Grief Without Words

Not the Bill Monroe one. Not the Tommy Cash one, or the Gillian Welch one. The Mississippi Fred McDowell one.

I don’t know what was up with McDowell when he recorded this in 1963. Maybe he was still working on the lyrics. Maybe he forgot ‘em. Maybe.

His picking is so urgent that it sounds like he’s driven to spit his grief out one way or another – even if he can’t bear to give voice to it.

This is Mississippi Fred McDowell with “Six White Horses”.

Shakin' Up Church, Blues-Style

Paul Jones got this one from Mississippi Fred McDowell, which is not, in itself, daring. The provocative elements in this performance are the lovely, slow build; the spare arrangement (unusual, particularly in this setting); and Jones' matter-of-fact virtuosity, which, some would say is sacrilegious in this setting. They are wrong.

There are no theatrics here; Jones is the best at what he does, and naturally-charismatic besides. He doesn't need anything else, and he knows it. That, too, is refreshing, and again, unusual and welcome in this setting. Here's Paul Jones of Manfred Mann (known these days as "The Manfreds") with Mississippi Fred McDowell's "You Gotta Move".