The 1942-1944 US recording ban is usually used as the dividing line; also, pre-war blues is usually acoustic, post-war blues mostly electric - there are exceptions, some blues artists played pre-war styles in the post-war years, both acoustically and electrically. Put simply, of course
I overlooked J.A.W.'s "pre-war" thread emphasis, sorry. Under that definition, neither the Broonzy or Muddy/Folk Singer albums belong here, regardless of musical merit. But the 4-CDs of the Memphis Jug Band on the Frog label are amazing, great performances with the best possible sonics for such ancient recordings, transfers from mint 78s. Holy Grail stuff. http://www.frog-records.co.uk/collections/vintage-blues/products/dgf15
No problem. Mentioning post-war pre-war style recordings is fine as far as I'm concerned, but no electric band blues or blues rock of any kind, please - not that you intend to do so, it's more a general request. There's another thread for that kind of stuff.
What's a good Carter Family compilation? Unlike Jimmie Rodgers, I'm not a big enough fan to spring for their complete recordings, but I'd still like something reasonably comprehensive.
Oh my, I have to disagree again: JSP was an excellent label back in the days when they hired the late John R.T. Davies for their masterings, before they began "borrowing" masterings other labels did the research for and paid for. The Bear Family Carter Family box is a case in point, but there are quite a few others too. This has been discussed many times on this board and I'm not going to repeat what has been posted about it earlier and in other threads.
The JSP Carter Family set was "borrowed" from the big Bear Family box; BF sued JSP about it and won (see my previous posts about it here and elsewhere on this board). A 1-disc compilation I'd recommend would be the MCA "Country Music Hall of Fame" CD from 1991: http://www.amazon.com/Country-Music-Hall-Fame-Carter/dp/B000002OEO/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1450658681&sr=1-1&keywords=carter family country music hall of fame
Absolutely. Ill have to agree that imo Folk Singer is really overhyped. It has simply became a blues album for audiophiles. Which doesnt always mean great performance or the choicest material. I never have understood all the love for it on this forum.
Totally agreed When I see those superlatives I always wonder if the posters have ever heard any of Muddy's 1940s and 1950s recordings.
And back to the pre-war blues topic I dont know much about this more obscure artist. I do like his rhythmic stylings though. A bit different than some.
Petway can be found on Yazoo's old Mississippi collection Lonesome Road Blues: Fifteen Years in the Mississippi Delta, 1926-1941 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000000G7K?qid=1450663922&ref_=tmm_acd_swatch_0&sr=1-1
Of all the pre-war blues songs on 78, I'd go for this one if I could find one. Lane Hardin's performance is simply otherworldly....
I have Arthur Big Boy Crudup's That's All Right Mama compilation on RCA from 1992 and this was recorded during WW II. Great music but do any of you think that the When The Sun Goes Down Rock Me Mamma comp sounds better than the That's All Right Mama comp?
Now watching O Brother Where Are Thou What a blast! Loving every minute. And what a beautiful rendition of my favorite pre-war song (the Skip James one)
While I did already own the two Columbia Robert Johnson albums I sort of did just buy this for cover and it opened up a whole new world.
After hearing a song by Gillian Welch titled 14th of April I looked up the reference to the line God Moves On The Water which led me to this which is also amazing.
Great compilation! And one that every blues newbie you might encounter who thinks Robert Johnson invented the blues needs to hear.
Grab it if you find it. Great music, excellent sonic transfers, and one of the more overlooked Yazoo releases.
Somebody has this one et can comment on the SQ? It is a nice sampler but if the sound is bad (heavy NoNoise for instance) i will pass. http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-slide-guitar-bottles-knives-steel-vol-1-mw0000309586/credits
All those "Roots 'n' Blues" Columbia CDs suffer from heavy noise reduction and sometimes EQ that sounds unpleasant. The music is invaluable, though, that's why I keep them.
Thks Hans. I am so amazed by the job done by Yazoo on the 1928 Mississippi John Hurt sessions that I'll stick with them for a while I think. Big catalog to explore! Now I am interested by Geechie Wiley and Elvie Thomas music. These Last Kind Words has an hypnotic effect on me. For those who have not read this, you have to take the time to read this fantastic article and play the clips: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/04/13/magazine/blues.html Last Kind Words Blues: http://static01.nyt.com/newsgraphics/2014/04/13/_assets/songs/last-kind-words-blues.mp3
