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| | Complete Recorded Works (1928-1929) | | | Music Artist : | | Thomas "Snake" Johnson | | Music Style : | | General | | Record Label : | | Document | | Release Date : | | 1994-05-27 | | Store Price : | | $16.98 | | Artistopia's Price: $16.98 | | Usually ships in 24 hours | | |
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CD Tracks/Songs
Disc 11. Cool Drink of Water Blues
2. Big Road Blues
3. Bye Bye Blues
4. Maggie Campbell Blues
5. Canned Heat Blues
6. Lonesome Home Blues [Take 1][#]
7. Lonesome Home Blues [Take 2][#]
8. Big Fat Mama Blues
9. I Wonder to Myself
10. Slidin' Delta
11. Lonesome Home Blues
12. Black Mare Blues [Take 1][#] - Tommy Johnson,
13. Black Mare Blues [Take 2] - Tommy Johnson,
14. Ridin' Horse
15. Alcohol and Jake Blues
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Customer Reviews of This Album/CD |
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 good as historical set
Submitted on: 2009-04-26 |
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| some of the recording is quite poor, but it is a set every blues lover should have |
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 TOMMY JOHNSON COMPLETE RECORDED WORKS
Submitted on: 2008-06-18 |
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| I BOUGHT THIS FOR MY BROTHER WHO IS A BLUES FAN AND HE REQUESTED THIS ONE AND MANY MORE AND SOOO ENJOYS THE OLE' BLUES...A SOFT BUT GREAT SOUND |
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Nice record of a fine blues artist from long ago
Submitted on: 2007-12-23 |
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Tommy Johnson was a fine blues artist from long ago. The cuts on this CD were recorded in 1928 and 1929. While the recordings give us a sense of his artistry, to be honest, I had a hard time making out the words. Still, a very nice work, showing us the skills of an early major talent. The liner notes say that after Charlie Patton and Robert Johnson are taken into account, so, too, should be Johnson. Of him, the notes say: "But there is no doubt that the music of Tommy Johnson epitomised the Mississippi blues at its most expressive and poetic."
A few cuts, to illustrate:
"Cool drink of water blues": Charlie McCoy is on a second guitar. This is nicely sung; Johnson shows off an attractive blues voice. This is, of course, acoustic. The guitar work by Johnson and McCoy is simple but effective.
"Big Road Blues": This is characterized by a lively tempo. Effective guitar work (again, both Johnson and McCoy are playing). Again, Johnson shows us a very nice blues voice.
"Canned Heat Blues": Wish I could have made better sense of the words. This song is poignant, in that he had a serious problem with alcohol--and that's what the song is about. This song features Tommy Johnson and his guitar--no one else. It's poignantly sung. Some nice falsetto singing.
All in all, a nice introduction to the work of an early blues artist.
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The Complete Recordings Of Tommy Johnson
Submitted on: 2006-11-10 |
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Tommy Johnson was one of the most unique and influential delta blues men in the history of American music. He has inspired such artists as Howlin' Wolf, Houston Stackhouse, and Robert Nighthawk.
The Complete recorded works of Tommy Johnson is essential to all lovers of blues and American roots music.
Sadly Johnson only recorded 17 classic sided and they are all present on this collection. The sound qualitiy is also superior to previous releases of these tracks. If you only have a few Tommy Johnson tracks on various compilations, it is worth the price to have them all in chronological order as they are presented on this disc. You get to hear what a dynamic artist Johnson was and how he took the influence of Delta greats Charlie Patton and Ishmon Bracey, and even the falseto vocal stlylings of Jimmy Rodgers, and turned them into something totally unique and timeless.
A must have.
-Devon Wendell |
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As good as it gets.
Submitted on: 2006-05-12 |
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I have been a blues fan for forty years, and have listened to just about everybody, from Ma Rainey to Susan Tedeschi, with Muddy Waters and Lightning Hopkins on the way. Nobody is better than Tommy Johnson. Nobody at all. Johnson's great reputation is based on a pitifully small collection of recordings, over half of which were put out on the dreaded Paramount label (Paramount is the despair of blues fans -- on the plus side, without the label we might never have had recordings from Charley Patton, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Blind Blake, early Skip James and early Son House, to name only a few: on the other hand, we are constantly tantalized and frustrated by what we might have had if the company's recording standards had been of even average quality for the time {i.e., late 1920s-mid 1930s} instead of awful beyond description). In any case, the eight Victor sides Tommy Johnson made in 1928, and in particular Big Road Blues, Maggie Campbell Blues, Cool Drink of Water Blues and Canned Heat Blues are at the absolute acme of blues recordings. In terms of emotional power, intensity and sheer brilliance, I have never heard anybody in the blues genre I have thought to be Johnson's equal. I believe that you have to go to some of the great American jazz masters such as Louis Armstrong or Charlie Parker to find adequate comparisons.
This Document Records compilation is an absolute necessity for any serious collector of the blues, and particularly of early blues. There were many great bluesmen named Johnson: Robert, Blind Willie and Lonnie to name the best known. However, if you can only take one "Johnson" record down that Big Road, Tommy's is the one to take. |
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