The other evening, I was rifling through my LP collection looking for an acoustic blues album that would provide a nice musical backdrop to a number of tasks I planned on tackling.  There’s always the challenge of finding something that I haven’t enjoyed for a while; you know, that long lost compilation that yet again surprises with its great quality and high level of satisfaction.

Everything in my music collection is stored in alphabetical order and, by the time I got to the “S” section of my LPs, I was starting to get a bit frustrated that nothing was scratching my blues listening itch.  I continued to search through the albums and then, lo and behold, there it was, the album that I knew would satisfy my blues longing. 

That LP was The Blues Of Smoky Babe: Hottest Brand Goin’, a 1963 release on the Prestige Bluesville label (#BVLP 1063).  I plucked the collection from the rack, cleaned it with some Crosley Cleaning Solution, and placed it on my turntable.  The ensuing period while I turned my attention toward my planned tasks was significantly enhanced by the 12 blues tracks found on the album.

Since I have not provided a brief overview of Smoky Babe’s life and career before, now seems the ideal time as he and his terrific blues is top-of-mind.

Robert Brown (Smoky Babe was obviously his performing name) came into the world on the last day of July, 1927 in Itta Bena, Mississippi, a small town in Leflore County, an area in the upper northwest section of the state.  Certainly, Mississippi’s prominence as an incubator for the blues is well-known, and the town of Itta Bena has had its share of blues and music celebrities call the municipality home.  Those people include “The King Of The Blues” B.B. King, Chicago bassist and singer Robert “Big Mojo” Elem, blues vocalist and guitarist Luther “Guitar Junior” Johnson, soul singer Jimmy Lewis, early blues singer and guitar player Robert Petway, and Chicago WVON disc jockey and blues promoter Pervis Spann.  As is often said, “There must be something in the water.”

The details of Smoky Babe’s early, formative years are limited, as is often the case with blues artists in general, but especially so for those who operated on the peripheries of the music and did not enjoy the greater awareness a blues star would realize.

What is accepted is that Smoky Babe was raised on a plantation working the fields.  It is not unreasonable to propose that in and around the farm Smoky Babe would’ve been exposed to the blues, and perhaps those interactions led to his choosing both the guitar and the blues as exciting distractions from the difficult work found on the plantation.

Research has indicated that when Smoky Babe’s guitar and vocal skill sets were sufficiently developed, and again, this is conjecture, most likely through publicly performing at the various social events in his locale, he took to the life as an itinerant bluesman.

Smoky Babe eventually arrived in New Orleans, Louisiana, taking up residence in an attempt to further establish his blues career.  However, while in The Crescent City, he only worked sporadically as a blues musician, in essence finding himself as a semi-professional blues artist, a stature that disheartened him.  As a result, Smoky Babe moved to Scotlandville, a small district on the north side of Batin Rouge, Louisiana.  Perceiving his attempt to establish his blues career in New Orleans a failure, Smoky Babe took work as an automobile mechanic.  This period would’ve been in the mid-to-late 1950s.

However, as fate would have it, Smoky Babe was discovered by Harry Oster, the musicologist, folklorist, and author who was on staff at Louisiana State University.  By this time, Oster had established himself as a researcher greatly intrigued by many forms of music including blues, spirituals, and even sermons. 

Oster recorded a substantial amount of blues by Smoky Babe in both 1960 and 1961, with the material released on Oster’s Folk-Lyric label (Smoky Babe And His Friends – Hot Blues – FL-118), an outing that included the vocals of Sally Dotson and William Dotson, plus harmonica work by both Henry Thomas and Clyde Causey, in addition to Smoky Babe’s guitar and vocal work.  This collection was released in 1961.

The aforementioned The Blues Of Smoky Babe: Hottest Brand Goin’, again, was a 1963 release on the Prestige Bluesville label (#BVLP 1063). 

These two outings reveal a very pleasing mix of Smoky Babe’s sturdy pulsing guitar style, one that also included a staunch, throbbing bass pattern attack.  Also, he was not averse to occasionally utilizing a slide approach in his guitar playing.

Smoky Babe was also a confident, commanding vocalist, one that expressed a full delivery. 

Though the 1960s were the period of the folk blues revival, unfortunately, Smoky Babe did not realize the greater awareness this era afforded many blues artists.  No, he remained a rather mysterious figure in the greater Baton Rouge area, choosing to perform at various social events like private parties and picnics.  However, on the heels of his LPs, and his participation at various happenings, Smoky Babe all but vanished into obscurity.

To this day there remains uncertainty as to the year of Smoky Babe’s passing, with the years 1973 and 1975 being offered, though the accepted timeframe is May, 1973, with the location being in Scotlandville.

Once again the other night enjoying “Going Downtown Boogie” and “Ain’t Got No Rabbit Dog” reignited my appreciation for the blues of Smoky Babe.  I am certainly glad I picked his music from my collection.

Smoky Babe’s musical proficiencies would be best offered to blues fans via the magnificent compilations indicated below.  All are highly recommended.

• The Blues Of Smoky Babe: Hottest Brand Goin’ – Prestige Bluesville label #BVLP 1063
• Smoky Babe And His Friends – Hot Blues – Folk-Lyric label #FL-118
• Smoky Babe – Way Back In The Country Blues (The Lost Dr. Oster Recordings) – Arhoolie Records label #548 – As suggested, unearthed and previously unreleased Smoky babe sides
• Smoky Babe / Herman E. Johnson – Louisiana Country Blues – Arhoolie Records label #CD 440