All Hallows is just around the corner, so this is the final installment of Graveyard Tunes; thanks everybody for being so supportive of the series—there will be another song list series coming up in December.
Eberle says I should tell you all that among my many “jack-of-all-trades” jobs, I worked for two summers at Mt Calvary Cemetery in Burlington, VT as a grave-digger/groundskeeper. While we spent the majority of our working hours mowing lawns & weed-whacking fence lines, there was actual digging involved, & we did it the old-fashioned way, with spades & shovels. It wasn’t a bad job all in all—out in the sun, & tho there was some hard work, I was a young fellow & up to the task. Did this experience give me any particular insight into the Graveyard Tunes? Probably not!
Enjoy—five videos as a grand finale!
Scarey Day Blues: Here’s another tale of the mojo, in this case something that Blind Willie McTell’s woman has that puts “the jinx” on him in the boudoir (as it were). At the same time, his woman seems to have certain characteristics of a freight train (shaking & wobbling, like the “Central” & the “L&N”). Although Blind Willie expresses optimism about being able to find the mojo, she “keeps it hid.” I think you get the picture. Blind Willie McTell’s playing is always amazing, as on this up-tempo number—check him out in the video below. Blind Willie McTell:The Best of Blind Willie McTell (Yazoo)
See That My Grave Is Kept Clean: This great Blind Lemon Jefferson song is one I wrote up in a feature on Just a Song—this is a much condensed version. It's no under-statement to use the word eerie when describing this song, especially in Blind Lemon Jefferson’s version. When he sings “my heart stopped beating and my hands turned cold,” it is a spine-tingling moment, as is his singing about the “church bell tone” & the “coffin sound.” Blind Lemon Jefferson had an immediately recognizable guitar style, & his flowing runs & intricate rhythms always make for good listening, even in such a chilling song. Blind Lemon Jefferson:Anthology of American Folk Music, vol. 3, Songs (Smithsonian/Folkways); also The Best of Blind Lemon Jefferson (Yazoo)
Seven Skeletons Found in the Yard: Here we move from the blues of the southern U.S. to the calypso sounds of Jamaica. The old, pre-Belafonte (& Andrews Sisters) calypso was an extremely interesting form—a mixture of lovely melodies & rhythms over which the calypsonian singer would often extemporize in verse, often describing local events or singing about political issues. In a way, calypso is “the news,” & the news Lord Executor delivers in this calypso song from the 1930s is, as the title suggests rather grisly. It may interest you to know that Lord Executor goes on to list real tragedies which, he asserts are “worse than the seven skeletons the workmen found in the yard.” Lord Executor:Calypso Breakaway 1927-1941 (Rounder)—sadly, this fine collection of vintage calypso has been discontinued.
She Moved Through the Fair: This traditional Irish song about a ghostly love has one of the most beautiful—& haunting—melodies I’ve ever heard. When that melody is sung by Jean Redpath, who is simply one of the best singers I’ve ever heard, the results are stunning. Ms Redpath performs “She Moved Through the Fair” a capella, but her voice combines a remarkable purity & clarity of tone combined with true insight in delivering the lyric. Jean Redpath:First Flight (Rounder)
Skeleton Jangle: Moving from the sublime to the…less sublime, we have a fun early jazz number from the Original Dixieland Jazz Band. The recordings made by this combo in 1917 & 1918 were among the first recorded jazz numbers, tho the music had been in existence for some years at that point. “Skeleton Jangle” was recorded in March of 1918, along with the Original Dixieland Jazz Band’s version of “Tiger Rag.” The song itself is a fun romp, as the combo’s music generally was. The “skeleton” is supplied by the drummer as he taps out time on woodblock. The Original Dixieland Jazz Band:The 75th Anniversary (Bluebird)
St James Infirmary: This song not only features a “cooling board” scene, as we experienced with Son House’s “Death Letter Blues” & Blind Willie McTell’s “On the Cooling Board,” but it also features an extravagant funeral procession—not up to the standard of McTell’s “Dying Crapshooter Blues,” but still including singing chorus girls, six crapshooters & a jazz band on the “hearse wagon.” It’s a good song—fun to perform. New Orleans great Danny Barker took it to a whole other level, however, both musically & in terms of pure lyrical surrealism. Why Barker isn’t better known baffles me—as far as I know (& I know there are a few NoLa readers, so please correct me if I’m wrong), his recordings are all out of distribution, as are those of his wife Blue Lu Barker. Barker was an exceptionally talented musician—a fantastic guitar player & banjo player, an excellent singer & a fun songwriter—how many folks realize he wrote “Save the Bones for Henry Jones”? Ah well, if you can only listen to one of today’s videos, make it the Barker version of “St James Infirmary.” There’s nothing quite like it. Danny Barker: Save the Bones (Orleans); as I said, discontinued & hard to come by.
Sweet William & Lady Margaret: I included two very different versions of this old ballad—another ghostly love song. Jean Ritchie’s full-length treatment goes from disturbingly surreal dreams filled with swine to true love knot tied between a rose & briar; Buffy Sainte-Marie’s short version is a dark tale of mad love & suicide. Both versions have great power, so do give them a listen; & speaking of excellent singers, both Ritchie & Sainte-Marie are fantastic. Jean Ritchie:Ballads from Her Appalachian Family Tradition (Smithsonian Folkways); Buffy Sainte-Marie:Little Wheel Spin & Spin (Vanguard)
Trouble Gonna Take Me To My Grave: What a way to end! Big Joe Williams of 9-string guitar fame. Yes, a 9-string guitar is that odd—I’ve never heard of anyone else playing one. In the blues, we know what the ultimate destination is, & we know trouble just hastens one on the way! Big Joe Williams is a delight, & not well known to general listeners. Tho this tune isn’t on YouTube, several are, so look him up some day when you’re in the mood. Big Joe Williams:Big Joe Williams at Folk City (OBC); this now is only available as mp3 downloads, but what the hey!
Welcome to this week’s eerie old-time eight: it’s time for Graveyard Tunes again, & this week there are some real notables examples! At least half of these have high hair-raising potential, while the rest are just plain good songs with a somewhat supernatural angle.
Enjoy!
The House Carpenter: For those of you who don’t know, “The House Carpenter” is one of the ballads Francis James Child collected in the late 19th century. Originally a British Isles song titled “James Harris,” it also became a staple of the Appalachian repertoire. “The House Carpenter” tells the story of a “daemon lover” (another of the song’s titles) who spirits the earthly woman he loves away from her husband the house carpenter & her “own wee babe.” This modal song sounds best with instruments like banjo or dulcimer, because unlike the guitar, they don’t tend to smooth its edges. Accordingly, you can’t go wrong with the versions by Clarence Ashley or Jean Ritchie. Ashley’s may be a bit spookier (they’re both pretty high in this quality), but they both make a remarkable impression. Check out Mr Ashley’s version below. Clarence Ashley:Anthology of American Folk Music, vol. 1 (Smithsonian Folkways); or Clarence Ashley:Greenback Dollar: 1929-1933 (County); Jean Ritchie:Jean Ritchie & Doc Watson Live at Folk City (Smithsonian Folkways)
I Ain’t Superstitious: This is just pure Chicago Blues fun with the man who was “300 pounds of heavenly joy,” Howlin’ Wolf. We have black cats & brooms & itchy trigger fingers & howling dogs, all under the auspices of the singer claiming that he “ain’t superstitious.” For musicians out there, the song is interesting because it breaks a bit from the typical blues chord pattern: the vocal actually begins on the IV chord instead of the root chord, as almost always happens in blues. But hey, this is nothing to get to academic about. Give it a listen, & then if you’ve got a guitar, try playing around with it! Howlin’ Wolf: His Greatest Sides, vol. 1 (Chess—this is vinyl, but it’s currently available on Geffen’s Howlin’ Wolf: The Definitive Collection, & also on other compilations)
The Lady Gay: Our second foray into the Child Ballads, this is a rather blood-curdling tale of a mother’s grief for her dead children originally titled “The Wife of Usher’s Well.” Buell Kazee’s version of the old tune—just Kazee’s amazing voice accompanied by his masterful frailing-style banjo—is truly unforgettable; as with “The House Carpenter,” the banjo’s crooked harmonic corners allow the song’s haunting modal character to come thru. The song tells the story of how the woman sends her three children away to “learn their grammarie,” how the children are stolen away by death, & how she prays that they will return. They do return, but as ghosts, telling her in an unforgettable line “Every tear that you shed for us it wets our winding sheets.” Buell Kazee: Buell Kazee (June Appal). This essential (my opinion) old-time recording isn’t available from some of the big name online retailers, but can be purchased directly from June Appal & is also usually stocked at the best all-around music store I know, Elderly Instruments.
Mojo Hand: The title doesn’t refer to the amazing fingerstyle guitar skills Lightnin’ Hopkins routinely displays in his music. A mojo hand—also called (among other things) simply a mojo or a mojo bag or a conjure bag (&, if worn by a woman, a nation sack)—is a bag containing various charms. As such, it’s part of the hoodoo belief system, which itself goes back to west Africa, & which turns up often in old blues—the “nation sack” for instance makes an appearance in Robert Johnson’s “Come On In My Kitchen.” In this case, Lightnin’ says he’s going to “Louisian” to get a mojo hand—in this case, the conjure will be to keep his woman from cheating on him. There’s also some suggestion in one version of the song that his woman may have laid some spell on him, since the word “fix” is used both for what the mojo hand will do to the woman & for what the woman has done to him. As always, Lightnin’ Hopkins’ singing & playing are top notch—just see for yourself in the video below! Lightnin’ Hopkins:Prestige Profiles (Prestige)—this is also available on any number of Hopkins’ compilations.
Oh Death: I’m a huge Dock Boggs fan—love his singing, his repertoire & just about everything about his banjo playing; & I must say that when Eberle & I first heard this song some years ago, I thought it was one of the most remarkable pieces of music I’d ever heard. In somewhat the same way as the Reverend Gary Davis’ great song “Death Don’t Have No Mercy,” “Oh Death” comes from a time & place when death was a more common occurrence in the midst of everyday life—neither the garish & gory fakery of movies & TV nor the invisible sequestered death of nursing homes & hospitals. This is a serious & moving song, chilling in its intensity & somberness—check it out below. Dock Boggs: (playing with)The New Lost City Ramblers:Old Time Music (Vanguard); also on Dock Boggs:His Folkways Years 1963-1968 (Smithsonian Folkways)
On the Cooling Board: Blind Willie McTell’s song is a graphic depiction—in terms of both emotional & physical details—of a man’s grief for his dead lover. According to Wikipedia, "A cooling board is a board used to present a dead body. In winter months it would be difficult to bury the dead due to the earth being frozen, so the body is wrapped and propped in a barn until the ground thaws out. Referred to in a number of Blues songs, for example by Blind Willie McTell.” Of course, that’s this song being referred to. The term also comes up in Son House’s “Death Letter Blues.” Blind Willie McTell: Atlanta Twelve String (Atlantic)
The Pale Horse & His Rider: A country music vision of the apocalypse, co-written by four people, including Kitty Wells! Hank Williams didn’t write this one, but his version is probably the best known; it’s a rather stark call for repentance, before the day when “the Pale Horse and his rider goes by.” You’d have to assume this was a theme that spoke to Williams, as his life, amidst his talent & fame, was severely troubled at the time he recorded this in 1951 by alcoholism, drug addiction & a failing marriage. I do know another excellent version of this tune—it’s by Freakwater, an alternative country band I’ve admired for years; they’re still performing & releasing new music, so check them out! Hank Williams:Turn Back The Years - The Essential Hank Williams Collection (Mercury Nashville); Freakwater:Feels Like the Third Time (Thrill Jockey)
Pretty Polly: For this list I’ve avoided the sort of “happy” bluegrass murder ballads like “Banks of the Ohio” or “Knoxville Girl”—I don’t care for those songs. But I am including “Pretty Polly” on the basis of its flat-out eeriness, & one of the best versions I know is by that master of old-time eeriness, Dock Boggs. Like “The House Carpenter” & “The Lady Gay,” this is in origin a British Isles ballad, & also like those songs, it’s modal in nature & thus lends itself to a banjo treatment like Boggs’. Of course, “Pretty Polly” has been covered by everybody from Burl Ives to the Byrds & from Ralph Stanley to the String Cheese Incident. An interesting side note: Woody Guthrie based the melody & harmonic structure of his wonderful song “Pastures of Plenty” on “Pretty Polly.” Dock Boggs:Country Blues: Complete Early Recordings (Revenant – sadly, this has been discontinued & doesn’t seem to be available for a reasonable price).
It’s Wednesday, so it’s time for Graveyard Tunes again—hope you enjoy reading about & listening to this week’s October octet of old-time ghastliness! But first, a bit of blog news:
1. This is (according to Blogger, which keeps track of such things) the 500th post on Robert Frost’s Banjo!
2. I’ll have limited computer access at best thru the weekend, so if I don’t respond to comments as usual it’s simply that I have no way to do so. However, there are posts scheduled thru the week: tomorrow, Women’s Art is Women’s Work with Audrey; Friday, another Halloweenesque film; Saturday, the Weekly Poem; & Dad’s Photos on Sunday.
Dying Crapshooter’s Blues: Tales of elaborate funeral processions abound in old-time music, whether it’s the fife & drum march of “Streets of Laredo” or the jazz band on the hearse wagon in St. James Infirmary.” None of these processions can match the one the great Blind Willie McTell came up with in “Dying Crapshooter’s Blues,” however. While the song certainly owes a lot to “St. James Infirmary,” it’s a completely changed vision both musically & lyrically in McTell’s hands. Check him out in the first video below. Blind Willie McTell:Atlanta Twelve String (Atlantic)
Fixin’ To Die: Not the Country Joe MacDonald Vietnam War protest song—this is a song associated with Delta bluesman Bukka White, one of the tradition's great slide guitar practitioners. White first recorded this song in the 1930s, then recorded a re-make in the 1960s after he’d been re-discovered by the folk movement. “Fixin’ to Die” picks up on a few common blues themes—the inevitability of death (“Just as sure as we livin', just as sure we born to die”), a description of death’s physical “symptoms” (“I'm lookin' funny in my eyes and I believe I'm fixin' to die”) & concern for what will happen to orphaned children (“I know I was born to die but I hate to leave my children cryin'”). It’s an interesting tune—White plays it with a hard-driving boogie strum & subtle slide work. You can hear this is the second vidclip below. Bukka White:Fixin’ To Die (Snapper UK – an import, but reasonably priced)
Gallis Pole: What does a traditional Finnish folk tune, a British Child Ballad, bluesman Leadbelly & hard rock innovators Led Zeppelin have in common? A song variously entitled “Lunastettava neito,” “The Maid Freed from the Gallows,” “Prickly Bush,” “Gallis Pole” & “Gallows Pole”—not to mention other Swedish, German & British variations—Wikipedia lists a dozen other variant English language titles. Leadbelly was one of the first old-time blues artists I listened to, & he’s always amazing—an elemental force with his singing & his booming 12-string guitar playing. You can read the lyrics for the Leadbelly version of this song online at WikiSourcehere. In Leadbelly’s version, it's a man who’s saved from the gallows—as I understand it, the British & Continental versions usually involved a woman being saved, but in U.S. versions the condemned was usually a man. Leadbelly: Bourgeois Blues: Lead Belly Legacy, Vol. 2 (Smithsonian Folkways)
Grandpa’s Spells: Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe was born in New Orleans sometime in the 1880s—seems there’s some disagreement about the date. LaMothe later became known as Jelly Roll Morton, & by age 14 was playing piano in a Storyville brothel. Morton claimed later in life to have invented jazz—a grandiose claim, but if anyone could even begin to make it stick, Morton could. He was a virtuosic player & a prolific composer, & “Grandpa’s Spells” is a great ragtime piece, pure & simple. Morton’s connection to Voodoo itself is a bit more complicated; it’s assumed by many that Morton’s grandfather was a Voodoo practitioner—hence the title. Morton’s Uncle Henry downplayed any family connection to Voodoo when he was interviewed by Alan Lomax (see Lomax’s excellent Mister Jelly Roll (University of California Press), but Lomax noted that Uncle Henry seemed “overemphatic” in these denials. It’s also reported that Morton himself believed the illness that brought on his death in 1941 was the result of a Voodoo spell. However that may be, do check out the music in the vidclip below. Jelly Roll Morton: 1923-1924 (Milestone)
Haunted House: What more can you ask for in a Halloween song list than a tune with this title? I’ve never heard this song done by anyone but Leon Redbone, who included it on his fantastic debut album On the Track. According to the liner notes, it’s traditional (public domain); at any rate it’s a slow bluesy lament about being haunted by a dead lover. Redbone’s vocal is a sort of slurred & mumbled perfection, & as always, the arrangement of his backing musicians is first-rate. On the Track is pretty much an essential album in my book, tho I might lean toward Branch to Branch as my absolute favorite Redbone disc. Leon Redbone:On the Track (Warner Bros. Records)
Heebie Jeebies: Louis Armstrong recorded this song on several occasions, but it’s hard to beat the 1926 version with the Hot Five: Armstrong on cornet, Kid Ory on trombone, Johnny Dodds on clarinet, Lil Hardin Armstrong on piano & Johnny St. Cyr on banjo. What a line-up! This hot jazz number is really a dance tune, but I’ve always been partial to the term “heebie jeebies” to describe a sort of anxiety, & I’ve always loved this tune. Speaking of essential listening: the 4-volume Hot 5s & 7s is right up there. Louis Armstrong:Hot Fives & Sevens (this number is on vol. 1) (JSP)
Hell Hound on My Trail: I think most blues fans would agree this is one of the finest songs from the Delta blues tradition. Built around just two chords & a typical Robert Johnson “turnaround” (a musical figure that tends to lead from one chord back to the root tone), this song is beautifully conceived both in terms of melody & lyrics. Certainly “Hell Hound on My Trail” has been used as justification for the legend about Johnson selling his soul to the devil to achieve mastery of the guitar. I found the discussion of this legend on Wikipedia quite interesting (yes, I know Wikipedia is a questionable source, but this article appears pretty well documented); according to the article, a number of features from that legend were also ascribed to an earlier bluesman, Tommy “the Snake” Johnson—less well-known than Robert Johnson, but a great blues composer & performer in his own right. But for our purposes, this song has not only a “hell hound,” but also the Voodoo “Hot foot powder” that the singer’s “rider” (or “good gal”) has sprinkled all around his door. My own favorite lines are “I can tell the wind is rising/Leaves trembling on the trees." Check this one out below! Robert Johnson:King of the Delta Blues, vol. 1 (Sony), Rory Block:Gone Woman Blues (Rounder)
Henry Lee: This is the first song on Harry Smith’s great Anthology of American Folk Music, & it certainly sets the tone for what Greil Marcus would term “the Weird Old America.” A singer named Dick Justice intones “Henry Lee,” backing himself with an elementary guitar arrangement, but the effect—due in part to the quality of Justice’s tenor voice—is more than the sum of its parts. The story itself is a variation of the British ballad “Young Hunting.” In this case, the spurned lady murders her lover & then is haunted & taunted by a little bird—when she threatens to kill the little bird with her bow & arrow, the bird threatens to reveal her as a murderer. Great stuff! Dick Justice:Anthology of American Folk Music, vol. 1, Ballads (Smithsonian Folkways)
Welcome to the October feature here on Robert Frost’s Banjo. In my tradition of thematic song lists, I thought it might be fun—in a slightly ghoulish way perhaps—to think of old-time tunes that really fit the mood of Halloween. Of course, as anyone who has even a passing acquaintance with old-time music knows, the only problem in compiling such a list is keeping it to a reasonable length. There was certainly no shortage of death, destruction, murder & mayhem in traditional music.
Graveyard Tunes will be posted every Wednesday in October, so enjoy these & stay tuned for more!
Bury Me Under the Weeping Willow: One of the most common conceits in old time tunes is the spurned lover who “dies for love.” How common this was in practice may be open to question, but many of us may have felt like doing so at one time or another—especially in the passions of youth. It would be hard to overstate the influence the Carter Family had on country music, & in particular Mother Maybelle Carter, for whom the guitar playing style “Carter picking” is named. Interestingly, tho most folks these days use a flatpick for “Carter style” playing, Mother Maybelle herself used a thumbpick & a fingerpick on her index finger—so called “two-finger picking,” which goes back to banjo playing. Check them out below! The Carter Family:The Complete Victor Recordings - "Anchored in Love" 1927-1928 (Rounder)
Country Blues: This is a song I wrote up on Citizen K’s fine music blog, Just a Song—so you can check out the “full story” (including a vidclip) here. Besides the “haunted” jailhouse where the rounder finds himself, there’s the gothic burial scene in the last two verses, so "Country Blues" most certainly qualifies for our list. It also bears repeating (a point I made in my Just a Song post) that Boggs was able to take a stock lyric like “when I’m dead & buried & my pale face turned toward the sun” & make it completely his own in an immediate & chilling way. This is something that the really great traditional singers can do—Skip James (see below) is another singer who has this gift. Of course, much of Dock Boggs’ music tended toward the eerie—after all, his banjo was usually in the so-called “Graveyard Tuning.” Dock Boggs: Country Blues: Complete Early Recordings (Revenant – sadly, this has been discontinued & isn’t available for a reasonable price; not sure how to come by all the old Dock Boggs—this & a few others are available on The Anthology of American Folk Music)
Crossroad Blues: Even folks who don’t know blues music probably have heard of Robert Johnson & his song “Crossroad Blues.” It’s been covered by lots of people (yours truly included)—perhaps most famously by Eric Clapton with Cream; Rory Block also does a fine version. But the song is a hallmark of Johnson’s because it’s often interpreted in light of the legend that Johnson sold his soul to the devil at the crossroads to gain his mastery on the guitar. It’s true that Johnson sang about the devil rather famously in “Me & the Devil,” & by implication in “Hellhound on My Trail”; but as we’ll see in the course of this month’s song lists, various forms of magic came up in a number of old blues songs; it wasn't unique to Johnson. Check out Mr Johnson in the clip below. Robert Johnson:King of the Delta Blues Singers (Sony), Rory Block:Best Blues & Originals (Rounder)
Cypress Grove: Folks talk about the “high lonesome” sound of Bill Monroe, but we could also speak of Skip James’ “high haunted” sound—which derived from James’ falsetto, as well as his proclivity for playing in a minor tuning—but most importantly derived from his own vision of the blues: a stark & ghostly landscape. “Cypress Grove” is a bit of a twist on the “died for love” motif—in this case, the singer would “rather be buried in some cypress grove than to some woman, Lord, that I can’t control.” This is a fairly common blues conceit, but James’ playing & singing make what could be a rather stock scenario into something remarkable. Of course his songwriting skills are crucial as well—the last verse is particularly chilling: “When your knee bone's achin' and your body cold/Means you just gettin' ready for the cypress grove.” Rory Block also does a gorgeously haunting version of this tune—you can check out Skip James below. Skip James:The Complete Early Recordings of Skip James (Yazoo), Rory Block: Gone Woman Blues (Rounder)
Death Don’t Have No Mercy: If you’re looking for a combination of instrumental skill & vocal urgency, it’s really hard to find anyone who can surpass Reverend Gary Davis. As such, this harrowing story about death’s inevitability is a perfect vehicle for his considerable musical strengths. This is another song I’ve written about on Just a Song (the link is here—there’s also a vidclip of the song performed live at Newport by the Reverend in the mid 60s); if you haven’t checked it out Just a Song is a blog I recommend highly, & certainly not solely for my contributions—there are several other regular contributors covering a pretty wide range of musical genres. “Death Don’t Have No Mercy” is a traditional song that’s been covered by many folks, but in my mind it’s always Reverend Gary Davis’ tune; his voice & his guitar bring a gravitas to the song that’s really hard to approach as a player, but which make for extraordinarily compelling listening. Reverend Gary Davis:Harlem Street Singer (Prestige/Bluesville)
Death Letter Blues: This post is really cross-referenced, isn’t it? If you’re curious &/or missed it the first time around, you can hear Son House singing this song right here at my post about the great bluesman. This tale of receiving a “death letter” telling the singer to “Hurry, hurry, because the gal you love is dead.” The feeling here is visceral & stark, the emotions raw & vivid, & House’s playing & singing are—as always—full-bore; he doesn’t hold anything back. Son House: The Original Delta Blues (Sbme Special Mkts.); also live on Delta Blues & Spirituals (Capitol)—the latter is discontinued but available.
Devil Got My Woman: Skip James: As I understand, this Skip James’ song has an autobiographical basis—it certainly plays that way, with James’ hair-raising vocal & brilliantly mournful guitar. Lately I’ve been pretty obsessed with this song—not for any personal reasons, I hasten to assure you!—& have been working on versions both with the banjo & the guitar (think I’ve settled on the latter). There are some interesting issues surrounding the song “Devil Got My Woman,” & I’ve written about this song today on Just a Song, where you can also listen to a video clip of James’ performance; here's the link to that post. Skip James:The Complete Early Recordings of Skip James (Yazoo), Rory Block: Gone Woman Blues (Rounder)
The Devil is a Busy Man: This week’s list has had its share of powerful singers, & Sunnyland Slim doesn’t have to take a backseat to anyone in that regard. "The Devil is a Busy Man" is a cautionary tale, & Slim’s energetic vocal is vigorously supported not only by his own piano playing, but also by a Hammond organ & a great horn section—featuring King Crimson on tenor sax. Although this recording is more “recent” than most of the others we’ll consider thru the month, Sunnyland Slim’s old-time status is as rock-solid as his piano playing; born in 1907, Sunnyland Slim played with Ma Rainey in Memphis in the 20s, then later in Chicago with the likes of Muddy Waters & Howlin’ Wolf. Sunnyland Slim: Slim’s Shout (OBC – this has been discontinued but is still available used or as mp3 downloads)
