“Banty Rooster Blues”

Hi folks—yes, you’re in the right spot: this is Robert Frost’s Banjo.  I’d never tinkered with the blog’s overall look since starting it up in 2008—added a gadget here or there & re-arranged things, but had kept the same background & layout.  Hope you like the new look; I’d be interested in getting feedback.

This is Monday, of course, which means music, & because I have a plan for next Monday’s musical offering, I’m doing something a bit unusual in posting the Monday Morning Blues two week’s running. 

Today’s song, “Banty Rooster Blues,” is associated with, & probably composed by the now-famous Delta blues musician, Charley (or Charlie) Patton.  I’m a huge fan of Patton’s work, & I perform several of his songs.  Patton lived in the Clarksdale, Mississippi area, around the large Dockery Plantation.  He was born sometime between 1887 & 1891, & died in 1931, & is generally considered to be a seminal figure in the development of the blues form, especially in the style that music critic Robert Palmer called “the Deep Blues.”  Palmer uses this term to describe the blues as performed in the Delta region by Patton, Son House, Robert Johnson & others, which later transformed into the electric Chicago blues typified by Muddy Waters, Howling Wolf, Otis Rush, etc.  Although some have questioned Palmer’s assessment of Patton’s historical importance, no one questions that he was an extraordinary musician, with a powerful voice, a vigorous guitar style, & an ability to incorporate complex polyrhythmic textures in his songs.

In other news: I’ll be heading to northern Montana on Wednesday morning to see Rory Block  play!  Looks like Eberle will be coming with me, & we’re both looking forward to it.  I do plan on having scheduled posts for both those days.

& now—hope you enjoy my humble version of this great song!