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Gavin B. · 12-12-2009, 04:29 PM

Song of the Day
Notable Albums of 2009

Notable Album of 2009- Things About Comin' My Way by Various Artists

There were great bluesmen recording before Robert Johnson entered a San Antonio, TX. studio in 1936. Most notable of those early blues artists were the Mississippi Sheiks an all-star family sting band based in the northern delta region of Mississippi. The Sheiks were "other Carter Family" of the era and were sons of Ezelle Chatmon who was also the uncle of Charley Patton. The leader was Bob Carter the ragtime blues wizard and other members were Lonnie Chatmon (aka Lonnie Johnson), Sam Chatmon, and Walter Vinson. The Sheiks were formed in 1926 and held together until 1936 when they did a final recording session with the RCA owned Bluebird Records.

In their own world of blues music the Mississippi Sheiks were the equivalent of Beatles. Until the Sheiks, most blues musicians were local celebrities in their towns or county; but the Sheiks first blues musicians to become regional celebrities throughout the South. The Sheiks were selling 10,000-25,000 thousand records at a time when sales of 1000 units was considered to be the benchmark of a bonafide hit record in the blues world. The Mississippi Sheiks were a versatile dance band who not only performed the blues, but also played ragtime music, New Orleans style jazz, country music and had a large repetoire of songs that were the popular standards of the day.

The last surviving member of the Chatmon/Carter family of blues players was Sam Chatmon who remained a seasoned in-demand blues performer until his death at age 86 in 1983. I'm proud to say that Sam and his wife were friends of mine and they welcomed me into their family home when I visited them in Hollandale Mississippi when I worked for the Library of Congress recording project. I don't think Sam completely understood his towering historical significance as a blues musician.

It's to the credit of the Vancouver based folkways label Black Hen Music that this tribute album to the Sheiks was accomplished. It has been nominated as the best accoustic blues album of 2009 by the Blues Foundation. Here is the impressive list of tracks and artists on Things About Comin' My Way:

1 It's Backfirin' Now - The North Mississippi Allstars
2 Things About Comin' My Way- Ndidi Onukwulu
3 Stop and Listen - John Hammond
4 Honey Babe Let The Deal Go Down - Bruce C0ckburn
5 Bootlegger's Blues - Oh Susanna (arrangement by Van D. Parks)
6 Sitting On Top Of The World - The Carolina Chocolate Drops
7 Too Long - Danny Barnes
8 Jailbird Love Song - Jim Byrnes
9 That's It - Bill Frisell
10 Please Baby - Madeleine Peyroux
11 Livin' In A Strain - Kelly Joe Phelps
12 Lonely One In This Town - Steve Dawson
13 The World Is Going Wrong - Geoff Muldaur and The Texas Sheiks
14 We Both Are Feeling Good Right Now - Del Rey
15 Somebody's Gotta Help You - Bob Brozman
16 He Calls That Religion - The Sojourners
17 I've Got Blood In My Eyes For You - Robin Holcomb

You can hear samples of all the songs and purchase a cd or download of the album at the Black Hen Music website

Somebody's Gotta Help You - Bob Brozman Nearly every song on the Sheik's tribute album is interesting on it's own terms, so the dilemma is to pick one song out of the seventeen on the album. I let nepotism rule the day in my selection of one featured song of the day. Since Bob Brozman is an old pal of my from my St. Louis days, I choose his excellent rendition of the Sheik's classic Somebody's Gotta Help You.

12-12-2009, 04:29 PM	#156 (permalink)
Gavin B. Model Worker Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 1,248	Song of the Day Notable Albums of 2009 Notable Album of 2009- Things About Comin' My Way by Various Artists There were great bluesmen recording before Robert Johnson entered a San Antonio, TX. studio in 1936. Most notable of those early blues artists were the Mississippi Sheiks an all-star family sting band based in the northern delta region of Mississippi. The Sheiks were "other Carter Family" of the era and were sons of Ezelle Chatmon who was also the uncle of Charley Patton. The leader was Bob Carter the ragtime blues wizard and other members were Lonnie Chatmon (aka Lonnie Johnson), Sam Chatmon, and Walter Vinson. The Sheiks were formed in 1926 and held together until 1936 when they did a final recording session with the RCA owned Bluebird Records. In their own world of blues music the Mississippi Sheiks were the equivalent of Beatles. Until the Sheiks, most blues musicians were local celebrities in their towns or county; but the Sheiks first blues musicians to become regional celebrities throughout the South. The Sheiks were selling 10,000-25,000 thousand records at a time when sales of 1000 units was considered to be the benchmark of a bonafide hit record in the blues world. The Mississippi Sheiks were a versatile dance band who not only performed the blues, but also played ragtime music, New Orleans style jazz, country music and had a large repetoire of songs that were the popular standards of the day. The last surviving member of the Chatmon/Carter family of blues players was Sam Chatmon who remained a seasoned in-demand blues performer until his death at age 86 in 1983. I'm proud to say that Sam and his wife were friends of mine and they welcomed me into their family home when I visited them in Hollandale Mississippi when I worked for the Library of Congress recording project. I don't think Sam completely understood his towering historical significance as a blues musician. It's to the credit of the Vancouver based folkways label Black Hen Music that this tribute album to the Sheiks was accomplished. It has been nominated as the best accoustic blues album of 2009 by the Blues Foundation. Here is the impressive list of tracks and artists on Things About Comin' My Way: 1 It's Backfirin' Now - The North Mississippi Allstars 2 Things About Comin' My Way- Ndidi Onukwulu 3 Stop and Listen - John Hammond 4 Honey Babe Let The Deal Go Down - Bruce C0ckburn 5 Bootlegger's Blues - Oh Susanna (arrangement by Van D. Parks) 6 Sitting On Top Of The World - The Carolina Chocolate Drops 7 Too Long - Danny Barnes 8 Jailbird Love Song - Jim Byrnes 9 That's It - Bill Frisell 10 Please Baby - Madeleine Peyroux 11 Livin' In A Strain - Kelly Joe Phelps 12 Lonely One In This Town - Steve Dawson 13 The World Is Going Wrong - Geoff Muldaur and The Texas Sheiks 14 We Both Are Feeling Good Right Now - Del Rey 15 Somebody's Gotta Help You - Bob Brozman 16 He Calls That Religion - The Sojourners 17 I've Got Blood In My Eyes For You - Robin Holcomb You can hear samples of all the songs and purchase a cd or download of the album at the Black Hen Music website Somebody's Gotta Help You - Bob Brozman Nearly every song on the Sheik's tribute album is interesting on it's own terms, so the dilemma is to pick one song out of the seventeen on the album. I let nepotism rule the day in my selection of one featured song of the day. Since Bob Brozman is an old pal of my from my St. Louis days, I choose his excellent rendition of the Sheik's classic Somebody's Gotta Help You. Last edited by Gavin B.; 12-13-2009 at 02:13 PM.