Charley Patton lived only into his 40s, but he left a large body of
recorded work, which reveals a broad repertoire, much self-written. He
came to his first recording session - in June 1929, for Paramount - with
an established reputation. It was said his voice could be heard 500
yards away. The songs he recorded that day include some he had been
honing for 20 years around the Delta. Pony Blues is usually cited as a
masterpiece. He cut two versions. Both are good, the first is finer: he
growls the lyrics, his guitar lopes and bucks. Patton's rhythms are one
of his trademarks - complex, intricate, powerful, his fingering always
precise. Listen to his playing on Down The Dirt Road Blues - he puts
brilliant guitar phrases at the end of each stanza. Songs like Banty
Rooster, with its beautiful slide work, and the idiosyncratic Spoonful
represent the essence of Mississippi blues and are typical of Patton
fast-and-loose approach to blues structures (there's not a standard
12-bar in Patton's recorded output) and rhythmic conventions. Even those
who have studied Patton's lyrics find areas to dispute. The voice is
gruff, the phrasing eccentric and his Mississippi accent can be
impenetrable. But it's worth paying attention - Patton's songs evoke a
world that has vanished. We hear of characters like Sheriff Tom Rushen, a
lawman whom Patton knew well, for the wrong reasons. He did exist,
although his name was actually Rushing. Other songs evoke things like
the whistle of the Pea Vine train, or the boll weavil, which threatened
the cotton crop - as Patton sings: ... (it) sucks all the blossom and
leaves your hedges square. In each case, Patton's playing is crafted to
the song. Throughout his career, Patton recorded religious material.
Prayer Of Death, from the first session (sacred tunes, and a sermon
whose words are as obscure as his song lyrics), is a powerful example.
Patton died in 1934, still in demand. His reputation has burgeoned
since.
