Showing posts with label Alvin Youngblood Hart. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alvin Youngblood Hart. Show all posts

Friday, November 29, 2024

Alvin Youngblood Hart - Down In The Alley

Size: 219 MB
Time: 43:05
File: Flac
Released: 2002
Styles: Blues
Art: Front

1. Judge Bouche (4:08)
2. How Long Before I Change My Clothes (3:35)
3. Deep Blue Sea (2:20)
4. Jinx Blues (3:23)
5. Bootlegger's Blues (2:47)
6. Alberta (5:40)
7. Broke And Hungry (3:28)
8. Devil Got My Woman (3:07)
9. Chilly Winds (4:40)
10. Tom Rushen Blues (3:40)
11. Please Baby (3:01)
12. Motherless Child (3:11)

The cosmic American love child of Howlin Wolf and Link Wray! Known as a "musician's musician," Alvin Youngblood Hart's praises have been sung by everyone from Bob Dylan to Brit guitar gods Eric Clapton & Mick Taylor.

Since the release of his 1996 debut recording, the all-acoustic BIG MAMA'S DOOR, Hart has relayed his eclectic musical message around the world. A devout follower of the "no barriers" approach carved out by veteran performers like Gatemouth Brown and the late/great Doug Sahm, Hart aims to delight the masses and points to challenge the so-called blues purists. BIG MAMA'S DOOR was reviewed with blessings by Playboy with the prospect that Hart "had the power to bring the blues to Generation X" also stating that "Charley Patton would approve of Hart's version of Pony Blues, and the cover of Gallows Pole is the coolest since Led Zeppelin's".

Based on the strength of his record debut and the allure of his live shows, Hart received five nominations at the 1997 W.C. Handy Blues Awards. He was nominated for Best New Artist, Best Acoustic Artist, and Best Traditional Blues Artist and his album (BIG MAMA'S DOOR) was nominated for both Acoustic Album of the Year and Traditional Album of the Year. He received the award for Best New Artist. Hart also received two Living Blues Awards that same year. The anticipated sophomore release of TERRITORY in 1998 gave a rousing tribute to all forms of American music and received the Downbeat Magazine Critics' Poll Award for Best Blues Album (though TERRITORY is not a Blues album). The summer of 1999 found Hart teaming up with celebrated producer Jim Dickinson to begin recording START WITH THE SOUL, a record hailed as a new-breed Southern Rock classic and one that piloted Hart's return to the "sacred garage." START WITH THE SOUL was chosen by the New York Times as one of the top 10 releases of 2000, as well as the BBC's Blues Record of the Year.

In 2001 Hart shared Living Blues Magazine's best guitarist honors with fellow road dog Big Jack Johnson. The 2003 release of DOWN IN THE ALLEY garnered a Grammy nomination. Despite critics' recurring attempts to suggest Hart was "best enjoyed when performing solo", Hart continued to diversify his audience by extensively touring as a member of Job Cain, a hard-rocking side project he assembled with guitarist Audley Freed (Cry of Love/Black Crowes) and Nashville musician Robert Kearns (The Bottle Rockets/Lynyrd Skynyrd). In August of 2003, Hart was invited to fill in for Taj Mahal for five nights in Tokyo as a member of Kip Hanrahan's Conjure, the world's longest running jazz poetry ensemble. Assembled to lend musical support to the words of Bay Area poet Ishmael Reed, Conjure featured the talents of tenor sax giant David Murray and original Meters guitarist Leo Nocentelli. Hart remains a member of the revolving cast and recorded with the group on BAD MOUTH.

In 2004, Hart received a Grammy for his philanthropic contribution to the compilation BEAUTIFUL DREAMER: THE SONGS OF STEPHEN FOSTER. All of the proceeds from the recording benefited American Roots Publishing, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving American regional culture through literature and art. In the summer of 2005, fortified in the wake of much recognition and determined to defy any stereotypes attached to his artistry, Hart released the self-produced (and personal favorite) MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKER a rock guitar free-for-all, paying homage to fallen and missing rockers like Phil Lynott and Sly Stone. Hart's songwriting, singing and electric guitar prowess are all championed on this project and showcase the versatility he continuously strives to offer his fans and profession. In 2006, Hart collaborated with several Memphis area musicians in the Craig Brewer cult hit film "Black Snake Moan" by both serving as a guitar tutor to the film's leading actor, Samuel L. Jackson, and recording a duet with the film's female lead, Christina Ricci, for the film's riveting soundtrack. In the fall of 2006, Hart was invited to hit the road for two months with Rock-n-Roll legend Bo Diddley for what turned out to be Diddley's final coast to coast tour.

In April of 2007, Hart's extended and varied interests led him to influence his local educational arena by participating on a tour of Mississippi high schools as a member of the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz. Hart then joined fellow notable string playing colleagues Corey Harris, Don Vappie, Keb Mo and Guy Davis and contributed to the uniquely progressive 2007 OtisTaylor record RECAPTURING THE BANJO. Later that year, Hart was called upon to contribute his doyen knowledge of blues music to the Denzel Washington-co produced and directed film THE GREAT DEBATERS. Based on a true story about the black historical Wiley College debate team, the release of the film coincided with a nationally stepped-up effort by urban debate leagues to get hundreds of inner-city and financially challenged schools to establish debate programs (and short term loans help solve financial problems in Grand Prairie, TX). As an avid roots music performer and connoisseur, not only did Hart fit the bill to record predominately on the films dynamic soundtrack, Hart also proved a natural onscreen fit for the role of a juke joint musician. Songs for THE GREAT DEBATERS soundtrack were comprised of remakes of traditional blues and gospel songs from the 1920s and 1930s and were hand-picked by Denzel Washington from over 1000 selections.

A personal career highlight occurred in the summer of 2008 when Hart met the late Irish guitar legend Gary Moore. Moore invited Hart, a lifelong Thin Lizzy fan, onstage to jam with himself and original Thin Lizzy drummer, Brian Downey. In the Spring of 2009 Moore requested Hart's band as the opening act on a tour of Germany. Moore was seen offstage most every night with friends, cheering Hart's band along during their set. In 2010 Hart joined forces with friends Luther Dickinson (North Mississippi Allstars, Black Crowes) and Jimbo Mathus (Squirrel Nut Zippers, Tri-State Coalition) to form "The South Memphis String Band". The fun-loving and regaling trio was quickly dubbed by the media as an "acoustic super group". Recorded in a borrowed radio station studio while the band was on its first road trip, their debut record HOME SWEET HOME was received with rabid enthusiasm. The 2011 Blues Music Awards (The Blues Foundation) nominated the record for "Best Acoustic Album". The group plans to release a second album in the spring of 2012. When not touring solo or plugged in with his revered rock trio "Alvin Youngblood Hart's Muscle Theory", Hart enjoys researching, collecting, repairing and modifying obscure musical equipment.

Down In The Alley FLAC

Thursday, September 3, 2020

New Moon Jelly Roll Freedom Rockers - New Moon Jelly Roll Freedom Rockers Vol. 1

Size: 107,8 MB
Time: 46:14
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2020
Styles: Electric Blues, Blues Rock
Art: Full

01. Blues, Why You Worry Me (Feat. Charlie Musselwhite) (6:55)
02. Pony Blues (Feat. Alvin Youngblood Hart) (4:07)
03. Night Time (Feat. Jimbo Mathus) (5:05)
04. Come On Down To My House (Feat. Jim Dickinson) (4:16)
05. K.C. Moan (Feat. Charlie Musselwhite) (3:06)
06. Let’s Work Together (Feat. Jim Dickinson) (4:24)
07. Strange Land (Feat. Charlie Musselwhite) (6:49)
08. Shake It And Break It (Feat. Jimbo Mathus) (2:50)
09. Stone Free (Feat. Alvin Youngblood Hart) (3:40)
10. Stop And Listen Blues (Feat. Alvin Youngblood Hart) (4:55)

This is the first volume of music from roots “super group,” New Moon Jelly Roll Freedom Rockers: Charlie Musselwhite, Alvin Youngblood Hart, Jimbo Mathus, the late Jim Dickinson, and North Mississippi Allstars members Luther Dickinson and Cody Dickinson. Recorded at the Zebra Ranch Recording Studio in Hernando, Mississippi, the 10 blues-drenched tracks of sublime roots music on New Moon Jelly Roll Freedom Rockers Volume 1 will be followed in the spring of 2021 by Volume 2.

The New Moon Jelly Roll Freedom Rockers originated back in January, 2008, when musician brothers Luther and Cody Dickinson sat down for a guitar jam with ex-Squirrel Nut Zippers leader Jimbo Mathus, along with blues greats Charlie Musselwhite, Alvin Youngblood Hart and the late Memphis pianist, producer and all around musical stylist Jim Dickinson, gathered for a self-described “hardcore blues” recording under the group name of the New Moon Jelly Roll Freedom Rockers.

For more than 12 years, that recording’s existence was mentioned only obscurely in interviews, and referenced as a great old-school recording by those few witnesses. It was done in one take off-the- floor over a couple of late nights, where the musicians all sat in one big circle in the studio and played quietly amongst the microphones, taking turns singing out in the room and improvising on the spot. Despite the fact that Jim Dickinson finished production before his death in summer of 2009, the album just hung out in the archives, waiting. It is a testament to the great experience and talent of these esteemed performers that they could casually conjure a recording of this quality out of the ether this way, sounding as if the listener is right there in the room with them, with between-song banter and commentary, the classic structures of the blues, being pulled together and teased apart by some of the most award-decorated members of the blues elite. This album crosses the generations of new blues-rockers and classic blues statesmen.

It is a testament to the great experience and talent of these esteemed performers that they could casually conjure a recording of this quality out of the ether this way. Sounding as if you are right there in the room with them with between-song banter and commentary, the classic structures of the Blues, being pulled together and teased apart by some of the most award-decorated members of the Blues Elite. This album crosses the generations of new BluesRockers and Classic Blues Statesmen.

New Moon Jelly Roll Freedom Rockers Vol. 1 MP3
New Moon Jelly Roll Freedom Rockers Vol. 1 FLAC

Saturday, June 9, 2018

VA - Old Time Blues Mix

Size: 204,9 MB
Time: 86:43
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2018
Styles: Elecric/Acoustic Blues, Blues Rock
Art: Front

01 Leadbelly - Where Did You Sleep Last Night (3:01)
02 Sammy Price - Jelly Roll Junior Blues (3:02)
03 Faces - Jerusalem (1:51)
04 Delaney & Bonnie & Friends - Come On In My Kitchen - Mama, He Treats Your Daughter Mean Going Down The Road Feeling Bad (4:13)
05 Blind Willie McTell - The Razor Ball (2:51)
06 Odetta - Gallows Tree (Gallows Pole) (2:49)
07 Mississippi Fred Mcdowell - Freight Train Blues (3:03)
08 Tim Hardin - I Cant Slow Down (3:25)
09 Felix Dukes - Motherless Children (2:49)
10 Kelly Joe Phelps - Goodnight Irene (5:38)
11 James Shorty - I Want Jesus To Walk With Me (3:43)
12 Odetta - Midnight Special (2:34)
13 Alvin Youngblood Hart - Illinois Blues (4:19)
14 60,000,000 Buffalo - American Money Blues (5:36)
15 Dr. John - Dear Old Southland (2:41)
16 Thorstein Bergman - How Long Blues (Demo 1965) (2:34)
17 Tim Buckley - Hong Kong Bar (6:57)
18 The Paul Butterfield Blues Band - I Got My Mojo Working (3:32)
19 Maria Muldaur - Honey Babe Blues (3:07)
20 Charlie Norman - Boogie Woogie On St. Louis Blues (3:00)
21 Ray Charles - Mr. Charles Blues (2:47)
22 Mose Allison - Rollin' Stone (2:59)
23 Geoff Muldaur - Tennessee Blues (3:37)
24 Beausoleil - Les Blues De Chaleur (Hot Blues) (3:19)
25 Champion Jack Dupree - Strollin' (3:06)

Old Time Blues Mix

Saturday, September 24, 2016

Alvin Youngblood Hart - Big Mama's Door

Time: 48:53
Size: 111.9 MB
Source: LL
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Styles: Blues
Released: 1995
Covers: Full

1. Big Mama's Door {3:51}
2. Joe Friday {2:42}
3. Them Fair Weather Friends {5:08}
4. France Blues {3:21}
5. Gallows Pole {4:45}
6. Pony Blues {3:32}
7. Amazed 'N' Amused {2:15}
8. Things 'Bout Coming My Way {4:43}
9. When I was A Cowboy {3:14}
10. Rest Your Saddle {2:41}
11. If Blues Were Money {3:38}
12. Hillbilly Willie's Blues {3:30}
13. Livin' In A Strain {3:51}
14. That Kate Adams Jive {1:35}

The debut recording of 33-year-old Hart is extraordinarily simple and simply extraordinary. Except for three cuts on which he's joined by Taj Mahal, Big Mama's Door is just Hart on acoustic guitar and vocals, and he's not doing anything fancy -- just playing prewar-style blues, mostly in a percussive Delta manner, recorded live to two-track. Yet he succeeds so well in blending technique and feeling, structure and spontaneity, tradition and freshness that he produces a minor gem of a blues record, evocative of the blues masters of the 1920s and '30s. He covers Leadbelly, Blind Willie McTell, Charley Patton, and the Mississippi Sheiks and does originals that replicate older blues idioms, not just in the notes but in the nuances, and in the personal commitment he brings to the material.
AllMusic Review by Steve Hoffman

No small wonder that Taj Mahal was recruited to pen a few introductory remarks to acolyte, Alvin's,'Big Mamma'. And more than this, he sits in on three tunes to further endorse the man who, for all intents and purposes on this gem, would appear to be his heir apparent. The mix of re-arranged Delta Blues and self-penned material, the multi-instrumental accomplishmnet and that inimitable afro-American vocalising, is everything that Taj has reverently worked over down the decades. Hart's songs sit seamlessly with the archival stuff. as,'Rest You Saddle' and,'If the Blues was Money' demonstarte.'Gallows pole' and McTell's,'Hillbilly Willie's Blues' are exemplary. An especial thrill for me is my favourite Ledbelly,'When I was a Cowboy Out on the Western Plain', as complete a snapshot of cinematic breadth as you'll hear condensed into a few minutes. This is a thrilling album. Blessed with such 'grasp of the idioms, tone, humour, irony, joy, and breadth' of tradition, to quote Taj, it will serve as a powerful foundation for a wide-eyed approach to re-invigorating music.

Big Mama's Door
Surprise 01

Alvin Youngblood Hart - Start With The Soul

Time: 46:37
Size: 106.7 MB
Source: LL
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Styles: Blues
Released: 2000
Covers: Full

1. Fightin' Hard {2:55}
2. Manos Arriba {3:32}
3. Treat Her Like A Lady {4:01}
4. Once Again {2:10}
5. Porch Monkeys' Theme {4:46}
6. Electric Eel {5:14}
7. Back To Memphis {3:06}
8. Cowboy Boots {3:00}
9. A Prophet's Mission {3:53}
10. Cryin' Shame {3:26}
11. The Hustler {2:07}
12. Maxwell Street Jimmy {3:35}
13. Will I Ever Get Back Home? {4:44}

Guitarist Alvin Youngblood Hart dedicates his third release Start With the Soul to, among others, the late Thin Lizzy leader Phil Lynott. This isn't just lip service, as you can immediately hear when the opening roar of "Fightin' Hard" comes blaring through. Hart doesn't go out of his way to appeal only to blues followers. He has the natural ability to fuse twangy country, Hendrix, funk, and reggae into his Delta blues style without regard to genres. Start With the Soul is unlike other releases from artists who at the beginning of their career display an acoustic Delta approach only to end up incorporating a very commercial soul sound for the sake of reaching a wider audience or receiving minuscule radio airplay. The choice of cover versions is revealing; Chuck Berry's "Back to Memphis," Cornelius Brothers and Sister Rose's 1971 hit "Treat Her Like a Lady," and the Sonics' mid-'60s garage rocker "The Hustler" lose none of the vigor of the originals. Credit should be given to the legendary Memphis producer Jim Dickinson for capturing the gritty sound critical to this kind of undertaking.
It will be interesting to see where Hart goes with future releases.
AllMusic Review by Al Campbell

Big Mama's Door showed us Greg "Alvin Youngblood" Hart exploring his Delta roots. Territory gave us a hint of things to come, with blues, honky tonk, rock and more tossed in a delightful musical stew. On this, his third release, Hart shows a maturity that is astonishing. This is one of the best albums of the year. Not one of the best blues albums, but one of the best albums despite the genre. It's too bad that Hannibal/Rykodisc doesn't have the publicity power of a major label, since a little more exposure would surely land Hart in the middle of mainstream success. For now, he's a tasty musical delight for those who know to seek him out. If his third effort is this great, what do we have to look forward to? I saw Hart on the Grateful Dead reunion-style Furthur Festival in '96 and he impressed me then. He's come a long, long way in four years. He's surely destined to be one of the top musical stars of the 21st Century. Check him out now, before be breaks into the big time. That way, you can say, "Yeah, I knew of him back when..." Five stars. A very, very well-made pair of cowboy boots indeed!

Start With The Soul

Alvin Youngblood Hart - Territory

Time: 46:38
Size: 106.8 MB
Source: LL
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Styles: Blues
Released: 1998
Covers: Full

1. Tallacatcha {3:06}
2. Illinois Blues {4:19}
3. Ouachita Run {2:39}
4. Sallie, Queen of the Pines {3:44}
5. Countryside {7:17}
6. Ice Rose {4:02}
7. Dancing with Tears in my Eyes {2:46}
8. Mama don't allow {5:34}
9. John Hardy {4:30}
10. Just about to go {4:04}
11. Underway at seven {4:33}

Hart is so determined to display his stylistic dexterity that he winds up wandering all over the map: country swing, blues, reggae, gutbucket rock. Each selection is worthy, although a more consistent thematic thread would make the album more listenable.
AllMusic Review by Tim Sheridan

Territory is an excursion into Alvin Youngblood Hart's adventure with music. Hart born in Oakland in 1963, uses music to discover the adventures in life and to weave common threads to connect his lifetime and history to the his influences and experiences. Although Hart was raised in Oakland he spent his Summers with his grand parents in the hill country of Northern Mississippi and while there he developed an appreciation for the countryside, learned to ride horses and learned about the diverse musicians and music of the Mississippi Delta. He was introduced to the work such musicians as Charlie Patton, Skip James, Ledbelly and Bukka White. His parents exposed him to the more recent blues of Jimmy Reed, BB King and Jimmy Witherspoon. Growing up in the 60's and 70's he was influenced by Jimi Hendrix and the Rolling Stones.
Alvin Youngblood Hart is an impressive sight. He stands nearly 6'6" and weighs 250. He wears his hair in long dread locks and clothing of choice are flannel shirts and blue jeans. Watching him on stage is a rare treat. He is a skillful musician and vocalist who willingly takes chances and avoids being pigeonholed. How many blues musicians would choose to do a song as Dancing with Tears in My Eyes, composed in the 1920's by song writing team Al Dubin and Joe Burke, who are also known for "Tiptoe through the Tulips?"
Territory is indeed an adventure covering many different song styles and influences from rock to country to folk to blues to psychedelic. This has been a rap against the cd by those who would choose that Hart be pigeonholed into only doing acoustic blues which he did so eloquently on Big Mama's Door. Thankfully he is willing to take chances and has presented us with this album which is expanding and enlightening to the listener.Read more ›

Territory

Thursday, September 22, 2016

Alvin Youngblood Hart - Motivational Speaker

Time: 57:53
Size: 132.5 MB
Source: LL
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Styles: Blues
Released: 2005
Covers: Full

1. Big Mama's Door (Might Return) {5:51}
2. Motivational Speaker {3:58}
3. Stomp Dance {4:15}
4. In My Time Of Dying {6:42}
5. Lawd I'm Just A Country Boy In This Great Big Freaky City {3:09}
6. My World Is Round {3:25}
7. Nobody's Fault But Mine {2:35}
8. Shoot Me A Grin {4:16}
9. The Worm {4:11}
10. Necessary Roughness ( A Power Move) {3:23}
11. The Meanest Jukebox In Town {3:57}
12. How Long Before I Change My Clothes {5:57}
13. Shootout On I-55 {6:08}

Bluesman Alvin Youngblood Hart's Motivational Speaker is his first outing since Down in the Alley, his stellar, acoustic collection of covers from 2002. Cut in Memphis with a very electric trio that includes Gary Rasmussen (former Rationals and Sonic's Rendezvous bassist) and drummer Ed Michaels, the album is a hard-edged, wooly, dirt-under-the-nails affair. Hart produced the set himself and brought in a number of guests including Jim and Luther Dickinson, Audley Freed, Richard Ford, Susan Marshall, Richard Rosenblatt, and Jim Spake. The album kicks off with a nasty redo of Hart's signature tune "Big Mama's Door," with slide guitars wrangling and popping before exploding into the title cut, another original that notches the volume level up two and pushes the raw, funky quotient through the roof. Hart's cover of "In My Time of Dying" is another traditional tune, reclaimed from Led Zeppelin (the first was "Gallow's Pole" on his debut). The sonics here are reminiscent of Neil Young & Crazy Horse until Hart begins to sing: his blues wail is emotionally taut, open, low and primal. Likewise, his own cover of Otis Redding's "Nobody's Fault but Mine" (Zep did it on Presence) features a raunchy horn section and scorches with its loose, almost unglued manner adding a whole new dimension. However, rather than merely being heard as a way to set the record straight, it is just as valid to listen to these tunes as a tribute to Led Zep. Despite his instinct for great covers -- including Paul Rodgers' "The Worm" and "How Long Before I Change My Clothes," or the reverent honky tonk read of Johnny Paycheck's "The Meanest Jukebox in Town," it's Hart's originals and the over-the-red-line attack this band plays them with that are the album's true standouts -- check the guitar freak-out on "Shoot Me a Grin" and the stomping, riff-heavy blues-rock of "Necessary Roughness." Motivational Speaker is a solid, rootsy raucous chapter in the unfolding saga of the era's most diverse bluesman.
AllMusic Review by Thom Jurek

Alvin Youngblood Hart returns to the '70s guitar rock he stabbed at on his 2000 release "Start With the Soul." While that record was eclectic, this one is mostly filled by one bluesy, ballsy rocker after another, from the opening track through the Robin Trower-esque "Creek Stomp," the Crazy-Horse meets Govt Mule groove of "In My Time of Dying" and the ZZ-Top inspired boogie of "Shoot me a Grin." To keep things interesting, Mr. Hart throws curves with Doug Sahm's "Lawd I'm Just . . ." and Johnny Paycheck's "Meanest Jukebox." In all, a very good guitar-rock record for those of us who like that sort of thing.

Motivational Speaker