographs, scripts, correspondence, and playbills. Faier played the part of Jib in A Christmas Story, a one-act play by Monica Beebe, which appears to have been a community production, possibly in Woodstock, N.Y. Faier was an on-stage musician in the 1963 production of In White America by Martin B. Duberman, which was performed at the Sheridan Square Playhouse in New York City, and The Unsinkable Molly Brown by Meredith Willson, a Broadway show in 1960 starring Tammy Grimes.
P-4495: Photograph of cast of In White America, including Billy Faier, Gloria Foster, JAmes Greene, Moses Gunn, Claudette Nevins, Michael O'Sullivan, and Fred Pinkard
P-4496: Photograph of cast of In White America, including Billy Faier, Gloria Foster, James Greene, Moses Gunn, Claudette Nevins, Michael O'Sullivan, and Fred Pinkard
P-4497: Photograph of The Unsinkable Molly Brown; shot includes Tammy Grimes and Billy Faier
P-4498: Photograph of cast of unidentified production, includes Billy Faier
Folder 46
A Christmas Story
Folder 47
In White America
Folder 48
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
Folder 49
Other Performances
Back to Top
2.3. Music Writing, 1958-1968, 1997.
About 20 items.
Billy Faier's writings about music and the folk revival date from 1958 to 1968 and 1997. Much of the earlier material comes from his involvement with Caravan: Folk Music Magazine. This popular fanzine also involved Lee Shaw, Lee Haring, and Roger D. Abrahams, among others. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Faier was first a contributor and assistant editor and then editor-in-chief of the magazine. Full issues of the magazine are in the Southern Folklife Collection's serial collection. Faier also wrote for Gardyloo, Folk Music Magazine, and The Week. His writings include letters to the editor, reports and comments on the folk music scene, record reviews, a report on the 1958 December meeting of the American Folklore Society, and an article on "Style and the Phonograph Record." In 1997, Grant Alden wrote a plea for the re-discovery of Billy Faier in the letters section of No Depression. He subsequently corresponded with Faier with the result of the publication of Faier's memories of Townes Van Zant in the letters section of the magazine.
Folder 50
Music Writing, 1958-1968
Folder 51
No Depression, 1997
Back to Top
2.4. Promotional Material.
About 110 items.
Material used to promote or document Billy Faier's career as a musician, including clippings and reviews, programs from performances and festivals, publicity photographs, posters and fliers, and event and biographical promotion pieces.
Back to Top
2.4.1. Clippings and Reviews, 1957-1981 and undated.
About 50 items.
Clippings and reviews include material that features, includes, or mentions Billy Faier. Concert and album reviews and announcements are particularly prominent. There are also newspaper and fanzine articles featuring Faier.
Folder 52
Clippings and Reviews
Back to Top
2.4.2. Performance and Festival Programs, 1955-1990 and undated.
About 20 items.
Programs from performances and festivals in which Billy Faier participated.
Folder 53
Performance and Festival Programs
Back to Top
2.4.3. Publicity Photographs.
12 items.
Photographs of Billy Faier taken on stage or for publicity purposes. Though undated, most appear to derive from Faier's early career, probably the late 1950s or early 1960s. The later career photographs probably date from the 1980s.
P-4499: Billy Faier with banjo publicity shot, early career
P-4500: Billy Faier with banjo on stage at RKO Palace Theater, early career
P-4501: Billy Faier with banjo on stage at RKO Palace Theater, early career
P-4502: Billy Faier wih guitar on stage at RKO Palace Theater, early career
P-4503: Billy Faier with guitar on stage at RKO Palace Theater, early career
P-4504: Billy Faier with guitar and unidentified singer on stage at RKO Palace Theater, early career
P-4505: Billy Faier with banjo, publicity shot, early career (oversized photograph)
P-4506: Billy Faier with banjos, publicity shot, early career (oversized photograph)
P-4507: Bily Faier with banjo, publicity shot, autographed, later career (oversized photograph)
P-4508: Billy Faier in Picasso t-shirt with banjo, publicity shot, later career
P-4509: Billy Faier in Picasso t-shirt with banjo, publicity shot, later career
P-4510: Unidentified woman with display of musical instruments, publicity shot
Back to Top
2.4.4 Posters and Fliers.
About 20 items.
Posters and fliers promoting performances and recordings by Billy Faier and others.
OP-20380/2: Oversized Posters and Fliers
Folder 54
Posters and Fliers
Back to Top
2.4.5. Promotional Writing.
About 10 items.
Event and biographical promotion pieces presumed to have been written by Billy Faier. Also included are liner notes to Faier's albums, Travelin' Man and The Beast of Billy Faier.
Folder 55
Promotional Writing
Folder 56
Album Liner Notes
Back to Top
2.5. Business Material, 1957-2002.
About 90 items.
Business material focuses on the contractual and monetary aspects of Billy Faier's work as a musician. Included are business letters, particularly relating to Faier's recording and performing arrangements, 1957-1992; mail order correspondence and sales records for his self-produced tapes, Banjos, Birdsong, and Mother Earth and The Art of the Five String Banjo/Travelin' Man, 1987-2002; contracts for recordings, song publication, transfer of ownership of Caravan: Folk Music Magazine, and performances; and material relating to being hired for and performing at the 1981 Winnipeg Folk Festival.
Back to Top
2.5.1. Business Correspondence, 1957-1992.
About 30 items.
Business correspondence directly relating to Faier's work as a musician, especially with regards to recording and performing arrangements. The correspondence ranges from 1957 to 1992 with the bulk from the 1980s. Included is correspondence with record producers, festival organizers, BMI, and tape producers. Correspondence from fans ordering tapes by mail order directly from Faier is filed separately in 2.5.2. Mail Orders and Sales Records of Tapes.
Folder 57
Business Correspondence
Back to Top
2.5.2. Mail Orders and Sales Records of Tapes, 1987-2002.
About 35 items.
In 1987, Billy Faier self-produced a new tape, Banjos, Birdsong, and Mother Earth. A few years later, in 1990, Faier re-released on one tape the two albums he had made in 1958 for Riverside, The Art of the Five String Banjo and Travelin' Man. These tapes were only available by mail order directly from Faier. This series includes the mail order correspondence for these tapes, 1987-2002, and Faier's record of sales for Banjos, Birdsongs, and Mother Earth until, as he wrote in the front of his sales record book, he stopped keeping records.
Folder 58
Mail Orders
Folder 59
Sales Records
Back to Top
2.5.3. Contracts, 1957-1990.
About 15 items.
Contracts are primarily Billy Faier's recording contracts, but also includes song publication, transfer of ownership of Caravan: Folk Music Magazine, and performance contracts.
Folder 60
Contracts
Back to Top
2.5.4. Winnipeg Folk Festival, 1981.
About 10 items.
Material relating to the 1981 Winnipeg Folk Festival, which Faier attended as a featured performer. It provides a fairly complete overview of one of Faier's performance gigs through the span of material, which includes the early phone messages, contract, travel arrangements, performance schedule, and festival information for performers. Faier's participation in the Winnipeg Folk Festival was part of a revival of his performance and recording career that he initiated in the 1980s. The Winnipeg Folk Festival was one stop on a tour of festivals and concerts, which also included the Vancouver Folk Music Festival and Kerrville Folk Festival. Promotional performer buttons for these festivals have been transferred to the North Carolina Collection Gallery. Additional material related to this tour can be found in Series 1. Correspondence, especially folders 1 and 8, and Series 7. Other Writings.
MU-20380/1-4: Promotional Buttons
Folder 61
Winnipeg Folk Festival, 1981

Back to Top

3. Audio Recordings, 1957-2000 and undated.

130 items.
Recordings made by and of Billy Faier, as well as recordings collected by him. Some of the recordings in this series were previously part of the Billy Faier Archives compiled by Mitchell Blank and Jeff Friedman and have previously been given identification numbers (BF-AT-###). The original archive order has been only partially maintained as the Billy Faier Archives was not received in its entirety and other, previously unarchived, tapes are also included in the collection. However, previous identification numbers are noted in parentheses where applicable and can be matched to the archive notes made by Blank and Friedman. Written documentation, including the previous archive notes and photocopies of the boxes, is available for most of the recordings. Documentation includes glosses by Faier identifying recordings and noting particularly good versions of his songs both at the time of recording and at a later date.
Back to Top
3.1. Billy Faier Music, 1957-2000 and undated.
48 items.
Recordings on open reel tapes and acetate discs of Billy Faier and/or his songs recorded in concert, in the studio, or in his home, mostly as a solo performer. Includes 1990 professional remasters of earlier 1957 and 1958 Riverside Long Playing Record albums Travelin' Man and The Art of the Five String Banjo and a professional master recording of Banjos, Birdsong, and Mother Earth, as well as the commercial cassettes Billy Faier produced of these titles.
FT-11303: Billy Faier in concert at Fugazi Hall, San Francisco, Calif. 13 December 1957. Broadcast over KPFA-California on a "Midnight Special" program, 14 December 1957. Tape 1 of 4. (BF-AT-028-A)
FT-11304: Billy Faier in concert at Fugazi Hall, San Francisco, Calif., 13 December 1957. Broadcast over KPFA-California on a "Midnight Special" program, 14 December 1957. Tape 2 of 4. (BF-AT-028-B)
FT-11305: Billy Faier in concert at Fugazi Hall, San Francisco, Calif., 13 December 1957. Broadcast over KPFA-California on a "Midnight Special" program, 14 December 1957. Tape 3 of 4. (BF-AT-028-C)
FT-11306: Billy Faier in concert at Fugazi Hall, San Francisco, Calif., 13 December 1957. Broadcast over KPFA-California on a "Midnight Special" program, 14 December 1957. Tape 4 of 4. (BF-AT-028-D)
FT-11307: Billy Faier in concert, location unknown, 31 January 1958. Tape 1 of 4. (BF-AT-029-A)
FT-11308: Billy Faier in concert, location unknown, 31 January 1958. Tape 2 of 4. (BF-AT-029-B)
FT-11309: Billy Faier in concert, location unknown, 31 January 1958. Tape 3 of 4. (BF-AT-029-C)
FT-11310: Billy Faier in concert, location unknown, 31 January 1958. Tape 4 of 4. (BF-AT-029-D)
FT-11311: Billy Faier in concert, Berkeley Little Theater, Berkeley, Calif., 2 May 1958. Tape 1 of 3 (BF-AT-030-A)
FT-11312: Billy Faier in concert, Berkeley, Little Theater, Berkeley, Calif., 2 May 1958. Tape 2 of 3. (BF-AT-030-B)
FT-11313: Billy Faier in concert, Berkeley Little Theater, Berkeley, Calif., 2 May 1958. Tape 3 of 3. (BF-AT-030-C)
FT-11314: Billy Faier in concert, A. Y. H., location unknown, 10 October 1958. Tape 1 of 2. (BF-AT-031-A)
FT-11315: Billy Faier in concert, A. Y. H., location unknown, 10 October 1958. Tape 2 of 2. (BF-AT-031-B)
FT-11316: Billy Faier in concert, Caffe Lena, New York, N.Y., 6 May 1967. (BF-AT-032)
FT-11317: John Wayne Studio, Albuquerque, N.M. (for Tacoma Records) with Family Lotus. (BF-AT-033)
FT-11318: A Number One Whoop-De-Do Banjo Thing and Waltz. (BF-AT-038)
FT-11319: Billy Faier on banjo, others on harmonica, bass. Studio tape. (BF-AT-045)
FT-11320: Billy Faier recorded 26 November 1967. (BF-AT-046)
FT-11321: Rag/Piece in Amin/New World/The Existential Crisis Blues/Zzyzx/Circumcision. (BF-AT-047)
FT-11322: A Number One Whoop-De-Do Banjo Thing and Waltz. Woodchuck Hollow Band-Rehearsal. (BF-AT-048)
FT-11323: A Number One Whoop-De-Do Banjo Thing and Waltz. Very Long, Very Good, Best Yet 13 December 1982. (BF-AT-049)
FT-11324: In Each Other's Arms/Banjo Piece/Funniest Thing/Mary Morrison. (BF-AT-050)
FT-11325: Fragmented Rag/Rag/Pseudo Raga/Fiddle Tune/Zzyzx/Rhinocerus Waltz/Cosmo/New World. (BF-AT-051)
FT-11326: Improvisations on banjo. Contains very early Cosmo. (BF-AT-052)
FT-11327: Billy Faier and others practice session. (BF-AT-054)
FT-11328: Live Performance. Actions Speak Louder Than Words/10 X 50/Live and Let Live/Superman/I Can Tell. (BF-AT-055)
FT-11329: Doublethink/Coo-Coo/Slow and Easy/Dog's Life/#/Wild/Fly/Daddy/Bees. (BF-AT-056)
FT-11330: A Number One Whoop-De-Do Banjo Thing and Waltz/Last Part of Pizzaraga/Funniest Thing. (BF-AT-057)
FT-11331: Banjo Instrumentals. (BF-AT-058)
FT-11332: Billy Faier. Dear Mother Earth (early version)/Zzyzx. (BF-AT-063)
FT-11333: Strange Time with Harmonica Again/Pizzaraga. (BF-AT-065)
FT-11334: Billy Faier. Banjo Instrumentals. (BF-AT-066)
FT-11335: Billy Faier. Byrdcliffe Music, Box 471, Woodstock, N.Y. When You Have Found Your Superman/Daddy, I Had a Dream/Great Big Number/Jig Saw Puzzle/Song of the Coo-Coo (Davidson County Music)/Together Free/Baby, You Opened My Heart/Bees to My Honey Blues/Doublethink. (BF-AT-068)
FT-11336: Byrdcliffe Music, Woodstock, N.Y., 1967. Pizzaraga/In Each Other's Arms/Funniest Thing/Why Do Make Mary Cry/Great Big Number/Actions Speak Louder Than Words/You Won't See Me/I've Just Seen a Face/A Little Help from my Friends/For No One/Norwegian Wood. (BF-AT-070)
FT-11337: Billy Faier. Banjo instrumentals with harmonica player. (BF-AT-071)
FT-11338: Billy Faier. Daddy I Had a Dream Last Night. Roll Down the Line. (BF-AT-080)
FT-11339: Billy Faier in concert, date and location unknown. (BF-AT-083)
FT-11340: Billy Faier. (BF-AT-086)
FT-11526: Travelin' Man (12-657-A) remaster by Fantasy Studios, 2 May 1990. Tape 1 of 2.
FT-11527: Travelin' Man (12-657-B) remaster by Fantasy Studios, 2 May 1990. Tape 2 of 2.
FT-11528: Art [of the Five String Banjo] (12-813-A) remaster by Fantasy Studios, 3 May 1990. Tape 1 of 2.
FT-11529: Art [of the Five String Banjo] (12-813-B) remaster by Fantasy Studios, 2 May 1990. Tape 2 of 2
FT-11530: Banjos, Birdsong, and Mother Earth (7922-A) Nibor Recording Studio, 26 July 1994. Tape 1 of 2.
FT-11531: Banjos, Birdsong, and Mother Earth (7922-B) Nibor Recording Studio, 26 July 1994. Tape 2 of 2.
FS-6904: The Art of the Five String Banjo and Travelin' Man, self-produced cassette re-release of Billy Faier's 1957-1958 albums, 1990.
FS-6905: Banjos, Birdsong, and Mother Earth, 1987.
FD-791: Faier 1: Billy Faier and Five String Banjo, Galveston Flood
FD-792: Faier 2: Otherwise unidentified acetate.
Back to Top
3.2. Recordings of Others, 1958-1982 and undated.
42 items.
Recordings featuring musicians other than Billy Faier, as well as interviews and other current events. Faier is included on some of these recordings as interviewer or interviewee, playing in a band or for other musicians, or, notably, as a lecturer. However, he is not featured as a solo musician in any of these recordings. Of particular interest are recordings of Pete Seeger playing for Faier so that he could transcribe The Goofing Off Suite, interviews with Aunt Molly Jackson, Frank Warner and Ann Warner, and Archie Green, and several "sign of the times" recordings from the 1960s and 1970s featuring demonstrations, political candidates, and talking to a friend while she's tripping.
FT-11341: All That The Name Implies (band name). Includes Wild Substance with Billy Faier on banjo. End of interview with Eric Weisberger about civil rights action, cuts off abruptly. (BF-AT-036)
FT-11342: Either continuation of FT-11341 or first part of interview with Eric Weisberger. (BF-AT-037)
FT-11343: Practice session of All That The Name Implies. (BF-AT-039)
FT-11344: Pete Seeger plays for Billy Faier for transcriptions for Hargail Press. Carl Sandburg reciting poetry (from a recording). Billy Faier in discussion with (possibly) Harold Newman. (BF-AT-040)
FT-11345: The Four Dodgers, 2 July 1958. (BF-AT-042)
FT-11346: Frank Fletcher. (BF-AT-043)
FT-11347: Brass and Woodwind Choir Band at Billy Faier's house. (BF-AT-053)
FT-11348: Interview of Billy Faier. Great Assembly. Last of Callahan (from record). Library of Congress recording of The Last of Callahan. Song of the Coo-Coo. (BF-AT-059)
FT-11349: Richard J. Hughes, Democratic candidate for Governor of N.J., on how automation is changing jobs in New Jersey and the crisis in New Jersey colleges. (BF-AT-060)
FT-11350: Hard Working Woman - D. Bollwith. (BF-AT-061)
FT-11351: Rehearsal Tape of All That The Name Implies. (BF-AT-062)
FT-11352: Woodchuck Hollow Brass and Woodwind Choir in performance at the Woodstock Playhouse. (BF-AT-064)
FT-11353: Bundle of Songs by Frank Beddoe (vocal with organ accompaniment). (BF-AT-067)
FT-11354: The Four Dodgers, Dick Emerson Studio, 17 May 1958. (BF-AT-069)
FT-11355: New Lost City Ramblers. Claude Lawrence Quartet, October 1968. (BF-AT-072)
FT-11356: Fisherman's Hornpipe. (BF-AT-075)
FT-11357: Piano snippets. (BF-AT-076)
FT-11358: Faier balancing channels on tape machine, distorted music, speed problems. Un-listenable. (BF-AT-077)
FT-11359: Unidentified. (BF-AT-078)
FT-11360: Billy Faier talking to friend while she is tripping. Indian music in background. Not much happens. Tape made in late 1960s. (BF-AT-079)
FT-11361: Billy Faier interviews Aunt Molly Jackson. Barry Olivier is also present. Throughout the interview Faier plays banjo and sings and Aunt Molly Jackson sings. Tape 1 of 6. (BF-AT-081-A)
FT-11362: Billy Faier interviews Aunt Molly Jackson. Barry Olivier is also present. Throughout the interview Faier plays banjo and sings and Aunt Molly Jackson sings. Tape 2 of 6. (BF-AT-081-B)
FT-11363: Billy Faier interviews Aunt Molly Jackson. Barry Olivier is also present. Throughout the interview Faier plays banjo and sings and Aunt Molly Jackson sings. Tape 3 of 6. (BF-AT-081-C)
FT-11364: Billy Faier interviews Aunt Molly Jackson. Barry Olivier is also present. Throughout the interview Faier plays banjo and sings and Aunt Molly Jackson sings. Tape 4 of 6. (BF-AT-081-D)
FT-11365: Billy Faier interviews Aunt Molly Jackson. Barry Olivier is also present. Throughout the interview Faier plays banjo and sings and Aunt Molly Jackson sings. Tape 5 of 6. (BF-AT-081-E)
FT-11366: Billy Faier interviews Aunt Molly Jackson. Barry Olivier is also present. Throughout the interview Faier plays banjo and sings and Aunt Molly Jackson sings. Tape 6 of 6. (BF-AT-081-F)
FT-11367: Billy Faier interviews various record collectors and folklorists for radio program: Frank and Ann Warner. Tape 1 of 5. (BF-AT-082-A)
FT-11368: Billy Faier interviews various record collectors and folklorists for radio program: Frank and Ann Warner. Topics include Hicks Family and Frank Proffitt. Tape 2 of 5. (BF-AT-082-B)
FT-11369: Billy Faier interviews various record collectors and folklorists for radio program: Archie Green. Topics include folklore of American labor movement. Tape 3 of 5. (BF-AT-082-C)
FT-11370: Billy Faier interviews various record collectors and folklorists for radio program: Miscellaneous guitar techniques are explored via records and discussion. Tape 4 of 5. (BF-AT-082-D)
FT-11371: Billy Faier interviews various record collectors and folklorists for radio program: Miscellaneous banjo techniques are explored via records and discussion. Tape 5 of 5. (BF-AT-082-E)
FT-11372: Bile Dem Cabbage Down - Harlan Miners Fiddlers (bones and an ocarina are prominent instruments); Cripple Creek (a Jew's harp is the lead instrument). Sent to Faier by a listener of his radio program. (BF-AT-084)
FT-11373: Demonstration in Time's Square, New York City, as recorded by Hamish Sinclair, 3 March 1962. Citizens are protesting he presidential decision for resumption of nuclear testing. Mark Lane is heard arguing with the police over the use of excessive force. Demonstrators make comments. (BF-AT-085)
FT-11374: This tape appears to be blank. (BF-AT-087)
FT-11375: Bossom, 13 December 1982, Audition. (BF-AT-088)
FT-11376: Billy Faier lecture at Columbia University on the subject of "Folk Music in the U.S. Songs" performed and discussed are: Peg and Awl/The Wreck of the Old 97/William Moore/The Horse Named Bill/The Great Assembly/This Train/Hellbound Train/Bye and Bye. (BF-AT-090)
FT-11377: Mark Spoelstra. Tape 1 of 2. (BF-AT-091-A)
FT-11378: Mark Spoelstra. Tape 2 of 2. (BF-AT-091-B)
78-19225: Charles Kellogg: How Birds Sing, The Bird Chorus
FC-13785: Frank Warner, sings American folk Songs and Ballads (cover autographed to Billy Faier)
FD-789: Jenkins 1: Ella Jenkins, Oyez me Tambuo and Composite Pornography
FD-790: Jenkins 2: Ella Jenkins, Yo Me Voy
Back to Top
3.3. Radio Shows, 1957 and undated.
7 items.
Billy Faier worked as a disc jockey presenting radio programs featuring folk music on several radio stations, including Berkeley's KPFA and New York City's WBAI. Open reel recordings of some of those radio shows, most notably "The Midnight Special" radio show on WBAI, are included, as well as an acetate recording of Dillybean Radio Spots.
FT-11379: Radio Show, exact date and location unknown. Contributions to the Delinquency of Minor Poetry by Guy Wehham, 1957. Billy Faier introduces and makes comments between the poems. (BF-AT-034)
FT-11380: Repeat of FT-11379 but without commentary. (BF-AT-035)
FT-11381: "Midnight Special" radio show/WBAI/New York City, date unknown. New World Singers. (BF-AT-041)
FT-11382: "Midnight Special" radio show. Remote broadcast from the Gaslight, New York City, date unknown. Kay Billig, the Highwaymen, John Wynne. (BF-AT-044)
FT-11383: Radio Show. Billy Faier. (BF-AT-074)
FT-11384: "Midnight Special" radio show. 15 September, year unknown. Tape pre-recorded for later broadcast. (BF-AT-089)
FD-793: Dillybean Radio Spots: 1: 60 sec. Open end, 2: 15 sec., 3: 10 sec.
Back to Top
3.4. Disc Dubs.
33 items.
Most of the recordings are unidentified beyond reel number and "disc dubs," but they appear to be recordings of old albums, presumably 78 rpms.
FT-11385: Will the Weaver - Parker and Woolbright, Everyday Dirt - David McCarn, Jumpin' and Jerkin' - Bill Carlisle.
FT-11386: Reel #3. The Bum Song. Hallelujah I'm a Bum - Pete Wiggins, The Brakeman's Blues - Jimmie Rodgers, Two Other Bums Sought - Asparagus Joe.
FT-11387: Callahan Brothers, Crokett Kentucky Miners, Uncle Dave Macon.
FT-11388: Reel 53-54, Leadbelly, Almanac Singers, Bobby Gregory, Sons of the Pioneers.
FT-11389: Reel 51-52, Uncle Dave Macon, Harry C. Browne and Peerless Quartet, Frank Warner, Harry McClintock, Leadbelly, Vernon Dalhart, Red River Dave.
FT-11390: Reel 49-50, Parker and Woolbright, David McCarn, Bill Carlisle, Leadbelly, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Big Bill Broonzy, Uncle Dave Macon, Coon Creek Girls, Callahan Brothers, Crokett Kentucky Miners.
FT-11391: Reel 55-56, Sons of the Pioneers, Esmereldy, Frank Novak, Sourwood Mountain Boys, Red River Dave, Harlan Miners Fiddlers.
FT-11392: Hogman (Matthew) Moxey, Guitar Robert Welch.
FT-11393: 78s. Unidentified.
FT-11394: Reel 1/23. Roy Acuff, Almanac Singers, Aunt Molly Jackson, Ella Jenkins, Grandpa Jones and his grandchildren.
FT-11395: Reel 2/24. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11396: Reel 3/25. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11397: Reel 4/26. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11398: Reel 5/27. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11399: Reel 6/28. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11400: Reel 7/29. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11401: Reel 8/30. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11402: Reel 9/31. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11403: Reel 10/32. Disc Dubs. 78s. Oscar Craver, Vernon Dalhart, Carson Robinson, Adelyne Hood, Bill Helms and his Upson County Band, Cliff Carlisle, The Wabash Trio, Wendell Hall, Jules Allen, John White, Frankie Wallace and his guitar, Bob Wills and Sleepy Johnson, Roan County Revelers.
FT-11404: Reel 11/33. Disc Dubs. Jack Elliott, Cousin Emmy, Susan Reed, Tex Ritter, A. C. Robertson, Paul Robeson.
FT-11405: Reel 12/34. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11406: Reel 13/35. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11407: Reel 14/36. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11408: Reel 15/37. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11409: Reel 16/38. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11410: Reel 17/39. Disc Dubs. Hallelujah Trio, Kelly Harrell, Scotty Harrell, Sam Hinton, the Hokum Boys, Jo Stafford, the Stanley Brothers, Budy Starcher, Kay Starr, Pete Steele, J. M. (Sailor Dad) Hunt.
FT-11411: Reel 18/40. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11412: Reel 19/41. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11413: Reel 20/42. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11414: Reel 21/43. Disc Dubs. Burl Ives, the Weavers, Josh White.
FT-11415: Reel 22/44. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11416: Reel 45/46. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.
FT-11417: Reel 47/48. Disc Dubs. Unidentified.

Back to Top

4. General Interests and Collections.

About 210 items.
Items relating to the folk music revival, mental challenges and activities, alternative lifestyles, and peace, as well as his collections of manuscript writings, poetry chapbooks, and artwork. This series is particularly reflective of the counter-culture interests arising out of the 1950s and 1960s. Besides being a participant in the folk music revival, Faier collected material relating to it, including clippings on the folk music scene, generally and on individual musicians; song books, particularly those of a socialist and labor bent; and material relating to or generated by Ronald D. Cohen, Archie Green, Aunt Molly Jackson, and Casey Jones, individuals significant to the folk music revival as researchers, folklorists, activists, performers, and folk figures. Manuscripts and chapbooks collected by Faier include poetry; a banjo book; a short story by his brother-in-law, Bob Peterson; and an autobiography of May Picqueray, a self-ascribed revolutionary. Artwork collected by Faier includes drawings, paintings, and photographs, presumed to have been created by his friends and acquaintances. Faier's research, recreational, and cultural interests include games such as Rubik's Cube and Go; music; hypnosis; overcoming consumerism; Silva Mind Control; peace; and alternative lifestyles. Many of his interests are reflected in fanzines, such as Gigline (for and by veterans against the Vietnam war), Rainbow Family of Living Light, Pearls Before Vinegar, and The Realist.
Back to Top
4.1. Folk Music Revival.
About 40 items.
Billy Faier was not only a participant in the folk music revival, he wrote and lectured on it and collected material related to it. The material Faier collected includes clippings on the folk music scene generally and on individual musicians (most notably Barbara Dane and Frank Proffitt); song books, particularly those of a socialist and labor bent; and material relating to or generated by Ronald D. Cohen, Archie Green, Aunt Molly Jackson, and Casey Jones, individuals significant to the folk music revival as researchers, folklorists, activists, performers, and folk figures. Ronald D. Cohen's material includes a transcript from an 8 August 1992 interview with Billy Faier about his involvement in the folk music revival as well as a copy of his book, "Wasn't That a Time!": Firsthand Accounts of the Folk Music Revival. The Archie Green material consists of booklets he wrote for the Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations at the University of Illinois on labor topics. The Aunt Molly Jackson material includes transcripts of interviews Billy Faier and Archie Green conducted with her on 5 May 1958 and Faier conducted with her on 19 May 1958. The Casey Jones material includes an article relating to Casey Jones' widow. Other related material received from Billy Faier but retained in the Southern Folklife Collection general periodical holdings rather than this individual collection are issues of the folk music fanzines Caravan and Gardyloo.
OP-20380/3: Oversized clippings
Folder 62
Clippings (see also OP-20380/3)
Folder 63
Song Books
Folder 64
Cohen, Ronald D.
Folder 65
Cohen, Ronald D.: "Wasn't That a Time!": Firsthand Accounts of the Folk Music Revival
Folder 66
Green, Archie
Folder 67
Jackson, Aunt Molly
Folder 68
Jones, Casey
Back to Top
4.2. Collected Writings.
8 items.
Manuscripts and chapbooks written by others and collected by Billy Faier. The banjo book manuscript does not list an author but, based on the handwriting, is presumed not to be by Billy Faier. "Duck Caller (and the Hemingway Hex)" is a short story written by Bob Peterson, Faier's brother-in-law. "May: The Revolutionary, for my 81 years of anarchy" is by May Picqueray and translated by Malkine Dattorre and Michael Dattorre. Poetry chapbooks include "Guide to the City" by Michael Grieg, "1001 Ways to Live Without Working" by Tuli Kupferberg, "Elegies" by Herschel Silverman, and "Nite Train" by Herschel Silverman.
Folder 69
Banjo Book Manuscript
Folder 70
"Duck Caller (and the Hemingway Hex)"
Folder 71
"May: The Revolutionary"
Folder 72
Poetry Chapbooks
Back to Top
4.3. Collected Artwork.
About 40 items.
Artwork collected by Billy Faier includes drawings, paintings, and photographs, which are presumed to have been created by his friends and acquaintances. Most of the works are unsigned. Signed artwork includes works by H. J. Nicholes, John G. Ernst, and Kenneth Matt Hewes. This collection includes some drawings with Faier as the subject and calligraphy of one of Faier's juggling mottos: "You Can't Learn to Juggle Without Dropping Balls."
OP-20380/4 Oversized Drawings
OP-20380/5 Sketchbook
Folder 73
Collected Artwork
Back to Top
4.4. Research, Recreational, and Cultural Interests.
About 120 items.
Faier's research, recreational, and cultural interests include games such as Rubik's Cube and Go, music, hypnosis, overcoming consumerism, Silva Mind Control, the secret government, peace, and alternative lifestyles. Many of his interests are reflected in fanzines such as Gigline (for and by veterans against the Vietnam war), Rainbow Family of Living Light, Pearls Before Vinegar (a zine of clippings and articles from other sources), and The Realist. The almost complete collection of The Realist, 1959-1970, is particularly interesting for the intellectual skepticism and questioning by the counter-culture that shaped Billy Faier and others of that era.
OP-20380/6: Rainbow Family of Living Light (see also folder 81)
OP-20380/7: Silva Mind Control (see also folder 107)
Folder 74
Ancient Music
Folder 75
Cubology (Rubik's Cube)
Folder 76
Gigline, December 1969-April 1970
Folder 77
Go
Folder 78
Hypnosis
Folder 79
Overcoming Consumerism
Folder 80
Pearls Before Vinegar
Folder 81
Rainbow Family of Living Light (see also OP-20380/6)
Folder 82
The Realist, No. 8-13, May-November 1959
Folder 83
The Realist, No. 14, undated
Folder 84
The Realist, No. 15-22, February-December 1960
Folder 85
The Realist, No. 23-30, February-December 1961
Folder 86
The Realist, No. 31, February 1962
Folder 87
The Realist, No. 33-40, undated
Folder 88
The Realist, No. 41-42, June-August 1963
Folder 89
The Realist, No. 43, undated
Folder 90
The Realist, No. 47, February 1964
Folder 91
The Realist, N. 48-50, undated
Folder 92
The Realist, No. 51-54, June-November 1964
Folder 93
The Realist, No. 55, undated
Folder 94
The Realist, No. 56-63, February-May 1965
Folder 95
The Realist, No. 64-72, February-December 1966
Folder 96
The Realist, No. 73-74, February-May 1967
Folder 97
The Realist, No. 75-76, undated
Folder 98
The Realist, No. 77-83, March-Dec. 1968
Folder 99
The Realist, February-December 1969
Folder 100
The Realist, No. 87, May-June 1970
Folder 101
The Realist, No. 90, undated
Folder 102
Secret Government
Folder 103
Silva Mind Control (see also OP-20380/7)

Back to Top

5. Juggling.

About 30 items.
One of Billy Faier's passions is juggling. After several earlier false starts in his life, he taught himself to juggle and then came up with the juglature, a way of notating juggling maneuvers similar to music notation. Faier wrote a number of book-length manuscripts on how to juggle using his juglature notation and actively engaged in submitting his manuscript for publication and in teaching juggling. Included are Faier's research notes and material, his juglature drawings, correspondence pertaining to his juggling manuscripts and classes, and his juggling manuscripts, including "Balls!" and "One Ball Meditation: A Juggling Primer."
Back to Top
5.1. Juggling Notes.
5 items.
Juggling Notes includes Faier's early juglature drawings, notes on particular juggling moves, an outline for an article, and early notes and thoughts on juggling.
OP-20380/8: Juglature Notes
Folder 104
Juggling Notes
Folder 105
Juggling Notebooks
Back to Top
5.2. Juggling Research.
About 10 items.
Juggling research includes the clippings and other research materials that Faier collected.
Folder 106
Juggling Research
Back to Top
5.3. Juggling Business.
About 10 items.
Juggling business primarily consists of correspondence relating directly to publication queries and responses on Faier's manuscripts and to juggling classes that Faier taught.
Folder 107
Juggling Business
Back to Top
5.4. Juggling Manuscripts.
6 items.
Faier's juggling manuscripts include different drafts of his manuscript "Balls!," a short juggling manuscript, and several drafts of "One Ball Meditation: A Juggling Primer," including a sealed copy designed to serve as his "poor person's copyright."
Folder 108
1st Draft of "Balls!"
Folder 109
Manuscript of "Balls!"
Folder 110
Short Juggling Manuscript
Folder 111
"One Ball Meditation: A Juggling Primer" Draft
Folder 112
"One Ball Meditation" Manuscript
Folder 113
Poor Person's Copyright (sealed copy of "One Ball Meditation")

Back to Top

6. Woodstock, N.Y.

About 80 items.
Billy Faier moved to Woodstock, N.Y., with his family in 1944 at age thirteen and had his first contact with folk music at that time. Though he traveled extensively and lived elsewhere, including New York City and California, his home base for a large part of his life has been Woodstock and the surrounding area. He built a home in nearby Lake Hill and became an active member of the community, participating in area politics, controversies, and the local art and music scene, including becoming a locally renowned street musician. This series reflects Faier's integral involvement in his community with clippings, community publications, including assorted newspapers from 1959 to 1992, and writings on the tower controversy. Material relating to Faier's personal business affairs based in Woodstock include plans and documents concerning his house; the purchase and sale of the vessel, Dark Companion of Sirius; a copy of a 20 April 1988 last will and testament; and documents pertaining to a harassment charge.
Back to Top
6.1. General Community.
About 45 items.
Billy Faier's involvement with the general community surrounding Woodstock, N.Y., is represented through clippings, publications, and manuscripts about the community, including writings by and about Faier. Of particular interest in the clippings section are Faier's letters to the editor and copies of his articles from the local papers. The Woodstock publications include copies of assorted local newspapers from 1959 to 1992, a 1990 yearbook of the town, and a 1962 Woodstock Folk Festival program book. In the early 1980s, Faier became an outspoken critic