Roundup
Of Notable New Reissues
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The
buzz in blues circles began at the end of last year when
word got out that the long lost Son House 78 had been found.
Son's waxing of "Mississippi County Farm Blues/Clarksdale
Moan" was the holy grail of blues finds stemming from
that mythical 1930 Paramount session that produced masterpieces
not only by Son but also by Charlie Patton, Willie Brown
and Louise Johnson. "Mississippi County Farm Blues"
is every bit as good as we had hoped it would be. This is
a very different and superior version than the one he cut
for the Library of Congress in 1942. Son plays this fast
and extremely powerful laced with some gorgeous ringing
slide as he sings/moans this prison tale with incredible
intensity. The song has the same melody as "See That
My Grave Is Kept Clean" which was obviously intentional
as Son stated in a 1965 interview: "Art Laibly wanted
the artists to do a version of a popular Jefferson song.
'I want all of you, either one of you. I'm not gonna pick
so much on the words and they don’t have to be the same
words that he used on See That My Grave Is Kept Clean just
let it be words that rhyme, pertaining to the title of the
song but I want that BEAT in there that he had.'" By
contrast, while quite good, "Clarksdale Moan"
isn't nearly as powerful and feels a bit underdeveloped.
It's already been suggested that Willie Brown is playing
a good deal of the guitar and indeed Son's distinctive slide
is only really heard in the song's final flourish. Those
songs would be reason enough to pick up the 2-CD The
Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of but of course there's
plenty more, certainly living up to the cover blurb -"Super
Rarities & Unissued Gems of the 1920's & 30's."
Indeed this collection is chock full of incredibly rare
(1 or 2 known 78 copies) blues, country and gospel numbers
that will make collectors week in the knees. In fact the
theme of the 20 page illustrated booklet is about the mania
of collecting, something I'm sure many of us can relate
to and perfectly illustrated by the great Robert Crumb cover.
While Richard Nevins pokes gentle fun at the wacky collectors
we owe them a great debt for without them all this fabulous
music may have been lost forever. I'm not the best qualified
to judge the country items although I'm sure previously
unissued sides by the Georgia Pot Lickers and Grayson &
Whitter will elicit the same excitement as those Son House
sides do for blues fans. The House sides are the only unissued
blues items but we do get some wonderful sides by Long "Cleeve"
Reed & Harvey Hull, Jaybird Coleman, Lottie Kimbrough,
Jesse Thomas, King Solomon Hill, Luke Jordan and others.
Sound quality ranges from very good to terrible, which is
to be expected considering the rarity of these sides. My
only complaint is little or no background is given on the
performers, no analysis of the records is provided and no
discography is included. I'd sure like to know more about
where that Son House 78 showed up but alas the mystery remains.
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If Mississippi
John Hurt never recorded again after his 1928 Okeh session
his place in blues history would still be assured. The 13
issued sides were among the most lyrically beautiful blues
of the era, marking Hurt as a true original. He might have
retreated back to Avalon, Mississippi and let time pass
him by if it wasn't for a remarkable turn of events that
would turn the soft spoken Hurt into a genuine celebrity
in the 1960's. The folk music revival of the late '50s and
early '60s renewed interest in the old blues singers and
in a relatively short time once mysterious figures like
Skip James, Son House, Bukka White, Furry Lewis were back
in the spotlight. Hurt's turn came in 1963 when he was found
still residing in Avalon, the town he immortalized on "Avalon
Blues." D.C. Blues: Library of Congress Recordings
Vol. 2 was recorded 35 years after his initial
recordings and finds Hurt in exceptional form. His was a
gentle brand of blues with complex finger picking and a
gentle, conversational vocal style far removed from rougher
contemporaries like Charlie Patton and Son House. The 37
songs on this two-disc set were recorded live for the Library
of Congress during two marathon sessions on July 15 and
23, 1963 in order to capture Hurt's artistry for posterity.
For Hurt fans this is a motherlode of wonderful blues, ballads
and spirituals played with perhaps even more warmth and
intimacy than his studio recordings from this period. Hurt
obviously knew a lot of songs, not just blues, and he digs
deep here resurrecting old pieces like "Waiting For
You (I Forgive You Before I Go)", "Alabama Bound",
"Shortin' Bread" plus reworkings of earlier numbers
like "Nobody's Dirty Business", "Avalon Blues",
"Frankie" and "Monday Morning Blues"
(cut in 1928 but never issued). Like Vol. 1, these recordings
have never appeared domestically so it's great to have theses
timeless sides together in one easily available package.
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There's no shortage
of live Freddie King material, both legitimate releases
and bootleg recordings. Quality varies on some of these
but Live At The Electric Ballroom, 1974,
originally issued on Black Top in 1996, is a good one, finding
Freddie in superb form and boasting good sound. The performances
come form two sessions in the early 70's. Six tracks stem
from an intimate studio interview with Dallas DJ John Dillon.
The rest of the recordings were taped at Atlanta's Electric
Ballroom in 1974 and gathered dust for over 20 years before
finally being released. The studio recordings catch a relaxed
Freddie doing a couple of laid back interview segments plus
two wonderful acoustic performances of "That's Alright"
and "Dust My Broom." According to the liner notes
these are the only acoustic recordings of Freddie known
to exist. Freddie was an incendiary live performer and the
concert here is a good one although the band here is more
bombastically rock oriented when compared to his 60's recordings.
Freddie's blistering guitar work and passionate vocals are
heard to great effect on the soulful "Woman Across
The River", the spare, heartfelt "Ain't Nobody's
Business", a number Freddie always made his own, plus
fiery versions of "Key To The Highway", "Sweet
Home Chicago" and others. King fans will certainly
want his one although there's a few others live ones that
may be better including "Live In Germany", "Texas
and Oklahoma Club Dates 75" and "Live At The Texas
Opry House" (apparently his last recording). Fans should
also check out the recently issued The!!!! Beat DVD's which
capture Freddie in jaw dropping form on over a dozen songs
circa 1966.
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Earl
Gaines hasn't had an easy time in the music business, achieving
success only sporadically in career that stretches back
to the mid-50's and continues to this day (Gaines issued
"The Different Feelings of Blues and Soul" in
2005). Gaines got his big break when he started singing
lead Louis Brooks and his group the Hi-Toppers who one were
one of Nashville's most in demand R&B outfits. Their
first recording hit pay dirt with "It's Love Baby (24
Hours a Day)" rising to number two on the R&B charts
in 1955 and giving the fledgling Excello label it's first
taste of national exposure. Gaines began cutting sides under
his own name for Excello, Champion and by 1963, he'd joined
Bill "Hoss" Allen's stable of artists, scoring
a hit with "Best of Luck to You." He subsequently
recorded record for Deluxe/King and Sound Stage 7 with little
success. The recordings that comprise The Lost Soul
Tapes were recorded for the Seventy-Seven label,
a subsidiary of Sound Stage, between 1972-1975 plus one
single for Johnny Vincent's Ace imprint. Gaines earlier
sides have been well documented on reissue collections,
but this 20 track collection features sides that have unfairly
been ignored. Gaines is a gritty, explosive singer and is
in terrific form on this uniformly strong collection of
70's soul. While the production isn't as distinctive as
what Hi and Stax were laying down, it's still well produced
featuring some punchy horns and a tough rhythm section.
Gaines is in top form although the material is a bit mixed.
Highlights include scorchers like "Keep Your Mind On
Me" and "I Can't Face It" featuring some
odd, but effective New Orleans style piano. There's several
covers include a passionate take on O.V. Wright's "That's
How Strong My Love Is", a great cover of Joe Simon's
"Nine Pound Steel", Mighty Hannibal's "Hymn
Number 5" which hit #36 on the R&B charts and a
rousing, funky version of Bobby Bland's "Turn On Your
Love Light." The earlier stuff Gaines cut for Excello
is still the place to start but if you have that this collection
is well worth investigating.
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Roscoe
Shelton's volcanic voice came to full maturity in the mid
to late 60's when he waxed a slew of smoking soul platters
for a number of small labels, most notably John R's Sound
Stage 7 imprint. Like many who followed him, Shelton got
his start singing gospel, first for the legendary Fairfield
Four and later for a spin off of the group called the Skylarks.
He then landed at Excello where he cut some fine singles
for the label between 1958-1961 which were issued on the
superb LP "Roscoe Shelton Sings" (expanded for
CD reissue in 1995). Forty-fives were being released on
various labels after the debut album, recording for Ted
Jarrett's Valdot label in 1962, those sides getting licensed
to Battle Records. In 1964-1965 the work was issued on the
Simms imprint, resulting in the hit "Strain on My Heart."
Simms was absorbed by Sound Stage Seven, a label operated
by former DJ John R. Sound Stage Seven released the singer's
music between 1965 and 1967. The 27 tracks on Deep
In My Soul come from that period. Shelton's gritty,
gut wrenching singing packs a wallop, retaining the strong
bluesy feel of his Excello period with the gospel fervor
of his early days. Shelton was a decade older than both
Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett and was undoubtedly an influence
on both. The production is tough and hard hitting with some
top drawer songs although only two numbers hit the charts;
the aforementioned "Strain On My Heart" tipped
in at #25 on the R&B charts while the aching "Easy
Going Fellow" hit #32. Despite the dearth of hits the
music ranks as some of the most emotionally wracked soul
of the era as evidenced on cuts like the brassy, soaring
"The Fire Still Burns", the vicious stormer "Soon
As Darkness Falls", as wicked as anything Wilson Pickett
ever cut, the pounding "Running From Your Life"
and the super charged ballad "There's A Heartbreak
Somewhere." These are just a few of the highlights
on this flawless collection.
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