Avalon Blues: A Tribute to Mississippi John Hurt

Taj Mahal (Author), Chris Smither (Author), Alvin Youngblood Hart (Author), John Hiatt (Author), Ben Harper (Author), Victoria Williams (Author), Steve Earle (Author), Dave Alvin (Author), Bruce Cockburn (Author), Gillian Welch (Author) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD
• ASIN: B001OY6U8M
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #346,864 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

No musician ever applied a gentler touch to songs of murder, sex, and salvation than Mississippi John Hurt. The country bluesman enjoyed a career revival through the folk festival boom of the early 1960s, and his influence continues to ripple, as this varied and vital tribute attests. Produced by Peter Case (who teams with Dave Alvin on "Monday Morning Blues"), the album's renewal of classic Hurt extends from the deadpan double entendres of "Candy Man" delivered by Steve Earle and son Justin to Taj Mahal's trademark lilt on "My Creole Belle" to a surprisingly straightforward "Stagolee" by Beck. Amid a roster of luminaries ranging from fingerpicking acolytes Chris Smither and Bill Morrissey to Ben Harper, John Hiatt, Lucinda Williams, and Gillian Welch, the most radically disarming interpretation comes from Victoria Williams. Her breathless "Since I've Laid My Burden Down" sounds like a preschooler on helium, yet somehow taps into the subconscious of the song. --Don McLeese

Track Listing

1. Frankie & Albert - Chris Smither

2. Avalon, My Home Town - Bruce Cockburn

3. Angels Laid Him Away - Lucinda Williams

4. Here I Am, Oh Lord, Send Me - Alvin Youngblood Hart

5. Candy Man - Steve & Justin Earle

6. Monday Morning Blues - Peter Case/Dave Alvin

7. Sliding Delta - Ben Harper

8. Chicken - Geoff Muldaur/Jenni Muldaur/Clare Muldaur

9. Make Me a Pallet on Your Floor - Mark Selby

10. Stagolee - Beck

11. Since I've Laid Burden Down - Victoria Williams

12. Pay Day - Bill Morrissey

13. My Creole Belle - Taj Mahal

14. Beulah Land - Gillian Welch

15. I'm Satisfied - John Hiatt