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Collection Number: 20399

Collection Title: Daniel Coston Collection, 1975-2019

This collection has access restrictions. For details, please see the restrictions.

This collection has use restrictions. For details, please see the restrictions.

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.


Archival processing of the Daniel Coston Collection was made possible through a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

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Size 10,000 items
Abstract Photographs and audio recordings of musicians created by white North Carolina photographer, Daniel Coston. Photographs consist mostly of digital images, 1996-2007, of performances by country, folk, and rock musicians, including Big Star, J. J. Cale, Carter Family, Johnny Cash, Cat Power, Bob Dylan, Steve Earle, Andy Griffith, Tift Merritt, Ralph Stanley, and Wilco, among others. Digital photographs also include documentation of music festivals, such as MerleFest, as well as documentation of a memorial for Robert Moog, inventor of the first commercial synthesizer. Audio recordings found in the collection consist of digital copies of live recordings, 1975-2003, by Johnny Cash, June Carter Cash, Sarah Carter, and Maybelle Carter.
Creator Coston, Daniel, 1972-
Curatorial Unit University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Folklife Collection.
Language English
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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Information For Users

Restrictions to Access
This collection contains born-digital materials that are accessible only on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Access to born-digital audio materials (DF-20399/18-21) is provided in the Special Collections Research Room at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. For further information about access to these materials, contact Research and Instructional Services staff at Wilsonlibrary@unc.edu.
Access copies of digital photographs (DF-20399/1-17, 22) are available for viewing in the Digital Collections Repository. Downloading of images is not permitted.
Restrictions to Use
Any duplication request for the purpose of publication must be approved by the donor.
Copyright Notice
Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], in the Daniel Coston Collection #20399, Southern Folklife Collection, Wilson Special Collections Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Acquisitions Information
Received from Daniel Coston in May 2005 (Acc. 100074), December 2005 (Acc. 100284, 100561), April 2006 (Acc. 100363, 100377), October 2006 (Acc. 100504), December 2007 (Acc. 101210), November 2008 (Acc. 101017), and November 2019 (Acc. 103748).
Sensitive Materials Statement
Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. § 132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.). Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assumes no responsibility.
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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Processing Information

Processed by: Anne Wells, Miana Breed, Jessica Venlet, November 2019

Encoded by: Anne Wells, November 2019

Revisions by: Nancy Kaiser, Clare Carlson, and Jessica Venlet, March 2020

Archival processing of the Daniel Coston Collection was made possible through a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Since August 2017, we have added ethnic and racial identities for individuals and families represented in collections. To determine identity, we rely on self-identification; other information supplied to the repository by collection creators or sources; public records, press accounts, and secondary sources; and contextual information in the collection materials. Omissions of ethnic and racial identities in finding aids created or updated after August 2017 are an indication of insufficient information to make an educated guess or an individual's preference for identity information to be excluded from description. When we have misidentified, please let us know at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subject Headings

The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.

Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Biographical Information

Daniel Coston is a white photographer from Charlotte, N.C. who has been documenting musicians across North Carolina, and other parts of the world since 1995. His photographs have been featured in numerous publications, several TV networks, and his list of credits include work with Johnny Cash, the Avett Brothers, Wilco, Carolina Chocolate Drops, Down From The Mountain tour, Maurice Williams, and others. Daniel has also written several books, including North Carolina Musicians: Photographs And Conversations (McFarland Publications, 2013), There Was A Time: Rock & Roll During The 1960s In Charlotte, And North Carolina (Fort Canoga Press, 2014) and Home Of The Blues: A History Of The Double Door Inn (Fort Canoga Press, 2017).

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Scope and Content

Photographs and audio recordings of musicians created by white North Carolina photographer, Daniel Coston. Photographs consist mostly of digital images, 1996-2007, of live performances by country, folk, and rock musicians, including Big Star, J. J. Cale, Carter Family, Johnny Cash, Cat Power, Bob Dylan, Steve Earle, Andy Griffith, Tift Merritt, Ralph Stanley, and Wilco, among others. Digital images also include documentation of MerleFest, an annual traditional music festival held in Wilkesboro, N.C., as well as a memorial for Robert Moog, inventor of the first commercial synthesizer, the Moog synthesizer. Audio recordings consist of digital copies of live recordings by country musicians, including a 2003 performance by Johnny Cash and a 1975 performance by Sarah and Maybelle Carter.

The Addition of November 2019 consists largely of Coston's photography, 2000-2018, of rock, gospel, and folk musicians performing in North Carolina. Notable among the photographs is a rare image of Jimi Hendrix in Charlotte, N.C. on his 1967 tour with The Monkees. The Jimi Hendrix Experience were the opening act for The Monkees.

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Contents list

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 1. Photographs, 1996-2007 and undated.

2796 digital files.

Arrangement: Alphabetical.

Access copies of digital photographs (DF-20399/1-17) are available for viewing in the Digital Collections Repository. Downloading of images is not permitted.

Digital Folder DF-20399/1

Alphabetical photo archives A-J

257 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/2

Andy Griffith and Dillards Photographs, June-September 2004

61 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/3

Carlene Carter photographs, 9-10 December 2005

81 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/4

Classic southern musicians photographs, 1996-2005

293 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/5

Handsome family with Griel Marcus Photographs, 14 September 2007

62 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/6

Janette Carter photographs and memorial, 29 January 2006 and DBS Studio photographs, 14 January 2006

88 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/7

Johnny Cash and Carter Family photographs, 2002-2005

86 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/8

Merlefest photographs, 2005

56 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/9

Merlefest photographs, 28 April-1 May 2005

72 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/10

Miscellaneous photographs, including Andy Griffith, Dillards, and Paul McCartney, 2002, 2005

144 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/11

Musician photographs, 2004-2006

653 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/12

Musician photographs, 2007

457 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/13

Musician photographs, including R. Randolph, J. Petty, and more, 2000-2004

16 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/14

Musicians of the New and Old Generations photographs, 2005

244 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/15

New Riders of the Purple Sage, Tim O'Brien, and Cherry Holmes photographs, 7 January-2 February 2006

77 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/16

Ralph Stanley photographs, 12-13 January 2006

91 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/17

Wildwood Flowers photographs, Nashville, Tenn., 13 July 2005; Carlene Carter and Corrie Bennett Photographs, Carter Fold, Hiltons, Va., 6 August 2005

58 digital files

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 1A. Photographs, 2000-2018 (Addition of November 2019).

7036 digital files.

Acquisitions Information: Accession 103748

Arrangement: Alphabetical.

Access copies of digital photographs (DF-20399/22) are available for viewing in the Digital Collections Repository. Downloading of images is not permitted.

Photographs are largely Coston's photography, 2000-2018, of rock, gospel, and folk musicians performing in North Carolina. Notable among the photographs is a rare image of Jimi Hendrix in Charlotte, N.C. on his 1967 tour with The Monkees. The Jimi Hendrix Experience were the opening act for The Monkees.

Digital Folder DF-20399/22

Musician photographs, 2000-2018

7036 digital files

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 2. Audio Recordings, 1975-2003 and undated.

50 digital files.

Arrangement: Alphabetical.

Access to born-digital audio materials (DF-20399/18-21) is provided in the Special Collections Research Room at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. For further information about access to these materials, contact Research and Instructional Services staff at Wilsonlibrary@unc.edu.

Digital Folder DF-20399/18

Johnny Cash at Carter Fold audio recordings, Hiltons, Va., 5 July 2003; Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash at Carter Fold audio recordings, 28 September 2002

14 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/19

Johnny Cash Live at the Carter Fold for June Carter Cash's Birthday Celebration audio recordings

10 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/20

Johnny Cash last live performance at the Carter Fold audio recordings, 5 July 2003

8 digital files

Digital Folder DF-20399/21

Sarah and Maybelle Carter with Janette, Joe, and Helen Carter performance audio recordings, A.P. Carter Festival, Hiltons, Va., 23 August 1975

18 digital files

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