Mississippi Fred McDowell

Fred McDowell | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 5, 1995)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Rounder / Umgd
• ASIN: B00000030W
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #45,014 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

His raw, driving, highly rhythmicesmen as R.L. Burnside, a young neighbor of McDowell's who learned directly at the senior bluesman's feet. These recordings (McDowell's first after Lomax's 1959 field trip) were made by Dick Spottswood at McDowell's home in 1962. At the time Spottswood had no notion the recordings would ever be issued. They became part of the collection of the Library of Congress and remained unreleased until Britain's Heritage label brought them out on LP in the early '80s. Out-of-print for some time, and never before issued in the US, this album focuses on the blues songs McDowell recorded that day in 1962. Included among these 20 tracks are some of McDowell's best known songs: "Write Me a Few Lines," "Red Cross Store," "Shake 'Em on Down," "Highway 61" and others. Two years later McDowell electrified audiences at the Newport Folk Festival and, subsequently, around the world. One of his signature tunes, "You Got to Move," was covered by the Rolling Stones, bringing McDowell wide recognition and a significant royalty check. Here is a glimpse of Mississippi Fred McDowell before the world discovered him, playing some of the delta's most distinctive country blues in his Como, Mississippi living room for an audience of family and friends.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Real Deal, July 3, 2000

By 

"jackback" (Orlando, Florida United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mississippi Fred McDowell (Audio CD)

Real country Blues that moves crisply forward with a rhythm that is indistinguishable from the music itself. Tight, succinct guitar playing. Slide guitar playing. The treble rings sharp and clear against the hollow depth of wood. The vocal delivery, almost dry and terse, somehow couldn't express more. You sense this music is coming from a very rich place. This aint Chicago. This is real.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars serious listeners only, November 10, 2000

By 

Dawn Camp (Lake Wales,FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mississippi Fred McDowell (Audio CD)

Fred McDowell is a legend in time. This CD is one of my greatest finds. The clarity and background sounds make you feel that your right there. Its hard to believe one man could make much music and rythm. This is as real and as raw as it gets. I have some of his other CD's and this one is the best and I highly recommened it if you want to be impressed.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It just don't get better than this!, May 22, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Mississippi Fred McDowell (Audio CD)

Recorded in 1962 in his home in Como, Mississippi, these songs were never meant for public "consumption." Children playing can even be heard in the background. And that is precisely what makes this an absolute must for blues purists. He just turned on an old reel-to-reel and laid down some of the best blues ever recorded. The honesty, rawness and cutting intensity of his acoustic slide work has simply never been surpassed. It is the genuine article: pure, undiluted, painful, longing, blues. As a side note, he learned slide from his uncle who made his slide from grinding and filing a bone from a steak, hence, Fred called his blues, "steak bone blues." If you love, I mean LOVE the blues, you must have this. If not, you'll never know how good blues can get.