The word ‘great’ is overused, but few would disagree that it is properly applied to the Delta Blues of Eddie “Son” House. House was one of the most riveting blues performers that ever recorded and performed. Dick Waterman, who used to book and manage House after he was discovered in Rochester NY has stated “Son House was the core of greatness of blues artists. There were many who had great talent but Son House was the standard by which they would be measured.” Those words can be found in the booklet to a new release, Son House in Seattle 1968 (Arcola Records).
This is a double CD that is subtitled 2 cds - concert and interview. The first CD is Son in concert in March, 1968 when he appeared under the auspices of the Seattle Folklore Society while the second disc is taken from a radio interview that Bob West conducted with him interspersed with original recordings by Son along with associates like Louise Johnson, Charlie Patton, Willie Brown, Rube Lacy and Robert Johnson.
In the accompanying booklet Bob Groom observes, about the concert performance, that it was unusual in the amount of speaking and story telling the House engages in between the performances of Death Letter Blues, Government Fleet Blues, Empire State, I Want to Live So God Can Use Me, Preachin’ Blues, and Louise McGee. No blues performer was more compelling that Son and he was in top form this day. From his forceful guitar to his vocals that bore open his soul, there are some extraordinary performances including Death Letter and the a capella I Want to Live So God Can Use Me. The lengthy spoken interludes are invaluable in giving a fuller sense of him than the driving musical performances alone. This concert predates Son suffering frostbite in the Winter 1969 that affected his use of fingers in his fretting hand.
The second disc is valuable for his lengthy recollections of his blues contemporaries. Included is a wonderful booklet with Dick Waterman’s cogent recollections of Son and Bob Groom’s lengthy overview of Son’s life and music. While Father of Folk Blues on Columbia (now Sony) remains the essential 1960s Son House release, fans of the deepest Delta blues will obviously want this. Son’s musical fires were burning brightly in Seattle during this 1968 visit and we should be grateful that Arcola has issued this wonderful package. Arcola’s website is www.arcolarecords.com, and www.bluebeatmusic.com and other retailers should have this.
This was reviewed from a CD I purchased.
Social media is becoming an increasingly valuable tool for musicians of all stripes to connect with their audience as well as get introduced to new artists. It was through twitter that I became connected to Seattle-based trumpeter Jason Parker. Parker has a blog, http://oneworkingmusician.com/, and he co-produces with trombonist David Marriott, Jr., “Jazz Now Seattle!,” a marvelous podcast devote to Seattle’s jazz scene, http://jazznowseattle.com/. Anyway after first connecting with him on twitter, I subscribed to his podcast and also purchased the 2009 CD by his quartet, “No More No Less” (Brokentime Records). His quartet is comprised Parker, Josh Rawlings on piano, Evan Flory-Barnes on bass, and DeVonne Lewis on drums with Cynthia Mullis on tenor sax on three of the seven selections.
Parker’s “” Bashert” introduces his lyrical and thoughtful playing but the remaining performances come from familiar names with some of the compositions though that are not too familiar.The performance of trumpeter Tatum Greenblatt’s “Mance’s Dance,” has a classic Blue Note vibe and suggests a lost Herbie Hancock composition. This fine performance, introduces the listener to Ms. Mullis’ tenor. Duke Pearson’s “Idle Moments,” is a quintet piece with both horns conjuring up a late night, don’t wake up the children mood, on this lovely performance. In addition to the fine playing of the leaders, pianist Rawlings is quite noteworthy here with a solo that builds from its understated opening. Parker’s playing on the quartet’s evocative rendition of “Three Hours,” by the late British icon Nick Drake, conjures up Don Cherry in my ears. First-rate performances of “Love For Sale,” and Sam Rivers‘ “Beatrice,” are followed by the marvelous interweaving of Gershwin’s “Summertime,” with Wayne Shorter’s “Footprints,” with Ms. Mullis adding her tenor sax, closing this recording most impressively.
Listening to “ No More No Less” (and the Jazz Now Seattle! podcast) may inspire visits to Seattle to attend some of the vibrant local jazz performances that Mr. Parker is a part of. “No More No Less” is available from http://oneworkingmusician.com, and one can purchase it as a physical CD (which includes a digital download) or just as a download. Jason’s next project will be “Five Leaves Left: A Jazz Tribute to Nick Drake,” which he raised funds for through the kickstarter website. For information on the project and how Nick Drake’s music inspires Parker check out, http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jasonparker/nick-drake-tribute-jason-parker-quartet-five-leave.
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