Who is your favorite Delta blues musican

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: khandu
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 11:31 PM

Yes, Mary, the ducks are still there, or so I hear!

In 1975, I visited with Jesse Hurt, Mississippi John's wife, in Grenada, MS. She was a rather gracious lady. She allowed me to enjoy John's guitar for a while. She had some of the recordings made shortly after his "rediscovery", however, she said she would not play them whenever she was alone, because "John would come into the room".

She told me of their son, John, Jr. She said he could play like his daddy. Unfortunately, I have never heard him. He responded to a Greenwood, MS newspaper article a few years ago, and said he lived in Detroit. I have never heard of his having made any recordings. Have any of you heard of him, or heard his music?

khandu

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: van lingle
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 11:08 PM

BTW, Revenant has recently rereleased his complete recordings and it's suppose to be a pretty good collection.vl

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: van lingle
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 11:04 PM

I like most of those artists from the first (recording) generation of Delta blues musicians but Charlie Patton is my favorite. His King of the Delta Blues on Yazoo was a real eye-opener for me. His voice, his rhythmic propulsion and the subtlety and complexity of his accompaniments were without equal IMHO. vl

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Mary in Kentucky
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 10:57 PM

Ha! That's what my book says! Do they still have the ducks there?

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: khandu
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 10:30 PM

Ah, but the Delta doesn't end just south of Memphis. Everyone knows that "The Delta begins at the front steps of the Peabody"!

khandu

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Bobert
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 07:26 PM

GUEST, Andrew: Gotta agree with you on Son House. On my favorites list he comes in a close second. "Death Letter Blues" is awesome. I've been doing a rockified "Empire State Express" but absolutely love the way ha does that song... And as far as rankings go, Robert Johnson ranks just behind Son. I think Son gets a tad more credit because he came first and managed to live a whole lot longer. Had Robert Johnson lived to a ripe old age, it's almost impossible to comprehend how he would have effected the blues.

Bobert

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: mousethief
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 04:06 PM

The "mississippi alluvial plain" and the "mississippi delta" are not coterminous. The delta ends just south of Memphis; the MAP as you say extends upstream some way.

Alex

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: pattyClink
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 03:50 PM

Let's face it, the Mississippi Alluvial Plain just ain't got the same ring to it. But that's what it is, and it stretches up to Cairo, Illinois, widening out down to N.O. and taking in parts of the 3 states.

Mary, who knows what Willie was thinking. It's been a long time since it was the floor of the sea, although it was at one time. But I will buy the primordial forests part. Much of the Delta was thick dense malarial forests, some not cleared until well into the 20th century. It took a lot of work and death to clear it. Forested parts still remain and the Conservancy and other groups are trying to get the percentage of land in hardwood bottomland restored to some glimmer of what was once there. Although the panthers and bears are few and the parakeets are gone, it is still a mighty refuge for lots of wildlife, especially the Great Mississippi Flyway for birds. There is a reason Audubon hung out there.

Like in the west, there will be struggles ahead between the need to restore land and the need to keep it as the great agricultural resource it is.

It's a special place, come see it sometime if you haven't. I recommend not in the summer. Cotton time is good (September), come for a festival and take a blues pilgrimage.

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From:
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 01:49 AM

I'm surprised that Son House hasn't been given a bigger wrap - one listen to "Death Letter Blues" was enough for me (also heard in [I presume] an earlier form in My Black Mama II). Also Skip James - and although it might be obvious, Robert Johnson - his version of "Preachin blues" is just outright amazing - also "Hellhound.." goes to show that he wasn't just a reworker of other popular pieces played in the region - a Skip James tuning maybe but definitely not a Skip James song!

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: khandu
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 11:21 PM

Yes, Lonesome, you are correct, and when I posted I was intending to mention Louisiana and Arkansas. Thanks for bringing it up!

khandu

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Lonesome EJ
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 03:33 PM

Khandu...the Mississippi Delta also encompasses parts of Arkansas and Louisiana, since the riverside communities had more shared culture and geography with each other than with the rest of their states. "I'm gonna send you back to Arkansas" meant a short trip down the road. Most of the old Blues guys routinely played roadhouses in several states on the Blues circuit.

Bob Johnson would be my favorite, along with some later comers like Sonny Boy Williamson 2 and Muddy.

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: GUEST,PJ Curtis (Ireland)
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 03:22 PM

For me its Robert Johnson and the amazing Skip James....His 'Devil Got MY Woman' and Cypress Grove' and downright scary!!! pjc

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: mousethief
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 12:23 PM

The 12-bar form is rather a late arrival, if I remember my blues history right. I believe the 16-bar (aaab) form predates it. Maybe that's what Fred was referring to.

Alex

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: GUEST,mike strobel
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 12:09 PM

Yes, I must agree with Mississippi Fred McDowell. Some body help me here, but I thought I saw Mississippi Fred perform at the Mariposa Folk Festival in Toronto, Ontario,circa- 1970-1972. I think Bonnie Raitt and Fred were swapping a small bottle in a Brown bag, around 10:00 AM. A musical mentor of mine from here in Western New York State, just gave me two albums to listen to of Fred Gerlach. So a big HELLO to one of the best on 12 string, Fred Gerlach. I live in Rochester, New York and we are indeed bring in John Hammond Jr. this week, ( one of my favorites ) and Sparky Rucker & wife in November-2002.

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Bobert
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 10:41 AM

CarolC: Nope. I didn't meet the Sparkman until two summers ago at Elkins. He and I hit it off real well since we are both the same age and have similar political beliefs. When he emailed me last year and said he wasn't going to do Blues Week, i said heck with it and the week he was going to be at Westminster, I had other plans. I'll send you another tape of some of my Delta stuff and you'll hear Sparky in there, fir sure.

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Steve Latimer
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 10:07 AM

Well, he's not a Delta guy, but I just picked up a 2CD Lightnin' Hopkins set and I'm loving it.

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: GUEST,Roger the skiffler at the public library
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 09:24 AM

All of 'em but especially Mississippi Fred
RtS

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: CarolC
Date: 05 Jun 02 - 11:15 PM

Hey Bobert. Were you at Common Ground three years ago when Sparky was there? I was one of the sound techs that year, and I ran the sound board for Sparky's Saturday afternoon, stage B performance.

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: GUEST,petr
Date: 05 Jun 02 - 08:46 PM

M. Fred McDowell and R. Johnson thread creep, on one recording Fred talks about the origin of the blues, and says the 'blues came from the reel' which strikes me as rather odd as the 12bar pattern is quite different than the 16 bar 4/4 pattern for reels. (of course Id suspect that Ragtime, Minstrel, Gospel etc would be influences but any thoughts on this) I confess I dont know much about the very early blues origins, but would love to find out more. Petr

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Steve-o
Date: 05 Jun 02 - 08:05 PM

Unbelievable....a note right in the middle of this from Fred Gerlach, one of the greats of the twelve-string guitar, and nobody gets excited or even says "Woo-hoo"!! It amazes me how many serious folkies are onto this here Mudcat. Hey, Fred, you're still one of my heroes! BTW, my vote is for Son House.

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Mary in Kentucky
Date: 05 Jun 02 - 08:50 AM

Thanks Khandu, I suspected it must be something like that. My book describes leaving Yazoo City and the hills, and pretty much coasting to Memphis.

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Bobert
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 10:42 PM

Will do, David. I'm taking 3 guitars but will probably play my Regal steel bodied reso most. Talk about bright! This is the altimate, non National steel, affordable reso to play....But, I'll take my poor ol 1964 Martin D-18, too, which at it's age shouldn't have to put up with my crap. But it does...and slides reasonably well fir a country/hillbilly instrument.

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: khandu
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 10:33 PM

Mary in Kentucky, the Mississippi Delta is a large part of Northwestern Mississippi which was once the Mississippi River bed. Through eons, the river changed it's course, leaving behind the flat fertile land which we call the Delta. There is an amazing change in topography from the hills into the Delta. Within a very short distance, you drop 200 + feet from the hills into the Delta.

Again, Avalon, MS is in the Delta. MJH had a song called (depending on which version you hear) "Avalon, My Hometown" or "Avalon Blues". It was this song that aided in his "rediscovery". However, Hurt actually lived in the Valley community, in the hills, a few miles from Avalon.

khandu

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: ddw
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 09:30 PM

Bobert, While you're there, hook up with Mark Kinniburgh if you haven't already. He's from the Washington, D.C. area and favors National wood-bodied guitars. Those things are so loud, you never have to wonder where he is. He told me a few weeks ago he's been working on some MFMcD stuff.

david

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Bobert
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 09:14 PM

Will do, David... It's gonna be hard without the porch jams with John Jackson. I missed last summer because Sparkey wasn't going. He did Common Ground and I went up there and visited with him. I'm gonna work with Cory Harris this time around. He ought to give me a good butt whoppin but it will be worth it.

Bobert

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: ddw
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 08:42 PM

Thread creep.

Bobert -- I'm green. I was at Augusta Blues Week last year and loved it. Can't swing it this year, but I'm definitely shooting for next summer. I spent most of my time there with Paul Geremia, John Jackson and David Jacob-Strains. Met lots of great people. Enjoy for me too, won'tcha?

cheers,

david

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Bobert
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 08:33 PM

Wesley: Yeah, John Hammond is real, real good.

I'm kindof surprised there ain't more folks talkin' about Son House, Muddy Waters and some contempories like R.L Burnside and T. Model Ford.

dwditty: Thanks fir the invite. I'll stop on buy and say, "Hey".

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Sandy Paton
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 05:29 PM

Robert Pete Williams. Zachary, LA, must be in the Delta.
Sandy

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: mousethief
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 04:45 PM

"Delta" also means "something shaped like a wedge or triangle." Which is indeed how river deltas got their name.

Wesley: promises, promises! :)

Alex

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Mary in Kentucky
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 04:41 PM

I have a geography question. Just why do they call the area between Memphis and Vicksburg the Delta? There is some blues info here. But I always thought a delta was where a river ran into a larger body of water, like the Mississippi River at New Orleans. I'm currently reading a book, North Toward Home whose author, Willie Morris, was from Yazoo City. In it he talks a little about the "floor of the sea" and the "primordial forests." Amybody know what this means?

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Wesley S
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 04:40 PM

My favorite Mississippi Foothills singer is the aforementioned Mississippi John Hurt. But for the younger guys I like the New York City Delta singer John Hammond Jr.

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: CarolC
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 04:34 PM

Heh. I just rememberd something interesting about how I became familiar with Mississippi Fred. I rememberd that it was a recording an old housemate of mine back in the late '70s had that I had heard. But I had forgotten the rest of it.

I can't remember what the context was, but my old housemate knew Fred McDowel. Apparently they spent quite a bit of time together for some reason for a little while there. (Don't know when that was.) But I remember she said that he was very partial to peach brandy or something like that. She had some interesting stories to tell about him, but I don't remember much more than that.

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: dwditty
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 04:19 PM

Bobert,

Please consider coming onto Paltalk (www.paltalk.com). It's free, it's fun, and there is some awesome live acoustic blues...delta and otherwise.

dwditty
(taken from the great Piedmont player's, Blind Blake's, song)

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: M.Ted
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 03:25 PM

Where did Robert Johnson mention his influences?

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: mousethief
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 03:22 PM

Hmm. I was going to say MJH but now I'm told he doesn't count. I shall have to listen to Fred McDowell; he seems to be well-liked here. Off to find some MFM music...

Alex

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Mark Ross
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 03:08 PM

Actually, Robert Johnson named Lonnie Johnson as on of his influences. If you listen to the complete recordings RJ does a highly credible imitation of LJ. I have a feeling that Robert used a slide not only to echo what he was hearing around him in the Delta, but also to try and imitate Lonnies' vibrato(done with just the fingers.

Mark Ross

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Spartacus
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 02:41 PM

Rollie Tussing III

-spartacus

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: M.Ted
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 01:43 PM

I liked John Lee Hooker best, though some might not want to count him for bizarre reasons of their own--Of the old guys, Charlie Patton and Son House--RJ was great,(but not very original)--still, it's all really good--

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: 53
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 10:40 AM

John Cougar Mellencamp. I know that he's not a true blues musician but he does a lot of neat blues stuff. Bob

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: GUEST,F. Gerlach
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 09:36 AM

Delta Blues is a specific style of blues playing that developed in the Mississippi River Delta region.

Mississippi John Hurt was from the Mississippi Hill region, not the Delta. His playing and singing style was not of the Delta.

Blind Willie Johnson was from Texas. His bottleneck style was more melodic than the more rhythmic Delta style.

Lead Belly was also from Texas and his music had little to do with Delta Blues.

F. Gerlach

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Devilmaster
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 09:01 AM

I was always partial to Leadbelly myself.

Steve

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Bobert
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 08:04 AM

David: Sorry I missed your post last night. Yes, I am a veteran of Blues Week. The last time I spent most of the week getting my butt kicked by the Colonel... Sparky Rucker. As fir this time around I'm real torn between Sparky and Corey but leaning toward Corey. But no matter what, the Colonel is mah main man and we keep in touch.

Bobert

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: GUEST,forty two
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 07:49 AM

All the names so far one can hardly argue with but let me throw in a name of a guy who I saw in London back in the early 70's. Michael Jackson played at our Students Union in the East End, the first gig of his UK tour. He came in, sat down and played a two hour set; just him his accoustic guitar and no sound system. It was a privelege to be there.

I had never heard of him before: I've never heard of him since although I am sure he is dead by now. All I know is that concert was onehelluvanexperience.

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: GUEST
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 05:44 AM

Whoops lost my cookie!!.....Giok

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: GUEST
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 05:36 AM

Alex Campbell said he was a bluesman from the Clyde delta, i.e.Glasgow.

Subject: RE: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: alanabit
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 03:14 AM

I've always loved Mississippi John Hurt for the laughing tone in his voice and his picking. He sounds closer to a ragtime style guitarist to me than a traditional delta bluesman. He also covered a much wider range of material. Oddly enough, when I put his record on a couple of years back, both my small children started dancing. I'm a big fan of Robert Johnson too - especially his incredible technique as a slide guitarist.

Subject: RE: BS: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: CarolC
Date: 04 Jun 02 - 12:13 AM

Well, I have to fess up. It was pretty easy for me to make a choice because old Mississippi Fred just may be the only Delta bluesman whose work I'm actually familiar with.

But I sure do like his stuff.

Subject: RE: BS: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: Bobert
Date: 03 Jun 02 - 10:47 PM

Thanks, CarolC, MJH is gonna be a tough customer, as well he should be. But, Fred McDowell just lights it up with his work on the bass strings. As a blues player myself, I just wonder how he works those bass strings so heavily without interfering with the the higher strings. I asked this question of Rolfy at Tweeds, thinking that ol' Fred used two slides with one being a stubby on his index finger, but Rolfy said: One man, One slide, Deal with it! Hmmmmmm? How do ya' play that stuff, Fred? Oh, to have just seen him once.... Oh.....

And for those of you who think the 2 slides is a good idea? Well, Iz been trying it and it ain't all that easy. I can get the thing cranked up fir a few seconds before it breaks down. I think I'll just try to find out how Fred McDowell did it with one, thank you....

Bobert

Subject: RE: BS: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: ddw
Date: 03 Jun 02 - 10:45 PM

Hey Bobert,

I notices your "kick me" thread. You going to Augusta? Have you been before?

david

Subject: RE: BS: Who is your favorite Delta blues musican
From: ddw
Date: 03 Jun 02 - 10:43 PM

Charlie Patton is one of the biggies for me, as is Bukka. McDowell didn't do much for me when I first heard him, but he's growing on me. I have a hard time putting Robert Johnson and MJH in the "delta" school. They may have lived in the delta, but their styles aren't typical of what was coming out of there most of the time between the 1920s and 1960s. RJ retained a little of the rawness I associated with the delta style, but took it to an intricacy that put it in another realm. MJH's style actually comes closer to the Texas drone-string bass style or the alternating bass against a melody line associated with the Piedmont guys.

Just my two cents worth....

cheers,

david