Sounds from this wonderful country cover a wide variety of ethnicities. The roots of America run deep; here are a few that touch on sounds that influence just about everything we hear up to this present moment.
Mississippi blues icon Big Joe Williams strums his guitar and moans out stories with defiance at this 1963 concert at The Fickle Pickle in Chicago. He’s supported in various songs by Michael Bloomfield/g, Sunnyland Slim/p-voc, Horace “Ace” Cathcart/b and Washboard Sam/wash during this dozen pieces. Williams attacks the strings as he shouts out “Nobody Knows When You’re Down and Out” and gets vicious with acoustic power chords on “Put On Your Nitecap Baby” Some hot folk picking takes you to a back porch with red clay on “Going Away Won’t Be Back Till Fall” while Chicago Blues close out the evening on an electric “Terraplane Blues.” Wonderfully visceral.
From a 1964 concert at Purdue University, Doc Watson mixes folk, country, bluegrass and traditional Americana on this wonderfully homespun evening. His voice and delivery are Old-Timey on “I Got a Pig At Home in the Pen” and takes you back to the days of the Depression with his harp on “Fisher’s Horn Pipe.” Like the best of minstrels, he knows how to tell a story, and he’s got a harrowing one on “The Lawson Family Murders” while he also brings you back to the rural church with an a cappella “The Lone Pilgrim.” He shows his fingerpicking style that has influenced multiple generations of artists with his banjo work on “Country Blues” while hitting the Martin on “Doc’s Guitar” and a jaw dropping “Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down.” A wonderful trip in a time machine.
Freddy Fender made it big in the 1970s with Tex Mex versions of “Before the Next Teardrop Falls.” This album mixes studio and concert recordings, ranging from the pop hit to Sam Cooke-style soul on “Mathilda” and “What I’d Say.” Besides popular pieces made for the radio such as “Silver Wings” and “Enter My Heart,” Fender could also boogie on “Lovin’ Cajun Style” and even do a bit of C&W during a tune like “Going Out With The Tide.” His voice was warm and flexible, as he gave a Brook Benton read to “Sweet Summer Day.” Soul with some salsa.