Customer Reviews

Portraits: First Recordings

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Now, if you made it this far, don't stop reading quite yet. You are lucky to have stumbled upon the absolute cream of delta blues artists (and perhaps the best blues slide guitarist of all time). I came upon an old record of McDowell in a used record store and have been hooked ever since. That said, this is a solid record, but not his best. For an introduction to McDowell's beautiful, soulful acoustic guitar pieces, try his "You Gotta Move". Not only are the performances better, you get almost 30 more minutes of music on "You Gotta Move". Good listening!

With the possible exception of Lightnin' Hopkins, no country blues performer of the postwar era was as consistently captivating as Mississippi Fred McDowell. But unlike Hopkins, McDowell's repertoire wasn't particularly large nor was his approach to blues particularly wide ranging.

The argument, then, for collecting a large pile of McDowell records has more to do with hearing him in different environments and with different accompanists.

Of all the many records that he cut during his 12-year recording career, perhaps none is as engrossing as his first recordings for Alan Lomax in 1959. Cut over the course of a few days in September, these performances find McDowell in riveting form. His individual style is recognizable from the first notes of the first track. What's remarkable is how utterly relaxed and in total command he was from the moment the tape began rolling.

Many of the 14 tracks here feature McDowell performing solo, but he's also joined by his wife Annie Mae singing harmony on a few numbers; Sidney Carter and Rose Hemphill who take lead vocals on one track; James Shorty who does so on another;, Miles Pratcher who plays spirited second guitar; and Fanny Davis who blows comb in a remarkably subtle and sympathetic style.

Storms raged during one night of recording and the thunder and rain can be clearly heard on a few numbers. Other tracks feature the spirited revelry of friends and relations hooting and hollering inside the McDowells' cramped shack. Fred's heavy boot can be heard bouncing off the plank floor throughout the proceedings. All of this ambient sound adds to the intimate feeling of these remarkable tracks - most of which remained unreleased for nearly 40 years!

There are no shortage of remarkable records in McDowell's catalog, but if you're looking for an introduction to his devastating slide work and monstrous vocals, you might as well start from the beginning. Here it is.

Mississippi Fred McDowell is unsurpaced as a blues guitarist. His transitions from note to note are fluid, smooth, and without error. Often we think of blues as free-form and improvisitional yet McDowell defies this truism because his rhythm are perfect. Were we to substitute one note differences it would ruin perfection. In this case there is only one right note, Fred's. Fred McDowell often finishes his lyrics with his guitar as opposed to his voice. This creates a call and response reminicent of revival preaching yet Fred is the preacher and his guitar, the parishoners.

If you're looking for real, hard-hitting acoustic blues, this is a good place to start...just Fred and his acoustic guitar...Fred McDowell is the real thing...why he wasn't recorded until the late 50's is one of the unsolved mysteries of the blues...he's at his best when playing acoustic guitar, but I've bought every Fred McDowell cd that I could get my hands on...buy and enjoy!

While the songs performed on this album may not be unique to Patton, in all cases he makes them his own: I Shall Not Be Moved begins slowly with a varient of the known melody only to break into the standard melody at a lively clip. He uses a variety of guitar techniques including some excellent bottleneck blues. In contrast to one reviewer, I find Patton's lyrics understandable - with a bit of improvisation (or faulty memory). His style blends well into the duets with his wife ... which illustrate well the breadth of musicianship Patton demonstrates.

If you like Delta blues or Gospel Blues, put this on your must hear list.