Monday, April 18, 2011

Rory Block "Shake 'Em On Down"



This cd is subtitled "A Tribute to Mississippi Fred McDowell" and it is a joyous celebration of two masters of the acoustic guitar blues--Mississippi Fred McDowell and Rory Block. This time out Block brings to vibrant bubbling life seven of McDowell's songs, along with Sonny Boy Williamson's "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl" and 4 Block originals that sound like they should belong in the McDowell catalog. This disc is part of Block's on-going project "The Mentor Series," a collection of, as she writes in the liner notes, "tribute albums to the masters who I had the priviledge of meeting face to face." Like Block's previous Mentor sets, one lifting up the music of Son House and one lifting up the music of Robert Johnson, this one is flawless and fabulous and spot-on. The singing and playing are up to typical Rory Block perfectionist standards, which means 99.5% of the guitar players out there can't touch it. This time out I'm not lifting up any individual songs--just buy this disc and listen to it, and you will soon love it. You may find that you need the other tribute discs as well. All three are highly recommended. Rory Block is a musical treasure.

This cd is on Stony Plain Records. You can buy it at http://www.stonyplainrecords.com

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