Une évocation sous forme de bande dessinée de la vie du musicien de blues américain Nehemiah Curtis "Skip" James (1902-1969), né dans le Mississippi. Les CD contiennent le premier sillon de Skip James et des morceaux de nombreux autres musiciens du Delta Blues, dont Johnny Temple. ©Electre 2024

BD Blues

2 CD + 1 bande dessinée

Skip James

Dans un genre musical qui ne manque pourtant pas de fortes personnalités, Skip James est un artiste des plus originaux et extraordinaires que le blues ait connu. Contrairement à ses rudes voisins du Delta, il chante d'une voix de tête haut-perchée et plaintive absolument prenante. Ses blues mélancoliques sont bâtis sur des harmonies savantes et inhabituelles, son jeu en arpèges, entrecoupé de notes fulgurantes et de brisures rythmiques, se révèle d'une grande virtuosité sur les tempos rapides. Avant d'être découvert dans les années 60, Skip James avait gravé en 1931, dans l'indifférence générale, une série de chefs-d'oeuvre absolus, que nous présentons ici dans leur intégralité.

In a music genre that certainly isn't short on strong characters, Skip James stands quite apart from other bluesmen as one of the most extraordinary, most original personalities the world has ever known. Against the trend shown by his raw contemporaries from Mississipi, Skip sang in a high-perched, plaintive voice that was absolutely bewitching. His melancholy blues pieces are built over clever, unusual harmonies while his arpeggios, cut through with flashing strokes and rhythmical breaks, show his incredible virtuosity at rapid tempos. Unlike his Delta neighbours, he didn't use a bottleneck or play a metal guitar ; his instrument was a classic model with the strings generally tuned in D flat. Before he was « discovered » in the Sixties, in 1931 Skip James recorded a series of pieces that generally went unnoticed. They were often masterpieces. And in this set they are presented in their entirety. Such a singular bluesman couldn't have many heirs, but Skip James at least left his mark on a few friends, like Johnnie Temple, a blues star of the Thirties largely featured on CD2.

CD1 Skip James 1931

1 Hard time killin' floor blues 2'51

2 Cherry ball blues 2'52

3 22-20 blues 2'50

4 If you haven't any hay get on down the road 2'54

5 Illinois blues 3'03

6 Yola my blues away 3'10

7 Little cow and calf is gonna die blue 2'53

8 How long « buck » 2'52

9 Devil got my woman 2'59

10 Cypress grove blues 3'11

11 I'm so glad 2'49

12 Special rider blues 3'01

13 Four o'clock blues 2'51

14 Hard-luck child 3'03

15 Jesus is a mighty good leader 3'01

16 Be ready when he comes 2'54

17 What am I to do blues 3'02

18 Drunken spree 2'39

Little Brother Montgomery 1930

19 Vicksburg blues 2'57

20 No special rider blues 2'54

Roosevelt Sykes 1929

21 « 44 » blues 3'01

Lee Green 1934

22 44 blues 3'04

Mississippi Bracey 1930

23 Cherry ball 3'13

24 Stered gal 3'08

Durée totale 72'05

CD2 Joe McCoy 1934

1 Evil devil woman blues 3'11

2 Meat cutter blues 2'53

Robert Johnson 1936/1937

3 32-20 blues 2'53

4 Hellhound on my trail 2'37

Johnnie Temple 1935/1941

5 Jacksonville blues 3'32

6 The evil devil blues 3'16

7 Lead pencil blues 3'15

8 Big boat whistle 3'36

9 New vicksburg blues 2'47

10 Louise Louise blues 2'57

11 Peepin' through the keyhole 2'23

12 East St.Louis blues 2'29

13 New Louise Louise blues 2'29

14 Snapping cat 2'30

15 Pimple blues 2'52

16 Big leg woman 2'52

17 Between midnight and dawn 2'54

18 Down in Mississippi 2'45

19 Streamline blues 3'05

20 Cherry ball 3'03

21 Jinks Lee blues 2'34

22 Sundown blues 2'38

23 Big woman blues 2'49

24 What is that she got ? 2'59

Durée totale 70'10