Robert Johnson

Certain Songs #1946: Robert Johnson – “Stop Breakin’ Down Blues”

October 29, 2020 by Jim Connelly

Album: The Centennial Collection
Year: 1937

. . .

Of course, like most rockboys of my generation, I came to Robert Johnson’s music through second-hand sources. The Rolling Stones “Love in Vain,” (shamefully credited to “Woody Payne” on Let It Bleed), Cream’s cover of “Cross Roads Blues,” (or more accurately, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s cover of Cream’s “Crossroads,”), the, um, er Blues Brothers cover of “Sweet Home Chicago”, and so on and so forth.

And while the Johnson covers dried up as the years went on, there were still the occasional great ones, like Gil Scott-Heron’s utterly chilling take on “Me and The Devil Blues” that somehow updated the original while still retaining all of the darkness.

Certain Songs #1945: Robert Johnson – “Hellhound on My Trail”

October 28, 2020 by Jim Connelly

Album: The Centennial Collection
Year: 1937

. . .

All of the Robert Johnson records that are extant were recorded in a pair of sessions in Texas: 1936 in San Antonio and 1937 in Dallas. Of course had he lived, Johnson probably would have gone on to record, and possibly even been feted more fully, as folks like John Hammond and Alex Lomax had heard those recording and wanted more, especially before they knew he was dead.

But, of course, his death is part of the legend. Not how he died, but that he died: it meant that all we would have — all we would ever have — are the fruits of those two recording sessions, meaning that his music get never got changed by time or circumstance.

Certain Songs #1944: Robert Johnson – “Kind Hearted Woman Blues”

October 27, 2020 by Jim Connelly

Album: The Centennial Collection
Year: 1936

. . .

This is probably the oldest song I’m going to cover on Certain Songs. I’m not going to say that it’s the oldest song I love — after all, both “Wild Mountain Thyme” and “La Bamba” probably go back centuries — but, with the possible exception of something from one of the Harry Smith anthologies, it’s the oldest captured performance that resonates with me.

“Kind Hearted Woman Blues” was the very first song that famed country producer Don Law — a great reminder at how musically artificial some of the divides of American popular music truly are — recorded with Johnston after Law probably walked up to him and said, “here I am, let’s make records!” And the first result was a timeless tale of lust, frustration and infidelity.