From Amazon.com
The rare great tribute album
Album Rating: (5 of 5 stars)
Review Comments: Tribute albums can get pretty dire, but this disc is a great exception. Credit goes to musicologist/producer Peter Case for assembling a fantastic group of performers whose takes on these songs effectively bridge and transcend the categories of blues, pop, and folk music, just as Mississippi John Hurt's originals did.
While these are not slavish covers of the originals, the songs here are completely in tune with the style, good humor, and craftsmanship of the Hurt recordings. It's particularly enlightening to hear how these artists interpret Hurt's syncopated acoustic guitar style. While Hurt's unique style -- which sounds relaxed and easy but is notoriously difficult to master -- is seldom directly imitated it's hugely influential and revered; this disc has some of the best playing you'll ever hear from John Hiatt and Bruce Cockburn, and the disc appropriately leads off with a showcase fingerstyle performance by under-discoverd Hurt acolyte Chris Smither.
Highly recommended.
Incredible bargain for under $3
Album Rating: (5 of 5 stars)
Review Comments: As I write this, new copies of this wonderful album are available for less than $3 (through recommended Amazon sellers - check the 'new and used' link). That, my friends, is an exceptional bargain! I paid about $20 (including postage and handling) for this album around 18 months ago and considered it great value for money at the time, since every track (even the much maligned Victoria Williams cover of 'Since I Laid My Burden Down') is at least listenable, if not a veritable aural treat.
If you're a fan of the late Mississippi John Hurt (like myself), you'll find the contributions by Ben Harper and John Hiatt to be most reminiscent of his original recordings. Although these two modern artists come closest in replicating Hurt's distinctive finger-picking style, neither can match the deceptively subtle ease of his guitar playing. This is not to suggest that their versions are any less enjoyable, only that no one on this album can quite match the brilliance of Hurt.
From my perspective, only one track on this album - Gillian Welch's version of 'Beulah Land' - actually surpasses the original. Although the guitar playing is much more subdued on this track, the haunting echoes of Welch's vocals will send shivers down your spine. This track alone makes this $3 album a bargain, but it offers so much more than that. Even if you can't stand the Victoria William's track (it's not that bad, people), this great album is packed with 14 other songs which are hard to skip past. How many other albums for under $3 can you say that about?
tepid tap water
Album Rating: (2 of 5 stars)
Review Comments: A lot of tribute albums trade on the popularity and fame of the "tributee" and fall into the mixed-bag when it comes to quality. This is truly no exception. There are some decent covers that are pleasant enough to listen to in the same way that luke-warm tap water might quench your thirst, but come on...you're interested in John Hurt, listen to his albums. The best song on here doesn't even touch his level of spontaneous genius. I mean its not even in the same room. Hurt himself has an otherworldly, almost angelic quality. Hurt didn't know theory. Hurt picked out a $200 guitar when they told him he could have any one in the place. These are just a bunch of halfway decent, semi-gifted, "folkies" who have wood shedded long enough that their chops aren't half bad. If this was all you heard, you'd dismiss the man himself in a heartbeat like "so what, these are simple, almost childish folk songs...no big deal". Get his Last Sessions album first, and then this if you still want to. Life is too short to listen to mediocre music.
Better than the original
Album Rating: (5 of 5 stars)
Review Comments: ...I hadn't heard of John Hurt before. This CD is now one of my absolute favorites. "Chicken" and "Since I've laid my burdon down" will stay with you for days and you'll be replaying the CD several times so that you can get the lyrics right when you're singing them in your head later. "Sliding Delta" is another laid back personal favorite.
Every song on this album is good. Since all of the performers have trained voices, the singing shows off Hurt's songs like he could not. (Nobody trys to beat his up-and-down melodic guitar however. For this you've got to buy the original.) I also liked the variety that different performers bring to the CD as a whole. Hurt's songs could sound a little too similar with his raspy half-whisper voice after a while.
Mississippi John Hurt is an original, but I truly like this CD better than his Avalon Blues originals or his Complete Studio Recodings.
a worthy tribute
Album Rating: (5 of 5 stars)
Review Comments: Hurt was a unique bluesman - funny, laid-back, and unassuming. There would be no value in merely imitating him. But at a time when many tribute albums are filled with third-rate performers parasitizing first-rate songwriters, it is a delight to find a tribute that justifies the word. Each artist tranforms a MJH song to fit his/her own style, and the results are memorable, and often outstanding. I especially liked Gillian Welch's spooky version of Beulah Land, but the entire CD is good (how often can you say that). If you like any of these artists, you will probably love this album. Highly recommended.
Purchases
1 Frankie & Albert - Chirs Smither
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