Topic: SOTM June 19th - Red Cross Store

[Johnm]

Thanks for the clarification, Chris.  It certainly does go a long ways toward explaining the extent of the difference in the sound in parts 1 and 2.  The weird halting feel that Walter Davis got in the intro to Part 2, and so many of his other songs, seems like some kind of musical genetic marker for him.
All best,
Johnm

[Prof Scratchy]

To my ear, neither of these performances sounds like Sykes ,

[banjochris]

There's definitely something weird going on with Davis' discography -- according to B&GR all the recordings of Red Cross Blues (2 matrices of part 1 and one of part 2) have piano by Roosevelt Sykes (as Willie Kelly) and Davis' first recording on piano is Sloppy Drunk Again.

Also, Document's complete Walter Davis starts in 1933 with Red Cross Blues, leaving 20-odd titles pre-1933 unissued, plus 6 recordings from 2 August 1933. Unless those tracks are issued on the complete Roosevelt Sykes, I'm not sure. But Red Cross #2 sounds more like Davis to me than part 1 does.

Very odd.

[Davey Bob]

Many thanks for your research efforts here.

I stumbled upon this thread while checking out the origins of this song. I appropriated the refrain of 'I told 'em no!' in this protest song about the fracking industry in my local area (actually the entire community told 'em no & we kicked 'em out!  ).

[Prof Scratchy]

Me and Kid Lucas (thomas8 on WC) were having a go at this on Saturday. Here's a link to the file on Soundcloud:
https://soundcloud.com/aj0347/red-cross-store

[Johnm]

You guys sound really good, Prof!  Great time, Thomas, and great singing, Scratchy!
All best,
Johnm

[DavidCrosbie]

On Forrest City Joe's version...

The link doesn't work for my computer. As it happens, I have two issued tracks on LP and CD. More to the point, I've found how to access the original unedited recording, about a minute longer than the commercial issues. The trick is to visit the
Association for Cultural Equity http://research.culturalequity.org
Then browse by: Collection/Session then Southern US 1959 and 1960 then on page 2 Hughes 10/59

Once you get used to the navigation, you can listen to and/or download recordings ? and likewise view and/or download photos which Alan took at the sessions.

So here's the Red Cross Store recording http://research.culturalequity.org/rc-b2/get-audio-detailed-recording.do?recordingId=6117
(The link takes you to a page with a file-player.)

And here's Forrest City Joe at the piano with his harmonic rack around his neck.


There's another photo in Shirley Collins' America Over the Water



In this book Shirley tells the story of the recording, as does Alan in The Land where the Blues Began



It started with the recording which became Blues in the Mississippi Night, in which Big Bill and Memphis Slim celebrated

"Naw, man, that's Mister Charley Houlin, the best friend we ever had in this part of the country, really a friend to our people. He was the man we all run to when somebody mistreated us," Big Bill told me.

"Otherwise known as the Mercy Man." Memphis added.

He then told a tale of Charlie Houlin taking up the complaint of a Black man under his protection. The local sheriff was living in one of his houses but refusing to pay the rent. Houlin confronted the sheriff and actually shot him. Alan was so taken with the story that he went to Hughes specifically to meet this hero. Houlin sent him to Forest City Joe, and told him of the Blues scene in West Memphis ? warning Alan to check in with the police before looking for music. This was fortunate advice, as Alan was indeed stopped and held by the West Memphis police, who grudgingly released him when it was confirmed that he had announced himself.

When Forrest City Joe described the joint where he would be playing, Alan decided that it was no place for a woman, so found a motel where he

stashed Shirley for safety's stake.

Two worried nights later he collected her and

we did burn rubber and got out of West Memphis, Arkansas

[Prof Scratchy]

That Forrest City Joe version's a rocker! Thanks for posting it.


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