The Complete Library of Congress Sessions, 1941-1942 [Original recording remastered]

Son House | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 16, 1996)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Travelin' Man
• ASIN: B000001BLT
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #25,057 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #3 in Music > Indie Music > Blues > Delta Blues
  • #8 in Music > Indie Music > Blues > Traditional Blues
  • #55 in Music > Blues > Slide Guitar

Track Listings

1. Levee Camp Blues

2. Government Fleet Blues

3. Walking Blues

4. Shetland Pony Blues

5. Fo' Clock Blues

6. Camp Hollers

7. Delta Blues

8. Special Rider Blues

9. Special Rider Blues

10. Low Down Dirty Dog Blues

11. Depot Blues

12. The Key of Minor

13. American Defense

14. Am I Right or Wrong

15. Walking Blues

16. Country Farm Blues

17. The Pony Blues

18. The Jinx Blues, Pt. 1

19. The Jinx Blues, Pt. 2

Editorial Reviews

This classic re-release of an item deleted in 1997 features 19 blues recordings from Mississippi Delta bluesman Son House recorded in 1941-42. He's on guitar & vocals, joined by Willie Brown, Fiddlin' Joe Martin & Leory Williams. A portion of this was recorded at Klack's Store, Lake Cormorant, Mississippi. You'll hear occasional railway noises in the background, as the store, which had the electricity necessary for the recording, was close to a branch-line between the lake & Robinsonville, which is where the remaining titles were recorded.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

65 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Real Blues--Raw and Dirty, May 2, 2002

By 

Caesar - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Complete Library of Congress Sessions, 1941-1942 (Audio CD)

This collection is essential to any blues collection...you cannot truly appreciate the blues until you've heard these recordings.

Son House is my favorite blues performer. No one--not even his proteges Robert Johnson or Muddy Waters--could match him when it came to the raw emotion. Sure, Robert inspired later blues-rock giants like the Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, Stevie Ray Vaughn (to name a few...) and Muddy revolutionized the blues by 'inventing' electricity. But this collection, when coupled with the album "The Complete Recorded Works of Son House & the Great Delta Blues Singers" (ASIN: B000000J26--recorded in 1930; another essential disc), offers the listener a true glimpse into history.

The first few tracks include House singing and playing guitar with his band: Willie Brown (who has since attained legendary status as his name is mentioned in Robert Johnson's lyrics; he was also was the central character in the 1986 movie "Crossroads") on harmonica, and Fiddlin' Joe Martin on mandolin. These songs are amazing. The only word I can use to describe House's slide guitar technique is FEROCIOUS. His mixture of slams and slaps, when combined with the shouts, moans, and grunts of his vocals, is nothing short of frightening. "Walking Blues"--which, of course, was a hit for both Robert Johnson and Muddy Waters but was written by House--is one particular standout. It is nearly seven minutes long (House is famous for his "epic" performances...in concert, his songs were known to exceed twenty minutes), a relentless barrage of blues. "Levee Camp Moan" is another strong point. The rhythms and shouts are incomparable.

Perhaps the best analogy is "a frontal assault on the soul".

The remaining songs are House's solo efforts, although the striking force has not deminished at all. In fact, they may be even more powerful--it's hard to believe that only ONE guy is singing...!

When House was rediscovered during the '60s blues revival, he recorded his first and only studio album in 1965 ("Father of the Delta Blues"--ASIN: B000002877) for the Columbia label. Most who have heard of Son House know him based on these recordings alone. There is no arguement that this is a magnificent album--the emotional quality has only increased with is age. But while the sound quality is definitely better than these early field recordings (mono recordings into a single microphone in the stockyard of a train depot--you can even hear railway sounds in the background!!), House's old age hindered the ferocity of his slide guitar playing, forcing his tempo to slow down. If you want to hear the true capabilities of the man who I think is the greatest bluesman who ever lived, you must listen to these Library of Congress recordings (and then check out "...and the Great Delta Blues Singers").

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential, January 16, 2005

By 

Docendo Discimus (Vita scholae) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Complete Library of Congress Sessions, 1941-1942 (Audio CD)

These 1941-1942 recordings are the only ones ever made of Eddie "Son" House playing with a band, and this 19-track disc collects all 15 songs originally issued on Biograph's "Delta Blues" album and adds four more tracks, none of which are sung by House ("Fo' Clock Blues", "Camp Hollers", an incomplete "Special Rider Blues", and the instrumental "Key Of Minor").

Folklorist Alan Lomax came to Mississippi in late August 1941, bringing with him a 300-pound "portable" disc-cutting machine, and cut five acetate masters - the first four tracks on this album plus "Delta Blues".
Now, these cuts may not quite match the power of House's ferocious 1930 Paramount recordings, but barely anything does, and these are tremendous recordings in their own right.
Perhaps the chatter of the other three musicians on the first three tracks, and the sound of a mandolin being picked dulls the raw intensity of Son House's music a little, but you can still hear why Muddy Waters was so much in awe of Son House, stating that "back where I came from, down in the Delta, Son House was the king!"

The 1941 recordings were cut in the back room of Clack's country store in Robinsonville by Lake Cormorant in Mississippi, with guitarist Willie Brown (another former playing partner of Charley Patton), "Fiddlin'" Joe Martin - who actually played the mandolin - and harpist Leroy Williams. At one point, you can actually hear a train passing by outside.

The remaining numbers (which include a longer version of "The Jinx Blues") were cut the following summer, and on these tracks, House performs alone. This is where the power and intensity of House truly shines through, showcasing what an effective guitar player he really was. Son House may not have been Charlie Christian, but his loud, grinding, strongly rhytmic playing, filled with wailing slide riffs, was the perfect background for his huge voice and emotionally charged singing.

Among the highlights of this collection are "Delta Blues", superbly performed with only Leroy Williams backing House up, "Low Down Dirty Dog Blues" and "Depot Blues", which features some of the most impressive guitar playing House ever comitted to tape, "Walking Blues" (especially the 1941 version), and "The Jinx Blues", set to an effective shuffle beat. Just listen to the way House snaps his bass string against the fretboard!
This collection is one of the all-time great documents on early Delta blues. The sound is as good as can be expected, and this is a worthy testament to one of the most important figures in modern popular music.

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Son House -- Library of Congress sessions, April 11, 2000

By 

William Quinn "Chip Quinn" (Wayland, MA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: The Complete Library of Congress Sessions, 1941-1942 (Audio CD)

Son House has, arguably, the best blues voice, ever. (His rivals are his pupil, Robert Johnson, and BB King). This is his best album, ever. Great voice, great words, great guitar, and (on one cut) a train in the background. Recorded sound quality is adequate -- better than most for the period. This is one of the five or ten indispensible blues recordings of the twentieth century--Changed how I thought about music.

- Blues ain't nothin'but a lowsown shakin' chill, - If you ain't had them, I hope you never will.