Preachin' The Blues: The Songs of Mississippi Fred McDowell

Preachin' The Blues: The Songs of Mississippi Fred McDowell

Editorial Reviews
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The best tribute to Fred McDowell is the many recordings he left behind. Arhoolie's The Best of Mississippi Fred McDowell and Capitol's I Do Not Play No Rock 'n' Roll are fantastic, but it's still fun to hear these interpretations of the 30-years-dead daddy of contemporary Mississippi hill country blues done by contemporary artists. Charlie Musselwhite zeroes in on McDowell's magic by swapping his trademark harp for guitar to play a spare, spirit-possessed "61 Highway." Paul Geremia nails the blaze of McDowell's slide for "Get Right Church," and Anders Osborne cops Fred's mumbling singing style in "Kokomo Blues." Although Colleen Sexton's vocal for "Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning" is overwrought, her band runs a nice arrangement similar to what Junior Kimbrough, one of McDowell's inheritors, might have done. Tab Benoit delivers an uncanny imitation of McDowell's guitar and vocal approach on "Train I Ride," and Austinite Sue Foley's dirty solo guitar-and-vocal treatment of "Frisco Line" may be the best thing she's ever recorded. The most interesting rendition is David Maxwell's solo piano instrumental take on "I Heard Somebody Call," which starts by abandoning everything but the naked fear and loneliness in the face of God's last judgment that McDowell gave his original. Although the rest of this disc is less inspiring, overall, it's a solid testimonial to the durability of McDowell's legacy. --Ted Drozdowski

Preachin' The Blues: The Songs of Mississippi Fred McDowell, Music, Various Artists, Blues, Blues Collections, Blues Music, Contemporary Blues, Modern Electric Blues, Pop, Swamp Blues

Preachin' The Blues: The Songs of Mississippi Fred McDowell

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