June - July 2003
BY PARRISH ELLIS
Thanks to a revival of public interest in American traditional music, many monumental songwriter/musicians like Ralph Stanley, Norman Blake, Charlie Patton and Robert Johnson have been "rediscovered" by fans of blues, folk, country and bluegrass. While it is important to understand the storied history of our musical heritage and to appreciate the players and recordings that were influential in the shaping of jazz, rock & roll, r&b, and hip hop, it is even more important to practice the music as a living art form by constantly reinventing songs and interpreting those classic recordings for the benefit of new listeners.
Alvin Youngblood Hart, who may be the best acoustic blues artist currently performing, is doing an excellent job of exactly that. Alvin's recent album, Down In The Alley (Memphis International), is a collection of country blues songs dating back to the '20s and '30s, including tunes by Patton, Sleepy John Estes, Son House, the Mississippi Sheiks and Nehemiah "Skip" James. The album was nominated for a 2003 Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues.
Taj Mahal, a highly respected elder member of the blues community, made a few guest appearances on Hart's debut (Big Mama'a Door) and said of Alvin: "Boy got thunder in his hands, sure does." His virtuosic instrumental technique (encompassing guitar, banjo, mandolin, harmonica, bass, drums and lap steel) and his passionate vocal delivery are equally astounding. Possibly his most impressive talent involves his efforts to preserve the country blues heritage. His extraordinarily fine-tuned ear enables him to salvage those old, scratchy, seemingly indecipherable recordings and polish them until they shine like new gems -- while making sure they always retain the spirit of their raw, unsophisticated rural origins. Hart is the perfect pilot to guide America's oldest musical form as it evolves and introduces itself to new generations.
Audio Portrait
