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Album Details

• Artist: Various Artists
• Album: American Primitives Vol.2 : Pre-War Revenents, 1897-1939
• Label: Revenent
• Year of Release: 2006
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: patchen on 2006-11-11

The late John Fahey’s Revenent label has always seemed miraculous, able to find rarities of old blues and jazz that fill in historical gaps, and provide wonder at the same time. From the opening chords of Homer Quincy Smith’s 1926 I Want Jesus To Talk With Me”, its scratchy recording barely muffling the razor-sharp rawness of the recording, you know you are not in Jesus Camp. This is gut-bucket wrestling with the devil, with God, with all the sins that make either one attractive. This set focuses on pre world war II gospel and country blues. From the Biting punk-like guitar of Geeshie Wiley to the freak jazz of The Salty Dog Four (“Ballin The Jack”) Pigmeat Terry and the ringing guitar of William Harris. The recordings are as cleaned up as they can be, but the shitty sound only adds to the immediacy of the raw vocals, instruments, and words. Further proof that rock has always existed in the voice of the desperate, and that anyone with a guitar can pick a fight with heaven and win.

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