Restrictions to Access

No patron duplication without permission of the donor. Streaming access limited to UNC Chapel Hill campus.

This collection contains audio recordings that are not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact Research and Instructional Service staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options for consulting these materials.

Restrictions to Use

No usage restrictions.

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 Mark J. O'Donnell Collection #20555, Southern Folklife Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Acquisitions Information

Received from Mark J. O'Donnell in August 2018 (Acc. 103403).

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.

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.

• Bluegrass music--North Carolina
• Blues (Music)--North Carolina
• Cat's Cradle (Music venue : Carrboro, N.C.)
• FolkScene (Radio program)
• Jazz--North Carolina.
• McCabe's Guitar Shop (Santa Monica, Calif.)
• O'Donnell, Mark J., 1951-
• Rock music--North Carolina.

Mark O’Donnell provided the following biographical and family history information* in September 2018:

Mark O’Donnell was born in Aurora, Ill. on 21 November 1951. He grew up in Illinois, Missouri, Pennsylvania and New Jersey before attending college in Providence and then matriculating at University of California at Los Angeles for undergraduate studies in anthropology. After graduation, he joined the Peace Corps and served in the Republic of Niger, West Africa, where he taught English, music, art and physical education. While there, he began recording music he heard in local villages where he lived.

Upon returning home, he completed a degree in public health education at the University of Hawaii, which lead to a career working with nonprofit and government agencies primarily focused on child and adolescent mental health in Hawaii and North Carolina. He recently retired.

While attending a Rolling Stones concert in Madison Square Garden in 1969, O’Donnell noticed a young man carrying a portable cassette player with handheld microphone down the aisle, taping the show. His first thought was, "I can do that." The next week he hitchhiked to Worcester Polytech in Worcester, Mass., and taped a Joni Mitchell concert (which was the only tape made during that series of concerts). He has been taping concerts on and off ever since.

Initially, O’Donnell used a 5"x8" Sony mono recorder with an external handheld mic. That was later replaced with a larger Sony Stereo recorder with a handheld stereo mic and eventually with a smaller 4.5"x5" Sony recorder. In the mid-2000s, he began using a DAT which proved better for longer recordings. The DAT, however, presented other challenges, including duration of batteries and initial startup noise. It did, however, yield higher quality recordings without the hiss common to cassettes. He then used an Edirol R-09 with Sound Professional stereo mini-mics.

*Mark O’Donnell's original text was lightly edited to conform with the style guide in use.

The Mark J. O'Donnell Collection consists of live audio recordings, publicity, set lists, and other materials relating to bluegrass, blues, jazz, and rock concerts and festivals at North Carolina area venues, including Cat's Cradle, Arts Center, and Sharp 9 Gallery, as well as some national venues and radio programs, including McCabe's Guitar Shop in Santa Monica, Calif. and the Los Angeles based syndicated music program, FolkScene. Some items are signed by performers.

• Oversize papers (OPF-20555/1)