View Larger
Rate it!
Avg: 5.0 (51 ratings)
- Date Released: January 22, 2000
- Genre: Blues
- Style: Delta Blues
- Label: Yazoo - Shanachie Records / The Orchard
One of the patron saints of folk and blues revivalists yesterday and today.
-
We Say...
It’s been 80 years since Mississippi John Hurt recorded the thirteen sides for Okeh that later made him one of the patron saints of folk and blues revivalists from Bob Dylan and Fred Neil to Dave Van Ronk and Taj Mahal. Yet the refined, pastoral music gathered on 1928 Sessions continues to exert a powerful influence on pickers, singers and writers in music from blues to bluegrass; you can hear echoes of Hurt in Devendra Banhart, Ben Harper, Gillian Welch, Steve Earle and PJ Harvey — to name just a few.
His rolling, syncopated finger-picking style is so agreeable it sounds simple; as any guitarist who’s tried to play it will confirm, it isn’t. Hurt created alternating bass lines with his thumb while picking crisp, elegant melodies and chords with his index and middle fingers. He played guitar like it was a piano and did it with such finesse and ingenuity that on songs like “Candy Man Blues” you’d swear there are at least two pickers. The sweet, rippling sound had less to do with the harsh, jagged Delta blues of Robert Johnson and Son House than with the era’s country music. Indeed, Okeh first recorded him on the recommendation of white Mississippi fiddler Willie Narmour, with whom Hurt often played. Yet the train-like propulsion of songs like “Avalon Blues” and the rhythmic sureness of his riffing on others like “Spike Driver Blues” could only have come from the blues. Whatever brutalities were surely visited upon him in his native Mississippi, Hurt still sang in a gentle baritone that conveyed contentedness, quiet pride and wonder; though he didn’t reject songs of violence — “Frankie,” “Louis Collins,” “Stack O’Lee” — his interpretations, unlike most others, didn’t romanticize such tales.
If these descriptions suggest that he’s not a bluesman at all, so be it. Mister Hippie John Hurt, as a friend of mine dubs him, was actually more of a pre-blues songster whose music incorporated elements of blues; he was classified a bluesman mainly due to the color of his skin. That’s probably why traditional music revivalists of all generations and genres unequivocally embrace him. Hurt made it possible for white, upper-middle-class, college-educated kids to play “blues” without making fools of themselves by moaning about hellhounds on their trails, selling their souls to Satan and mean mistreating women.
Or maybe we all just love him because his music speaks so wholeheartedly to our best, most humane impulses. -
They Say...
The 13 original 1928 recordings of Hurt. Justifiably legendary, with gentle grace and power on these understated vocal and fingerpicking masterpieces. These are the ones to hear, although all Hurt is worth listening to.
-
You Say...
Write a ReviewI would like to say...
“ The indie iTunes — Hardcore music fans are migrating to eMusic, the iTunes Music Store's cheaper, cooler cousin.”
Rolling Stone
| 01. |  |
Ain't No Tellin' |
2:56 |  |
| 02. | |
Stack O' Lee Blues |
2:57 | |
| 03. | |
Candy Man Blues |
2:46 | |
| 04. | |
Spike Driver Blues |
3:15 | |
| 05. | |
Avalon Blues |
3:03 | |
| 06. | |
Louis Collins |
3:00 | |
| 07. | |
Frankie |
3:21 | |
| 08. | |
Big Leg Blues |
2:51 | |
| 09. | |
Nobody's Dirty Business |
2:53 | |
| 10. | |
Got The Blues, Can't Be Satisfied |
2:52 | |
| 11. | |
Blessed Be The Name |
2:47 | |
| 12. | |
Blue Harvest Blues |
2:53 | |
| 13. | |
Praying On The Old Camp Ground |
2:36 | |
Find a problem with a track? Please let us know.
13 Total Tracks, 38:10 Total Length
We will send an email to with the tracking ID for this issue.
Before reporting defective tracks, please note that you can re-download all of your tracks without losing credits. Please try to re-download your tracks in case a temporary issue caused your problem. If, after re-downloading your tracks, you are still experiencing issues, report them below.
Note: This form is for reporting defective tracks only.
For all other issues (billing, trouble downloading, etc),
contact Customer Support.
Playlists Mississippi John Hurt appears on these playlists created by eMusic members
Explore music recommended by Mississippi John Hurt fans
Credits
- Mississippi John Hurt - Main Performer // Mississippi John Hurt - ? // Nick Perls - Producer
Choose from over 4.5 million
music downloadseMusic features legendary and emerging artists in every genre: classic rock to classical,indie to international, soundtracks to spiritual, jazz to country and many more.
MP3 downloads work on any digital media player
With eMusic, you OWN your music without any restrictions. Burn music to a CD, play it on your computer, mobile phone or any digital media player - including iPod®, Zune® and Walkman®.
Songs as low as $0.25
eMusic subscriptions start at just $11.99 a month for 30 downloads - that's less than $0.40 per song! And it gets better from there - our plans go as low as $0.25 per song!
Music Discovery
eMusic is about discovery. We make finding new music fun again with music recommendations from our award-winning team of music experts, member playlists and new music features.
Cancel anytime
With all the great music and site features we're pretty sure you will love eMusic. If not, no problem. You can cancel at any time and keep the music you have downloaded.
© 1992 - 2008 All Media Guide, LLC