rory block - avalon: a tribute to mississippi john hurt [liner notes]
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7/28/2019 Rory Block - Avalon: A Tribute To Mississippi John Hurt [Liner Notes]
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J o h n H u r t
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SPCD1369C &P 2013 Stony Plain Records. Stony Plain Recording Co. Ltd. PO Box 861 Edmonton, AB
Canada T5J 2L8. For a free catalogue: tel: 780-468-6423 fax: 780-465-8941 email: [email protected]
MADE IN CANADA. Please become a member of the Blues Foundation at www.blues.org
WWW.STONYPLAINRECORDS.COM
1. Everybody Loves John5:222. Avalon5:14
3. Candy Man3:41
4. Frankie & Albert5:57
5. Got The BluesCant Be Satisfed3:58
6. Louis Collins4:16
7. Richland Woman Blues4:43
8. Spike Driver Blues4:15
9. Stagolee4:00
10. Make Me A PalletOn Your Floor4:42
11. Pay Day4:39
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The ollowing is an excerpt
rom my autobiography
When A Woman Gets
The Blues, available atwww.roryblock.com
and amazon.com
In December o 1963 I met
Mississippi John Hurt at
a concert in New York which also eatured the
great Old Timey musician Doc Boggs. We went
back stage as we always did. Stean Grossman
was part o the accepted insiders group and we
never needed special passes. Hurts presence was
shy and gentle. His ace was beautiully weather
beaten, he wore a signature hat, and always had a
mellow smile. I loved the way he rocked around
when he played... it was a bounce that started slowand built up to a strong pace that carried the music.
He had his own way o doing this I never saw
anyone else with this exact style o moving and
playing. At times when I am perorming I eel this
energy come over me: the Mississippi John Hurt
bounce energy...
Stean and I traveled to Washington DC to stay
with Nick Perls. Mississippi John Hurt was
now living in the area so we went to his home. I
remember this unpainted wooden house it was
very quiet, and beautiully bare inside. Hurt sat on
RORY BLOCKwhen a woman gets the blues
This is now the ourth cd in my Mentor Series, andas always, the challenge o creating a proper tributeis ar greater than anticipated. Every country bluesmaster I can think o put something extraordinary,ethereal, spiritual and so powerul into their playing,as to make it almost impossible to reproduce. Manyworthy artists have covered these songs, but whenyou examine the source, you understand more ullythe level o greatness that was in the original versions greatness that is also almost impossible to defne.But let me try by saying that true character, charisma,drive, and soululness are some o the essentialingredients. So how will we manage? With devotion,respect, reverence, and with energy with extraoomph lest we be weak.
Mississippi John Hurt was a truly unique artist. Helet a resounding impact on our musical landscape.We think o him as outwardly mellow, sweet, andas one writer described it, singing in a whisper.
But have you pondered the words? Alongside gospelmaterial, this gentle man sang about sex, murder,mystery, violence and steamy sensuality. It gets everdeeper the more you listen.
Most people fnger pick simply, careully, and withenough volume to be heard and enjoyed. But next tothe masters we can fnd ourselves tinkling away whilethe train pulls out o the station. Mississippi John Hurt
bounced rhythmically rom side to side while he wasplaying did this bounce add power and jauntiness tothe notes, or did his extra strong attack on the stringscreate the bounce? We can never do polite versions othese songs i we want to capture some o the powerthat made the originals great and enduring.
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a chair in the middle o the room while we talked
and played music. Later some small children
tumbled across the oor. Frankie & Albert
was my avorite Hurt song and I would imagineI played it or him. He oered us coee, but
neither Stean nor I were coee drinkers. I never
elt the urge to pepper him with questions or pry
or inormation I was not a flmmaker and let
that to the historians. When in the presence o
great blues masters I always elt a sense o joy
and purpose. This was where I wanted to be.
I think it interesting to note that Mississippi John
Hurt covered many Appalachian country songs.
This just underscores the exchange o musical
styles that was going on in the early 1900s which
ew people understood. Mississippi John Hurt
knew musicians who played Appalachian music
(Doc Boggs or example), and many o the Old
Timey players knew the blues pickers. At the ageo ourteen, sitting on the porch o an old wood
rame house in North Carolina, I heard Clarence
Ashley say, I learned this one rom an old blues
player and I heard Mississippi John Hurt talk
about the country fddle players he knew. What
we have in the end is a true melting pot which
included music rom Arica, the British Isles,
Flamenco (Hurt reerred to open G tuning as
Spanish), olk, jazz, popular contemporary
music o the day, and probably even Classical
music, to name some o the sources.
One o the things I have endeavored to capture
in this tribute series is a return to a moreearthy, natural approach. We dont love the
old recordings because they are crackle-ree, or
ancy, or have clever ormats. No, some o the
songs are one chord throughout. Some have the
same simple rerain which repeats again and
again ater each verse no solos, just the driving
beat and original theme. And almost never ancy
endings. I call these abrupt events the Get outa
town endings just plunk, and wham, or the
sound o someone getting up and leaving the
room beore the song is over. This is part o whatMississippi John Hurt 1963 Photo John Byrne Cooke
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SPCD 1329
Blues Walkin Like
A Man: A Tribute
To Son House
SPCD 1359
I Belong to The
Band: A Tribute To
Rev. Gary Davis
SPCD 1344
Shake Em On Down:
A Tribute To
Mississippi Fred
McDowell
Also available:
I love. So instead o sweeping the tracks clean
o all noise, sanitizing, bleaching, disinecting
and straining the music, Rob and I eel
compelled to let it be real. Even so, Rob standson the side o high end sound, and I (who
expect to start recording beore the sound
check begins, and want the tape to be rolling
the moment I walk in the studio), never care
a thing about that as my background is in the
soulul, spontaneous, heartelt music o this
country. Every recording is a feld recordingin my view. The frst take is always the best.
So in this eort I remember John Hurt,
celebrate his music and times, and rejoice at
having had the chance to meet him. Nothing
will ever be the same as a result, and my lie
has been made ar richer by the experience.
Produced by Rory Block and Rob Davisor Aurora Productions
Executive Producer: Holger Petersen
Recorded, mixed and mastered by Rob Davisat Aurora Productions mobile studios
Guitars and vocals by Rory Block
Rory plays her OM40 Signature Model Martin guitars,uses Martin SP3200 medium gauge strings, a Shubbcapo, and an SK 14mm deep well socket
Photography: Sergio Kurhajec
Mississippi John Hurt Photo: John Byrne Cooke
Graphic Design: Mark Dutton
at Halkier + Dutton Designwww.roryblock.com
Exclusive worldwide bookings:Ted Kurland Associatescontact: [email protected]
Tracks 2, 3, 5, 8, 9, 11:John Hurt, EMI Longitude Music Inc
Track 1: Rory Block, Brown Foot Publishing Company
Tracks 4, 10: Traditional arranged and adapted byRory Block, Brown Foot Publishing Company
Track 6: John Hurt, Wynwood Music Co Inc /Zap Publishing Co
Track 7: John Hurt, Songs O Windswept Pacifc
Special thanks to Stean Grossman, Martin Guitars,Holger and Stony Plain Records, Mark Dutton,John Byrne Cooke, Matt McCluskey and Ted KurlandAssociates, Mark Pucci and Jill Kettles at mpmedia,Todd Glazer, and all those who work together tokeep the music alive and vital venues, ans, radiostations, writers, online resources, etc. we love andappreciate you!