SON HOUSE — The Legendary 1969 Rochester Complete Sessions | DOCD-5148 (1992) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Document's At Home: Complete 1969 Recorded Works is a fascinating look at Son House in an intimate setting, and serious fans will find it necessary, but many of these performances aren't as strong as similar sets he recorded in the '60s. In other words, it's one for the completist. Thom Owens

Abridged from this albums original booklet notes. When back in 1964 Nick Perls, Dick Waterman and Phil Spiro searched the Mississippi Delta region for clues as to the whereabouts of legendary blues recording artist Son House, they first drew a blank. Finally, in Robinsonville – where Robert Johnson first played blues in a juke joint – they got a lead which eventually took them right back to New York State. In June of that year, they arrived at Son House‘s home in Rochester’s riverfront Corn Hill neighbourhood, almost a thousand miles from Mississippi! Son had lived here since 1943, soon after being recorded for the Library of Congress by Alan Lomax. Son had not performed blues for many years and was completely unaware of the international enthusiasm for the 10 sides he recorded for Paramount in 1930 and those he later made for Lomax. Although a little rusty at first, after practising for some weeks he gradually relearned his old guitar skills and his voice strengthened to the point where he was able to play concerts again. “When he played, his eyes rolled back in his head and he went somewhere else. Whether it was Robinsonville in the ’30’s or wherever, he transported himself back without any trickery and became the essence of Delta. He would then finish the song, blink his eyes, and then re-accustom himself to where he was at the time.” – Dick Waterman, remembering Son House. By the time John Hammond of Columbia Records decided to record him in April 1965, he was singing and playing with such power and conviction that the years seemed to have rolled away, with some of performances rivalling those for the Library of National Congress twenty years before. The informal recordings of Son House and his wife, Evie (who plays tambourine and gives a spoken message) on this album were made by Steve Lobb at their Rochester home, just prior to Son’s second European tour. They remind us of the remarkable return to music of one of the very greatest of all the many Mississippi blues singers. DOCD-5072
Tracklist :
1        Son's Blues 20:37
Arranged By – Son House
Written-By – Charley Patton
2        Yonder Comes My Mother 1:50
– Traditional
Arranged By – Son House
3        Shetland Pony Blues 3:42
Written-By – Son House
4        I'm So Sorry Baby 2:34
Written-By – Son House
5        Plantation Song 0:45
Written-By – Son House
6        Mister Suzie-Q  2:44
Written-By – Son House
7        Evening Train 4:47
– Traditional
Arranged By – Son House
8        Sundown 7:23
Written-By – Son House
9        Preachin' The Blues 7:20
Written-By – Eddie J. House
10        Empire State Express 8:45
– Traditional
Arranged By – Son House
11        Never Mind People Grinnin' In Your Face 3:44
Arranged By – Son House
Tambourine – Evie House
Written-By – James Milton Black
12        Sun Goin' Down 7:09
Written-By – Son House
13        A Spoken Message 7:06
Voice [Speech] – Evie House
Written-By – Son House

MEMPHIS GOSPEL — The Complete Recorded Works 1927-1929 of SISTER MARY NELSON, LONNIE McINTORSH, BESSIE JOHNSON In Chronological Order | DOCD-5072 (1991) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

In 1998, Document released a Memphis Gospel collection filled with 24 historic recordings made during the years 1927-1929. The album opens on powerhouse Pentecostal footing with four titles released under the name of Rev. Sister Mary M. Nelson, assisted by John Davis and Clarence Nelson, who may have handled some of the lead preaching, as most of the harsh, shrill delivery suggests maleness while the female voice is mainly heard in a supportive role. After more than ten minutes of intense holy rolling, Lonnie McIntorsh comes across as comparatively mild-mannered, vigorously strumming his guitar while singing directly from the heart. Most of the rest of this album is charged with gutsy, gale-force religious fervor. Tracks 9-14 are credited to Elders McIntorsh & Edwards assisted by Sisters Johnson & Taylor, but anyone familiar with Elder Richard Bryant's Sanctified Singers could easily mistake one for the other, and there may have been substantial cross-pollination between the two groups. Tracks 15-18 are by impassioned evangelist Reverend Johnny Blakey with backing by Bessie Johnson & the Sanctified Singers. In 1995, 14 of Blakey's recordings were reissued by Document on one CD with eight tracks by Rev. M.L. Gibson. Four of his titles are included here and two more may be found on Preachers & Congregations, Vol.1. This is unfortunate as it spreads Blakey's legacy over three loosely related albums rather than making all of his devotional efforts available on one disc. "No Room at the Hotel," "Key to the Kingdom," "One Day," and "The Whole World in His Hand" were sung by Bessie Johnson & the Sanctified Singers, with full-throated vocals, handclapping, and a touch of washboard that suggests links with the Memphis blues, hokum, and jug band scene. The final two tracks, which are a bit gentler and more restrained, feature Bessie Johnson & the Sanctified Singers accompanied by guitarist Will Shade, who was in fact a cardinal member of the world famous Memphis Jug Band. This collection should be regarded as a companion volume to Document's equally amazing anthology Memphis Sanctified Jug Bands 1928-1930. Fully smitten enthusiasts may even wish to spring for the Dust-to-Digital box set Goodbye, Babylon. Because music like this can really grow on you, and a lot of it has resurfaced and been reissued. arwulf arwulf

”Abridged from this album’s original booklet notes. Memphis may be better known for the blues or Sun Records but it has been equally important as a centre for black gospel music. The quartet scene with groups like the Spirit of Memphis, the Southern Wonders and Sunset Travelers has been documented in Kip Lornell‘s book, Happy in the Service of the Lord: Afro-American Gospel Quartets in Memphis. Two of the greatest gospel songwriters, Lucie B. Campbell and Rev. W. H. Brewster, both called Memphis their home. Equally important is the fact that Memphis was the place where the most important of all the holiness denominations, the Church of God in Christ, was founded and is still based with annual conventions every fall. It was 1895 when Bishop Charles Mason founded the Church and, in its flock, many of the great gospel singers have flourished from Ernestine Washington to contemporary groups like the Clark Sisters. The sanctified sound of the holiness churches was one that encouraged expressive and irrepressible outpourings of the spirit. The singers were neither afraid to use instruments, nor to let the congregation fully participate by hand clapping, shouts, and joining in. Salvation was participatory and the saints in the pews were there not to let the word wash over them but to have the spirit carry them away. It is the early flowering of the sanctified sound that is represented here in the recordings of Bessie Johnson and Rev. Sister Mary Nelson. The two selections under the name the Memphis Sanctified Singers have a more restrained feeling and feature guitar that may have been by Will Shade of the Memphis Jug Band. This disc is filled out with the complete recorded repertoire of the four selections by Rev. Sister Mary Nelson. DOCD-5072
Tracklist :
1    Rev. Sister Mary M. Nelson–    The Royal Telephone
2    Rev. Sister Mary M. Nelson–    Judgment
3    Rev. Sister Mary M. Nelson–    The Seal Of God
4    Rev. Sister Mary M. Nelson–    Isaiah - LV
5    Lonnie McIntorsh–    Sleep On, Mother, Sleep On
6    Lonnie McIntorsh–    The Lion And The Tribes Of Judah
7    Lonnie McIntorsh–    Arise And Shine
8    Lonnie McIntorsh–    How Much I Owe
9    Elders McIntorsh And Edwards–    What Kind Of Man Jesus Is
10    Elders McIntorsh And Edwards–    Since I Laid My Burden Down
11    Elders McIntorsh And Edwards–    The 1927 Flood
12    Elders McIntorsh And Edwards–    The Latter Rain Is Fall
13    Elders McIntorsh And Edwards–    Take A Stand
14    Elders McIntorsh And Edwards–    Behold! The King Shall Reign
15    Reverend Johnnie Blakey–    King Of Kings
16    Reverend Johnnie Blakey–    Jesus Was Here On Business
17    Reverend Johnnie Blakey–    Warming By The Devil's Fire
18    Reverend Johnnie Blakey–    The Devil Is Loose In The World
19    Bessie Johnson–    No Room At The Hotel
20    Bessie Johnson–    Key To The Kingdom
21    Bessie Johnson–    One Day
22    Bessie Johnson–    The Whole World In His Hand
23    Memphis Sanctified Singers–    The Great Reaping Day
24    Memphis Sanctified Singers–    He Got Better Things For You

SKIP JAMES – "Live" Boston 1964 & Philadelphia 1966 | DOCD-5149 (1992) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

These recordings, made in coffee houses during the folk boom and James' comeback after 30 years of obscurity, find him still in remarkable control of his talents. His guitar and piano playing are agile and sensitive and his high tenor still sends a shiver down the spine. The sound is very good (save for the occasional drop out), but more importantly the performances are first rate, and with a little imagination you can put yourself right there in the room with this enormous talent. Tim Sheridan

” The years 1964-1967 were the sum total of the second coming of Skip James. He had blazed out of the south for a brief instant in 1931, and had even left a few artefacts to prove that it wasn’t all a dream – and then he returned, a talent like a periodic comet of blazing intensity. I saw him play in Boston – it must have been him, and so it must have been around November, 1964.
At that time, there were coffee houses offering all manner of unusual musicians. Guitar Nubbit would be in town – so, let’s go see him. Jim Kweskin And His Jug Band, The Charles River Valley Boys, Gary Davis doing a show on Boston Common – why, let’s take the little children, they’ll enjoy Pete Seeger. “Where do you get your material from,”  I asked the Holy Modal Rounders. Well, get a copy of the Folkways Anthology and you’ll get a good start. These are the ways a person can get bent around by the blues. But you have to remember, they were magical times. If you didn’t see Mississippi John Hurt at one place, say Newport one year, why you could just catch him again later at the Philadelphia Folk Festival. And if you liked their stuff, you could just get the studio LP’s that were being released.

By the 1970’s, people began to realize that we had witnessed something special. You could still see Brownie McGhee and Sonny Terry , maybe catch Roosevelt Sykes here or there, have a few drinks with Robert Pete Williams after a set but time was taking its toll.
I was performing Sacred Harp music in Toronto when one of the others asked if I’d like a tape of Skip James that he had. Skip had haunted me for years – but it was taking me a couple of years practice to learn any of songs. So, I blithely agreed. I had it laying around for ten years or so be before I sent it to Document Records to see if anyone else would like to hear it. Considering how haphazard all this is, I would have thought that other “live” tapes of Skip James would have appeared since, but at the time of writing this seems to have been the only one. I’ve  found that my own tapes have been deteriorating, so kindred souls might well consider making the music available to those whose circumstances didn’t make it quite so easy to see these remarkable artists in person. I know there are other tapes out there somewhere, so now it’s time to DO THE RIGHT THING. The bottom line to all this is that these live tapes are as elusive as the original 78’s, and that a concerted effort must be made to make sure they don’t disappear or get lost inadvertently. Share the music, share the memories, and help preserve the blues tradition.” DOCD-5149
Tracklist :
        Boston 1964    
1        Illinois Blues    3:33
2        How Long Blues    3:08
3        Drunken Spree    3:28
4        Four 'O Clock Blues    3:08
        Philadelphia 1966    
5        Hard Luck Child    0:54
6        I Don't Want A Woman To Stay Out All Night Long    4:35
7        Loretta Blues    4:18
8        Special Lover Blues    2:54
9        Cherry Ball Blues    4:46
10        Washington, D. C. Hospital Center Blues    5:30
11        Hard Luck Child (No. 2)    4:44
12        Look At The People 5:01
Vocals – Mrs. Lorenzo James
13        Mary Don't You Weep    2:18
14        Someday You Gotta Die    2:20
15        I'm So Glad    0:35
Credits :
Guitar – Skip James (tracks: 1, 3, 5 to 15)
Liner Notes – Roger Misiewicz
Piano – Skip James (tracks: 2, 4)
Vocals – Skip James

JAYBIRD COLEMAN & THE BIRMINGHAM JUG BAND — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order 1927-1930 | DOCD-5140 (1992) RM | FLAC (tracks), lossless

Jaybird Coleman wasn't one of the most distinctive early country-blues harmonica players, but he nevertheless made engaging, entertaining music. All of his recordings -- which only totalled 11 sides -- are collected on Document's 1927-1930. For fans of the genre, there are some cuts of interest here, but the music doesn't have enough weight to be of interest to anyone but country-blues fanatics. Thom Owens

Abridged from this album’s original booklet notes. It is highly unlikely that the correct personnel will ever be known for this energetic, but enigmatic, group. The standard sources give the following possible group members, information which was apparently obtained many years ago from Big Joe Williams: Jaybird Coleman (harp), Joe Williams, “One-Armed Dave” (Dave Miles), “Dr. Scott”, Bogus Ben Covington (stringed instruments), “Honeycup”, (jug), “New Orleans Slide”, (washboard). There may be elements of accuracy in Williams’ assertions; certainly his word will stand until more reliable information surfaces. One fact is indisputable: the Birmingham Jug Band participated in an exceptionally diverse field session in Atlanta that included the Middle Georgia Singing Convention No.1, Macon Ed and Tampa Joe, Rev. J. M. Gates, and King David’s Jug Band. The truth is that the names themselves are not as important as the music itself because the Birmingham Jug Band was one of the most raucous groups to record. I wish I’d been able to attend one of their live performances (they sound like a group that played together and were not just a studio band), but we can hear eight of the nine selections they recorded for OKeh in December of 1930. These sides underscore their place in American music history as one of the most irrepressible jug bands ever to record. Its varied repertoire reflects the general diversity of African-American music in the deep South in the late 1920s; Bill Wilson is an engaging version of “John Henry”, while Giving It Away reflects the hokum blues so popular at the time. One of their most entertaining performances, The Wild Cat Squall is a hectic, almost frenzied, showcase for the harmonica player. Kickin’ Mule Blues illustrates two of the group’s most pronounced musical characteristics: its tempo is rather quick and it features a thick musical texture, enriched by the blend of jug, percussion and stringed instruments. Burl C. “Jaybird” Coleman originally from Gainesville, Georgia, is alleged to be the harmonica player for the Birmingham Jug Band, which strikes me as an unlikely proposition, although their styles are not dissimilar. Even if he was not on these jug band sides we know that he served in the Army around World War I, worked with minstrel shows and as a solo artist before his death in June, 1950 in Tuskegee, Alabama. On his own unaccompanied recordings Jaybird Coleman tends to use a higher pitched harp – often playing in the key of C or D. His timing on these recordings issued on Gennett, Black Patti and related labels, not surprisingly, is much more idiosyncratic. These fascinating selections are a compromise between field hollers and blues, especially in Jaybird’s cavalier disregard for the 12-bar blues form and his frequent use of the falsetto voice range. Coleman’s harp also often serves as an extension of his voice or as a call and response, similar to the musical form of a group work song. Like so many “bluesmen”, Jaybird Coleman’s recorded repertoire easily moves between the secular and the sacred. His duet with Ollis Martin, I’m Gonna Cross The River Of Jordan – Some O’ These Days is a masterful version of this 19th century spiritual. Equally strong and moving are the blues-like performances; Man Trouble Blues and Save Your Money – Let These Women Go are tough, personal, and utterly unique. Boll Weevil is his lament for the demise of southern agriculture, which began at the turn of the century, and a highly entertaining version of this blues ballad. His final recordings for Columbia are the only selections on which he sounds somewhat uneasy. It is evident that he has to keep his own creative impulses in check while trying to keep in sync with the unknown piano player. This is particularly evident in Man Trouble Blues, which pales in comparison to his Gennett recording from two and a half years earlier. DOCD-5140
Tracklist :
1    Bertha Ross–    My Jelly Blues 3:08
Accompanied By – Bessemer Blues Pickers
Harmonica [probably] – Jaybird Coleman
Piano – Vance Patterson
Vocals – Bertha Ross
Whistling – Unknown Artist
2    Jaybird Coleman–    Mill Log Blues 2:40
Vocals, Harmonica – Jaybird Coleman
3    Jaybird Coleman–    Boll Weevil 2:58
Vocals, Harmonica – Jaybird Coleman
4    Jaybird Coleman–    Ah'm Sick And Tired Of Tellin' You (To Wiggle That Thing) 3:03
Vocals, Harmonica – Jaybird Coleman
5    Jaybird Coleman–    Man Trouble Blues 3:04
Vocals, Harmonica – Jaybird Coleman
6    Jaybird Coleman–    Trunk Busted — Suitcase Full Of Holes 2:59
Vocals, Harmonica – Jaybird Coleman
7    Jaybird Coleman–    I'm Gonna Cross The River Of Jordan — Some O' These Days 3:00
Harmonica [2nd hca.] – Ollis Martin
Vocals, Harmonica – Jaybird Coleman
8    Jaybird Coleman–    You Heard Me Whistle (Oughta Know My Blow) 3:05
Vocals, Harmonica – Jaybird Coleman
9    Jaybird Coleman–    No More Good Water — 'Cause The Pond Is Dry 3:06
Vocals, Harmonica – Jaybird Coleman
10    Jaybird Coleman–    Mistreatin' Mama 3:00
Vocals, Harmonica – Jaybird Coleman
11    Jaybird Coleman–    Save Your Money — Let These Women Go 2:51
Vocals, Harmonica – Jaybird Coleman
12    Frank Palmes–    Ain't Gonna Lay My 'Ligion Down 2:54
Vocals, Harmonica – Frank Palmes
13    Frank Palmes–    Troubled 'Bout My Soul 2:53
Vocals, Harmonica – Frank Palmes
14    Jaybird Coleman–    Coffee Grinder Blues 3:03
Piano [possibly] – R.D. Norwood
Piano [probably] – Robert McCoy
Vocals, Harmonica – Jaybird Coleman
15    Jaybird Coleman–    Man Trouble Blues 3:02
Piano [possibly] – R.D. Norwood
Piano [probably] – Robert McCoy
Vocals, Harmonica – Jaybird Coleman
16    Birmingham Jug Band–    German Blues 2:59
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Harmonica – Unknown Artist
Jug – Unknown Artist
Mandolin – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Unknown Artist
17    Birmingham Jug Band–    Cane Brake Blues 2:58
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Harmonica – Unknown Artist
Jug – Unknown Artist
Mandolin – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Unknown Artist
18    Birmingham Jug Band–    The Wild Cat Squawl 3:17
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Harmonica – Unknown Artist
Jug – Unknown Artist
Mandolin – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Unknown Artist
19    Birmingham Jug Band–    Bill Wilson 3:13
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Harmonica – Unknown Artist
Jug – Unknown Artist
Mandolin – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Unknown Artist
20    Birmingham Jug Band–    Birmingham Blues 3:14
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Harmonica – Unknown Artist
Jug – Unknown Artist
Mandolin – Unknown Artist
Speech – Unknown Artist
21    Birmingham Jug Band–    Gettin' Ready For Trial 3:02
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Harmonica – Unknown Artist
Jug – Unknown Artist
Mandolin – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Unknown Artist
22    Birmingham Jug Band–    Giving It Away 3:08
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Harmonica – Unknown Artist
Jug – Unknown Artist
Mandolin – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Unknown Artist
23    Birmingham Jug Band–    Kickin' Mule Blues 3:10
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Harmonica – Unknown Artist
Jug – Unknown Artist
Mandolin – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Unknown Artist

COW COW DAVENPORT — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order ★ Volume 1 • 1925 to 1929 | DOCD- 5141 (1992) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The complete output of pianist/singer Cow Cow Davenport as a leader has been made available on two CDs by Europe's Document CD; his sideman dates are also available on two other CDs. Because Cow Cow (named after his famous "Cow Cow Blues") is often categorized as a member of the blues world, it is sometimes overlooked how strong a jazz/blues pianist he was. On this first volume, Davenport is heard collaborating with singer Dora Carr, playing duets with cornetist B.T. Wingfield, interacting with singer Sam Theard, and performing heated solos which are sometimes commented upon by his partner Ivy Smith; in addition, there are a few solo instrumentals that really show what Davenport could do. The highlights include "Chimes Blues," "Atlanta Rag," "Back In the Alley" and four versions of "Cow Cow Blues." Scott Yanow

Abridged from this album’s original booklet notes. Through the efforts of early jazz enthusiasts we know more about Charles “Cow Cow” Davenport than any of the pioneer blues and boogie pianists. Born in 1894 in Anniston, Alabama into a religious and musical family, he taught himself on the church organ. A brief sojourn at the Theological Seminary, Selma was terminated in 1910 when he played piano too freely for a function where the students marched (dancing was not allowed) and “the girls got so frisky they couldn’t march in time”. This incident was to inspire his most popular and enduring song, Mama Don’t Allow No Music Playing Here while the general disapproval of church people for the music he wanted to play led to his coining the term “boogie woogie”. As badly behaved children would be threatened with the “boogie man” (“bogey man”) Davenport said, “I called my music ‘Boogie’ music”. Note that in Davenport’s dictionary the phrase covered all the music “in the honky tonks, joints where nice people did not go”.

A short-lived (one year) marriage to a blues singer pianist Helen Rivers led to Cow Cow Blues (Railroad Blues) his most famous song: “I was so blue I commenced to get drunk. I went from honky tonk to honky tonk drinking everything I could get my hands on. When I walked out on stage that night I could hardly stand up straight. But I had sense enough to pretend like it was part of the act. I made up some words right there on the spot and began to sing my sadness:
Lord I woke up this morning, my gal was gone Fell out my bedside, hung my head and moaned Went down to state and I couldn’t be satisfied Had those Railroad Blues I just too mean to cry

His despair was short-lived too for he met singer Dora Carr who “pestered” him until they teamed up and worked the T.O.B.A. circuit as Davenport And Carr. Laid off in New Orleans they met Ralph Peer who sent them to New York and the first recordings as a vocal duo for Okeh followed in 1924 with Clarence Williams on piano and it was to be a year before Cow Cow Davenport was to play piano on record. Even then the session for Gennett went unissued (possibly because of the Okeh contract?) and it was later that year that Williams allowed him to accompany Dora on Cow Cow Blues. One more Davenport And Carr duo the next year (see BDCD-6040) and the relationship with Dora and, it seems, Okeh broke up. A Paramount session in 1927 with new partner Ivy Smith had violin accompaniment from Leroy Pickett and cornet by B. T. Wingfield who was in Pickett’s band at the Apollo Theatre, Chicago but 1928 and ’29 were the boom years with over twenty sessions for Vocalion and Gennett with Ivy Smith, novelty numbers with his new discovery Sam Theard, accompaniments to Hound Head Henry, probably Jim Towel and Memphis Joe (BDCD-6041) and brilliant solo sessions in a rich variety of styles. Along the definitive Cow Cow Blues and State Street Jive, great classics of Blues piano, Alabama Strut and Atlanta Rag were consummate ragtime while Mootch Piddle hinted at his vaudeville comedy routines. Cow Cow Blues was his most influential number but Dirty Ground Hog was even recalled by John Lee Hooker at his 1952 Chess session. Constantly in demand Cow Cow Davenport must have thought the good times were going to last for ever. DOCD-5141
Tracklist :
1        Cow Cow Blues    2:53
2        Alabama Mistreater    3:01
3        Jim Crow Blues    3:07
4        Goin' Home Blues    3:18
5        New Cow Cow Blues    2:53
6        Stealin' Blues    2:38
7        Cow Cow Blues [Take 1]    3:05
8        Cow Cow Blues [Take 2]    3:10
9        State Street Jive [Take 1]    3:01
10        State Street Jive [Take 2]    3:04
11        Chimin' The Blues    3:11
12        Alabama Strut    2:52
13        Alabama Mistreater    2:53
14        Dirty Ground Hog (Blues)    2:51
15        Chimes Blues    3:19
16        Struttin' The Blues    3:07
17        Givin' It Away    2:28
18        Slow Drag    3:15
19        Atlanta Drag    3:11
20        That'll Get It    3:22
21        I'm Gonna Tell You In Front So You Won't Be Hurt Behind    3:24
22        State Street Blues    2:49
23        Back In The Alley    2:56
24        Mootch Piddle    2:53