In this day and age of media overload, it's astonishing that the wilds of America can still conceal vital, outstanding music that remains unrecorded and largely unheard. But Matthew Johnson, a skinny white boy from Mississippi, found a heap in his own backyard. In the early '90s, turned on to blues by a University of Mississippi class taught by rock critic and historian Robert Palmer, Johnson was inspired to seek out nearby elderly blues guitarists. Though he flunked the class, the young future label mogul went on to meet and record R.L. Burnside (a former cohort of Mississippi Fred McDowell), Junior Kimbrough (a local juke-joint owner, superb guitar player, and father of 28 children), Cedell Davis (a crippled but resolute guitarist), and T-Model Ford (an illiterate former convict who picked up his first guitar at age 58).

recommended : we watched this film last night via netflix dvd. for me anything about these guys is great (and important). our friend steve had a buddy who was working on what sounded like a similar documentary project. i was wonder if this film was that project. (but thinking it probably wasnt due to the somewhat less than critical handling of fat possum dude Matthew Johnson.) also : most of these guys are dead now since the film was made in 2002. and due to the gender specific title theres the big omission of jesse may hemphill who has also passed on recently.


- bill 9-23-2007 6:19 pm [add a comment]