Reviews (5)

Straight from the heart
Impassioned gospel-blues from one of the foremost streetsinging preachers and bluesmen. The songs are taken from old 78's so there is some minor hiss present, but the power of Davis' voice and the ringing of his fingerstyle guitar distracts you from any imperfections in the source material. A minor quibble: the liner notes are generally good at explaining Davis' career and playing style of this time, but never breaks down when each song was recorded and other useful track info.

If your oldtime blues collection could use a little religion, then the Complete Early Recordings of Rev. Gary Davis is a pretty good place to start.

i can't review
ordered this item quite 1 month and half ago but never received it, and worst, i can't find an e-mail addy to say this, nor i can track paccage.
So where are my disc, have you sand it or what?
Steve

unbelievable
Reverend Gary Davis. These are the earliest known recordings of THE MAN. His guitar skill truly must be heard to be believed. At points I swear there are at least two or three seperate guitars, but it's all coming out of him. Simply incredible.
Most people may be familiar only with his later stuff, but for my money this is the gold. A musician just getting first exposure, like college athletes in a way, always have something to prove, and it shows well on this disc. Mostly gospel and ragtime tunes, the Reverend was not particularly fond of straight-up blues, but his style and skill will surely impress anyone with an interest in blues, guitar, or plain musicianship. Outstanding. One of my most deserved 5 stars.

Superb guitar playing
The other reviewer says that 'I am the light' is not on this CD. Well, it IS on the cd, so don't worry. There are only two tracks missing from his second (in the 40s) session i believe, all tracks from the 30s are there! The sound quality is superb, the guitar playing is unbelievable. If you only know the more recent recordings from the Reverend, you should hear these! On all tracks, except the last few, he plays a single-cone National resonator guitar. This guitar is rather difficult to play ragtime on, but Gary Davis doesn't have any problem with it. Great stuff!

Not quite complete recordings...
It's strange that a CD, advertising itself as the 'complete' early recordings of this brilliant (and very influential) ragtime guitarist, should in fact, be lacking several of them - where have "I wish I could see" or "I am the light of the world" gone, for example? Still, it is a fine showcase of Rev. Davis' early recordings; but it could have, and possibly should have been better. It would have taken little effort to add the remaining titles, and there's certainly enough room on the CD. ... Read more

Album Description

Full Title - Heritage Of The Blues Skull & CrossbonesBlues. Known as the heir to Robert Johnson, this remastered collection from Hightone Records is supported by linernotes from Dave Alvin. 12 tracks. 2003. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Reissue of Testament and Advent material
This is a collection of cuts from Shines 3 Testament LPs from the 60s and his Advent LP from 74.Some of the Testament cuts have Shines on electric guitar with Big Walter Horton,Otis Spann,Lee Jackson and Fred Below.One cut has young Luther Allison on guitar there are also 2 solo acoustic cuts .The 2 Advent cuts have guitarist Phillip Walkers band.The sound is better than those old Testament LPs.A nice collection of Shines material. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Pure Magic!
Roy Rogers is the best slide guitar player you will ever hear, and Norton Buffalo gives the harmonica more dimension than the entire string section of a symphony orchestra.These are two masterful musicians at the top of their form.R&B comprehensively covers both their energetic improvisation and unique brand of song writing. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

My Rooster
This CD takes me back to my childhood. I love the humor and whimsy that is intrinsically tied to the blues of this CD.

Good listen of Piedmont style blues
This is just good listening if you like blues. Nice guitar and vocals from Cephas and harmonica from Wiggins. Not a classic but well worth buying. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Pink Anderson - A name that will remebered
I got a copy of this album thanks to my interest in Pink Floyd (Which Anderson incidentally named) and I was astounded.
There was something magical about the music.

I fell immediatly. The songs (Though traditional) "glued" themselves to my mind in a way that no 2001 pop song could.

And now I go around humming songs that were recorded in 1950.

This combined with the unlikely parallel to the Brittish Rock Band Pink Floyd turned out to be the biggest surprise (Musically) that I've ever experienced.

All thanks to a man called Pink Anderson

Wonderful guitar.
This is an important album by two of the key musicians in the Piedmont blues guitar style.

Pink Anderson is best known for the three excellent Bluesville albums he recorded in 1961. Apart from four tracks in 1928 with Simmie Dooley, the only other recordings Anderson made prior to then are the first seven tracks of this CD, recorded in May 1950 by Paul Clayton, who came across Anderson playing in a medicine show in Charlottesville, Virginia. Anderson is in peak form here, stronger than in 1961, playing fine slide guitar on "John Henry", singing the blues "Every Day of the Week", and comic songs such as "I've Got Mine" and "He's In the Jailhouse Now". Great entertainment.

Gary Davis was a virtuoso guitarist in the Piedmont style who abandoned blues in the mid 1930s in favour of evangelical gospel songs, which he performed with great fervour in a voice that could be heard above heavy traffic and with superbly dynamic guitar accompaniment. These performances, from 1956, find him in electrifying form. He recorded many of these pieces again in the 1960s for Bluesville and others, but this session is hard to beat.

Strongly recommended. ... Read more

Album Description

24 tracks from various artists continuing on the themebased on the Coen Brother's movie O, Brother Where ArtThou? Featuring Pace Jubilee Singers, The Carter Family,Bukka White, Skip James, Blind Willie Johnson, MississippiJohn Hurt, Dock Boggs and more. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

wonderful and engaging
A collection of music in the vein of the "O Brother" and "Down From The Mountain" albums - but these are original artists or vintage recordings. Includes two very different versions each of "O Death" and "I'm A Man Of Constant Sorrow."

original/vintage versions of songs from the soundtrack
Here are many of the songs from the "O Brother Where Art Thou" and "Down from the Mountain" CDs, performed either by the original artists or in vintage renditions, as well as other great songs in the "roots and blues" vein. An interesting and enjoyable comparison/companion to the soundtrack albums. ... Read more

Album Description

21 classic blues tracks that inspired the rock gods. Listen to 'Shake 'Em On Down' by Bukka White and compare it to Zep's 'Hats Off To Roy' or Memphis Minnie's original take on 'When The Levee Breaks'. Third in the popular series. Remastered by the Catfish label. A Must for all Led Zeppelin fans. 200 release. Standard jewel case. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

It's Not What You Think!
First of all do not get the impression that this is a remake of Zeppelin tunes. This is the raw source from where Jimmy and the boys had cut their teeth on. If you are a stanch blues fan like I am, you will appreciate this disk for what it represents. If not, then you will find no use for it. I personally like knowing what inspired certain artists and enjoyed this copulation. If you weren't a blues fan before, it will introduce you to a new (old) area of music field that is very entertaining and satisfying, compared to the norm.

I gave this a 3 star rating because I owned most of the selections, prior to listening to "The Roots of Led Zeppelin". ... Read more

Album Description

“Heavy Timbre” is a reissue of some of the best solo boogie woogie and blues piano recordings to date.Captured for posterity are five legendary pianists recorded at a “studio party” in 1976, where the challenge of having to play in front of one another clearly brought out the best in each player. This reissue also features five bonus tracks that were not included on the original LP, including a special Sunnyland Slim and Blind John Davis duet and back-and-forth banter that takes the listener right inside the moment. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Historic and very moving!
Ma Rainey didn't have a voice that was strong or beautiful as her protegee Bessie Smith, but she had a deep feeling for the sad songs she performed and I found this ancient recordings very moving!It was still a early age for recordings so technically speaking this recordings are very bad but they have they own charm in spite of that.I love this album and found myself humming the tunes very often. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

a most welcome return
Much of the music created during the late-50s-to -mid-60s folk revival is dated, some of it downright unlistenable. That's particularly true of many recordings waxed by earnest young whites who tried to take on the blues, which turned out to be a whole lot more complicated than they seemed -- as the current generation of hot-shot white electric-blues players is learning and sometimes, alas, demonstrating. But between 1963 and 1965, when three gifted Minneapolis musicians recorded three albums' worth of country blues and related material for Elektra, they made a music that sounds fresh and inventive even today. The Return of Koerner, Ray, and Glover, the last of these, is in some ways the best of an already splendid lot, a brilliant mix of covers (Lead Belly, Blind Willie McTell, tradition) and originals (e.g., Koerner's characteristically odd, droll "The Boys Was Shootin' It out Last Night"). Nobody then or since has ever sounded like Koerner, Ray, and Glover, who somehow absorbed the African-American folk tradition yet at the same time imprinted a uniquely personal style on it. The results stand up amazingly after more than three decades. This is music for the ages, and Red House deserves our thanks for making it available to us once again.

time's test stood
The Return of Koerner, Ray, and Glover sounds just as great as it did when it was released in 1965, which is saying something. Many -- most, if the truth were told -- folk-revival recordings from the period are embarrassing and unlistenable today, none more so than those by earnest young whites who thought they could take on the blues and win. But three Minneapolis musicians, in three memorable albums from the mid-1960s (Return is the last of them), somehow managed to get inside the blues and related African-American folk styles and reinvent them. Make no mistake: there's as much creation as tradition going on here. Besides lively takes on Lead Belly ("Titanic") and Blind Willie McTell ("Statesboro Blues"), not to mention a terrific version of the 19th-Century outlaw ballad "John Hardy," there is a wealth of original material. Eccentric, odd, distinctive, funny, and moving (sometimes all at once), this is music for the ages. It'll sound good a century from now. Thanks to Red House for bringing these splendid recordings into the CD age. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

An overlooked classic?
This live album captures a pair of legends at their best. Sonny and Terry fueded through their long careers but perhaps those very emotions fueled their amazing energy on these tracks. If you in any sense consider yourself a fan of the blues, you *must* own this album.

Best line:
(Tie)
"Have to take your Christmas in your overalls"
"Rocks was my mother and father's pillows"
"Hooray, Hooray, this woman is killing me"

Best guitar:
"I Feel Alright Now"

Best Harmonica:
"Born To Live The Blues"

Best Sonny "Whoop":
All of them ;)

Tune That Is Impossible Not To Get Stuck In Your Head:
"Keep On Walking"
(Well, actually just about every track)

Curious factoids for the Brownie McGhee fan -- Brownie in his later years had a bit of an acting career. Brownie played Toots Sweet in Angel Heart and appeared and played some wonderful guitar on an otherwise truly dreadful episode of Family Ties.

Buy This Album!
Without a doubt the finest blues recording of its genre. After hearing the 2nd track, "Born To Live The Blues", I took my harmonica player aside, left the rest of our band and started to pursue acoustic blues exclusively. Sonny and Brownie's combination of musicianship and emotion is evident in every tune, but never distracts you from the joy of listening. Be careful, this album is highly addictive! ... Read more

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This CD is to the 21st century what Brian Jones's Jajouka recordings were to the past one. In his 90s, Othar Turner plays Mississippi hill-country music that retains the funky flavor of its African roots. Othar's first release, 1998's Everybody Hollerin' Goat is as good an introduction to the evolution of blues as is likely to ever be recorded. This new one pairs Othar's fife and drum corps with Senegalese musicians from Chicago, matching marching-band drums to their African mates, an acoustic slide guitar to the kora, and affirming the timeless, universal supremacy of the human breath--in this case blown magnificently by Othar through a fife made from common bamboo. The music blends easily and naturally. The drums hit you in the gut, the slide-guitar sounds roll all round your brain, and the fife makes your heart skip a beat. Like Jim Dickinson's liner notes say, world boogie is coming. --Robert Gordon ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Trance Music for the Corn Whiskey Drinker!
If you love the Gnawa Musicians of Marrakesh. If you love RL Burnside. Heck, if you love Drum and Bass, this is for you. If you are looking for song structure and anything pristine, this ain't. Definitely the soundtrack for my next party. ... Read more

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Cutting-edge bluesman Otis Taylor's four earlier albums established him as a master of the genre's dark side, matching tales of hangings and prison with brooding, near-psychedelic soundscapes. This often-autobiographical disc, his first self-produced effort, illuminates the songwriter-banjoist-guitarist's lighter musical interests. With the plainspoken "Mama's Selling Heroin" and stories of slavery ("Took Their Land") and hardcore poverty ("PlasticSpoon," "Reindeer Meat"), Taylor obviously hasn't abandoned his obsession with tragedy. Yet he soft-sells the bitter "Sounds of Attica" and the bittersweet "Please Come Home Before It Rains" by tapping the bright guitar tones and grooves of African highlife. The mellower sounds of horns, cello, and harmonica replace his regular guitarist Eddie Turner's Hendrix-fueled explorations in all 12 songs. Taylor's 17-year-old daughter Cassie, who's added ghostly backing vocals to her dad's previous recordings, plays bass throughout and sings a warm, purring lead on "Buy Myself Some Freedom," a young girl's wish for a better life in the '60s South. With many blues fans and influential critics already on his side, these kinder, gentler arrangements could win Taylor the crossover success he deserves. --Ted Drozdowski ... Read more

Reviews (2)

What a sound!
A friend took me to see Otis Taylor in concert, and I ran right down to pick up this album. This is some powerful stuff and not what I was expecting at all. The "blues" label is misleading; sure, it starts with the blues, but there is a whole lot else in there. Even when the songs are at their darkest (Plastic Spoon), something about the music doesn't let the album get grim. One thing that was obvious on stage which might help explain the album - Otis is the artist, but don't underestimate daughter Cassie's inspiration.

Another winner!
Otis Taylor has gone so far beyond what most musicians are capable of. He sees and chronicles all aspects of the human condition. His characters do what they have to do to survive. They feel pain and inflict pain. They seek escape through drugs and alcohol. They're told that they're not good enough, not smart enough. Something keeps them going though. They always have hope. A vision that some day things can change. That this world could actually be different. Musically, there's a little less going on than usual. The sound is simpler and a little more mellow. His daughter Cassie's influence is all over this album as she plays bass throughout and takes a lead vocal on "Buy Myself Some Freedom". This really is incredible. Artists like Otis give me faith that there actually are people out there playing from the heart. ... Read more

Album Description

On this 1959 album, this writer, guitarist and vocalistshines on numbers such as I'm In The Mood, I Love You Honey as well as his classic Boogie Chillun. 12 tracks. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Hooker's best album
Originally recorded at various mid- and late-50s sessions, "I'm John Lee Hooker" is the Hook's best original album. It first came out in LP form some 44 years ago, and features Hooker on his own as well as with various small, tight combos.

Some of these songs had been cut before, but this is the album which best reflects what John Lee Hooker was like in his prime, his left foot tapping out the rhythm on the plywood floor on solo numbers like "Dimples", "Crawling King Snake" and "Boogie Chillun". And the various bands that back him on songs like "Time Is Marchin'" and "I'm So Excited" are all excellent...just listen to the delightful, piano-driven boogie of "I Love You Honey".

"I'm John Lee Hooker" is one of the great blues records of the post-World War II era, and it belongs in every blues enthusiast's collection.
4½ stars - highly recommended.

One of Hooker's Best
With his second-coming which began in 1989 with the release of the star-studded The Healer, you can't walk into a music store and swing a dead cat without hitting a John Lee Hooker album. But at age 80, Hooker is well past his prime and real fans of the blues would be better served by digging deep into this blues giant's voluminous catalog. Because of the many labels Hooker recorded for beginning with his classic sides for Modern in 1948, it can be a daunting task. While nearly anything Hooker has recorded is worth listening to, the neophite fan would do best to stick with Hooker's albums recorded for Modern, Chess and Vee-Jay.

This album was first released in 1960 by Vee-Jay, again in 1991 by Chameleon, and now by Collectables. The standout tracks are the four featuring Hooker performing solo while keeping the rhythm with his foot pounding a piece of plywood as he plays his boogie guitar licks and sings in that distinctive deep voice. Those four tracks ("Hobo Blues," "Boogie Chillun," "I'm In the Mood" and "Crawlin' Kingsnake") were first recorded on Modern, but these versions are all first-rate. The other eight tracks include a second guitar, bass and drums.

While not as essential as The Legendary Modern Recordings 1948-1954 or Rhino's excellent 2-disc The Ultimate Collection, I'm John Lee Hooker is certainly one of his top ten recordings. [And keeping in mind the more than one hundred albums currently in print, that says a lot.] HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

An essential find.
"Dimples" "Boogie Chillun" "I'm In The Mood" "Crawling Kingsnake" These are all essential songs by John Lee Hooker and they are all right here. It is a shame that this CD is apparantly out of print. Released on VJ in 1959, Hooker shows all the power that most people who listen to his later stuff find so appealing. If you can find it, buy it immediately. It is worth the search and the purchase. I liked it so much that I got it on vinyl and CD. It is a staple of my blues collection. ... Read more

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Superbly packaged and lovingly annotated, the five-discArhoolie Records 40th Anniversary Collection distills four decades of musical passion into six hours of highlights. The passion is that of Arhoolie founder Chris Strachwitz, a German immigrant and former California schoolteacher whose label reflects a devotion to American roots music at its most vital and varied. Southern bluesmen Mance Lipscomb and Fred McDowell, Louisiana zydeco kingpin Clifton Chenier, and Tex-Mex conjunto accordionist Flaco Jimenez are just a few of the regional mainstays to achieve national renown through Arhoolie, and all of them are represented here.

The spirited diversity of the 105 selections (including 13 available on CD for the first time) finds the label extending its reach from string-band country (Hackberry Ramblers) to hard-driving jazz (Jerry Hahn Quintet) to New Orleans brass bands to more recent forays into "sacred steel," featuring gospel music with pedal-steel guitar. Where so many folk preservations might as well be embalming musical relics, Arhoolie champions "vernacular music": music that retains a strong, integral connection to its community and gets people clapping, stomping, and dancing. Throughout the set, the immediacy of the performances transcends trendiness or timeliness, showing how America sounds beyond the plasticity of popular culture. --Don McLeese ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Great set and great value for money
This is a truly wondrful set that works on every level.

Beautifully presented with a very informative book and five high quality CD's.

The sound quality is superb as are all the production values.

The mixture of world music, old-time music and American regional sounds, as repesented in the output of Arhoolie Records, works extremely well here.

I found my self playing all 5 CD's one after the other without strain and enjoying them all.

Once having heard many of the artists for te first time the search wil then commence for solo albums if they exist, and they probably do in most cases.

If this were a "Bear Family" set there would certainly be another $... on the askng price.

If you are already a fan of this type of musci or are looking to explore it furter this really is THE set to buy as a starting point.

All the tracks are strong and there is no "padding" at all.

Combine this with a quite outstanding book giving full details on the artists and the history of Arhoolie and this is a set that will be cherished for years to come and played with great regularity.

Highly recommended.

A Treasury of Obscurities
I wasn't sure how I was going to like this box set when I bought it because I had never heard of most of the artists. When I first obtained it, I listened through once then put it on the shelf. On a recent road trip, I decided to put all 5 CDs in my CD changer to listen to in sequence and lemme tell you, am I ever glad to have done so.
The Journey of Chris Strachwitz is a musical journey through parts of America most of us never see or hear. There is Cajun, Zydeco, country, Tejano, blues, gospel and more. There is not the polished, overproduced kind of music one often hears on the radio, but rather the raw authenticity of music being played straight from the heart. Most of these musicians have made very little money in the business and are forced to do other work in order to make ends meet. Its a shame because just the small sampling here shows me that most of these artists have more talent than an army of top-40 schlocksters like Backstreet Boys and Madonna.
I am not equally enthusiastic about every song, but I was introduced to many performers from whom I want to hear more. Its hard to choose favorites, but I was impressed with Mance Lipscomb, the Reverend Louis Overstreet, Lydia Mendoza, Valerio Longoria, Omar Sharriff, Chatuye, The Campbell Brothers, and Aubrey Ghent in addition to more familiar performers like Clifton Chenier, Charlie Musselwhite, and any of the Jimenez clan. The worst song on the album is more pleasurable listening than most of the vapid pap served up on commercial radio.
With the CDs comes an informative booklet, filled with photos and stories of the performers and the sometimes serendipitous ways that Strachwitz hooked up with them.
If your musical taste runs the gamut, you should like this fairly priced box set. Chris Strachwitz did American music a tremendous turn when he set out to capture the sound of the folk before it was lost to us forever. I give this treasury of obscurities my heartiest recommendation. You won't be sorry you bought this!

a real summer journey
This is a really strong collection of hard to find artists that will appeal to anyone interested in the history of American music and culture. The blues is incredible. The cajun and zydeco numbers are unbeatable. Same is true of bluegrass, texmex, gospel. Where did rock get its start? Forget the name artists who've received all the accolades, these are the artists that influenced the names. The real deal - presented in its raw format as much as possible. Despite 5 CDs of material, weak tracks are hard to find.

an absolute must have
I could not agree more with the previous reviewer. This box set is perhaps the finest collection of American roots music, and much, much more, on the market today. Chris Strachwitz deserves our gratitude for bringing us forty years of top quality music, and for distilling his recordings down to this package, which could not possibly be better. Turn off your radio and turn on this goldmine of treasures from four decades of one man's undying love for the music that made this country great. Worth every penny, even at twice the price.

American Music 101
If you're looking for a place to go to get a comprehensive lesson in the finest in American roots music spanning blues, cajun/zydeco, gospel, bluegrass, tex/mex/conjunto, barrelhouse rock'n'roll, etc, look no further than this amazing collection. Intended as a "scrapbook" of label owner Chris Strachwitz's 40 year journey traveling across the hinterlands collecting and annotating the mostly obscure(though not all) raw sounds that he has had the pleasure of offering to us, the listening public, through Arhoolie. I like to think of it as a nice side companion to the Harry Smith collections. Including an amazing thick photo/essay book that makes this worth the price alone, this is as important release to serious music lovers as the recent Louis Armstrong box. WORTH EVERY PENNY! ... Read more

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The pride of Memphis country blues, Furry Lewis had a diverse repertoire that included a variety of Southern musical styles: folk songs, country music, Delta blues, and jug band among them. After recording noteworthy sides in the late-1920s, Lewis toiled as a Memphis street cleaner until the revivalist movement of the early-1960s. These 20 cuts from 1961 display a more-spirited approach than his early work. The intervening years added character to his vocals while his biting slide-guitar work includes at various times forceful rhythms, expressive wails, and supple finger picking. In his later years, Lewis had an entertainer's perspective, infusing his work with style, enthusiasm, and a compelling narrative quality. --Marc Greilsamer ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Outstanding Representation Of Furry's Music!
Furry Lewis was a Memphis blues guitarist who helped define the so-called "Memphis Sound" of the late 20's. As with so many of the old bluesmen, Furry enjoyed two distinct and brief periods of success. The first in the 1920's when he was around 25 years old and then again in the 1960's when he was in his mid to late 60's. This CD is actually a compilation of two previous recordings from the 1960 period, "Back On My Feet Again" and "Done Changed My Mind". Both were a good representation of Furry's guitar work and vocal capabilities and it's good to have both available on one disc. As a guitarist, Furry was equally comfortable working in broad strokes or intricate detail and everything he played shared a rhythmic strength that was all his own. As a vocalist, Furry's style is soft and easy listening. If you are interested in some country blues you will have to search long and hard to beat Furry.

A Three Finger Shot of Furry Lewis
Furry Lewis's music goes down like a 3 finger shot of top-shelf bourbon: fire in the belly with a warm and heady afterglow. Furry had the reputation as hard drinking, loose tongued, spiteful grifter who alienated friend and foe alike, with his well chosen barbs. Having known Furry in the early 70's, I will confirm that 99% of the testimony to Furry's lack of character is probably true. Furry was also a riveting performer who could weave his spell over young audiences well beyond his 80th birthday. (Are you listening, Mick Jagger?) The 1972 recording, "Shake 'Em on Down" is not only Furry's best recorded performance, but is one of the best of the blues genre.

Over the thirty year lifespan of "Shake Em on Down", I have purchased this album four times; twice in vinyl, which I wore out from overplay, once in cassette, and finally the CD format, and I am hoping the CD will be the last copy of it I will ever need. Many will swear that Furry's early recordings are better because they capture him in his prime, but this CD captures the raw essence of Furry's magnetic performance aura. Like Billy Holiday, Furry's voice became gravelly, deeper and more emotional with age. Speaking subjectively, I like the sound of Holiday's and Lewis' steel tempered voices, scarred by the ravages of age. Furry was a heavy-handed guitar player who often pounded his guitar like a percussion instument. Furry always had contempt for delicate fingerpickers who were "afraid of their guitars" and to prove his point Furry would "beat the demons" out of his guitar and used his bottleneck stylings as the alter-ego to his dark and often menancing voice.

Furry claimed he was mentored by early jazz legend W.C. Handy and many of his renditions of the popular standards of the early 20th century bear out this influence. Some of the traditional songs on "Shake 'Em on Down" have been traced as far back as the Civil War Reconstruction era. My personal favorites are the gritty delta blues he performs. Furry, like many blues performers, reshaped classic and standards to his own image, adding a unique narrative perspective to the lyrics. Furry often rendered a song unrecogizable by introducing a stylized musical arrangement and a new set of original lyrics. Furry's lyrical imagery of steam engines, card sharks, jail houses, corrupt judges, bail bondsmen, wanton women and the life of a "rambling man" give us rare window into the lives ordinary people in the early part of the last century.

Finally, there is something very unusual about the production values of this album, which may explain the hypnotic spell that "Shake 'Em on Down" has woven over me and other devotees. It sounds like it was recorded in a cavernous room, maybe even a church. There is a subtle echo that trails off from the edges of the vocal and guitar tracks which suggest a robust, yet, otherworldly quality, quite like that of the Cowboy Junkie's celebrated "Trinity Church Sessions." That final touch in production esthetics, makes this album a rare and irreplaceble relic for the collector of blues.

One of the best Blues recordings ever done
This is my favorite blues CD ( I have more than 400 ! ). Furry's voice and guitar at the best. This record always moves me a lot. This is a solo recording, but sometimes you may swear that there are two guys playing guitar. All tracks are good but John Henry; When My Baby Left Me; Judge Boushay; Casey Jones; Frank and Johnnie and I'll Turn Your Money Green deserve a thousand *stars*.

This is Furry at his best, singing and playing the guitar.
I have been a Furry Lewis fan for many years. This CD has all of my favorite songs that I first heard on a cassette. It is good listening for any blues fan. He stands out with other blues legends.

great old-time blues
actually, i already own this cd. or at least i did until someone broke into my truck and stole it along w/the stereo and other stuff. anyway, it's a great cd. like most blues musicians, furry traveled far and wide, but his music reflects the delta-style blues (as opposed to the more amplified chicago blues). all songs consist of nothing but furry and a guitar, often an old steel national.

great tracks like john henry, st. louis blues, and others make this one a keeper. the title track, which was originally done by fred mcdowell, is great as well. there are about 20 tracks on this one, so you certainly get your money's worth.

suffice it to say that after i replaced the window in the truck this is the first cd i bought. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

One of the lesser known originals
I was fortunate to have seen Rev. Davis perform in N.Y.C. around 1960 I believe that I saw him at the Riverside Church on the same bill as a newcomer, Bob Dylan. His songs run from blues to religious, his guitar playing billiant and his voice, wonderful. After hearing him play I bought all of his albums that were then available. This is an album of religious songs most of which I hadn't heard before or since. It's also one of my favotites of his. I have the 33 LP album and have just been recording the songs to cassette so I can't comment on the CD quality. I'm loving the songs as much, now, as in 1960. I'm thrilled to see that there are CDs that weren't avialable as LPs and will be completing my collection with those. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Excellent single-disc compilation
This well-compiled 1999 Wolf collection is one of the best-sounding Charley Patton-albums on the market. Wolf Records achieves a balance here, cutting down as much surface noise as possible without sapping the dynamics of the performance, and these 69 minutes of music include almost all of Patton's best songs.
There are numerous fine Patton-compilations on the market, including Yazoo's "The Best Of Charlie Patton" and Recall's very reasonably priced double-disc "Screamin' & Hollerin' The Blues", but it is doubtful whether any of them are better than this one. ... Read more

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It's surely a sign of blues mastery: you sit down with your guitar, open your mouth, and the blues comes out. That's the impression one gains from this recording, made in 1960 and, incredibly, never issued, except piecemeal on albums by some of the artists involved. Now at last, here's the whole thing, featuring improvisatory riffs--the whole recording is ostensibly off the cuff and unrehearsed, which, given the talent involved, isn't hard to believe--from Lightnin' Hopkins, Big Joe Williams, and dynamic duo Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee. Just getting these four in the same room is something of an achievement, given the temperaments and busy careers involved, but any blues fan would admit that the results are worth it. Though they're admittedly pretty rough cuts, they're also heartfelt, enthusiastic, and overwhelmingly genuine, with the kind of musical intimacy that comes from sitting around and playing whatever's on your mind--and you're a good enough musician that what comes out is worth hearing.--Genevieve Williams ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Very enjoyable, but mostly for fans...
The first half of this album is a studio recording, bringing together Sam "Lightnin'" Hopkins and local session bassist James Bond (!) with Big Joe Williams, Sonny Terry, and Brownie McGhee, who were wrapping up a recidency at the highly renowned Ash Grove nightclub in Los Angeles.
The second half was recorded live in front of the patrons at the Ash Grove that same night...according to the liner notes, anyway, the noise of the audience has been edited out, so we'll have to take their word for it.

Opening with the eight-minute "Ain't Nothin' Like Whiskey", the track list is dominated by Lightnin' Hopkins-compositions with a number of traditional blues and gospel numbers thrown in for good measure. Everything is strictly acoustic, very loose and relaxed, and these long and often meandering songs frequently sound like they're on the verge of collapsing. The four veterans keep things in check, though, trading off lines and solos seemingly at random.
Hopkins' upbeat "Wimmen From Coast To Coast" is the one of the tightest of these 11 performances, a great, swinging acoustic shuffle, and it is also one of the best, alongside a slightly alternative "You're Gonna Need Somebody On Your Bond", retitled "I've Been Buked And I've Been Scorned", and the jubilant "Right On That Shore".
This is probably a bit too idiosyncratic (and way too loose) to be of interest to casual listeners, but fans should certainly enjoy it.
3 3/4 stars - recommended. But not the place to start!

Legends Unplugged!
For almost two years now, this CD has sat on top of my changer begging for more playing time.Last month, I finally placed it in rotation.The disc features Lightnin' Hopkins, Joe Willians, Son Terry and Brownie McGee unplugged in a Hollywood studio sometime in the 1960's.As sometimes happens when legends collaborate on a disc, there is an awkwardness and choppiness in the playing between these individuals and none of them really seem to take charge or distinguish themselves in any way.The notable exception to this is "Wimmin From Coast to Coast" which has a rather loose and upbeat tempo that works extremely well with these individuals.Fans of these individuals will like to add this to their collection.However, those not that familiar with these legends would be better served by exploring other selections in the vast catalogue of these great musicians.

Summit of all blues summits
In 1960 World Pacific Records, once an important jazz label, put four of the great blues masters - Lightnin' Hopkins, Sonny Terry, Brownie McGhee and Big Joe Williams - together with many bottles of whisky in a sound studio, turned on the Ampex tape decks, got out of the way and let the men jam.Afterwards, about half of the tracks available on this new CD were released on the classic but often elusive World Pacific 1298.The recording needs no new rave notices.Such bellwether critics of the time as Leonard Feather and Nat Hentoff already gave it the ultimate canonization it deserves those 41 years ago.There's nothing to add to the praise.No collection of basically acoustic black blues is anywhere near complete without this masterpiece.Several of the cuts that weren't on WP 1298 have been reissued on various albums by the individual artists, but this is the biggest single assembly out of the sessions ever.The Ampexes supposedly wound World Pacific's tapes for several hours on end, so this release too is only a selection, but the biggest yet.The sound quality is superlative, which one came to expect from World Pacific even in 1960.The music - fully improvised, totally jammed bragging dirty blues.Titles like "Wimmen From Coast to Coast" and "You Can Steal My Chickens But You Can't Make My Hens Lay" say it all. ... Read more