I have been listening to blues nigh on 50 years and know blues. Country music has, “he stopped, loving her today” by George Jones as arguably The best country song ever. Does the blues have an equivalent? I can think of a bunch, but not just one. What say you? Stormy Monday, Help Me,come to mind, covered by many. Maybe a Robert Johnson tune?

Found their first album at this Bargain Market I frequent.. 5 bucks! Can’t beat that.. also have been looking for their first album for awhile. Was a good weekend 🤘😁. Their cover of Dust My Broom sounds great 🤘

The history of Black Betty has been discussed in this channel previously. For those who are unfamiliar, the Wikipedia page is a good place to get started. The meaning of "black betty" is a topic of discussion. My interpretation is that it's a nickname for the whip that was used to torture prisoners, many of whom were falsely arrested and convicted for the purpose of doing forced labor.

I've created an 11 song Spotify playlist to help me better understand and appreciate the importance of this song:

1 - James Baker

2 - Lost Fingers (they give the song an upbeat gypsy jazz treatment)

3 - Jimmy Cornett & the Deadmen (a cinematically dark rock and roll rendition)

4 - Ram Jam (possibly the most widely recognized version, with extended blues rock jamming)

5 - Dinosaur Jr. (shorter and more raucous than Ram Jam)

6 - Divinity Roxx (they break the pattern with a rap-rock hybrid interpretation)

7 - Xenia Ghali and Heymous Molly (they change the title to Black Betty's Worldwide and move more towards a rap version

8 - Larkin Poe (they bring the song back into blues rock territory, emulating Ram Jam but with stripped down instrumentation)

9 - Betty Booom (a self-described electro swing mix)

10 - Lead Belly (the most widely known acoustic recording)

11 - Alabama 3 (a new song called Bam Ba Lam (Here Comes Daddy), from the point of view of Black Betty's baby, who has grown up and is now working in a mine)

It's amazing to me that James Baker and others could transform the horrible experience of false imprisonment and torture into music. The lyrics cleverly obscure the real meaning of the song, so that it could be performed without worrying about a white person overhearing and understanding. So we have musical poetry that invokes metaphor in a manner that allows the oppressed to understand and appreciate its meaning, while keeping the oppressors in the dark. Subsequently, white artists -- who probably didn't know what the song was really about -- turned it into a crowd pleasing, record selling rock song. The power of the song persists to the present day, when rap and electronic musicians are able to further extend its form to make great new music.

I can post a link to the playlist in the comments, if folks are interested.

My girl, my girl, don't lie to me

Where did you sleep last night?

Huddie Leadbelly has so much soul in his music.

I know how it feels to have the blues. Can't let life keep a person down and feeling the blues. Got to also make sure that the blues doesn't keep you from doing what you enjoy.

Drop D on my Martin D1. An original I’ve been messing around with.

Hi. What are your best instrumental or near instrumental piece of blues Music? I have some, where I really thinks the Music is enough, it speak the sadness itself. Fx. Gary Moore: The Prophet, The messiah will come again, Blues for narada.

To me, these Numbers really get to me, and I really love that feeling.

Let me hear your own favorites.

I'm Going To Live That Life

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtratgdMI4E

Cheerful and unique, Joseph Spence was a stonemason and musician who was a huge influence on 1960s British folk blues players, notably John Renbourn and John Martyn.

He has a complex fingerpicking style, playing bass, melody and counterpoint simultaneously. He had a relaxed attitude to vocals and often sounded drunk. Maybe he was.

Always cheers me up.

My Discover weekly featured this one song, now I'm obsessed with the man. I'm blow away. Accepting similar recs.