[rating=8.00]
Fans of The North Mississippi Allstars and perhaps even casual attendees of their shows may quickly recognize more than a few of the songs on Luther Dickinson’s musicological endeavor Blues & Ballads. But “Bang Bang Lulu” and “Shake (Yo Mama)” sound markedly different in the understated form in which they appear on A Folksinger’s Songbook Volumes I & II.
That’s not to suggest those tunes are any more or less authentic here than in the electrified abandon of NMA. But the former track is adorned with multiple bottleneck guitars and boogie-woogie piano that clearly delineate it from group arrangements and the opening cut is likewise distinguished: the version of “Hurry Up Sunrise” on Electric Blue Watermelon is markedly impatient compared to this deliciously anticipatory rendition.
Such intimacy, genuine as it is, might still sound precious at best and pretentious at worst coming from a musician less deeply-steeped in the roots of this style than Luther Dickinson. Along with sibling Cody, with whom he’s fronted the Allstars for over twenty years, he’s son of the late Jim Dickinson, native Southern musician who worked at Sun Studios and as producer of the diverse likes of the Rolling Stones and the Replacements. Blues and Ballads isn’t merely an academic exercise or an indulgence in style, but rather a deliberate artistic rediscovery. Even so, it isn’t just “Storm” that sounds utterly contemporary here, with its panning of sound echoed around muted electric guitar and fiddle.
Luther Dickinson wrote or co-wrote most of this material here, so its makes sense a tune like “Moonshine” resonates with vivid images of personal experience: after all it was composed with his father. But there’s a larger true-to-life aspect to this project too as it was recorded with a roster of like-minded musicians and singers with whom this man’s collaborated in various configurations over the years: J.J Grey (The Southern Soul Assembly), Alvin “Youngblood” Hart and Jimbo Mathus (South Memphis String Band) plus Amy LaVere and Sharde Thomas (The Wandering) offer their musicianship throughout bereft of ego within largely acoustic, economical arrangements like that bestowed upon “Ain’t No Grave.”
The undercurrent of gospel style that permeates these twenty-one tracks is never more prominent than here which is little surprise given Mavis Staples appears on it! Nor is it anything less than perfectly logical that her work with Dickinson on this song, written in the wake of the elder Dickinson’s death, actually gave birth to Blues & Ballads. The abiding pleasure Dickinson and co. take in these recordings give it personal meaning even beyond family and artistic connections because this is a labor of love loyally devoted to the music. As a result, the technique on display on an instrumental like “Horseshoe (Reprise)” becomes informed with a resonance impossible to miss, especially as an alternate take closes the album.
The holistic approach at the heart of Blues & Ballads: A Folksinger’s Songbook Volumes I & II virtue carries through to the graphics of the package. Reproduction of handwritten lyrics appear inside the CD (or vinyl LP) booklet, while spanning the inside cover is a black and white portrait of Luther Dickinson that looks as timeless as the music sounds.
