Bye and Bye I'm Goin' to See the King - Traditional
Chimney Hill Breakdown - Frank, Guitar
Railroad Bill - Traditional
Chicken Can't Roost Too High for Me - Traditional
Goin' Down the Road Feelin' Bad - Traditional
Do Lord Remeber Me - Traditional
Jelly Roll Baker - Johnson, Lonnie
I'm Feelin' Lonesome - Stephens, James
My Old Schoolmates - Edwards, Archie
Lonesome Home Blues - Stephens, James
T for Texas (Blue Yodel No. 1) - Rodgers, Jimmie [1]
Diggin' My Potatoes - Traditional
Vacation in Heaven - Molton, Flora
Track Listings (21) - Disc #3
Granny, Will Your Dog Bite? - Traditional
I Laid and I Wondered - Thomas, James "Son"
I Can't Stand It - Molton, Flora
Mr. Freddie Blues - Traditional
Corrina, Corrina - Traditional
Rollin' and Tumblin' - Traditional
She's Tailor Made - Sangster, Charlie
The Hounds - Traditional
You Got to Move - Davis, Gary [1]
Let Me Play With Your Poodle - Whittaker, Hudson
Viola Lee Blues - Lewis, Noah
Joe's Prison Camp Holler - Savage, Joe
When the Saints Go Marching In - Traditional
Spoonful - Dixon, Willie [1]
You Got to Do the Boogie Woogie - Davis, Ellis
Trouble Late Last Night - Murrell, Lottie
Dry Bones in the Valley - Traditional
I Got a Gal 'Cross the Bottom - Murrell, Lottie
Soon One Mornin' - Traditional
Levee Camp Holler - Traditional
Precious Lord - Dorsey, Thomas A.
There are a number of clever things about Living Country Blues, a three-CD anthology that comprises a 14-LP set originally recorded in 1980 and released only in Germany (how's that for obscure?). One of the more clever thi... more »ngs is that the music is divided up on each disc according to region. If you've ever wondered what the difference is between Delta, Piedmont, and other regional styles, really, here's a chance to explore the subtle differences. There are some oddities as well; Othar Turner performing "When I Lay My Burden Down" with the Rising Star Fife and Drum Band will sound strange to anyone used to 12-string guitar and mouth harp. The accompanying CD booklet includes bios of the artists, which will come in handy, as the average listener is likely to have heard of few of them; John Cephas, Phil Wiggins, CeDell Davis, and James "Son" Thomas are among the more well-known names that appear here. People generally think of the blues these days as electrified, up-tempo, and urban, and indeed country blues isn't as popular as it used to be. But it's still alive and kicking, as Living Country Blues proves. --Genevieve Williams« less
There are a number of clever things about Living Country Blues, a three-CD anthology that comprises a 14-LP set originally recorded in 1980 and released only in Germany (how's that for obscure?). One of the more clever things is that the music is divided up on each disc according to region. If you've ever wondered what the difference is between Delta, Piedmont, and other regional styles, really, here's a chance to explore the subtle differences. There are some oddities as well; Othar Turner performing "When I Lay My Burden Down" with the Rising Star Fife and Drum Band will sound strange to anyone used to 12-string guitar and mouth harp. The accompanying CD booklet includes bios of the artists, which will come in handy, as the average listener is likely to have heard of few of them; John Cephas, Phil Wiggins, CeDell Davis, and James "Son" Thomas are among the more well-known names that appear here. People generally think of the blues these days as electrified, up-tempo, and urban, and indeed country blues isn't as popular as it used to be. But it's still alive and kicking, as Living Country Blues proves. --Genevieve Williams
CD Reviews
Spectacular music.
John Courtade | 10/22/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is basic blues, usually just some guy with his acoustic guitar. If you like Lightnin' Hopkins or Sonny Terry, you will like this. If you LOVE them, like I do, then this beautiful collection will make you very happy."
A wonderful relic
John Courtade | Austin, Texas United States | 08/08/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Most of these artists are dead or soon to be, and they're, to my great unhappiness, not minting very many more of them. If you're a country blues enthusiast, you're already familiar with Cephas & Wiggins, Sam Chatmon, Hammie Nixon, and many of the other names recording on this 3 c.d. set and don't require any further endorsements. What distinguishes this set in my view is the eclecticism of the selection, its organization into Delta, Piedmont, and other schools, and the very fine audio quality for field recordings. I also have the Giants of Country Blues Guitar series on Wolf, of which volume one is a desert island disk in my view. Nonetheless, the audio quality of Sam Chatmon recording "Stop and Listen" on this set is far superior (although I miss the barking dog in the background on the Wolf recording). We owe a debt of gratitude to the Germans who made these field recordings as well as to Chris Strachwitz and others who recorded this vanishing American resource."
An interesting overview
M. J. Smith | Seattle, WA USA | 05/17/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Read the track list - it illustrates the breadth of material in this anthology. Some of the more obscure such as the drum and fife group of Othar Turner are currently available in their own CD. Others such as Stonewall Mays have no other recordings.Personal favorites include Jesus Is on the Mainline and Soon One Morning.... but my favorites change with each hearing.Careful listening to these recordings will (a) give you a greater appreciation for the variety of musical styles that are called "blues" (b) give you a greater appreciation of the musicianship of unknowns and (c) give you a grand old time ..."
WOW!
Jeffrey Konkel | 10/03/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"this is incredible! if you like real blues, you must have this set"
Essential Purchase For Fans Of Rural Blues
Jeffrey Konkel | St. Louis, Missouri USA | 07/14/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"If you are a fan of rural blues, you ABSOLUTELY MUST get your hands on Living Country Blues, a three disc anthology available from Evidence Records. This thing is so great that it virtually defies description. It's actually the distillation of a 14 LP series on the German L+R label. Until that series is reissued in its entirety, we have this wonderful 60-song highlight reel.
Recorded in 1980 across the American South by two German blues lovers (Axel Kustner and Siegfried Christmann), this set features three discs divided by region: Disc 1 is Mississippi; Disc 2 is the East Coast; Disc 3 is billed as "Tennessee, Arkansas & More."
It includes the first recordings by Lonnie Pitchford, Cephas & Wiggins and many others. It also features veterans like Sam Chatmon, Hammie Nixon, Son Thomas, Eddie Cusic and Othar Turner. Some of the BEST stuff on here, however, is by little-known artists like Boyd Rivers and Clora Fluker.
Other artists on this nearly 4-hour set are Cedell Davis, Napoleon Strickland, Archie Edwards, Arzo Youngblood, Boogie Bill Webb, Flora Molton, Guitar Frank, Memphis Piano Red, Lottie Morrell, Joe Savage, Walter Brown, James "Guitar Slim" Stephens, Charlie Sangster, Sam Shields and Stonewall Mays.
If you like country blues, you really owe it to yourself to pick up this amazing collection . . . it includes everything from hard delta blues to lilting Piedmont picking. Just beautiful!"
Track Listings (22) - Disc #1