A few years back the world of blues came to a fork in the road. One path is best exemplified by the music of Jon Spencer, an electric blues hot-rod son of the early Rolling Stones and Cream. The other, with more direct ties to the American forefathers of acoustic blues like Howlin' Wolf and Muddy Waters, is best exemplified by Corey Harris.
You would be wrong to think that Corey Harris' latest effort, Greens From the Garden, is just another rip-off of the Delta Blues sound. Featuring everything from tracks influenced with back line New Orleans street music to acoustic ballads with a soulful depth reminiscent of African-American folk legend Richie Havens, Greens From the Garden is nothing if not diverse.
Perhaps the only aspect of Harris' work that exhibits the diversity of his latest recording effort is his collaborations. Indeed, Harris has never been afraid to explore new musical territories and span artistic genres, as evidenced by his appearance on Mermaid Avenue, Wilco and Billy Bragg's heralded alt-country tribute to Woody Guthrie, and his collaborations with the sickeningly popular Dave Matthews Band. With this range of tastes, Corey Harris' live performances leave few audiences alienated.
Taking cues from his contemporary African-American folk/blues counterpart Ben Harper, Harris combines the sounds of his ethnic roots. Including rich polyrhythms he learned during a two year stay in Africa, and jazz brought straight from his experiences as a street musician in New Orleans, Greens From the Garden is relatively light on what most die hard acoustic blues fans would be seeking. But being light on the "I woke up this mornin'" blues clichés is probably the strongest quality of the record. Greens From the Garden is constantly turning unexpected corners, and surprising on levels as obvious as diverse stylistic shifts and as subtle as Harris' controlled vocal inflections.
Where many blues albums fail by rehashing the same standard blues songs to show an artist's legitimacy to his or her roots, the few covers that Harris does include are overlooked gems of Son House and Blind Lemon Jefferson that become reborn through Harris' subtlety.
While subtlety can be listed as Harris' strong point, unfortunately it can also be listed as the recording's weak point. The production is very predictable, and often times down-right boring, and even the use of a New Orleans brass band comes across as flat. The true moments of greatness in this album have to overcome this barrier, and this makes it hard not to imagine the potential of Harris' musicality, which is frequently diminished by the recording itself. On short vacation from a month-long stint with Ben Harper, Harris will be coming to the 'Sco stage alone, thankfully leaving Dave and the rest of the band behind to perform the tunes from Green From the Garden and many other old and new blues classics. Armed only with a Nashville steel guitar and a voice that perfectly conveys the richness of his pedigree, Harris will need little else to satisfy.
Harris will take the stage of the 'Sco Saturday. $3 w/OCID, $5 without.
Rollin' in the Green: 21st Century bluesman Corey Harris will bring a soulful mix. (photo courtesy of Alligator Records)
Copyright © 2000, The Oberlin Review.
Volume 128, Number 13, February 11, 2000
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