Charley Patton – “High Water Everywhere Parts 1 & 2”
The “Father Of The Delta Blues,” Charley Patton lived from around 1887 to April 28, 1934. His performances and recorded works became blueprints for the greats who followed in his footsteps, from Robert Johnson to Howlin’ Wolf to well, everybody. High Water Everywhere, Parts 1 & 2, are songs penned by Mr. Patton about the Great Mississippi Flood he witnessed and survived in 1927. While the two distinct parts work as individual pieces, together they tell a complete, epic story. And he just rocks, so hard.
Fiddlin Frank Nelson was a moniker used by the great southern fiddler, Doc Roberts. Doc was a farmer first and a musician in his spare time. Although he only played and recorded on weekends, he cut over 70 sides! “Buck Creek Gal” is an upbeat number, and you can hear how his style influenced early country music. Unpretentious and infectious, this is some pure old time instrumental hillbilly music fun.
Will Batts’ starts his “Cadillac Baby” with the last line from Blind Lemon Jefferson’s “Booger Rooger Blues” — “Somebody learned my baby how to shift gears on a Cadillac Eight!” This classic acoustic blues was recorded during the height of American car culture, when gas was cheap and car radios were new. With gems like this, Will Batts helped lay the groundwork for the rock ‘n roll music which would pump through millions of car speakers in later decades.
You can trace much of American popular music back to the blues. This is most obviously evident in Rock n’ Roll. But in tracks like Gus Cannon’s “Madison Street Rag,” you can also hear the roots of Rap and Hip-Hop. Released on the Paramount label in 1927, Gus Cannon’s gravelly voice sounds like he’s freestlying on the street corner as a passerby looks on in amazement. The banjo pickin’ is brilliant too. Ragtime folk blues goodness with a great lyric. Enjoy!
“One Way Gal” was recorded in Chicago in 1928 by the legendary “barber bluesman,” William Moore. A 78 RPM vinyl copy of this lovely record is almost impossible to find, but you can enjoy this nice clean mp3. The lyrical twist in the song is hilarious, and Bill Moore’s voice and picking style delivers it perfectly. Like Blind Blake and other folk-blues greats of his time, Moore accompanied himself solo on acoustic guitar, dropping gems like this into a single microphone with no effects or post-production. A brilliant moment, captured forever.