|
Various
Artists
True Blues, Vol. 1
Telarc
Records |
Corey Harris,
Alvin Youngblood Hart, and Guy Davis reassembled recently to
release Fight On! True Blues Vol. 2 (reviewed this
month), which puzzled me initially because I'd never heard
Volume 1 and actually didn't even know that there was a Volume
1.
Doing a little
research, I discovered that Volume 1 of True Blues was
released in 2013 on Telarc Records. In addition to Harris, Hart,
and Davis, contributions also came from Taj Mahal, Shemekia
Copeland, and Phil Wiggins.
Volume 1 also
features live performances instead of studio efforts. These
performances were recorded at multiple locations, including Jazz
at the Lincoln Center in New York City, The Howard Theatre,
Marvin, and The Gibson in Washington D.C., House of Blues in
L.A., and Rams Head On Stage in Annapolis, Maryland.
Taj Mahal takes
center stage on two of his most familiar, fan-favorite tunes in
a performance captured in Annapolis: “Done Changed My Way Of
Living” and “Mailbox Blues,” backed by Kester Smith (drums) and
Larry Fulcher (bass).
Copeland delivers a
smoldering version of her father Johnny's “Bring Your Fine Self
Home,” backed by Harris and Hart on guitar. Wiggins sings his
own “Roberta” (with Hart on guitar), plays solo harp on “Prayers
and Praises,” and provides harmonica on several other tunes.
Harris has two solo
tracks, Sleepy John Estes' “Everybody Ought To Make A Change”
and Blind Blake's “C.C. Pill Blues,” both recorded in Los
Angeles. Hart's two tracks are Blind Willie Johnson's
“Motherless Children Have A Hard Time” (recorded in D.C.) and
the traditional “Gallows Pole” (recorded in New York City).
Davis' two solo
tracks are Ishman Bracey's “Saturday Blues” (recorded in D.C.)
and Robert Wilkins' “That's No Way To Get Along” (recorded in
New York City).
Davis, Hart, Harris
and Wiggins collaborate on the opener, the blues standard
“Hoochie Coochie Man,” with Davis, Hart, and Harris trading
verses and Wiggins providing harp, and the stirring closer,
Robert Johnson's “Ramblin' On My Mind,” where they are joined by
Copeland on vocals. Wiggins' harmonica work is particularly
impressive on the latter track. Both of these were recorded at
the Lincoln Center.
The performances
from all artists are first rate throughout.As they've done for
many years, this set introduces many songs to new blues fans
that they might miss otherwise.
The first volume of
True Blues is a fine tribute to the early music of the
blues delivered by six of the genre's blues stars at the time.
Sadly, Wiggins passed away in 2024, but we are blessed to have
the other five still making fine music, with three of them
delivering the goods on Fight On! True Blues Vol 2 in
real time.
--- Graham Clarke
