Charlie Patton – “High Water Everywhere”
Gravel-voiced Patton’s song about the famous and devastating Mississippi River flood of 1927. Listeners in Patton’s era would have known the event being referred to. Patton’s guitar style is incredibly intricate, involving separate rhythms for the bass notes, which are often sounded with a percussive slap, and leads for the higher notes that involve the bottleneck slide. Note also that Patton varies his vocal phrasing – he almost sounds like two different singers. This recording presents a whole lot of noise for one man. Of the great Delta blues artists, Patton is arguably the most unique, and he certainly boasts the most powerful and interesting voice.
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