MEDIUM Vinyl Record
WEIGHT 180gr (black vinyl) 33rpm
CONDITION sealed
CONDITION RECORD M mint
COVER Standard
CONDITION COVER M mint
COVER DAMAGES No, we take care about that
SERIALNUMBER No
LIMITED Yes
MISCELLANEOUS Stereo
MUSICIAN HOMEPAGE --
Johnny Shines – guitar, vocals
standing at the crossroads - 2:51
milk cow's troubles - 2:52
death hearse blues - 3:24
drunken man's prayer - 3:22
hoo doo snake doctor's blues - 3:05
it's a lowdown dirty shame - 4:28
your troubles can't be like mine - 4:17
kind-hearted woman - 3:06
baby sister blues - 3:16
my rat - 2:51
don't take a country woman - 3:02
This is one of several albums this artist made in the early '70s that stand as a masterpiece of the acoustic country blues genre
Johnny Shines had begun recording in the mid-'60s, the albums done with electric guitar and full-combo backup
One of them reportedly cut after he hadn't picked up an instrument in years
It was as if he reinvented himself in the following decade
Playing pristine and flawless acoustic slide guitar pieces complete with shuffling, stuttering, and stimulatingly complicated tempos
The message was that he had been a young sidekick to Robert Johnson and had absorbed everything, although no deal had been made with the Devil
Shines was a steady, dependable, religious, and forthright chap who lived in Tuscaloosa, AL., and held down a steady job as a construction foreman
Mild-mannered and extremely intellectual, he let loose the reserve of emotion when doing a Delta blues number
The magic and heart were in his fingertips as well as in his voice, which sounds stupendous here
The emergence of the Johnson song canon into his repertoire
Done with almost Baroque detail, was also something of a revelation
Some of Shines' earlier albums had featured songs that almost seemed made up on the spot
He was good at that, and was rumored to have played whole sets that were completely improvised when working the country juke joints of his home state
But on this album he showed what he could do when sinking his teeth into a bona fide blues classic
"Kind Hearted Woman" is the musical equivalent of an absolutely perfect chopped-barbecue sandwich with sauce the way they do it in Tuscaloosa
And obviously of much less offense to vegetarians when taken in this form
There were 11 perfect songs chosen by Pete Welding from his set of recording sessions for this project
Once again this great producer has come up with a blues release that is basically a required item for any good collection of this genre
RECORDING November 11 and 17 1970 at Altadena California
ENGINEERING Pete Welding
LABEL Testament
RE MASTERING Ray Staff
RE RELEASED May 2013
AVERAGE RATING 4 ½ Stars out of 5
PRESSING by Pallas Germany
MADE IN Germany / England
STYLE Blues / Delta Blues
AVAILABLE as long as inventory
