Violin, Sing The Blues For Me: African-American Fiddlers 1926-1949

The guitar gets the ink, but the violin was hugely important in the development of early blues, its crying vibratos and sliding notes creating a dramatic and soulful sound. Here are 24 examples of blues violin at its best, all documented with a 32-page booklet; includes Stealin’ Blues Cow Cow Davenport; Baby Please Don’t Go Joe Williams’ Washboard Blues Singers; Violin Blues Johnson Boys; Right Now Blues Frank Stokes; Ted’s Stomp Louie Bluie & Ted Bogan; The Moore Girl Andrew & Jim Baxter; Salty Dog Booker Orchestra, and more.Nearly essential for anyone interested in old-time music, Violin, Sing the Blues for Me may be quite simply the best single-disc anthology of the early 20th century black string-band movement available today. The emphasis here is on the bluesy fiddle playing heard between 1926 and 1949, but the music boasts reams of diverse styles and playing that is simply impossible to pigeonhole. Andrew Baxter milks his fiddle for all its plaintive worth against brother Jim’s guitar on “K.C. Railroad Blues,” the Mississippi Mud Steppers’ “Alma Waltz” is as sublime as they come (perhaps the greatest side ever recorded to feature a banjo-mandolin), and there are plenty of other tracks featuring the now-forgotten wail of the blues violin. But the lively tunes steal the show here: the Mobile Strugglers’s previously unissued “Memphis Blues” from 1949 is a classic breakdown; the Tennessee Chocolate Drops’s “Vine Street Drag” (featuring the fast fiddling of Howard “Louie Bluie” Armstrong) showcases some true violin virtuosity; and the Memphis Jug Band’s “Memphis Shakedown” is a tour de force of energy and great playing. Truth is, there’s not a weak track here, and the copious liner notes will keep you busy long after the CD has played out. If you want to hear the roots of the blues, don’t pass this disc up. –Jason Verlinde