Search - Johnny Shines :: Too Wet to Plow

Delta Blues at its best.

Oisin | Crisfield, MD USA | 08/08/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Though Robert Johnson's career was cut short and the works of Tommy Johnson and Charlie Patton have long ago fallen out of the limelight, Johnny Shines played the blues better than any of them, but he never got the recognition he deserved. An intelligent and soft-spoken man, Shines did anything but fit the stereotype of a bluesman.

Johny Ned Lee Shines, Jr. was a friend and travelling companion of the inimitable Robert Johnson. Along the way, he learned a thing or two, as evidenced by his absolutely brilliant playing and technical mastery of the Delta-style slide blues. His voice is undoubtedly stronger and more emotive than virtually any bluesman before him. "Too Wet To Plow" and the live recording "Hey Ba-Ba-Re-Bop!" are two of the most striking examples of Shines' work, and traditional blues in general. "Too Wet To Plow" is a near flawless work. While all well-done Delta blues recordings before were(to some)unlistenable, the recording quality on this record is perfect.

Altogether, a true masterwork by a master of a dying style of music."