The Pre-War Blues and Country Music thread

Great idea for a thread - there was a pic on the previous page of the CD version of the Anthology of American Folk Music - absolutely essential music and should be in everyone's collection IMO.

I also love this - there's some great music and wonderful song titles!



8. THE MAN WHO WROTE HOME SWEET HOME NEVER WAS A MARRIED MAN
13. A CHICKEN CAN WALTZ THE GRAVY AROUND
16. THE CAT’S GOT THE MEASLES, THE DOG’S GOT THE WHOOPING COUGH


http://www.oldhatrecords.com/cd1005.html#songs

 

What about the Complete Plantation Recordings?
I am usually not very happy with Erik Labson masterings. Last case in point: The Complete Commodore Recordings by Billie Holiday.
Is there an alternative? Or maybe he nailed this one?

PS Just saw JAW comment. Not surprised. Alternative then?

 

I prefer this Yazoo CD: http://www.amazon.com/Truckin-Blues...638752&sr=1-1&keywords=blind+boy+fuller+yazoo

 

Or get the JSP sets if you love The Carter Family and aren't wealthy.

 

After all, they were taken from the Bear Family set...

 

Still no sign of the Bear Family Roy Acuff set that was announced years ago...

 

So, guys, Muddy Waters' plantation recordings, no alternative to the MCA set?
Weren't they Lomax recordings'?

 

Woh, is this a good set?
12 Euros at Qobuz, 6 discs?

 

I've never heard a good sounding release, so I can't help you there. And yes, they were Alan Lomax recordings.

 

It's pretty awful-sounding source material.

I don't think there's a decent version, nor will there be in the foreseeable future.

 

Bear Family should do a Gid Tanner & the Skillet Lickers box set. I'd love to see one of their trademark books filled with pictures, narrative and discography... but I'm not naïve, there's probably not much demand/sales potential for it.

 

If you don't mind mediocre sound and (nowadays) CD-Rs instead of CDs.

 

Well, listen to Yazoo, County and Blues Images CDs and you know the answer.

 

Too fun to have all these experts here! Thks for these giving their time so genrously.
Is this a good album to be introduced to
Mississippi John Hurt

 

Sure, it's the best sounding compilation of his 1928 recordings.

 

To be fair that's never stopped them before.

 

Like I said I've never heard a better sounding Mississippi John Hurt compilation than the Yazoo CD. You can safely assume that Yazoo CDs always sound better than other discs with the same material, with the exception of the Blues Images CD compilations that come with their calendars (see earlier in this thread).

 

NP, before switching to the real thing, the 1928 sessions...

 

The "Complete Blues" label didn't do anything more than copy some other label's transfers, it's a 'copycat' label. Yazoo took the time to do high quality transfers from original 78s.

 

One of the best albums ever released - any genre. Right up there with Muddy's Folk Singer.

 

This IS a very overlooked great album. You lost me, however, with the comparison to Muddy's good-but-not-great Folksinger album.

 

We'll never agree about this because Folk Singer is my desert island album - certainly my all time favorite album.

 

In blues terms pre-war means pre-WWII.

 

I agree with signothetimes53 and I'd go even further, to my ears Folk Singer is only a so-so album compared to Muddy's late 1940s and 1950s recordings, when he was in his prime.