The Complete Recordings (Robert Johnson album)
Encyclopedia
The Complete Recordings is a compilation album
by American blues
musician Robert Johnson, released August 28, 1990 on Columbia Records
. The album's recordings were recorded in two sessions in Dallas and San Antonio, Texas
for the American Record Company (ARC)
during 1936 and 1937. Most of the songs were first released on 78rpm records in 1937. The Complete Recordings contains every recording Johnson is known to have made, with the exception of an alternate take of "Travelling Riverside Blues".
The Complete Recordings peaked at number 80 on the Billboard 200
chart. The album has sold more than a million copies, and won a Grammy Award
in 1991 for "Best Historical Album
." In 1992, the Blues Foundation
inducted the album into the Blues Hall of Fame
. It also was included by the National Recording Preservation Board
in the Library of Congress
' National Recording Registry in 2003. The board selects recordings in an annual basis that are "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
Johnson recorded 29 songs for the American Record Company (ARC)
. His complete canon of recordings includes these 29 masters, plus 13 surviving alternate takes, all recorded at two ARC sessions held in San Antonio and Dallas, Texas
. The Mississippi Delta
—two hundred miles of fertile lowlands stretching from Memphis, Tennessee
in the north to Vicksburg, Mississippi
in the south—was one of the primary locales in which the blues originated and developed. He is said to have been heavily influenced by early blues artists like Skip James
, who was recorded in 1931, around the same time that Johnson amazed his elders with his mastery of the guitar. James's eerie, distinctive style is reflected throughout Johnson's recordings, most notably in "32-20 Blues," which he adapted from James's "22-20 Blues."
Johnson's first session in San Antonio, Texas
lasted three days, on the 23rd, 26th, and 27th of November 1936, sixteen songs were recorded in the Gunter Hotel
, where ARC had set up equipment to record a number of musical acts. "Kind Hearted Woman Blues
" was the first song recorded. Also captured in San Antonio were "I Believe I'll Dust My Broom" and "Sweet Home Chicago
," both of which became post-war blues standards. "Terraplane Blues
," known for its metaphoric lyrics, became a regional hit and Johnson's signature song. Most of the selections were released on Vocalion 78
s, but three songs and several interesting alternate takes remained unissued until they appeared on the Columbia albums. Six months later, on the 19th and 20th of June 1937, other recording sessions took place in a Dallas, Texas
warehouse where, once again, ARC had set up its recording equipment to capture many different acts. This time 13 songs were recorded and 10 were released during the following year.
The song "Cross Road Blues
" is one of his most popular, thanks to Eric Clapton
and Cream
(Wheels of Fire
), whose interpretation popularized the song in the late 1960s. Johnson's recordings became popular in the early '60s when Columbia Records released a collection of called King of the Delta Blues Singers
. Bluesmen like Clapton and Keith Richards
viewed the release as something of a blues bible, considered by some to be the "King of the Delta Blues Singers" The Rolling Stones
recorded "Love in Vain
" on their 1969 album, Let It Bleed
, and "Stop Breakin' Down" on their Exile on Main St.
(1972) album.
and Howlin' Wolf
, two prominent Chicago
bluesmen, have their roots in the Delta: both knew Robert Johnson, and were heavily influenced by him. By Johnson's emotive vocals, combined with his varied and masterful guitar playing, continue to influence blues and popular music performers to this day. In 2004, Me and Mr. Johnson
is a blues album by Eric Clapton
, which is a tribute to legendary bluesman Robert Johnson, reaching to number 6 on the Billboard 200 and has sold more than 563,000 copies in the United States. The Chicago Tribune
s Greg Kot
wrote that The Complete Recordings, along with Clapton's The Layla Sessions (1990), survive as "monuments of 20th Century music that will rarely, if ever, be equaled".
Disc two
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
by American blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
musician Robert Johnson, released August 28, 1990 on Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
. The album's recordings were recorded in two sessions in Dallas and San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
for the American Record Company (ARC)
American Record Corporation
ARC, the American Record Company, also referred to as American Record Corporation, or as ARC Records, was a United States based record company...
during 1936 and 1937. Most of the songs were first released on 78rpm records in 1937. The Complete Recordings contains every recording Johnson is known to have made, with the exception of an alternate take of "Travelling Riverside Blues".
The Complete Recordings peaked at number 80 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart. The album has sold more than a million copies, and won a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
in 1991 for "Best Historical Album
Grammy Award for Best Historical Album
The Grammy Award for Best Historical Album has been presented since 1979. During this time the award had several minor name changes:*In 1979 the award was known as Best Historical Repackage Album*In 1980 it was awarded as Best Historical Reissue...
." In 1992, the Blues Foundation
Blues Foundation
The Blues Foundation is an American nonprofit corporation, headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, that is affiliated with more than 175 Blues organizations from various parts of the world....
inducted the album into the Blues Hall of Fame
Blues Hall of Fame
The Blues Hall of Fame is a listing of people who have significantly contributed to blues music. Started in 1980 by the Blues Foundation, it honors those who have performed, recorded, or documented blues.-1980:*Big Bill Broonzy*Willie Dixon*John Lee Hooker...
. It also was included by the National Recording Preservation Board
National Recording Preservation Board
The United States National Recording Preservation Board selects recorded sounds for preservation in the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry. The National Recording Registry was initiated to maintain and preserve "sound recordings that are culturally, historically or aesthetically...
in the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
' National Recording Registry in 2003. The board selects recordings in an annual basis that are "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
Music
Prior to his death in 1938, through the help of H. C. SpeirH. C. Speir
H. C. Speir was an American "talent broker" and record store owner from Jackson, Mississippi. He was responsible for launching the recording careers of most of the greatest Mississippi blues musicians in the 1920s and 1930s. It has been said that, “Speir was the godfather of Delta Blues" and was...
Johnson recorded 29 songs for the American Record Company (ARC)
American Record Corporation
ARC, the American Record Company, also referred to as American Record Corporation, or as ARC Records, was a United States based record company...
. His complete canon of recordings includes these 29 masters, plus 13 surviving alternate takes, all recorded at two ARC sessions held in San Antonio and Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
. The Mississippi Delta
Mississippi Delta
The Mississippi Delta is the distinctive northwest section of the U.S. state of Mississippi that lies between the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers. The region has been called "The Most Southern Place on Earth" because of its unique racial, cultural, and economic history...
—two hundred miles of fertile lowlands stretching from Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
in the north to Vicksburg, Mississippi
Vicksburg, Mississippi
Vicksburg is a city in Warren County, Mississippi, United States. It is the only city in Warren County. It is located northwest of New Orleans on the Mississippi and Yazoo rivers, and due west of Jackson, the state capital. In 1900, 14,834 people lived in Vicksburg; in 1910, 20,814; in 1920,...
in the south—was one of the primary locales in which the blues originated and developed. He is said to have been heavily influenced by early blues artists like Skip James
Skip James
Nehemiah Curtis "Skip" James was an American Delta blues singer, guitarist, pianist and songwriter, born in Bentonia, Mississippi, died in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
, who was recorded in 1931, around the same time that Johnson amazed his elders with his mastery of the guitar. James's eerie, distinctive style is reflected throughout Johnson's recordings, most notably in "32-20 Blues," which he adapted from James's "22-20 Blues."
Johnson's first session in San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
lasted three days, on the 23rd, 26th, and 27th of November 1936, sixteen songs were recorded in the Gunter Hotel
Gunter Hotel
The Gunter Hotel is a historic hotel in downtown San Antonio, Texas built in 1909 and designed by St. Louis architect John Mauran.Now the Sheraton Gunter, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.-In popular culture:...
, where ARC had set up equipment to record a number of musical acts. "Kind Hearted Woman Blues
Kind Hearted Woman Blues
"Kind Hearted Woman Blues" is a blues song recorded on November 23, 1936 in San Antonio, Texas by legendary bluesman Robert Johnson. The song was originally released on 78 rpm format as Vocalion 03416 and ARC 7-03-56. Johnson performed the song in the key of A, and recorded two takes, the first...
" was the first song recorded. Also captured in San Antonio were "I Believe I'll Dust My Broom" and "Sweet Home Chicago
Sweet Home Chicago
"Sweet Home Chicago" is a popular blues standard in the twelve bar form. It was first recorded and is credited to have been written by Robert Johnson...
," both of which became post-war blues standards. "Terraplane Blues
Terraplane Blues
"Terraplane Blues" is a blues song recorded in 1936 in San Antonio, Texas by bluesman Robert Johnson. "Terraplane Blues" was Johnson's first single and it became a moderate regional hit, selling 5,000 copies....
," known for its metaphoric lyrics, became a regional hit and Johnson's signature song. Most of the selections were released on Vocalion 78
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
s, but three songs and several interesting alternate takes remained unissued until they appeared on the Columbia albums. Six months later, on the 19th and 20th of June 1937, other recording sessions took place in a Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
warehouse where, once again, ARC had set up its recording equipment to capture many different acts. This time 13 songs were recorded and 10 were released during the following year.
The song "Cross Road Blues
Cross Road Blues
"Cross Road Blues" is a song by Delta Blues singer Robert Johnson; released on a 78 rpm record in 1936 by Vocalion Records, catalogue 3519. The original version remained out of print after its initial release until the appearance of The Complete Recordings in 1990...
" is one of his most popular, thanks to Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
and Cream
Cream (band)
Cream were a 1960s British rock supergroup consisting of bassist/vocalist Jack Bruce, guitarist/vocalist Eric Clapton, and drummer Ginger Baker...
(Wheels of Fire
Wheels of Fire
Wheels of Fire is the name of a double album recorded by Cream. The release was largely successful, scoring the band a #3 peak in the United Kingdom and a #1 in the United States, and became the world's first platinum-selling double album....
), whose interpretation popularized the song in the late 1960s. Johnson's recordings became popular in the early '60s when Columbia Records released a collection of called King of the Delta Blues Singers
King of the Delta Blues Singers
King of the Delta Blues Singers is a compilation album by American blues musician Robert Johnson, released in 1961 on Columbia Records. It is considered one of the greatest and most influential blues releases ever...
. Bluesmen like Clapton and Keith Richards
Keith Richards
Keith Richards is an English musician, songwriter, and founding member of the Rolling Stones. Rolling Stone magazine said Richards had created "rock's greatest single body of riffs", and placed him as the "10th greatest guitarist of all time." Fourteen songs written by Richards and songwriting...
viewed the release as something of a blues bible, considered by some to be the "King of the Delta Blues Singers" The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
recorded "Love in Vain
Love in Vain
"Love in Vain" is a 1937 blues song written by Robert Johnson.The song is noted for its sad lyrics, tone, and style. In the 1991 documentary film The Search for Robert Johnson, John P. Hammond plays Robert's recording of "Love in Vain" for the elderly Willie Mae Powell, the woman for whom it was...
" on their 1969 album, Let It Bleed
Let It Bleed
Let It Bleed is the eighth British and tenth American album by English rock band The Rolling Stones, released in December 1969 by Decca Records in the United Kingdom and London Records in the United States...
, and "Stop Breakin' Down" on their Exile on Main St.
Exile on Main St.
Exile on Main St. is the tenth British and 12th American studio album by English rock band The Rolling Stones. Released as a double LP in May 1972, it draws on many genres including rock and roll, blues, soul, R&B, gospel and country. The release of Exile on Main St. met with mixed reviews, but is...
(1972) album.
Reception and influence
While Robert Johnson's professional recording career can be measured in months, his musical legacy has survived more than 70 years. Muddy WatersMuddy Waters
McKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...
and Howlin' Wolf
Howlin' Wolf
Chester Arthur Burnett , known as Howlin' Wolf, was an influential American blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player....
, two prominent Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
bluesmen, have their roots in the Delta: both knew Robert Johnson, and were heavily influenced by him. By Johnson's emotive vocals, combined with his varied and masterful guitar playing, continue to influence blues and popular music performers to this day. In 2004, Me and Mr. Johnson
Me and Mr. Johnson
Me and Mr. Johnson is an album by Eric Clapton released in 2004. The album is a tribute to legendary bluesman Robert Johnson. According to Clapton's autobiography, the recordings weren't intended to become an album. The band had rented the studio, but Clapton didn't have any songs written, so he...
is a blues album by Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
, which is a tribute to legendary bluesman Robert Johnson, reaching to number 6 on the Billboard 200 and has sold more than 563,000 copies in the United States. The Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
s Greg Kot
Greg Kot
Greg Kot is an American writer and journalist. Since 1990, Kot has been the music critic at the Chicago Tribune, where he has covered popular music and reported on music-related social, political and business issues...
wrote that The Complete Recordings, along with Clapton's The Layla Sessions (1990), survive as "monuments of 20th Century music that will rarely, if ever, be equaled".
Track listing
Disc one| Track | Song Title | Notes | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Kind Hearted Woman Blues Kind Hearted Woman Blues "Kind Hearted Woman Blues" is a blues song recorded on November 23, 1936 in San Antonio, Texas by legendary bluesman Robert Johnson. The song was originally released on 78 rpm format as Vocalion 03416 and ARC 7-03-56. Johnson performed the song in the key of A, and recorded two takes, the first... " |
2:49 | |
| 2. | "Kind Hearted Woman Blues" | (alternate take) | 2:31 |
| 3. | "I Believe I'll Dust My Broom Dust My Broom "Dust My Broom" is a blues standard originally recorded as "I Believe I'll Dust My Broom"by Robert Johnson, the Mississippi Delta blues singer and guitarist, on November 23, 1936 in San Antonio, Texas. The song was originally released on 78 rpm format as Vocalion 03475, ARC 7-04-81 and Conqueror 8871... " |
2:56 | |
| 4. | "Sweet Home Chicago Sweet Home Chicago "Sweet Home Chicago" is a popular blues standard in the twelve bar form. It was first recorded and is credited to have been written by Robert Johnson... " |
2:59 | |
| 5. | "Rambling on My Mind" | (alternate take) | 2:51 |
| 6. | "Rambling on My Mind" | 2:20 | |
| 7. | "When You Got a Good Friend" | 2:37 | |
| 8. | "When You Got a Good Friend" | (alternate take) | 2:50 |
| 9. | "Come On in My Kitchen Come On in My Kitchen "Come On in My Kitchen" is a blues song by Robert Johnson. Johnson recorded the song on Monday, November 23rd, 1936 at the Gunter Hotel in San Antonio, Texas - his first recording session... " |
(alternate take) | 2:47 |
| 10. | "Come On in My Kitchen" | 2:35 | |
| 11. | "Terraplane Blues Terraplane Blues "Terraplane Blues" is a blues song recorded in 1936 in San Antonio, Texas by bluesman Robert Johnson. "Terraplane Blues" was Johnson's first single and it became a moderate regional hit, selling 5,000 copies.... " |
3:00 | |
| 12. | "Phonograph Blues" | 2:37 | |
| 13. | "Phonograph Blues" | (alternate take) | 2:35 |
| 14. | "32-20 Blues 32-20 Blues "32-20 Blues" is a blues song by Delta blues musician Robert Johnson, recorded during his second recording session in San Antonio, Texas on November 26, 1936. The song was originally released on 78 rpm format as Vocalion 03445, in April the following year. The title refers to the .32-20 Winchester... " |
2:51 | |
| 15. | "They're Red Hot They're Red Hot "They're Red Hot" is a song originally performed and written by blues musician Robert Johnson. Notably, it is one of very few songs recorded by the bluesman that is not based around twelve bar blues. It is based on a common ragtime chord progression... " |
2:56 | |
| 16. | "Dead Shrimp Blues Dead Shrimp Blues "Dead Shrimp Blues" is a song written by Robert Johnson.It is from the recording sessions of November 26 and 27, 1936, in San Antonio, Texas along with "32-20 Blues", "They're Red Hot", "Cross Road Blues", "Walkin' Blues", "Last Fair Deal Gone Down", "Preaching Blues" and "If I Had Possession Over... " |
2:30 | |
| 17. | "Cross Road Blues Cross Road Blues "Cross Road Blues" is a song by Delta Blues singer Robert Johnson; released on a 78 rpm record in 1936 by Vocalion Records, catalogue 3519. The original version remained out of print after its initial release until the appearance of The Complete Recordings in 1990... " |
2:39 | |
| 18. | "Cross Road Blues" | (alternate take) | 2:29 |
| 19. | "Walkin' Blues Walkin' Blues "Walkin' Blues" is a song that was written by blues musician Robert Johnson in 1936.It has been later recorded by many artists, including Cee Lo Green, Muddy Waters, Colin James, Paul Butterfield, Johnny Cash, Hot Tuna, The Grateful Dead, Rory Gallagher, R.L. Burnside, Eric Clapton, Hindu Love... " |
2:28 | |
| 20. | "Last Fair Deal Gone Down Last Fair Deal Gone Down Last Fair Deal Gone Down is the fifth full-length album by Katatonia, released in 2001 by Peaceville Records. The album is named after a song by delta blues singer Robert Johnson.-Track listing:*All Lyrics by Renkse. "Teargas" was Co-Written.... " |
2:39 | |
Disc two
| Track | Song Title | Notes | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Preaching Blues (Up Jumped the Devil)" | 2:50 | |
| 2. | "If I Had Possession Over Judgment Day" | 2:34 | |
| 3. | "Stones in My Passway" | 2:27 | |
| 4. | "I'm a Steady Rollin' Man" | 2:35 | |
| 5. | "From Four Till Late" | 2:23 | |
| 6. | "Hellhound on My Trail Hellhound on My Trail "Hellhound on My Trail" is a blues song recorded by Mississippi Delta bluesman Robert Johnson in 1937. It was the first song recorded during Johnson's last recording session in Dallas, Texas on Sunday, June 20, 1937 and the first single released from that session... " |
2:35 | |
| 7. | "Little Queen of Spades" | 2:11 | |
| 8. | "Little Queen of Spades" | (alternate take) | 2:15 |
| 9. | "Malted Milk" | 2:17 | |
| 10. | "Drunken Hearted Man" | 2:24 | |
| 11. | "Drunken Hearted Man" | (alternate take) | 2:19 |
| 12. | "Me and the Devil Blues" | 2:37 | |
| 13. | "Me and the Devil Blues" | (alternate take) | 2:29 |
| 14. | "Stop Breakin' Down Blues" | (alternate take) | 2:16 |
| 15. | "Stop Breakin' Down Blues" | 2:21 | |
| 16. | "Traveling Riverside Blues Traveling Riverside Blues "Travelling Riverside Blues," sometimes called "Mudbone" or "Mud Bone," is a blues song written and recorded in Dallas, Texas by the bluesman Robert Johnson... " |
2:47 | |
| 17. | "Honeymoon Blues" | 2:16 | |
| 18. | "Love in Vain Love in Vain "Love in Vain" is a 1937 blues song written by Robert Johnson.The song is noted for its sad lyrics, tone, and style. In the 1991 documentary film The Search for Robert Johnson, John P. Hammond plays Robert's recording of "Love in Vain" for the elderly Willie Mae Powell, the woman for whom it was... " |
(alternate take) | 2:28 |
| 19. | "Love in Vain" | 2:19 | |
| 20. | "Milkcow's Calf Blues" | (alternate take) | 2:14 |
| 21. | "Milkcow's Calf Blues" | 2:20 | |
Personnel
- Robert Johnson – acoustic guitarAcoustic guitarAn acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
, vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Don Law – producer
- Beryl Cohen Porter - compilation producer, liner notes
External links
- The Complete Recordings at DiscogsDiscogsDiscogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
- Robert Johnson: Once Largely Myth, Now a Hit at The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...