Legends of

CountryBluesGuitarVolume One

featuringSon House

Josh WhiteRev. Gary DavisBig Bill BroonzyMance Lipscomb

Henry TownsendBrownie McGhee

Mississippi John HurtRobert Pete Williams

Bonus: John Jeremy’saward winning film:

Blues Like Showers Of Rain

featuringSon House

Josh WhiteRev. Gary DavisBig Bill BroonzyMance Lipscomb

Henry TownsendBrownie McGhee

Mississippi John HurtRobert Pete Williams

Bonus: John Jeremy’saward winning film:

Blues Like Showers Of Rain

Legends of

CountryBluesGuitarVolume One

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As a genre, blues mu-sic was developed at thebeginning of the twenti-eth century by rural blackmusicians. They shapedit with brilliant inspira-tion from disparate ele-ments of black song.Blues seemed to haverisen with the popularityand adoption of the gui-tar as the standard in-strument for entertain-ment at this time. ByWorld War I, blues hadbegan to assume a stan-dard form, aided byvaudeville shows, travel-ing musicians and evenTin Pan Alley. By the early‘20’s, recorded urban per-formers solidified thestandard three-verse, 12bar meter structure thathas identified most blues.Fortunately, during thatsame period, there were

recorded musicians who grew up with the blues and whoseguitar-styles were more fluid and improvisational. They playedwith a personal adaptation of their regional style, shaping bluesand related material to their own needs and those of theiraudience.

The music they played was alien to formula, possessingsuch skill and robustness as to be captivating. Their fame waslocal, tied intimately to their time and place, and only theprovidence of a chance encounter with a talent scout or recordcompany preserved their art. Even then, it seemed fated thatthey would remain flamboyant names on exotic record labels.

The blues revival of the early ‘60’s brought many of thesesurvivors to the forefront of traditional music. The technique ofa Rev. Davis, the power of a Son House, the charm of aMississippi John Hurt suddenly leaped into sight, becomingmore tangible, more awesome and more human. The rarefootage presented in this video from that period, is a treasurebeyond imagining, drawn from a myriad of souces, depictingsome of the greatest blues musicians who ever lived.

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REV. GARY DAVIS wasone of the greatest andmost accomplished gui-tarists of the twentiethcentury. His impas-sioned singing and play-ing of rel ig ious andsecular music was of vir-tuoso quality. Born in1896 in Laurens Co.,South Carolina, he suf-fered from partial (andlater total) blindness asan infant. Davis beganplaying music at anearly age, mastering har-monica, banjo and gui-tar by the time he was ayoung man. AroundWorld War I, he began playing in a local string band andbecame associated with legendary guitarist Willie Walker, ofGreenville, S.C. Moving to Durham, North Carolina, in thelate ‘20’s, he became acquainted with Sonny Terry andthrough him, Blind Boy Fuller (to whom Davis gave somepointers). His religious fervor caused him to disdain secularmusic, although he recorded two blues out of twelve selec-tions during his initial recording session in 1935. Disagree-ment about money and his treatment from the talent scoutcurtailed Davis’ recording career for a decade. He moved toNew York around l941 to join his wife and played on thestreets of Harlem. An album recorded in the late 1950’sbrought him some recognition and further recordings whicheventually led to his appearing at the Newport Folk Festivalin l964. He became an inspiration and teacher to a legion ofyoung guitarists in the New York area before his death inl972. His technical prowess was nearly unmatched amongrural bluesmen of his generation and the speed and accu-racy of his playing remains awesome.

Blues and Ragtime (Shanachie CD 97024)Complete Early Recordings (Yazoo CD 2011)

Pure Religion and Bad Company (Folkways CD 40035)Say No to the Devil (Original Blues Classics CD 519)

Gospel, Blues and Street Songs (Original Blues Classics CD 524)

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HENRY TOWNSEND is oneof St. Louis’ foremost bluesmusicians. He moved fromhis birthplace in Shelby, Ms.(1909) as an infant, toCairo, Illinois. In the latel920’s, before he was out ofhis teens, he moved to St.Louis and quickly learnedguitar and piano from localluminaries such as HenrySpaulding and Lonnie John-son. He played with St.Louis pianist, Walter Davis,that lasted until the latter’sdeath, and recorded withRoosevelt Sykes, Big JoeWilliams and others in the1930’s. Townsend played ina number of styles, from rather free-form compositions inopen tuning (vestapol: D A D F# A D) to sharply snappedsingle-string runs in normal tuning. The latter reflecting histutelage and long association with Henry Spaulding, whoseCairo Blues he faithfully renders on this video. The middle1950's found the St. Louis blues scene moribund and heworked as an insurance salesman. Rediscovered by SamCharters in the late 1950’s, he gradually resumed perform-ing, occasionally recording. He is still active today and hasfinally received recognition for his singular style.

St. Louis Town (Yazoo CD1003)St. Louis Country Blues 1929-1937 (Document 5147)

MISSISSIPPI JOHN HURT's warm and appealing singing andplaying is atypical of the hard blues generally associated withhis native state. His music reflected a style that exemplifiesblack music before World War I. He was born on the edge ofthe delta in Teoc, Mississippi in 1892, Hurt learned his craftin the early 1900’s, absorbing the area’s dance tunes, bal-lads, traditional songs and prototype- blues. A farmer all ofhis life, he played local parties and occasional square dances.Until his rediscovery, he rarely left his community and hisstyle remained unaffected by change. In l928, a white coun-try fiddler (W.R. Narmour) recommended Hurt to a talent

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scout for Okeh re-cords, who arrangedsessions for him inMemphis and NewYork. He recordedtwelve songs thatsold moderately well,including a songabout Avalon, hishome town, whichenabled researchersto find him 35 yearslater. While Hurt re-mained unknownoutside of his com-munity, his reputa-tion was made whentwo of his songswere included in the

Harry Smith's collection on Folkways Records - Treasury ofFolk Music. Hurt’s rediscovery and appearance at the New-port Folk Festival in 1963 was one of the high points of theblues revival. His tight and rolling finger-picking style influ-enced many young folk guitarists and the charm and dignityof the man is readily apparent in his music. He recorded andplayed extensively until his death in 1966.

Mississippi John Hurt, l928 (Yazoo CD 1065)Avalon Blues (Rounder CD 1081)Worried Blues (Rounder CD 1082)

The Best of Mississippi John Hurt (Vanguard CD 19/20)Mississippi John Hurt Today! (Vanguard CD 79220)

The Immortal Mississippi John Hurt Vanguard CD 79248)Last Sessions (Vanguard CD 79327)

BROWNIE McGHEE was a stalwart ambassador of the bluesfor over half a century. Walter “Brownie” McGhee was bornin Knoxville, Tennessee, in l915. Afflicted with polio at theage of four, he learned guitar from his father at an early age.Moving to Maryville, Tennessee, he attended high school,dropping out in the late ‘20’s to hobo and work in carnivals,minstrel shows and dances. He returned in the early ‘30’s tocomplete school, join a gospel quartet and play guitar in thestreets. In the middle ‘30’s, he resumed traveling, attempt-ing to make a living through his music. He encountered Sonny

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Terry in North Carolina c.l939 which led to a re-cording date the nextyear. His style was some-what gentler and lessraggy than North Carolinaguitarists, and an attemptto market him as “BlindBoy Fuller No. 2” after thelatter’s death was notparticularly successful al-though his records soldwell. In l940 he moved toNew York and continuedhis associat ion withSonny Terry that was tolast decades. Sonny andBrownie worked withvarious musicians in New

York such as Leadbelly and Woody Guthrie, and becoming amainstay for Folkways records. For over twenty years, Browniehad a duel career as a folk singer for a white audience whileperforming and recording solo and with groups for a blackaudience. He has appeared on Broadway, TV and the mov-ies. A more versatile and practised musician than often cred-ited, he recorded innumerable records in a variety of styles.

The Folkway Years l945-49 (Folkways CD 40034)Brownie’s Blues (Original Blues Classics CD 505)

Brownie McGhee 1944-1945 (Travelin' Man CD 04)

ROBERT PETE WILLIAMS didnot start to play guitar untilhe was almost twenty. Hedeveloped a unique, “streamof consciousness” style ofsinging and playing. Unlikemost blues musicians, herarely bothered to rhyme hiswords or have a recogniz-able bar structure, seeminglyintent on communicating hisexperience in the most di-rect, idiosyncratic manner.Born in Zachary, Louisiana, in

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l914, his family moved to Scotlandville, Louisiana, while hewas in his teens. A local musician, Lacey Collins, influencedhim and he supplemented his income as a farm worker byplaying local dances and country suppers. An altercation ledhim to spend four years in Angola Prison for murder. Whilein prison, he re-corded for Folk-Lyric records which aidedhim in gaining parole. He appeared at the Newport Folk Fes-tival in l963 and toured extensively as well as recording. Hedied in 1980.

The Legacy Of The Blues Vol.9 (Sonet CD649)

JOSH WHITE embarkedupon his career in mu-sic at a very early age. Hewas born in Greenville,South Carolina, in l915.His father was a preach-er for the Church of Godin Christ and the youngJosh sang in the choir.Before he was ten, hewas working as a guidefor blind street singerssuch as Willie Walkerand John Henry Arnold,from whom he learnedguitar. He left school atthe age of fourteen totravel as a guide and ac-companist to Blind JoeTaggart and made hisfirst records with thatartist in l928. By l932 he

had become an accomplished musician and was recordingas a solo musician. Due to the extremely religious nature ofhis family, he generally recorded spirituals under his ownname and blues as “Pinewood Tom”. By l936, he had gravi-tated to New York, became involved in Cafe Society andadopted a more polished and commercial approach to hissinger and playing. He became active in what were then radi-cal causes, and entertained President Franklin D. Rooseveltat White House concerts. He was one of the first rural musi-cians to purposely market himself as a folk musician and

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became well-known as such in the early ‘50’s. He touredand recorded extensively throughout his career and althoughhis material changed, his guitar playing never lost its supple-ness. He died in l969.

Mama Let Me Lay It On You (Yazoo CD 1040)

BIG BILL BROONZYis among the mostfamous figures incountry blues. Hemaintained a ster-ling career for over30 years. Born circal898 in Scott, Missis-sippi, he was raidedin Pine Bluff, Arkan-sas. There helearned to play vio-lin from an uncleand worked as acountry fiddler atlocal parties. Movingto Chicago in l920,he began to playguitar and made his first recordings for Paramount in l927.By the early 1930’s he had become an accomplished playerof blues and rags, and one of the most famous blues musi-cians in Chicago. Broonzy had the ability to adapt with thetimes and as the rural sound began to lose favor he becamemore urban-sounding, recording with piano and bass , smallcombos and brass. Few musicians of the era were more popu-lar not only with their audience, but also with peers; Broonzywas noted to be helpful to fellow musicians who were set-tling in Chicago throughout the thirties and forties. In l938,he appeared at Carnegie Hall for the “Spiritual to Swing” con-cert and was introduced (and portrayed himself) as a share-cropper. In the early ‘50’s, he gained new popularity in En-gland and Europe as a folk artist, working club dates andconcerts. Lung cancer cut short his career and he died inl958.

The Young Bill Broonzy 1926-1935 (Yazoo CD 1011)Do That Guitar Rag (Yazoo CD 1035)

Sings Folk Songs (Folkways CD 40023)The Complete Recordings (Document 5050/5051/5052...)

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SON HOUSE: Legendary isscarcely apt to describeEddie “Son“ House, theprime influence on RobertJohnson and Muddy Wa-ters, themselves archetypalf igures of Mississ ippiblues. His rich and power-ful singing and bottleneckplaying are benchmarks ofDelta blues. Born in Lyon,Mississippi around l902,he grew up in a religioushousehold and had ambi-tions to be a preacher. Hewas contemptuous ofblues until the bottleneckplaying of Delta musiciansWillie Wilson and RubeLacy captivated him, andled him to take up guitar. Three years later, in l930, he ranup upon the fabled Charlie Patton, who invited him to recordat what was later felt to be one of the pinnacle sessions ofcountry blues for Paramount Records. Afterwards, he main-tained a friendship with Patton disciple, Willie Brown, forover twenty years, vacillating between a religious life and ablues career. He made a number of recordings for the Li-brary of Congress, which added luster to his reputation be-fore he was rediscovered. Unconcerned with music for overa decade, he was located by Nick Perls, Dick Waterman andBill Barth, and persuaded to return to playing. His subse-quent performances such as I Had A Woman in Hughes (withJerry Ricks on second guitar recorded for Camera Three thatwas aired on commercial television), fully captured the in-tense, driving spirit that House commanded on his earlierrecordings. With his death in l988, a profound chapter inMississippi blues was closed.

Delta Blues/The Original Library Of Congress Session1941-1942 (Biograph CD 118)

Father Of The Delta Blues/The Complete 1965 Sessions(Columbia/Legacy 48867)

Masters Of The Delta Blues (Yazoo CD 2002)Son House & Bukka White (Yazoo Video 500)

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RECORDING INFORMATION:MANCE LIPSCOMB: Silver City & Angel Child (KLRU-TV, 1972)MISSISSIPPI JOHN HURT: Spike Driver Blues & You're Going To

Walk That Lonesome Valley (Pete Seeger's Rainbow Quest, 1966)HENRY TOWNSEND: Cairo Blues (Legacy Productions, circa 1986)

SON HOUSE: Death Letter Blues (Camera Three circa 1965),I Had A Woman in Hughes (BBC, 1972)

REVEREND GARY DAVIS: Children of Zion (Pete Seeger's Rainbow Quest,1966), Death Don’t Have No Mercy (Lionel Rogosin's Black Roots, 1970)

BIG BILL BROONZY: Worried Man Blues, Barrelhouse Rag, How YouWant It Done, John Henry, Blues in E (circa 1950s)

ROBERT PETE WILLIAMS: Mamie(Univ. Of Washington Ethnomusicology Archives, 1968)

BROWNIE MCGHEE: Don’t Kid Me (Pete Seeger's Rainbow Quest, 1966)JOSH WHITE: Jelly Jelly (1965)

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MANCE LIPSCOMB's play-ing featured nearly everyfacet of early black musicas played in Texas. Hewas one of the bench-marks of the early ‘60’sblues revival . Born inNavasota, Texas, in 1895,Mance began to accom-pany his father, a localmusician, from the age ofeleven. His father de-serted the home whenMance was sixteen, leav-ing him the sole supportof his family. For close to50 years he regular lyplayed Saturday nightdances in his community,supplementing his in-

come as a farmer, and honing his skills as a guitarist. Bylearning from a number of musicians who passed throughNavasota, Mance became a virtual repository of Texas blues,ballads, rags and dance tunes from the early years of thiscentury. With his broad range of black musical styles andeffortless playing in the Texas style, he was a great favoriteon the folk and blues circuit until his death in l976.

Texas Songster (Arhoolie CD 306)You Got To Reap What You Sow (Arhoolie CD 398)

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Brownie & Sticks McGhee(Photo courtesy of Stefan Grossman)

As a genre, blues music was developedat the beginning of the twentieth cen-tury by rural black musicians. Theyshaped it with brilliant inspiration fromdisparate elements of black song. Bythe early 1920’s, recorded urban per-formers solidified the standard three-verse, 12 bar meter structure that hasidentified most blues. Fortunately, dur-ing that same period, there were re-corded musicians who grew up with theblues and whose guitar-styles were morefluid and improvisational. They playedwith a personal adaptation of their re-gional style, shaping blues and relatedmaterial to their own needs and thoseof their audience.

The music they played was aliento formula, possessing such skill androbustness as to be captivating. Theirfame was local, tied intimately to theirtime and place, and only the providenceof a chance encounter with a talentscout or record company preserved theirart. Even then, it seemed fated that theywould remain flamboyant names onexotic record labels.

The blues revival of the early1960’s brought many of these survivorsto the forefront of traditional music. Thetechnique of a Rev. Davis, the power ofa Son House, the charm of a MississippiJohn Hurt suddenly leaps into sight,becoming more tangible, more awe-some and more human. The rare foot-age presented in this DVD is a treasurebeyond imagining, drawn from a myriadof sources, depicting some of the great-est blues musicians who ever lived.

MANCE LIPSCOMB1. Silver City

MISSISSIPPI JOHN HURT2. Spike Driver

HENRY TOWNSEND3. Cairo Blues

SON HOUSE4. Death Letter Blues

REVEREND GARY DAVIS5. Children of Zion

BIG BILL BROONZY6. Worried Man Blues7. Hey, Hey8. How You Want It Done9. John Henry10. Blues in E

ROBERT PETE WILLIAMS11. Mamie

BROWNIE McGHEE12. Don’t Kid Me

JOSH WHITE13. Jelly Jelly

SON HOUSE14. I Had A Woman in Hughes

MANCE LIPSCOMB15, Angel Child

MISSISSIPPI JOHN HURT16. You're Going To Walk That

Lonesome Valley BluesREV. GARY DAVIS

17. Death Don’t Have No MercyBONUS: JOHN JEREMY’S FILM

18. Blues Like Showers of Rain

Front Photo of Big Bill Broonzy © 1956 Jean DelireBack Photo of Miss. John Hurt by George Pickow

Back Photo of Son House by Nick PerlsRunning Time: 88 minutes • Color and B&WNationally distributed by Rounder Records,One Camp Street, Cambridge, MA 02140

Representation to Music Stores by Mel Bay Publications® 2001 Vestapol Productions

A division of Stefan Grossman's Guitar Workshop Inc.

Vestapol 13003

ISBN: 1-57940-912-1

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