High water Masters

VARIOUS ARTISTS - MEMPHIS BLUES BANDS AND SINGERS: THE 1980'S

This is the final disc in a 20-volume series of discs released on the High Water label, which was actually established for this purpose by the University of Memphis.

THE FIELDSTONES - MUD ISLAND BLUES

One of the few remnants of the homegrown Memphis blues scene since its virtual cessation at the end of the 1950s, the Fieldstones made some rough and ready electric blues with soul and rock influences from the mid-1970s through the early 1990s. Their sound was characterized by a two-guitar front line and a raw, chunky groove not too far removed from the sort of Mississippi juke joint blues that Fat Possum recorded in the 1990s. (Richie Unterberger; Allmusic.com)

THE HOLLYWOOD ALL STARS - HARD HITTING BLUES FROM MEMPHIS

CD reissue of raw and raunchy 1987 Highwater LP that lives up to its title and delivers a knockout punch..

Bluesaccess.com

THE FIELDSTONES - MEMPHIS BLUES TODAY

The Fieldstones are still revered in Memphis for providing some quality live blues in the 1980s, when such music was almost unknown in the city. Their 1983 album is reasonably fun, but not exceptional, modern electric blues with a more spontaneous feel than most of the discs coming out on higher-profile indie labels of the time; the guitar playing especially has a higher and lighter feel than the norm. -allmusic.com Richie Unterberger

THE HARPS OF MELODY - SING AND MAKE MELODY UNTO THE LORD

A cappella gospel singing with a different twist was the province of the Memphis-based group the Harps of Melody. Creating a stir around Memphis with their "soft" harmony, totally at odds with the usual hard singing and screaming in favor in most gospel circles. Their recorded legacy consisted of only two singles on the local Philwood and Designer labels (both featuring the only examples of the group singing to backing instruments) with a collection of live and studio a cappella performances from the 1980s finally seeing issuance in 1998. The group stayed together for almost 50 years, their ranks finally decimated by the deaths of Lillian Jones, Ruth Youngblood and Clara Anderson in the mid-1990s, putting an end to one of Memphis' longest-running, and most unique, gospel singing units. (Cub Koda, Allmusic.com)

DEEP SOUTH BLUES

Those who believe that the newer, cruder recording of Mississippi bluesmen playing distorted electric guitars is some newly recorded phenomenon should grab this collection and get straight. In it, they'll find 15 superb homemade performances, all of them put down for posterity in the early '80s, proof that the scene was being documented early and excellently. Kicking off with two dynamite sides from Junior Kimbrough, the set moves on with riveting performances from Jessie Mae Hemphill, R.L. Burnside and the Sound Machine, Hezekiah and the Houserockers, Raymond Hill, Hammie Nixon, Waynell Jones, and Ranie Burnette. This is riveting stuff -- not for the casual blues fan. By Cub Coda Allmusic.com

THE JUBRIT SISTERS - SING SISTER SING!

The Jubirt Sisters recorded for for the High Water label in the early to mid-'80s. A blues-oriented vocal trio, the Jubirt Sisters were versatile enough to sound comfortable singing rock, soul, lowdown blues, and even a little jazz. The music overall is pleasing and full of spirit, making one wonder why the Jubirt Sisters have not as of this writing had an encore on record. (Scott Yanow; Allmusic.com)

THE PATTERSONAIRES - BOOK OF THE SEVEN SEALS

This Memphis-based eight-man gospel singing group stopped performing together after the death of leader Willie Gordon in 1997. Book of the Seven Seals was originally released on LP in 1984, and is augmented on this reissue by one new track, the stirring "Go Down, Moses." This is old-school gospel singing at its best, and the combination of tender sentiments and robust vocal interplay on songs like "Call Me (Here I Am)" and "I'm His, He's Mine" is wonderful. Other highlights include a complexly harmonized, triple-meter arrangement of "How Great Thou Art" and the title track, a surprisingly cheerful account of the Apocalypse. (Rick Anderson, Allmus

THE PATTERSONAIRES - WHY NOT TRY MY GOD

Clara Anderson in the mid-1990s, putting an end to one of Memphis' longest-running, and most unique, gospel singing units. (Cub Koda, Allmusic.com)

THE SPIRIT OF MEMPHIS QUARTET - TRAVELING ON

This is solid contemporary-electric gospel with blues and soul colorations, sticking to basic guitar-bass-drums instrumentation, and trading lead vocals between five of the members. The definite highlight is "I Believe in God," twhich could pass for a vintage Impressions cut save for the overtly spiritual lyrics. The rewording of the Platters' "Only You" into "Only Jesus," though, is kind of hokey. Mostly group originals, with a few traditional standards as well. -allmusic.com Richie Unterberger

VARIOUS ARTISTS - HAPPY IN THE SERVICE OF THE LORD: VOLUME 1

VARIOUS ARTISTS - HAPPY IN THE SERVICE OF THE LORD: VOLUME 2

BLUES BUSTERS - BUSTED!

The Blues Busters were a group of local Memphis musicians who banded together and toured and recorded for a short period of time in the 1980s. The group only stayed together for about a year and only recorded 13 sides which were originally released on a High water album by producer David Nelson in 1986 with a 1999 CD reissue that also featured three tracks of an earlier lineup which featured "Funky' John Cole on bass and William "Boogie Man" Hubbard on keyboards.(Cub Koda; Allmusic.com)

CHICAGO BOB AND THE SHADOWS - JUST YOUR FOOL

Atlanta-based singer/harmonica man Chicago Bob originally released this album in 1987, backed by the Shadows, the house band at the popular Blind Willie's blues club. Bob (real name Robert Lee Nelson) shows a fine flair for songwriting on "Call My Landlady," "Your Time to Choose," "Stop What You're Doing" and "Bogalusa Boogie," injecting verses that are a cut above your standard blues couplets and show a sharp eye for imagery. Of special interest is the soul-inflected "You Belong to Me" (not originally issued), a tune that Bob learned from Magic Sam but one that remained unrecorded until this session. (Cub Koda, Allmusic.com)

HAMMIE NIXON - TAPPIN' THAT THING

Former Sleepy John Estes musical partner moves out on his own with this collection of solo recordings from the early 1980s. These recordings find Nixon laying down vocals and working his magic on jug, kazoo and harmonica in more of a jug band setting. That Nixon still had a lot of gas left in the tank is very evident from the energetic versions of "Sugar Mama," "It's a Good Place to Go," and the title track. The inclusion of drums on three tracks blasts the music further into the realm of an amplified session, but Nixon retains his country edges regardless of setting. (Cub Koda, Allmusic.com)

HEZEKIAH AND THE HOUSE ROCKERS

With the most interesting instrumentation of any blues trio that's ever existed, quite simply nothing else in the blues sounds like Hezekiah & the Houserockers. Led by Hezekiah Early on drums and harmonica (taped to a vocal mike stand), the trio is filled out by guitarist James Baker's boogie bass-heavy guitar and Leon "Pee Wee" Whitaker on vocals and trombone. With both harp and trombone working as independent soloists, the effect is not unlike listening to a Dixieland jug band masquerading as a Mississippi juke joint blues band. Hezekiah's harp work is firmly grounded in a Sonny Terry country style, while his drumming shows simple, unrelenting drive. The economy of all three players makes for a combined sound that also shows flashes of wind and percussion bands spot-welded to the blues tradition, making for a most unique blend. There are several pieces on here that feature only Early's harp and drumming ("Alabama Bound," "Hezekiah's Boogie," "Harmonica Shuffle," "Whoopin' Blues"), but for all the traditional material, their set list frequently heads into territory that can only be described as surreal, like "Disco Fever," "Do Your Thing" and "Mary Had a Little Lamb," the trio's weird and wonderful attempts at funk. But even when they're tackling old warhorses like "Baby What You Want Me to Do," "When the Saints Go Marching In" and "Whole Lot of Shakin' Goin' On," their versions stand alone. Whatever blues you might have in your collection, you don't have anything that sounds like this. - allmusic.com Cub Koda