No. 424: King of the Delta Blues Singers Vol. 2

Band: Robert Johnson
Album: King of the Delta Blues Singers Vol. 2
Why Rolling Stone gets it right: Like the first volume of this set, this record is half of Robert Johnson's recording history. Johnson is one of the fathers of rock and roll and is certainly on the Mount Rushmore of blues singers.
Why Rolling Stone gets it wrong: Well... See below.
Best song: "Sweet Home Chicago" is a wonderful, wonderful song.
Worst song: "Drunken Hearted Man" isn't great.
Is it awesome?: Sure.

Here's an interesting question: What would be the beginning of the modern musical era? Is it defined by genre? Is it defined by technology (digital v. analog, eight-track recording v. four-track recording, etc.)?

I say this because I called Buddy Holly "dated" earlier this week. I stand by this, but in listening to Robert Johnson, I wouldn't necessarily call it that.

Robert Johnson's music is so far in the past -- 20 years before Buddy Holly -- that comparing it to modern music is foolish. The best comparison I can make is to cars. A car from the 1980s and 1990s (and, maybe the 1970s) looks silly. A car from the 1950s is history.

(Of course, this isn't entirely true, even to cars. Some people find that era of American culture to be cool. This is the nature of our post-modernist culture.)

In the same way that a 1950s car is history, Robert Johnson is history. The car from the 1950s needs tons of care and it can't get to the speeds needed on the highway. It isn't usable in the same way that a new car is, but it's the precursor to the cars we use. It's interesting and fun to learn about. Robert Johnson's music isn't listenable in the same way that more modern stuff is. Modern music is recorded in multitrack. Modern music doesn't have tons of tape hiss in it. Modern music has more than the 12-bar blues.

But, still. It's history.

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Notable on the record is "Sweet Home Chicago," a song with lyrics very different from the ones we know. Instead of "Back to the same old place," Johnson sings "Back to the land of California." Some people have suggested that Johnson was combining the places of California (great weather) and Chicago (north, no Jim Crow) to create a utopia for African-Americans at the time.

"Sweet Home Chicago" is the standard of standards in blues and listening to Johnson's version, it really opens your eyes to the tenderness of the song. As with many of Johnson's songs, despair is the order of the day.

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It's a historical document more than a modern record. It's enjoyable and something to study, but I wouldn't walk around listening to it.

No. 27: King of the Delta Blues Singers, Vol. 1

Band: Robert Johnson
Album: King of the Delta Blues Singers, Vol. 1
Why Rolling Stone gets it right: In terms of blues singers, no one had more influence on the genre of rock and roll. Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, The Allman Brothers, Fleetwood Mac, The Rolling Stones, Lucinda Williams, Cream and The White Stripes are all artists on this list who've covered Johnson's songs.
Why Rolling Stone gets it wrong: Like "Kind of Blue," I'm not sure straight up blues is the way to go. Otherwise, it's incredibly important.
Best song: The most famous is "Crossroad Blues."
Worst song: They're all pretty great.
Is it awesome?: It's pretty lo-fi, but it's quite clear that this guy was hugely talented.

One of the myths surrounding Robert Johnson is that he sold his soul to the devil at the crossroads in exchange for his ability to play the guitar; It has sort of become the famous myth of all bluesmen.

Johnson's life isn't particularly well-known. He married a young girl (she died in childbirth at the ripe old age of 16), he recorded about a double album's worth of songs in 1936 and 1937. He died at age 27 in 1938. All of two photos of him exist.

Here's what we know: His guitar playing and vocals were basically unprecedented at the time. He played a style of music mostly unknown to White America until the 1950s. He set up a musical style that has endured (in rock and roll) for ages.

Two things are notable: The first is the low fidelity of the recordings. It gets tough to listen to, on that level, in that the pops and cracks are just a part of the records. The other, building off that, is that the recording might (might) have been sped up some, hence the pitch of the vocals.

Overall, though, it's amazing to think about this being recorded in the 1930s. In the same way Chuck Berry holds up, these Robert Johnson records hold up quite well.