Before the Blues, Vol. 2: The Early American Black Music Scene (1996)

About this title: The title of this compilation, Before the Blues, may be a deceiving one, particularly as it comes from Yazoo Records, a label that specializes in the earliest music of the genre. While the performances here date back to the first commercial recordings (made during the mid-'20s), the blues, as a musical form, was probably born a good 20 years earlier, at the turn of the century. Maintaining a looser format than many of their compilations, Before the Blues follows the music from the juke joint on a Saturday night to church the next morning. Included are tracks from some of the most popular ... read more

Tracks:

1. Dallas Rag [Unidentified Prison]
2. How Long [Stokes]
3. Skin Game Blues [Howell]
4. K.C. Moan [Blackman]
5. Just a Spoonful
6. Doggone My Good Luck Soul [Hudson]
7. There's a Brown Skin Girl Down the Road Somewhere
8. You're Going to Leave the Old Home, Jim
9. Deep Blue Sea Blues [Alexander]
10. Cold Morning Shout
11. Been Listening All the Day
12. Mississippi Boweavil Blues [Patton]
13. I'll Lead a Christian Life
14. The Old Folks Started It [Wallace]
15. Vine Street Drag
16. Nobody's Fault But Mine [Johnson]
17. Last Kind Words Blues
18. Guitar Stomp [Jolly Two]
19. Jack O'Diamond Blues [Jefferson/Tradition]
20. Reuben Oh Reuben [Traditional]
21. Memphis Stomp
22. On the Wall [Johnson]
23. Roving Cowboy

Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is further described below.