Charlie Poole

[Late]

I've been listening to this box set a lot recently and really enjoying it. I used to hate this kind of music, but Poole's playing and singing have really opened my ears up. But I'm still a novice as far as this branch of the music is concerned.

A question — If you're a fan of this type of music, what do you listen to, or what do you recommend?

I like to savor this music at about 5-6 tracks at a time, repeat them, and focus in on certain lines or counterlines. Too many tracks, and for me it starts to sound same-y.

[AllenLowe]

Uncle Dave Macon

Frank Hutchison

Kelly Harrell

Cliff Carlisle

Roscoe Holcomb (my favorite of all)

EARLY Bill Monroe (pre-1945)

Buddy Jones

Jimmie Davis

[Niko]

welcome back!

[Big Beat Steve]

Can't say I have comprehensive knowledge of this, but taken in moderate doses there really are gems out there.

Some of my favorites:

East Texas Serenaders

Red Fox Chasers

Gid Tanner & The Skillet Lickers

(and the recordings made under the leader's credits of Clayton McMichen and Riley Puckett contan many interesting items too)

If you want to have diversity to avoid any sort of same-ishness (understandably; many of those 78s never were meant to be listened to in a row of 15 or 20 by the same artist/band), try some of the V.A. compilations.

Some nice ones among the few I have are:

http://www.venerablemusic.com/catalog/TitleDetails.asp?TitleID=14879

http://www.venerablemusic.com/catalog/TitleDetails.asp?TitleID=14921

For further in-depth background info, the artist biographies in this book are essential reading:

http://www.amazon.com/Country-Music-Originals-Legends-Lost/dp/0199732663/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1312497584&sr=8-1

[J.A.W.]

I've been listening to this box set a lot recently and really enjoying it. I used to hate this kind of music, but Poole's playing and singing have really opened my ears up. But I'm still a novice as far as this branch of the music is concerned.

I prefer the 3 Charlie Poole CDs that the County label put out:

CO-CD-3501 Old Time Songs, Recorded from 1925 to 1930

CO-CD-3508 Vol.2: Old Time Songs, Recorded from 1926 to 1930

CO-CD-3516 Vol.3: Old Time Songs, Recorded from 1926 to 1930

They were mastered by Yazoo's Richard Nevins and the sound is relatively excellent; to my ears they sound better than the Sony compilation.

Edited August 4, 2011 by J.A.W.

[Neal Pomea]

Above are all good suggestions!

Burnett and Rutherford (fiddle and banjo)

Wade Mainer with the Morris Brothers

Dock Boggs (banjo player and singer)

Carolina Tarheels (Clarence Ashley, banjo player and singer)

Blind Alfred Reed (fiddle accompaniment to powerful songs about poverty)

Weems String Band (Joe Bussard's favorite!)

and if you squint your eyes a bit and look farther down the road, you might be able to fit these French ones from Louisiana in there too:

Amédé Ardoin (just about the root of Cajun and black Creole Louisiana music; legendary musician died young; complete recordings released on one set this year on Tompkins Square with improved sound)

Dennis McGee (amazing fiddler and vocalist playing many kinds of forgotten European dances)

Joseph Falcon and Cleoma Breaux (accordion and guitar, husband and wife team, who also threw in American tunes like Lulu's Back in Town, Going Down the Road Feeling Bad, Raise Your Windows High etc.)

Soileau and Lafleur, and Soileau and Robin (accordion, fiddle duets with some blues)

Blind Uncle Gaspard and Delma Lachney (guitar-fiddle duo, sort of "ballady" with a lot of storylines)

I am going to get the Charlie Poole set soon myself!

(Hey Allen!)

Edited August 5, 2011 by Neal Pomea

[kenny weir]

When I'm in the mood, which is often, I can listen for hours to this kind of stuff, so the issue of "sameyness" doesn't arise!

For you, and the rest of us, too, comps are the way to go.

So I reckon you'll love the stuff put out by Old Hat Records.

This is a label with high production values, excellent essays/info and tightly-focussed releases. All their albums have a higher than usual percentage of great/brilliant tracks.

Good For What Ails You is a double CD of stuff related to the old-time medicine shows. Its has old-timey, but also blues, jug bands and so on.

In The Pines, Gastonia Gallop and Music From The Lost Provinces explore various aspects of North Carolina old-timey.

http://www.oldhatrecords.com/releases.html

I love my fiddle comps on County of Ozarks, Texas and Mississippi fiddle music, but a lot of their releases are hardcore.

Rural String Bands Of tennessee, however, is a well-rounded collection.

Also good for diversity - the JSP box Mountain Blues.

My most recent fave is Clayton McMichen: The Traditional Years, great fiddle stuff on another small label, Spring Fed Records.

http://www.artscenterofcc.com/Spring-fed/Catalog.html

[Neal Pomea]

I like to savor this music at about 5-6 tracks at a time, repeat them, and focus in on certain lines or counterlines. Too many tracks, and for me it starts to sound same-y.

I do this with the old blues players! People such as Charley Patton, Son House, Blind Blake, Blind Boy Fuller, Sonny Boy Williamson I, Blind Willie Johnson, Robert Johnson, Skip James, Furry Lewis, Miss. John Hurt, Bukka White, etc. and even later greats like Lightnin' Hopkins, Lightnin' Slim, Jimmy Reed.

I think I played When the War Was On (Blind Willie Johnson) about 10 times in a row last time I heard it. Enjoyed it so much! There'll be old time country songs you want to hear the same way. Weems String Band's Greenback Dollar and Davy. A country string band with cello in it, not bowed bass.

Edited August 5, 2011 by Neal Pomea

[jeffcrom]

I have a fair amount of this kind of material on CD, but I also have a a medium-sized stack of old-time country on 78 RPM records - Charlie Poole, Dave Macon, Fiddlin' John Carson, Henry Whitter, Gid Tanner, Riley Puckett, Clayton McMichen, Blind Alfred Reed, The West Virginia Night Owls, Roy Harvey, Jarvis & Justice. I enjoy listening to this this stuff more on 78 than from CDs - it's the medium that fits the music the best. I realize that this is of no help to most people....

Edited August 5, 2011 by jeffcrom

[J.A.W.]

Yazoo has released several compilations of old-time music. Many of them are still listed on their site. As with the 3 Charlie Poole County CDs I mentioned in my earlier post the sound is relatively excellent.

Yazoo compilations (old-time music, blues)

Yazoo is also available from County Records: Yazoo list

Also check out County's own old-time compilations and the ones on Old Hat (see below).

For you, and the rest of us, too, comps are the way to go.

So I reckon you'll love the stuff put out by Old Hat Records.

This is a label with high production values, excellent essays/info and tightly-focussed releases. All their albums have a higher than usual percentage of great/brilliant tracks.

Good For What Ails You is a double CD of stuff related to the old-time medicine shows. Its has old-timey, but also blues, jug bands and so on.

In The Pines, Gastonia Gallop and Music From The Lost Provinces explore various aspects of North Carolina old-timey.

http://www.oldhatrecords.com/releases.html

I love my fiddle comps on County of Ozarks, Texas and Mississippi fiddle music, but a lot of their releases are hardcore.

Rural String Bands Of tennessee, however, is a well-rounded collection.

Seconded.

Edited August 5, 2011 by J.A.W.

[AllenLowe]

if any more of my blues boxes ever get out (the second should be here, I hope, late this year) I have a ton of this stuff in it.

[Big Beat Steve]

So I reckon you'll love the stuff put out by Old Hat Records.

This is a label with high production values, excellent essays/info and tightly-focussed releases. All their albums have a higher than usual percentage of great/brilliant tracks.

Good For What Ails You is a double CD of stuff related to the old-time medicine shows. Its has old-timey, but also blues, jug bands and so on.

In The Pines, Gastonia Gallop and Music From The Lost Provinces explore various aspects of North Carolina old-timey.

http://www.oldhatrecords.com/releases.html

I'll second the above without any hesitation!

[Lowgen]

Ha! It's Friday 4:59 and Joe Bussard's show is on in a minute.

He's a legendary collector with two internet shows where he plays 78s from his collection. You could look him up.

Besides having a great collection and fine taste, he really knows how to get the best sound from his disks. I've been listening to his shows for years.

Here are the links-

Friday on WREK at 5pm- http://streaming.wrek.org:8000/wrek_live-128kb

also available during the following week from the WREK archives-

<http://archive.oit.wrek.org/main/128kb/Fri1700.mp3>

<http://archive.oit.wrek.org/main/128kb/Fri1730.mp3>

Sunday on WDVX at 9pm, only in realtime- http://nyc01.egihosting.com:8962

I just drag these links onto WinAmp (YMMV).

Enjoy!

Edited August 5, 2011 by Lowgen

[Late]

I like to savor this music at about 5-6 tracks at a time, repeat them, and focus in on certain lines or counterlines. Too many tracks, and for me it starts to sound same-y.

I do this with the old blues players! People such as Charley Patton, Son House, Blind Blake, Blind Boy Fuller, Sonny Boy Williamson I, Blind Willie Johnson, Robert Johnson, Skip James, Furry Lewis, Miss. John Hurt, Bukka White, etc. and even later greats like Lightnin' Hopkins, Lightnin' Slim, Jimmy Reed.

I love all the blues players you've listed, and they're my entry, I suppose, into this music. (Is "mountain music" the generally accepted term for this kind of music? Hillbilly? I never know what to call it.) I have about 25 Yazoo CDs, and love them all, particularly those with Charlie Patton, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Blind Willie Johnson, and Barbecue Bob. And I especially love the few tracks available from Tommy Johnson.

Thanks for all the great recommendations, everyone. I'll be making a list. And, I agree, comps (I love some of the Yazoo comps) are a good point of entry. I'm sure I've actually even heard some of the musicians listed above, but never checked the liner notes to whatever comp I'm listening to at the moment.

The world of music constantly opens new doors.