Negro Blues & Hollers

Various Artists (Artist), Son House (Performer), Willie Brown (Performer), Charley Berry (Performer), Silent Grove Baptist Church Congregation (Performer), David Edwards (Performer), William Brown (Performer), William Blackwell (Performer), Church of God in Christ Congregation (Performer), Fiddlin' Joe Martin (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 14, 1997)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Rounder Select
• ASIN: B0000002UC
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #435,321 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Camp Hollers - Son House/Willie Brown/Fiddlin' Joe Martin

2. Cornfield Hollers - Charley Berry

3. I'm A Soldier In The Army Of The Lord - Silent Grove Baptist Church Congregation

4. I'm Gonna Lift Up A Standard For My King - Church Of God In Christ Congregation

5. Worried Life Blues - David Edwards

6. Ragged And Dirty - William Brown

7. Special Rider Blues - Son House

8. Depot Blues - Son House

9. Mississippi Blues - William Brown

10. Four O'Clock Flower Blues - William Blackwell/William Brown

11. East St. Louis Blues - William Brown

12. Low Down Dirty Dog Blues - Son House

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

After recording this essential collection of performances during the monumental Library of Congress-Fisk University field expedition of 1941 to 1942, Alan Lomax referred to these "alley blues" and "hallelujah spirituals" as "the best art our country has produced." The efforts of Son House and Willie Brown here are particularly vital; with their handful of earlier commercial releases poorly recorded and hard to find, it is significant that these mentors of Robert Johnson were still in their prime when they entrusted their legacy to Lomax and family. Brown is heard shouting "East St. Louis Blues," "Mississippi Blues," and "Ragged and Dirty," while House gives us "Special Rider Blues," "Depot Blues," and a growling "Low Down Dirty Dog Blues." Also compelling are "Worried Life Blues" by David "Honeyboy" Edwards, who was with Johnson the night the legendary bluesman was poisoned, and the haunting "Cornfield Hollers" of Charley Berry, which resonates with Johnson's "32.20 Blues." --Alan Greenberg