Search - Son House :: 1969 at Home

The Real Roots

12/06/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Son House was one of the guys who truly started it all. Before there was Robert Johnson or Muddy Waters, Son House was growling the blues and playing the hell out of his steel-bodied guitar. Although his youth was already far behind him when he made this fine album, House had lost very little of the power and intensity that earned him his prominent place in blues history decades earlier. Even singing without the accompaniment of his outstanding slide guitar, House displays more passion on just about any single song than all of today's blues- and gospel-based pop music acts put together."

Go find the old stuff first

Eliminator Man | Plymouth, MN | 01/29/2009

(2 out of 5 stars)

"These 60s recordings of Son are sad compared to the originals from the 30s and early 40s, no comparison. Just compare the slow tempo and sloppy play on Preachin Blues here to what he did back on the original recording on Paramount. He burns on those old recordings. You have to get by the poor sound quality, but it is totally worth it. You won't ever know why he is so important and so deep until you hear those old recordings. When you do you will hear how much he influenced Robert Johnson and Muddy. He is the link between Charlie Patton and those guys."