Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 09/19/2006
Although they may mix elements of
hip-hop, classic
metal, and
alternative rock into their repertoire,
the North Mississippi Allstars are really a power
blues trio whose members lean heavily on the kind of Mississippi
folk-blues numbers they learned firsthand from the likes of
R.L. Burnside,
Junior Kimbrough, and
Othar Turner, an approach that has given
the NMA a solid grounding in local
blues history as well as a solid sense of place. The two-disc
The Early Years packages together the group's first two albums, 2000's
Shake Hands with Shorty and 2001's
51 Phantom, and the two outings fit seamlessly together.
Shake Hands is made up entirely of
NMA versions of classic old
blues numbers originally done by the likes of
Fred McDowell (
"Drop Down Mama," "Shake 'Em on Down," "Drinkin' Muddy Water," "Someday Baby"),
Burnside (
"Po Black Maddie," "Skinny Woman," "Goin' Down South"),
Furry Lewis (
"KC Jones"), and
Kimbrough (
"All Night Long"), and the local North Mississippi
modal drone approach offers
the Allstars a perfect springboard into a loose, ragged, but powerfully tight sound that somehow manages to seem both reverently
traditional and completely contemporary at the same time.
Phantom features mostly
NMA originals (they do tackle versions of
Kimbrough's
"Lord Have Mercy" and
Pops Staples'
"Freedom Highway"), like the impressive
"Snakes in My Bushes" and the ancient-sounding
"Sugartown," that build on old
blues templates until there is essentially no difference in tone or feel between the group's original songs and the
blues covers they do.
The North Mississippi Allstars seem to straddle two worlds with their sound, the old one with fife-and-drum bands playing
"Sitting on Top of the World" and the new one of the 21st century with its drum machines, looped samples, and sharp edits.
The Allstars make it all sound like one big muddy Mississippi world, and having the group's first two albums paired together like this just widens that world until it feels more than substantial.
~Steve Leggett, All Music Guide
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