Folks, He Sure Do Pull Some Bow! Vintage Fiddle Music 1927-1935: Blues, Jazz, Stomps, Shuffles & Rags

Big Bill Broonzy (Artist), Charlie Pierce (Artist), Andrew Baxter (Artist), Clifford Hayes (Artist), Bubbling-Over Five (Artist), Memphis Jug Band (Artist), Mississippi Sheiks (Artist), Peg Leg Howell (Artist), Frank Stokes (Artist), Big Joe Williams (Artist), Agusto Abreu (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 27, 2001)
• Original Release Date: 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Old Hat Records / Enterprises
• ASIN: B000058TAS
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #115,034 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Rukus Juice And Chittlin' - Memphis Jug Band

2. The Jazz Fiddler - Walter Jacobs And Lonnie Carter

3. Moanin' And Groanin' Blues - "Peg Leg" Howell And His Gang

4. Dance Hall Shuffle - Clifford Hayes' Louisville Stompers

5. My Four Reasons - Banjo Ikey Robinson And His Bull Fiddle Band

6. Wild Cow Blues - Joe Williams' Washboard Blues Singers

7. Knox County Stomp - Tennessee Chocolate Drops

8. Rustlin' Man - State Street Boys

9. Sister Maud Mule - Alec Johnson

10. G Rag - Georgia Yellow Hammers

11. Throw Me In The Alley - Peetie Wheatstraw And His Blue Blowers

12. If You Can't Make It Easy, Sweet Mama - Dixieland Jug Blowers

13. Bunker Hill Blues - Frank Stokes

14. I Got A Gal - James Cole's String Band

15. Sweet To Mama - State Street Boys

16. Doctor Medicine - South Memphis Jug Band

17. Cabo Verdranos Peca Nove - Abrew's Portuguese Instrumental Trio

18. Worried Man Blues - Joe Williams' Washboard Blues Singers

19. Georgia Crawl - Henry Williams And Eddie Anthony

20. Good Old Turnip Greens - Bo Chatman

See all 24 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com's Best of 2001

A fantastic collection of old-time music, "Folks, He Sure Do Pull Some Bow!" captures vintage fiddle music at that rare crossroads where the blues, jazz, and something that would one day be called folk were all in their infancy. For fiddle virtuosos performing between 1927 and 1935, quite simply, anything goes. Banjo Ikey Robinson's red hot "My Four Reasons" swings with humor and pizzazz, the State Street Boys' "Rustlin' Man" features the down-and-out blues vocals and fiddling of Big Bill Broonzy , and the Mississippi Sheiks' jazzy, but blues-inspired "Lazy Lazy River" musically straddles both sides of the Mason Dixon Line. For many listeners, the more esoteric tracks will stick out: Bo Chatman (a.k.a. double-entendre blues king Bo Carter) is heard fiddling behind Alec Johnson's goofy vocals on "Sister Maud Mule" (and in the spotlight on his own "Good Old Turnip Greens"); the Georgia Yellow Hammers' "G Rag" is the product of a then-rare integrated recording session; and Abrew's Portuguese Instrumental Trio performs "Cabo Verdranos Peca Nove" with incredible fiddling on what must be one of the first attempts at a crossover world-music disc. It's all here--great remastering, in-depth liner notes, and wonderful playing. Each release from Old Hat--Violin, Sing the Blues for Me and Music from the Lost Provinces--feels definitive, and this gem is certainly no different. --Jason Verlinde

Product Description

Two dozen swingin' sides of blues, jazz, stomps, shuffles and rags that show why the fiddle became known as the "devil's box"! Everything from Mississippi string bands to Beale Street blues to South Side jazz is here; includes Ruckus Juice and Chittlin' Memphis Jug Band; Lazy Lazy River Mississippi Sheiks; Moanin' and Groanin' Blues Peg Leg Howell & His Gang; If You Can't Make It Easy, Sweet Mama Dixieland Jug Blowers; Get Up off That Jazzophone Bubbling-Over Five; Good Old Turnip Greens Bo Chatman; Throw Me in the Alley Peetie Wheatstraw & His Blue Blowers, and more.

See all Editorial Reviews

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Worth the check, March 28, 2003

By 

Tony Thomas (SUNNY ISLES BEACH, FL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Folks, He Sure Do Pull Some Bow! Vintage Fiddle Music 1927-1935: Blues, Jazz, Stomps, Shuffles & Rags (Audio CD)

The music on this cd is fun, its interesting, and its instructive. More than that, it is vital music for anyone who wants to understand the musical culture of this country in general, and the history of fiddling, the blues, jazz, and much much more. Black fiddling along with Black banjo playing were vital forces in black music across the scale from classical to delta blues. Now people are surpised there is sucha thing as black fiddling, or blues fiddling. Listen to this music. More than that, the music here is good to listen to. If you think you know the blues, you will recognize familiar names of Lonnie Johnson and Big Bill Broonzy. You get to hear both of them hear playing their first instrument, the fiddle!
But all this music is a lot of fun

In response to some comment, I have played bluegrass and old timey music for about 40 years, and also play guitar, banjo, mandolin, and fiddle, the first two well enough to play with recording artists since around 1967.

This is not white country music. It is black country music and some black proto Jazz. Professional bluegrass fiddlers and professional violinists I know who I have introduced to this record think it is amazing, interesting, and educational. It is just nice to listen to as well.

Anyone familiar with African American blues music, jug band music, or 1920s and 1930s two-beat Jazz will find familiar figures on this record. If you don't know who Lonnie Johnson and Big Bill Broonzy are, you are seriously uneducated about American music, not just African american music.

BTW Fiddling encompasses all non-classical styles of playing the violin, not just white "country" and bluegrass styles.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous set of African-American fiddle music, December 17, 2001

By 

DJ Joe Sixpack (...in Middle America) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Folks, He Sure Do Pull Some Bow! Vintage Fiddle Music 1927-1935: Blues, Jazz, Stomps, Shuffles & Rags (Audio CD)

Another astonishing album from the truly great, tiny independent Old Hat label... This features rare old recordings of fiddle music, some old-timey and some straight blues, made during the height of the Great Depression. There are a few familiar names, such as Peetie Wheatstraw and Peg Leg Howell, but for the most part this is pretty ultra-obscure material (even including one track of music by immigrants from Cape Verde (!) This is high-quality stuff, and comes with generously informative liner note... Highly recommended!

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Phenomenal!, December 4, 2005

By 

Megan Romer (Lafayette, LA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Folks, He Sure Do Pull Some Bow! Vintage Fiddle Music 1927-1935: Blues, Jazz, Stomps, Shuffles & Rags (Audio CD)

Well, I completely disagree with the negative review below, and I have a feeling that the gentleman who wrote it, who claims to be a mediocre picker of several instruments, will remain mediocre for his entire life. Fiddle and violin are not the same thing. As the old joke goes, the difference between the two is that you shouldn't spill beer on a violin.

To expect rural and traditional black fiddlers from the Depression to play fiddle like classically trained modern fiddlers like Mark O'Connor or Allison Krauss is like expecting your country Grandma to make Hazelnut-crusted filet of Chilean Seabass with a Pomegranate and Wasabi reduction for Sunday dinner, instead of pot roast and mashed potatoes. It's an absurd expectation. This is the music of real people. Many of these musicians undoubtedly farmed or did other backbreaking labor all week, taking their only joy from the music they'd play on the weekend. Their faithful listeners were in the same boat.

Remember that for many of these recordings, the concept of "jazz" hadn't been invented yet. Bluegrass, for that matter, wouldn't be invented for a couple more decades.

Anyone with a genuine appreciation for American traditional and folk music will love this album. Yes, some of the recording quality is a little bit rough (many of the songs sound like they're playing on an old turntable instead of on a CD), but it's completely listenable, not nearly as difficult to listen to as many other re-released gems from this era. Listen to it with an open mind, and after you've heard the first few tunes, your brain will automatically tune out the static (which is minimal to begin with).

This album is one of the more brilliant re-releases and collections from this era. Get an idea of what real people were listening to and playing in this time period. You'll thank yourself for giving it a try.