April 2010

  • Buddy Moss - "Prowlin' Gambler Blues" (Video)

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/16/10 6:35pm
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    Never heard the name before, but he's huge in Atlanta (wink). Either way, Moss' song fits into a broader tradition of songs commenting on the problematic life of a gambler. Ramblin' indeed.

  • Elizabeth Cotten: Trains, Folk Songs and Standards

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/7/10 5:38pm
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    Born in a relatively small North Carolina town not too far from Chapel Hill, Elizabeth Nevills grew up around her musician brothers and borrowed their gear while no one was looking. If anyone had been paying attention, though, they most likely would have been shocked. As it was, Nevills developed her style in private, playing for herself on the banjo more frequently than a six string guitar to begin with. But after cobbling together some money she earned as a maid, the nascent musician purchased herself a guitar.

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  • Bo Diddley Updates His Sound...

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/6/10 9:53am
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    Trying to figure out the number of acts that guitarist and singer Bo Diddley influenced would probably take the better part of one’s life. Tracking down the endless covers of his music spread around on low run singles from the ‘60s would take up a tremendous portion of that time and probably eventually prove incomplete. Diddley’s sway over rock and roll, in its subject matter, tone and every other aspect of the music, can’t ever be overstated.

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