John Lee Hooker – Sings Blues – Ember Records EMBCD 3356

Perhaps more so than any modern-day blues artist, John Lee Hooker’s blues music was polarizing.  It can be argued that there was a certain sameness to the bulk of Hooker’s recorded blues output.  The idiosyncratic sense of timing and structure, the rather rudimentary totality of his guitar skill set, the highly-familiar dark, foreboding, and haunting nature of the majority of his blues atmosphere, all lend to a repetitiveness of Hooker’s blues style. 

On this collection, the stomping of his foot, the sometimes half singing, half speaking lyrical delivery, repeated stanzas, and the highly-distorted black guitar flourishes seem to play into the sameness notion of Hooker’s approach, one that would follow him throughout his career, even at this early stage in his musical development.  But, and this is the major point, it works well.  Indeed, very well.

This Hooker collection was originally released in album format for Cincinnati’s King label, I believe in 1960.  All the blues here were recorded as 78rpm singles during the period 1948-1950 primarily for the JVB label, with one I think being recorded for the Staff label.  At the time of the original 1960 King label release, the album had four additional songs attributed to Earl Hooker.  Ember Records originally released this collection on album with only the 12 Hooker blues, and remains true to that release with this CD re-issue.

Hooker recorded these blues under his Texas Slim alias.  Like many blues artists, to maximize recording opportunities, and perhaps evade contractual provisions, Hooker too used aliases to be able to record his music and get it distributed to as wide an audience as possible.

On these early blues, Hooker visits themes that would remain part of his lore that would follow him during the entirety of his career, primarily unfortunate affairs of the heart.  Here, his vocals are clearer and highly-declamatory, in contrast to the more subdued method he deployed later.  They are less of a growl, and in fact, are quite intelligible.

His guitar handiwork arrives in counterpoint to his lyrical significances, at times plodding in that familiar Hooker boogie shuffle attack.  But at other moments, they punch with the weight of a heavyweight boxer in a theatrical barraging of voluminous attitude necessary to drive home the vocals’ temperament.

In August, 1987 was the last time I saw Hooker play.  He was in concert at the Park West venue on Chicago’s north side.  The Park West was a movie theater until roughly 1987, when it was converted into a concert venue.  As such, there is an intimacy to the setting.  Joanna Connor opened the show with her fiery brand of blues, placing the large crowd in high anticipation for Hooker’s appearance.

He did not disappoint, sitting front-and-center on-stage, dark sunglasses mirroring the mood of his brand of blues, his full suit and stylish hat appropriate for a bluesman of immense renown.  I remember organist Deacon Jones being in Hooker’s band, but can’t recall the remainder of his aggregation.  But, the show was a tutorial of the Hooker approach and catalog.

This CD, while uniformly a great glimpse into Hooker’s early, evolving life’s calling, is worth the price of admission simply for the listening indulgences of “Slim’s Stomp” and “Devil’s Jump”.  “Devi’s Jump” is a confident vocal drill by Hooker in his recurring boogie format that features some of his most clear signing.  It is just flat-out enjoyable.  “Slim’s Stomp” could be erroneously passed-off as a rather erratic Hooker boogie workout, his “same old, same old” blues structure.  Nothing could be more incorrect.  This seems to be Hooker stretching-out and showing the listener his ability to raise a ruckus, employing all his manic blues guitar skills.  The pace of this cut is dizzying.  Both cuts ride on the back of Hooker’s ever-present pounding foot rhythms.  It is Hooker of the highest order.

If you like your blues spontaneous, erratic, mostly shadowy, all with a boogie undertone, Hooker is your artist, and this CD is for you.  This is a fine representation of Hooker’s blues music style at its best.  Seek this one out!