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Sonny Boy Williamson Vol. 1 (1937 - 1938)

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Sonny Boy Williamson

 
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Sonny Boy Williamson Vol. 1 (1937 - 1938)
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Chicago blues harp begins here.

  • We Say...

    Rooted in rural blues and jug-band harmonica players of the '20s, the first Sonny Boy (John Lee Williamson) used a tongue-blocking technique to help make his harp a forceful lead instrument rather than background atmosphere. A seductive vocalist, he compensated for a speech impediment by singing vowels longer and consonants harder, creating a languorous effect that others wound up imitating. His 1937 recording debut yielded the immortal "Good Morning, Little Schoolgirl." Backed by guitarists like Robert Lee McCoy (Robert Nighthawk), Williamson answered his own vocal with a blast of harmonica, then went back to singing, an approach previously unheard of. Muddy Waters broadened that idea for his postwar, guitar-harmonica bands. Although men like Little Walter soon developed even more aggressive attacks, Chicago blues harp begins here.

  • They Say...

    This artist was perhaps the most significant pioneer of the city-styled, horn-oriented blues harp -- a style brought to perfection by Little Walter. Williamson adapted the country-styled, chordal-rhythmic technique that he learned from Noah Lewis and Hammie Nixon to suit the demands of the evolving urban blues styles. These 24 tracks include Sonny Boy's first six records cut in 1937 and sport an imposing list of sidemen: Robert Nighthawk, Big Joe Williams, Henry Townsend, Walter Davis, Yank Rachell, Big Bill Broonzy, and Speckled Red. This is a definitive collection.

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