Defining various blues genres becomes difficult simply based upon the notion of urban and country. Players from the South, obviously, moved away to land record deals in major cities like Chicago and New York. Their arrival marked the beginning of those urban works, but with all of its roots based in more bucolic places, the distinction seems odd.

Clifford Gibson grew up in Kentucky – which is an odd space itself, neither the North or the South, just somewhere in between. After picking up musical cues from his cohort, though, Gibson high tailed it to St. Louis, where he’d spend the rest of his days.

While there, he cut a number of sides – no more than thirty – and even accompanied Jimmie Rodgers on his "Let Me Be Your Side Track." Despite that, Gibson never become one of the most talked about players of his generation.

There’s no accounting for market desires, but Gibson’s performances, as compiled on various discs and specifically on the Yazoo issued Beat You Doing It, easily rank amongst some of the most deft of the period. The problem, though, seems to be two fold. His voice, while not distressing, doesn’t distance itself from most of what was being recorded at the time. That doesn’t mean he couldn’t carry a tune, there just wasn’t a magical air about it. “Old Time Rider” is a pretty good example of Gibson’s guitar playing being the match for just about anyone, while his voice just kinda lays atop it all. Of course, other players were able to get over with a unique vocal style, but there was a hook – maybe some untoward gruffness ala street preachers. It just wasn’t in Gibson, though.

The issue of his vocals being relatively indistinguishable from anyone else bleeds over into his guitar playing. Gibson unquestionably possessed a concise style, one amped up with improvisation on occasion as evidenced by the title track and innumerable other sections represented here. But for the most part, it simply sounds of its place and time without moving beyond too many other players. It was still impeccably performed, just not work that’s going to stick in your head.

But that’s acoustic blues – as opposed to country or city. Some folks, myself included, have a difficult time sussing out what makes a work unique if its rendered in the same terms as countless other sides. Regardless of all of that, though, Gibson cut a few sides in 1960 with a band backing him that would probably be worth tracking down.