Sleepy John Estes - Newport Blues

Sleepy John Estes - Newport Blues - Delmark

The late Sleepy John Estes was among those blues artists who recorded prior to World War Il whose career was resurrected after being rediscovered as part of the folk boom in the sixties, and received some recognition until his death in 1977. Estes was among the finest folk-blues poets whose songs were often derived from his own experiences. He penned some classic blues themes like Someday Baby which was the basis of Big Maceo's Worried Life Blues. 

Delmark recorded Estes after his rediscovery resulting in several superb and classic albums. They have just issued Newport Blues, which is the first new Estes album on Delmark since 1969, and was recorded after a Newport Folk Festival appearance in 1964. On it, he is joined by Hammie Nixon, a remarkable harmonica accompanist, and jug blower, and Yank Rachell who provided mandolin, guitar, and piano support. Both Nixon and Rachell do get a chance to sing but it is Estes who is at the front. 

Listening to Estes, one is struck by the crying vocals as Estes is heard recreating his pre-War recordings, Secret Agent along with Airport Blues. The latter tune's melody would be appropriated by John Lee 'Sonny Boy' Williamson (who knew Estes and Nixon from growing up in Tennessee) for the well-known Good Morning Little School Girl. Estes also provided new songs including Newport Blues. Estes was a rudimentary guitarist but Rachell provided a firmer rhythm and some fills on guitar or mandolin, while Hammie Nixon's harmonica playing is greatly underappreciated and was an influence on John Lee Williamson. His vocals on NYC Breakdown and Worried Mind Blues are highly moving. 

The music has a rawness reflecting its lack of artifice, but the level of the performances is far above some of the celebrated modern grunge blues. This is a terrific new release.

I received my review copy from Delmark. This review originally appeared in the June 2002 DC Blues Calendar although I have made some minor edits to the original review. Here Sleepy John Estes and Yank Rachell perform in 1966.

Sleepy John Estes Brownsville Blues

Sleepy John Estes is one of the true poets of the blues, and Delmark has just issued Brownsville Blues. Included here are the first recordings he made after he was rediscovered in the early sixties, along with several later recordings with Hammie Nixon, Yank Rachell and others. Most of these recordings are solo, and while Estes' was never one of the great blues guitarists, his limited accompaniments are more than adequate to bolster his crying vocals.

Another unusual aspect of these recordings is that many of the songs are about the people and places of John's hometown, and while there are new versions of his classics Drop Down Mama, The Girl I Love (also known as Brownsville Blues, and related melodically to Roll and Tumble Blues), and Lawyer Clark, there are songs about Al Rawls, one of the leading black businessmen of Brownsville, songs about local women, Martha Hardin, and Vassie Williams, and about Pat Mann and his son, Pat Jr (Young Lawyer). Other songs are about the more mundane aspects of life and poverty, City Hall Blues, Government Money, andl Rats in My Kitchen.

These are not John Estes' greatest recordings (I believe the Yazoo compilation of his pre-World War II records is the best single collectionof his music), but with the inclusion of six previously unissued recordings, this is a valuable addition, and complements the other Delmark recordings of Estes.


I have made some minor changes to the review that originally appeared in 1992 in issue 177 of Jazz & Blues Report. Here is John Estes and Yank Rachell in 1966.

 

Sleepy John Estes and Hammie Nixon Live in Japan

It was a surprise to hear that Delmark was going to release for the first time in the United States recordings made of Sleepy John Estes during Japanese tours from the mid-1970s. The performances have finally been released on Live In Japan With Hammie Nixon, which bring together 19 songs from four performances by the pair. A Japanese quartet, Yu Ka Dan, joins them for four songs.

Estes was a marvelous storyteller and songwriter with a crying, expressive voice and a rudimentary guitar style with which Nixon would supply supporting vocals (with a few lead vocals as well) along with his deep harmonica style, kazoo and jug. The two mix in songs that were staples of Estes’ repertoire including Broke and Hungry, You Shouldn’t Say That (with Nixon sharing lead vocals), Stop That Thing, The Girl I Love, She Got Long Curly Hair, Divin’ Duck Blues, Rats in My Kitchen and Brownsville Blues, along with standards “Corrina Corrina,” and I’ll Be Glad When You’re Dead, You Rascal You, and spirituals Holy Spirit, Don’t You Leave Me (sung by Hammie) and Jesus Is On the Mainline. The performances are done simply and directly with Estes crying vocals at the forefront with Nixon accompaniments providing much of the musical interest, whether his responsive harmonica, or buzzing kazoo and jug (as heard on Corrina, Corrina).

This is wonderfully recorded and one can hear the appreciation shown by the Japanese audience, including the response when they start The Girl I Love, She Got Long Curly Hair, indicating more than passing familiarity with Estes’ recordings. Yu Ka Dan does a nice job adding their accompaniment on several tracks including a lovely Love Grows In Your Heart, Estes’ rendition of Careless Love.

Steve Tomashefsky accompanied the pair on their Japanese tours and wrote the liner notes recapping the time they spent over there and I presume is the voice introducing them on track 12. Nixon did most of the song introductions and storytelling on stage. This are among the last recordings the two recorded together and is heartfelt blues  from two giants of early blues. As wonderful as the music is, some may enjoy this better by listening to it in parts rather than straight through.

I received my review copy from Delmark. Here are Estes and Nixon from a European telecast during an American Folk Blues Festival tour.

Interesting, but not essential, New Sleepy John Estes Release

On Highway 80 is the seventh album by Sleepy John Estes for Delmark which he shares with his longtime associate Hammie Nixon. This is a collection of previously unissued recordings that Estes and Nixon recorded in July 1974, prior to touring Japan. It is an interesting, although hardly essential addition to their discography with Estes and Nixon handling a variety of mostly traditional material and songs they had performed before. Estes was not the most accomplished guitarist but his simple rhythmic style could be effective and his crying vocals tugged at the heart while Nixon’s harmonica playing influenced John Lee ‘Sonny Boy’ Williamson. It is interesting to hear the treatment of the material here from the opening Love Grows in Your Heart, a version of Careless Love. Nixon’s vocal on Potato Diggin’ Man, which might have benefited from a stronger accompaniment, while the vigorous I’ll be Glad When You’re Dead, has spirited kazoo and second vocal from Nixon. Several selections are traditional religious numbers including Holy Spirit, a moving number with Nixon taking the lead with Estes seconding the vocal, When the Saints Go Marching In, on which Estes takes the vocal lead, and Do Lord Remember Me with Nixon’ harp and lead vocal setting the tone. There are also two takes of President Kennedy, about the assassination of the President that Estes first recorded shortly after that horrible event. Nixon’s kazoo gives a jug band flavor to Corrine, Corinna, on which Nixon again seconds Estes’ vocal. The album includes a couple of tracks featuring the pair talking and closes with a rendition of his famous song commemorating their hometown, Brownsville Blues. Some of the accompaniments are a bit more ragged than other of their albums and this might be a difficult release to listen straight through. Estes is a very important artist, as a songwriter and as a vocalist. An excellent collection of his early recordings for Victor and other labels is I Ain't Gonna Be Worried No More 1929-1941) on Yazoo. For the recordings made after his rediscovery, recommended titles include his other Delmark albums such as The Legend of Sleepy John Estes, or Brownsville Blues. These should be available from most any good source for blues.

One other matter. I was chatting with Washington area blues artist Memphis Gold, and he mentioned that his father grew up around Estes and others. Interesting how blues roots run deep in families.