John Lee Hooker
"It Serve You Right to Suffer"
I was first hipped to this one during a teenaged Car City Records recommend-fest from future bandmate Tom Potter. I bought it on CD. I'm sure that disc is still buried in the depths of the basement somewhere. I found a nice slick Impulse LP pressing a few years back that has me re-appreciating. In light of Dirtbombs New Year's Eve afterglow it reminds me of quite a memorable Blind Pig soundcheck a decade ago.
We were just goofing, killing time, fell backwards into a standard blues that slowly crescendoed into VOLUME with nothing but head nods for direction between us, and Troy steps up to the mic and drops the lyrics to this title track. BURNED INTO MY MIND. So good, so stark. Who knows when we'll play again, reminiscing with the guys over the past week was just as fun as playing the show.
A full LP of blues can be hard for me to stomach, but somehow, this one endures. It feels unburdened with gimmickry or bombast. It's deceivingly understated...and almost spooky as a result. "Shake It, Baby" is stone cold, the Screws cover definitely worth peeping and I can often be found intoning "And one more!" to myself. "Bottle Up and Go" I'd first heard via a Billy Childish cover but this original brims with a tenuous swagger. Smooth. Dare I say, this is probably my favorite outright blues LP. Take that, Jon Spencer.
I don't know if there's something to be said that this is a blues record on a predominantly jazz label. I don't know the impetus or reasoning behind this record and am wholly unconcerned with digging down to find it. And the fact that the title is "Serve" and not "Serves" is the icing on the cake. Long live the Detroit Lion in this 100th anniversary of his birth.
Damn, is that the mono pressing?
Nice one, Blackwell. Thanx.
Thanks Ben! I really enjoy reading your record of the week!
funny how this conversation echoes that which the faceless/nameless only-in-chat-lurking entity called Troo started to try and direct my way just the other day…… to understand the baseline of any evolution of living expressions such as culture through art and especially that of music which has always been craft first then possibly notation and presence with potentially recognizable elements that fit into a genre or a specific period or epoch of social movements with definitive individual voice or sounds/groupings who have been capable of registering both memorable personal style and finally individual signature pieces which can only be copies or embellished upon thereafter it is up to the audience to know and acknowledge the structural components as basic elements…. in the case of blues or true american folk music as is the actual genre to which all its subsequent stepchildren known as jazz/soul/rhythm and funk/rock and roll/honkytonk/bluegrass or newgrass/country – western/hardcore/hip hop/beat poet rap and pop artists have come to accept that it is their choice of instrumentation and distinct time signatures that define their musical lineage and those give credit as homage to their place in the evolution of the sacred process of cultural contribution…. just because you say you are heavy metal or rock doesnt make it so… case and point would be the saxophone triphop country gangsters that have more in common with james brown tahn they do hank williams… for me a label or a need for a label indicates the true absence of the definitive signatures that either a real artist who fuses many styles into an unforgetable work which tips its hat to genres as an evolutionary process might do or say a very accomplished and humble crafts person might deliver as they tie themselves lock stock and 4/4 backbeat to the sound of life that feels like the blues or rock and roll that is moving their soul … as i see it the artists are not looking for labels to define them so much as the recognize the need for a label to sell the feelings and expressions which they already experienced on the way to resolving the intense and personal relationship with nature which is currently moving their hands and minds and feet towards the understanding in their heart which sometimes feels like a speaker … at best some crafts persons just serve as living repeaters ….. so… i will never confuse jon spencer with albert collins or vice versa because evolution really is a science or so i am told miss Virginia
I think it depends on what kind of blues you’re trying to swallow that determines whether it’ll be stomachable or not. I’ve only been exploring it for a handful of years, but it didn’t take long to realize that “blues” as a genre is like “rock’n’roll” in its broadness and in how far the envelope of it has always been stretched. As a result, just like with that Rock Hall of Fame in Cleveland, we all end up with our own ideas of what it is and what we feel it decidedly isn’t. Have to admit, there’s a lot of stuff like Jon Spencer that I haven’t even bothered to check out. I may be missing something by not doing so, but I get so much out of what I have explored that it’s hard to worry about that. I dove into John Lee for a bit early on, then got distracted by Junior Kimbrough and Muddy Waters. Thank you, Ben, for this reminder to re-visit the man. Hooker could delve into bombast, but to me it always sounds like those were experiments, like he was trying something out. They weren’t enough to water down the stone cold stuff. Country Boy off of this reminds me of Highway 13 from Mr. Lucky, which has been one of my favorites (I’ve fallen asleep to that record many a night). This might become a new favorite. Thank you also for the NYE show. Before last weekend, my enjoyment of the Dirtbombs was pretty much completely focused on Mick, but watching Troy was eye-opening. I’m so damned grateful to have been able to experience you all live.
first off… everyone needs to understand that i respect ben blackwell with the utmost consideration when it comes to the leadership and humility that he has put forward in all he does…. secondly…. even though jack is definitely the boss with the hot sauce on so many levels i gotta make sure that ben gets his props as a part of kidding with him in a family sense of casual humor …. and…. mostly….. i feel that sharing is how that respect keeps all things creative and inventive alive….
Some peoples children. I tell ya.
Where can I get this?
ben… that photo is just ripe for the photoshop signage that says WILL WORK FOR WHITE STRIPES …. life is beautiful and funny and full of opportunity to enjoy whats true without being harsh or meanspirited…. thank you for reminding me of such things!
An interesting surprise—not the album, which is awesome, but your general, less-than-enthusiastic feeling towards blues albums. I know the kind of bombast you’re talking about, but it’s the spirit in which it’s intended that makes the difference for me. Good conversation-starter, anyway. :-)