Screamin' and Hollerin' the Blues:
The Worlds of Charley Patton

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Revenant Album No. 212
7 CD Box Set

Historical revisionism has writ large the name of Robert Johnson in blues annals while according Charley Patton a comparative footnote. One of the founders of Mississippi Delta blues, Patton (1891-1934) was already the long-reigning kingpin of Delta bluesmen when Johnson was still in short pants. Take a listen and hear why many consider Patton the best there ever was.

Possessor of a driving, percussive guitar style, a gravel-encrusted holler, often improvisatory lyrics, complex rhythmic dynamics, an unequaled 'talking' bottleneck and a deep reservoir of melodic hooks, Patton conjured up songstuffs that gave vent to both a restless artistic temperament and a palpable, lingering rage. Hear why John Fahey posits him as a pilgrim of the ominous, one of the earliest progenitors of Fire Music, powered by something wholly other which Patton himself did not understand. And, though less romantic than the oft-trod portrait of Patton as an ego-ruled sociopath, David Evans' painstaking new research into Patton's personality reveals why folks like Bukka White and Pops Staples considered Patton a "great man."

A 7-CD primer on Mississippi Delta blues with Charley Patton as the central, generative figure, this set features 5 CDs with all issued and unissued recordings by Patton and sessionmates Son House, Willie Brown, Louise Johnson, Henry 'Son' Sims, Bertha Lee, Delta Big Four, Buddy Boy Hawkins, Edith North Johnson, and even talent scout HC Speir; a 6th CD of artists in Charley's "orbit" like Ma Rainey, Howlin' Wolf, Poor Boy Lofton, Kid Bailey, Walter Rhodes, Rube Lacy, Blind Joe Reynolds (newly discovered track!), Tommy Johnson and Pops Staples; and a 7th CD of interviews with Patton associates Staples, Wolf, Speir and Patton protégé Booker Miller. All tracks are fully remastered and pitch-corrected from the best possible sources, resulting in the definitive versions of this material.

Also included are a freestanding reprint of John Fahey's 1970 Patton book, 128 pages of exhaustive new notes by Fahey and blues scholars David Evans, Dick Spottswood, and Ed Komara, complete lyric transcriptions, full-size reproductions of the 6 original 1929 Paramount ads, a full set of 78 record label stickers from all Charley's Paramount, Vocalion and Herwin releases, and dozens of other dazzling visuals. All housed in a deluxe '78 Album' hardcover book and slipcase.


TRACK LISTING:

Disc 1: June 1929

Charley Patton

1. Pony Blues
2. A Spoonful Blues
3. Down The Dirt Road Blues
4. Prayer Of Death Part 1
5. Prayer Of Death Part 2
6. Screamin' And Hollerin' The Blues
7. Banty Rooster Blues
8. Tom Rushen Blues
9. It Won't Be Long
10. Shake It And Break It (But Don't Let It Fall Mama)
11. Pea Vine Blues
12. Mississippi Boweavil Blues
13. Lord I'm Discouraged
14. I'm Goin' Home

[10 secs]

Walter "Buddy Boy" Hawkins

15. Snatch It And Grab It
16. A Rag Blues
17. How Come Mama Blues
18. Voice Throwin' Blues


Disc 2: October 1929

Charley Patton

-2. Hammer Blues (take 1; uniss.)
-1. I Shall Not Be Moved (take 1; uniss.)
1. High Water Everywhere-Part I
2. High Water Everywhere-Part II
3. I Shall Not Be Moved
4. Rattlesnake Blues
5. Going To Move To Alabama
6. Hammer Blues (take 2)
7. Joe Kirby
8. Frankie And Albert
9. Devil Sent The Rain Blues
10. Magnolia Blues
11. Running Wild Blues
12. Some Happy Day
13. Mean Black Moan
14. Green River Blues

[10 secs]

Edith North Johnson

15. That's My Man
16. Honey Dripper Blues No. 2
17. Eight Hour Woman
18. Nickel's Worth Of Liver Blues No. 2


Disc 3: October 1929

Charley Patton

-2. Some These Days I'll Be Gone (take 1; uniss.)
-1. Elder Greene Blues (take 2; uniss.)
1. Jim Lee-Part I
2. Jim Lee-Part II
3. Mean Black Cat Blues
4. Jesus Is A Dying-Bed Maker
5. Elder Greene Blues (take 1)
6. When Your Way Gets Dark
7. Some These Days I'll Be Gone (take 2)
8. Heart Like Railroad Steel
9. Circle Round The Moon
10. You're Gonna Need Somebody When You Die

[10 secs]

Henry "Son" Sims

11. Be True Be True Blues
12. Farrell Blues
13. Tell Me Man Blues
14. Come Back Corrina


Disc 4: June 1930

Charley Patton

1. Some Summer Day
2. Bird Nest Bound

[10 secs]

Willie Brown

3. Future Blues
4. M&O Blues

[10 secs]

Son House

5. Walkin' Blues (uniss.)
6. My Black Mama-Part I
7. My Black Mama-Part II
8. Preachin' The Blues-Part I
9. Preachin' The Blues-Part II
10. Dry Spell Blues Part I
11. Dry Spell Blues Part II

[10 secs]

Louise Johnson

12. All Night Long Blues (take 1)
13. On The Wall
14. All Night Long Blues (take 2; uniss)
15. By The Moon And Stars
16. Long Ways From Home


Disc 5: May/June 1930, January-February 1934

June 1930

Charley Patton

1. Dry Well Blues
2. Moon Going Down

[10 secs]

May 1930

Delta Big Four

3. We All Gonna Face The Rising Sun
4. Moaner Let's Go Down In The Valley
5. Jesus Got His Arms Around Me
6. God Won't Forsake His Own
7. I'll Be Here
8. Where Was Eve Sleeping?
9. I Know My Time Ain't Long
10. Watch And Pray

[10 secs]

HC Speir

11. Paramount Test 1-4/19/30 headlines
12. Paramount Test 2-4/12/30 headlines

[10 secs]

January-February 1934

Charley ("Charlie") Patton

13. High Sheriff Blues
14. Stone Pony Blues
15. Jersey Bull Blues
16. Hang It On The Wall
17. 34 Blues
18. Love My Stuff
19. Poor Me
20. Revenue Man Blues

[10 secs]

Patton And Lee

21. Troubled 'Bout My Mother
22. Oh Death

[10 secs]

Bertha Lee

23. Yellow Bee
24. Mind Reader Blues


Disc 6: Charley's Orbit-Songs

1. Ma Rainey-Booze And Blues (1924) 3:08
2. Walter Rhodes-The Crowing Rooster (1927) 3:22
3. Furry Lewis-I Will Turn Your Money Green (1928) 3:11
4. Rube Lacy-Ham Hound Crave (1928) 2:53
5. Tommy Johnson-Bye Bye Blues (1928) 3:11
6. Tommy Johnson-Maggie Campbell (1928) 3:39
7. Tommy Johnson-Big Road Blues (1928) 3:23
8. William Harris-Kansas City Blues (1928) 3:01
9. Kid Bailey-Rowdy Blues (1929) 3:01
10. Kid Bailey-Mississippi Bottom Blues (1929) 3:01
11. Blind Joe Reynolds-Cold Woman Blues (1929) 2:59
12. Mississippi Sheiks-Sitting On Top Of The World (1930) 3:01
13. Charley Jordan-Just A Spoonful (1930) 2:41
14. Blind Pete And George Ryan-Banty Rooster (1934) 2:14
15. Big Joe Williams-My Grey Pony (1935) 3:08
16. Willie Lofton Trio-Dark Road Blues (1935) 3:02
17. Unknown Convict-Blues (1936) 2:47
18. Bukka White-Sic 'Em Dogs On (1939) 2:21
19. Bukka White-Po' Boy (1939) 2:50
20. Willie Brown-Make Me A Pallet On The Floor (1941) 3:29
21. Son House-County Farm Blues (1942) 2:22
22. The Howlin' Wolf-Saddle My Pony (1952) 2:34
23. The Howlin' Wolf-Forty Four (1954) 2:47
24. Roebuck "Pops" Staples & Staple Singers-Too Close (1957) 5:23


Disc 7: Charley's Orbit-Interviews

1. The Howlin' Wolf, interviewed by Pete Welding, ca. 1967
2-16. Booker Miller, interviewed by Gayle Dean Wardlow, 1968
17-25. HC Speir, interviewed by Gayle Dean Wardlow, 1968, 1969
26. Roebuck "Pops" Staples, interviewed by Chris Strachwitz, ca. 1964