Bessie Smith – Backwater Blues (2020) [Official Digital Download 24bit/48kHz]

Bessie Smith - Backwater Blues (2020) [Official Digital Download 24bit/48kHz] Download

Bessie Smith – Backwater Blues (2020)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/48 kHz | Time – 01:24:10 minutes | 864 MB | Genre: Blues
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Jube Legends

Josh White had a long and varied career, beginning as a session guitarist in the 1920s, then had his own run of stellar blues 78s for Paramount and Columbia in the 1930s, becoming a cabaret bluesman in New York in the 1940s, only to be blacklisted as the McCarthy era dawned, which led to his association with Jac Holzman’s fledgling Elektra label in 1955. White recorded seven well-conceived LPs for Holzman between 1955 and 1962, and they restarted his career once again. The Elektra Years collects some of the highlights of that run in a two-disc set, including “You Don’t Know My Mind” (a remake of a Virginia Liston 78 from 1923), “Silicosis Blues” (which White first recorded back in 1936), “Jim Crow Train,” “Jelly Jelly” (complete with the sound of White gargling vodka at the onset), the jailhouse gospel of “Trouble,” and “Jesus Gonna Make Up My Dyin’ Bed,” which White first tracked in 1934 and was more or less his signature song. The collection ends with a striking 1933 version of “Lay Some Flowers On My Grave,” which White recorded in 1933 for ARC Records when he was only 19 years old. Many hardcore Delta blues aficionados found White’s version of the blues to be a little too refined to be authentic, and these days he is seldom placed in the company of his rediscovered contemporaries like Mississippi John Hurt, Son House, Bukka White, or Skip James, which is a shame. It’s true that White had much more of a political and cultural agenda than any of those players, and if he pandered at times to stereotypical notions, it was always in the interest of educating his audiences. In addition, White was an astounding acoustic guitarist, and his laser-guided guitar runs were always tonally perfect. As a guitarist alone, he is due for a reassessment, and these Elektra recordings from Rhino Handmade are the perfect place to start, since he was never recorded in a more favorable sonic setting.
(more…)

Read more

Bessie Smith, Louis Armstrong, King Oliver – The Blues Heritage (1973/2020) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz]

Bessie Smith, Louis Armstrong, King Oliver - The Blues Heritage (1973/2020) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz] Download

Bessie Smith, Louis Armstrong, King Oliver – The Blues Heritage (1973/2020)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 32:59 minutes | 493 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Olympic Records

King Oliver, Louis Armstrong, and Bessie Smith are placed together in a compilation of stunning performances outlining The Blues Heritage. The members of this trio are renowned for their contributions to the genre and history.
(more…)

Read more

Bessie Smith – The Essential Bessie Smith (2013) [Official Digital Download 24bit/44,1kHz]

Bessie Smith - The Essential Bessie Smith (2013) [Official Digital Download 24bit/44,1kHz] Download

Bessie Smith – The Essential Bessie Smith (2013)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 01:53:41 minutes | 1014 MB | Genre: Blues, Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Columbia – Legacy

Although there are a multitude of box sets chronicling Bessie’s entire recorded career, this two-disc, 36-song set sweats it down to the bare essentials in quite an effective manner. Bessie could sing it all, from the lowdown moan of “St. Louis Blues” and “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out” to her torch treatment of the jazz standard “After You’ve Gone” to the downright salaciousness of “Need a Little Sugar in My Bowl.” Covering a time span from her first recordings in 1923 to her final session in 1933, this is the perfect entry-level set to go with. Utilizing the latest in remastering technology, these recordings have never sounded quite this clear and full, and the selection — collecting her best-known sides and collaborations with jazz giants like Louis Armstrong, Coleman Hawkins, and Benny Goodman — is first-rate. If you’ve never experienced the genius of Bessie Smith, pick this one up and prepare yourself to be devastated. ~ Cub Koda
(more…)

Read more
%d bloggers like this: