...the thing we do instead of the things we're supposed to do... Posts on Mondays & Thursdays
Thorw away post: my joints are sore and I'm phlegmy and I haven't recovered from the visit from Mother Mummy. So you get some more blues masters, a perfectly apt title for something that includes Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Robert Johnson, and Elmore James.
I sent this one to my 11-year-old niece in a box of CDs for her to check out. Gotta turn the youth onto the goods, right?
Learning things about the blues is fun. For instance, I post this mainly to take the opportunity to note that it's taken more than 30 years to wrap my brain around the fact that "harp" is synonymous with "harmonica". It was on acquiring this that I realized there are at least three different "Sonny Boy Williamsons", all working wihin the milieu. There is only one Howlin' Wolf, and while "I'll Be Around" isn't "Back Door Man" or "Tail Dragger", it's still a pretty great song.
Finally, this is generally my least-favorite volume of "Blues Masters" that I've acquired. Only time and expense will tell if this remains the case, but I guess the presence of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band and the Fabulous Thunderbirds knock this down a few points.
Or I'm just jealous I'll never blow the harp the way these wailers do.
Clearly, the universe wanted me to have the first volume of "Jubilation", as this one crossed my hand for the bargain price of three clams. Everything I said in my previous post applies here. Perhaps I'll turn up a copy of Volume Three in the nest month, so I can complete the series?
It's complicated for me, you know? How Christianity is intertwined in American popular music. But I guess it's important to remember that Satan was a fallen angel. So why wouldn't godly sounds evolve into heathen hymns?
But here's a decent place to start if you want to dig into the roots of soul music. Sam Cooke, as part of the Soul Stirrers, leads things off on this second disc of the three disc "Jubilation! Great Gospel Performances" series. The Staple Singers, whose Stax releases are amongst my favorites, show off their spiritual side on "Uncloudy Day". I knew Mahalia Jackson and James Cleveland before I dove into this, but I heard the Heavenly Gospel Singers, the Davis Sisters, and the Swan Silvertones for the first time on this comp. It's not a regular listen, but I'm glad I opened up to this, you know?
The first volume features other black gospel singers, including Aretha Franklin, the Edwin Hawkins Singers, and Clara Ward (amongst others). The third volume is all country gospel: Johnny Cash, Webb Pierce, George Jones & Tammy Wynette, and the Louvin Brothers all appear. In all, it's a pretty great series.
Look, you really shouldn't need a reason to download this, populated, as it is, with some sick Chicago Blues, early rock & roll, and a couple of random blues rarities, none of which are younger than 35 years old.
But if you do need a reason, do it because it has Blind Willie Jefferson's "Dark Was The Night - Cold Was The Ground", a song so exemplary that Jack White regards it as the finest example of slide guitar to be recorded, and one of a handful of musical pieces to make it onto the Voyager Golden Record, wedged between pieces by Kesarbai Kerkar and Beethoven. Fine company, to be sure.
Some random anecdotes about some of the artists on this here comp:
The entire "Blues Masters" series, released by Rhino across 18 volumes from 1992 to 1998, is worth snagging piecemeal whenever you see it. Like so many Rhino releases from this era, they make up a great starting point to check out a genre or era or label. And these, when you do see them, rarely go for over $5.
UPDATE: new link for youse. Enjoy skanking under the mistletoe.
I just sold my copy of this one on Discogs, so I took the opportunity before shipping it to re-rip it and share with you cats and kittens on this, the first Friday of December.
Truly a most irie comp, and one of my favorite "novelty" Christmas records, this one leads off with a track from Lee "Scratch" Perry, and moves on, covering a wide swath of JA music history in one go, with December 25th the common theme. John Holt's cover of "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" is an absolute knockout, and while I'm not much of an Inner Circle fan, Jacob Miller steps in with a "Wish You A Merry Christmas" that I've added to more than one holiday mix. There's a little something for every fan of reggae's evolution, from ska and rocksteady into Trojan's heyday and thru into dancehall and ragga.
If you're looking for something to play instead of that shit Wings track, give this one a spin.
It took from May to August 2000 to go from 100 to 200 posts. Then I hit 300 posts two days before Christmas 2000. And now I'm here, anot...
