Why is it always stated that the early blues players had a big influence on modern rock and roll and other such stuff. The early blues men - McTell, Blake, Jefferson etc etc - were the REAL thing; just a man and guitar who did more than all these "influenced" pale attempted copyists who need a whole band, electicity, synthesizers, the lot. It's rather like me saying Van Eyck had a big influence on my art, when the fact is I try but I'm crap. Why even bother listening to them: just go out and buy the Document catalogue! Don't forget to pay your royalties!! From another aspect we probably have a false slant: early on there was plenty of other music being made (John Hurt and - later - Lead Belly show this) but the blues sold better and this is all the commercial record companies wanted and recorded to a great extent. Listen to Lead Belly's ARC recordings and then compare them with those he made for the Library of Congress and for Moses Asch. Dr John