At this point in her lengthy and impressive career, singer, songwriter and guitarist Rory Block represents blues royalty. A youthful guitar prodigy, Block began playing at the young age of ten; she later left home at the age of fifteen to travel the south in search of her musical idols. Learning authentic Mississippi Delta blues from artists like Skip James, Son House, and Mississippi John Hurt, Block honed her craft to a razor's edge.
A multiple W.C. Handy/Blues Music Award winner, Block is both a skilled interpreter of country blues as well as a traditionally-styled blues songwriter that brings the vitality and spirit of the Mississippi Delta to her original work. Blues Walkin' Like A Man is Block's long-anticipated tribute to Son House, one of the most influential, yet often overlooked giants of 1920s and '30s-era Delta blues.
Rory Block's Blues Walkin' Like A Man
Much like her 2006 tribute to Delta blues legend Robert Johnson, The Lady and Mr. Johnson, Block's powerful voice is typically accompanied here only by her skilled guitar playing and, now and then, the lonesome harp of long-time friend John Sebastian (yes, of the Lovin' Spoonful). Delivering a baker's dozen of Son House's best (not always his best-known) songs, Block has set the bar high, and manages to clear it easily.
One of the most skilled acoustic guitarists in any musical genres, Block admits in the liner notes that she found House's unusual guitar style and the daunting pace of his performances to be challenging, and she had to create fresh perspectives on those songs that she had been performing for years. After hearing Block's reading of songs like the haunting "Downhearted Blues" or the slinky "Jinx Blues," however, it's obvious that she has brought both vision and inspiration to the material.
There's not a single bad song on Blues Walkin' Like A Man, only personal favorites. In my case, this includes the salty "Low Down Dirty Dog Blues," which draws a direct line across the Delta from Son House to Howlin' Wolf with wiry fretwork and forceful vocals caressing lyrics of betrayal and heartbreak. "Death Letter," perhaps House's best-known song, is provided a percussive six-string soundtrack and appropriately drawled vocals, while Block displays her slide-guitar prowess on the slow-rolling "Depot Blues."
The Reverend's Bottom Line
Although benefitting from decades of recorded history about the artists and their music, Block nonetheless brings a scholar's knowledge and a poet's approach to her work. With Blues Walkin' Like A Man, Block imbues these timeless Son House songs with her own voice, breathing new life into the material with her incredibly talented fretwork and perfect vocal interpretations. Not only does Blues Walkin' Like A Man pay proper tribute to the music of Eddie "Son" House, with all the love and respect due an artist of his importance, it also keeps the material alive for a new generation of listeners. (Stony Plain Records, released September 30, 2008)
