Release Date : April 11, 2025
John Primer moved from Mississippi to Chicago with
his mother in 1963 when he was eighteen years old. Shortly after landing in the
Windy City, he began busking on the legendary Maxwell Street.
That led to his gigs at Theresa’s Lounge which eventually catapulted him
to bandleader positions for blues luminaries such as Willie Dixon, Magic
Slim, and Muddy Waters. He was with Muddy when the band filmed
the Live at the Checkerboard Lounge, Chicago 1981 with the Rolling
Stones (which by the way is one of my all-time favorite live blues films). This latest album from Primer, Grown
in Mississippi is a meaningful tribute to his birthplace Camden, Mississippi
where he grew up in a sharecropping environment. Primer stated, “The
songs on Grown in Mississippi have a lot of meaning to me. They represent sounds from my childhood, feelings
I had while singing in church, rhythms and beats I heard on the radio and while
working in the fields.”. Recorded in Clarksdale, Mississippi, this album
delivers fourteen blues-soaked tracks evenly split between inspired originals
and influential covers. The recording features a jaw-dropping list of guest artists
comprised of Bobby Rush, Charlie Musselwhite, Watermelon Slim,
Eden Brent, Lightnin’ Malcolm, Gary Vincent, Lee
Williams, Deak Harp, Rickey ‘Quicksand’ Martin, Harvell Thomas
Jr., Billy Earheart, Steve Bell, Aliya Primer, and Rosalind
Wilcox.
Primer’s performance on Leroy Carr’s “Blues Before Sunrise” is pure bliss. When I hear those opening harmonica notes pour from Deak Harp, I am captivated. Earheart adds another layer of authenticity on piano. His cover of “Walkin’ Blues” hits me with a timeless energy as I cozy up to the slide guitar of Lightnin’ Malcolm. and steady beat of Lee Williams on drums. I love the way Malcolm and Williams later usher the listener to North Mississippi Hill Country with “When I Met the Blues”. Primer sings “it’s not good if it ain’t got no hot sauce on it”, and I have to say, there is plenty of hot sauce slathered all over the fun and funky “Nothin’ But a Chicken Wing” with Bobby Rush on harmonica. For another solid dose of classic delta blues, Primer and Musselwhite join forces for Big Joe Williams’s “Baby Please Don’t Go”. It’s absolutely wonderful. I’m always thrilled to hear Watermelon Slim and to hear him play with Primer and Steve Bell on Louisiana Red’s “Let Me Be Your Electrician” is a plumb delight. When Slim’s dobro rings out, it sounds so damn good. Worries and troubles vanish each time I listen to the traditional spiritual “Lay My Burdens Down” featuring the beautiful vocals of John’s daughter Aliya. This magical song also features the wonderful talents of Eden Brent on piano and background vocals.
John Primer is a modern-day blues legend, and Grown in Mississippi is as pure of a blues album as one can be. This is a recording blues fans will surely want to take note of.
For more information about
John Primer, visit his website https://johnprimerblues.com
For other PhillyCheeze
reviews of John Primer, visit this link https://phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com/search?q=john+primer
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