Mississippi Fred McDowell – When I Lay My Burden Down

Kicking Mule

In the folk and country blues revival of the 1960s he was listening to Broonzy, Brownie McGhee and Lightnin' Hopkins and beginning to collect old 78 rpm records from the 1920s and 1930s. This brought him into contact with other collectors, including John Fahey, Ed Denson, Bernie Klatzko, Tom Hoskins and Nick Perls. Collecting the 78s developed into searching for the artists who had recorded them, with many successes: during the mid-60s, Grossman met, befriended and studied guitar with Mississippi John Hurt, Son House, Skip James, Mississippi Fred McDowell and other major blues artists.

Stefan Grossman (born 16 April 1945) is an American acoustic fingerstyle guitarist and singer, music producer and educator, and co-founder of Kicking Mule records.

Many of Stefan's videos are educational

Between Midnight and Day

There are lots of reasons I need to get to know this guy who seems to have interests in Blues and Reggae. On his debut solo album Between Midnight and Day (1995) he investigated the repertoire of Charlie Patton, Booker White, Fred McDowell, Muddy Waters and Sleepy John Estes.

In 2002, Harris collaborated with Ali Farka Toure on his album, Mississippi to Mali, fusing blues and Toure's music from northern Mali. Harris has also lived and traveled widely in West Africa, an influence that has permeated much of his work.

He helped Billy Bragg and Wilco to write the music for "Hoodoo Voodoo" on Mermaid Avenue, an album consisting entirely of songs for which the lyrics were written by the late Woody Guthrie.



Corey Harris - live at Sighisoara Blues Festival 2008

Corey Harris & Keb Mo > Sweet Home Chicago (HQ)
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Amazon
Fish Ain't Bitin'
Mississippi To Mali

I Feel Like Going To Church - Fred McDowell - Woke Up This Morning

Woke Up this Morning with My Mind on Jesus by Mississippi Fred McDowell (MP3 Download)



Woke Up This Morning (With My Mind On Jesus) by Blind Roosevelt Graves (MP3 Download)

Nick of Time

"Bonnie Raitt does something with a lyric no one else can do; she bends it and twists it right into your heart."

After picking up the guitar at the age of 12, Raitt felt an immediate affinity for the blues. Signing with noted blues manager Dick Waterman, she was soon performing alongside the likes of idols including Howlin’ Wolf, Sippie Wallace, and Mississippi Fred McDowell and in time earned such a strong reputation that she was signed to Warner Bros.

Amazon UK Bonnie Raitt and Friends [CD + DVD] Green Light

Delta Blues Music

When I think of blues music, the Delta Blues is what usually comes to mind. According to Wikipedia;

The Delta blues is one of the earliest styles of blues music. It originated in the Mississippi Delta, a region of the United States that stretches from Memphis, Tennessee in the north to Vicksburg, Mississippi in the south, the Mississippi River on the west to the Yazoo River on the east. The Mississippi Delta area is famous both for its fertile soil and its extreme poverty. Guitar and harmonica are the dominant instruments used. The vocal styles range from introspective and soulful to passionate and fiery.

List of Delta Blues Musicians @ SqueezeMyLemon

R.L. Burnside
James Cotton
John Lee Hooker
Son House
Mississippi John Hurt
Mississippi Fred McDowell
Skip James
Robert Johnson
Blind Willie Johnson
Blind Willie McTell
Charley Patton
Pinetop Perkins
Hound Dog Taylor
Muddy Waters
Bukka White
Big Joe Williams
Howlin' Wolf


List of References

Traveling the Blues Highway by Charles E. Cobb Jr. @ National Geographic Online.

Trail of the Hellhound - Delta Blues in the lower Mississippi Valley

Marybeth Hamilton's In Search of the Blues

Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale Mississippi.

Mississippi Delta Blues Society

Mississippi Fred McDowell - Goin Down to the River

Everybody seem to like the last Mississippi Fred McDowell video. So here is another, thanks to YouTube. And for all you guitar players out there, this note was also provided:

This is from a web page written by Brian Robertson - "Mississippi Fred McDowell used the D tuning on a fairly regular basis, and one of the advantages is that it allows the high string (D) to play melody or, more often, to play along with the singer, as in his classic, "You Got to Move"

BTW - 'open D' is D A D F# A D

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music, blues, video

Mississippi Fred McDowell - John Henry Video

Now if you were to be a guitar playing man (or woman for that matter), you would do your self a favor if you were to watch as much Mississippi Fred McDowell as you could get your hands on. That's right, watch the blues children, listen to the blues, and baby play the blues. Live the blues, like Mississippi Fred McDowell did.

As the man famously said, "I do not play no rock and roll."

You can read about Mississippi Fred McDowell @ wikipedia.



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music, blues, video