Search - Sonny Terry & Brownie Mcghee :: Quadromania

The (pre)history of Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee

Nikica Gilic | Zagreb, Croatia | 11/01/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The two reasons for giving this Quadromania package less than 5 stars are, as follows:

1. The title; this is not a compilation of Terry's and McGhee's collaborations as the title (and the cover) suggest.

On CD 1 you hear only Sonny Terry, accompanying Blind Boy Fuller (who was also McGhee's mentor).

On CD 2 you hear only Brownie McGhee and, this is where it becomes strange, on some tracks he's listed as "Brownie McGhee as Blind Boy Fuller"... Apparently, when Fuller died, McGhee recorded the "Death of Blind Boy Fuller" and, at the request of the recording company, started recording as Blind Boy Fuller; the company wanted to cash in on Fuller's popularity.

On CD 3 Brownie dominates (sometimes as Fuller), with Terry only on two tracks.

CD 4 contains few more collaborations, but mostly separate tracks by Terry and McGhee in different surroundings - featuring all sorts of musicians - Baby Dodds, George Washington, Washboard Slim/Robert Young,Woody Guthrie, Sticks McGhee ( Brownie's brother if I'm rightly informed....)



2. So, the title is misleading and the second reason I give it only 4 stars is the fact that all this explanations are missing (I had to get them from different sources). If you're a blues conoisseur, you'll probably know who is Fuller and why was McGhee recorded under his name on the several tracks; otherwise you'll have to dig for the info, as I did.



Otherwise, this is a very nice and reasonably priced compilation of classical blues featuring extensively three giants in various combinations and groups - Fuller, McGhee and Terry.





BTW - I'm not listening this on a high-tech, expensive stereo, but I still hear some problems with sound engineering, so the folks who like perfect recordings might be careful.

All the tracks are recorded in late 30's and early 40s."