The Great 1930 Mississippi Delta Blues Session, Part 2

Son House, Charley Patton, Willie Brown, and Louise Johnson at Paramount

Paramount Records publicity photo of Charley Patton, circa 1929\

Link to Part 1 of “The Great 1930 Mississippi Delta Blues Session”

Son House faced the microphone alone when he and his traveling companions Charley Patton, Willie Brown, and Louise Johnson returned to the studio in Grafton, Wisconsin. With Paramount Records executive Art Laibly supervising, House began with a single take of “Clarksdale Moan,” cut onto matrix L-407. His lyrics mention snuff and Alcorub, a brand-name for isopropyl rubbing alcohol. Midway through the take, he did a verse of moans.

His voice a window-rattling holler, House then performed his majestic two-part “My Black Mama,” the first recording utilizing the often-used “Walking Blues” theme. House claimed to have learned the song from James McCoy, who never recorded. Among the finest extant examples of pre-war Delta blues singing, House’s “My Black Mama” featured stream-of-consciousness lyrics and lines borrowed from other songs.

“We changed them songs around all the time,” Son explained upon hearing the records decades later. “I probably never done it again that way anyhow.” Playing in open-G tuning, he balanced powerful bass thumps and clipped, note-perfect bottleneck. The second takes, matrixes L-408-2 and L-409-2, were selected for release. He nailed both parts of his final selection of the day, the two-part “Preachin’ the Blues,” in single takes captured on matrixes L-410-1 and L-411-1. He also cited James McCoy as the original source of this song.

Stefan Grossman, an authority on country blues guitar styles, contends that these releases confirm House’s status as “the seminal genius of this unique and powerful blues form that Robert Johnson and Muddy Waters imitated. ‘Preachin’ the Blues’ is probably the finest example, with that rhythmic bass pattern played against a melodic bottleneck line, this incredible driving force. Who else had that? And his singing was so phenomenal. He wasn’t pretending to be singing the blues; it was a God-given talent. He was a genius. I’m sure that any kid who heard Son House, like Robert Johnson did, would just be blown away. If you wanted to play guitar and sing the blues, Son House would have been your hero.”