Chicken Dance [Remix] - Little Freddie King, Gross
Cane Special
Dig a Hole
New releases from Little Freddie King are as rare as tours by the Mississippi-by-way-of-New Orleans blues-guitar legend. Signing with the Fat Possum label, the partnership joins King's low-fi but honest juke-joint blues wi... more »th an imprint that knows how to market this raw sound. Part John Lee Hooker, part Slim Harpo, King's grubby, swampy, backwoods approach won't be mistaken for his unrelated namesake Freddie King's, even at the Texan's most primitive. Joined by right-hand-man drummer and songwriter "Wacko" Wade Wright (who also shot the cover photo), Little Freddie locks onto a riff and rides that groove for an entire song. Loops on "Looking for My Woman" and a remix of "Chicken Dance" only add to the primal atmosphere, as they did for fellow Fat Possum act R.L. Burnside, who also experimented with the technique. King remains relaxed and connected as he apparently improvises lyrics between jagged guitar licks that make Bo Diddley's seem slick in comparison. With bass, drums, and occasional harp accompaniment creating a thunderous canvas for such a stripped-down affair, King talk-sings these low-down songs with appropriate gruffness. Tough yet tensile, he finds common ground between the sparse backwoods blues of his Delta birthplace and the more urbane but still crude funk-strains of the Crescent City's dark alleys. --Hal Horowitz« less
New releases from Little Freddie King are as rare as tours by the Mississippi-by-way-of-New Orleans blues-guitar legend. Signing with the Fat Possum label, the partnership joins King's low-fi but honest juke-joint blues with an imprint that knows how to market this raw sound. Part John Lee Hooker, part Slim Harpo, King's grubby, swampy, backwoods approach won't be mistaken for his unrelated namesake Freddie King's, even at the Texan's most primitive. Joined by right-hand-man drummer and songwriter "Wacko" Wade Wright (who also shot the cover photo), Little Freddie locks onto a riff and rides that groove for an entire song. Loops on "Looking for My Woman" and a remix of "Chicken Dance" only add to the primal atmosphere, as they did for fellow Fat Possum act R.L. Burnside, who also experimented with the technique. King remains relaxed and connected as he apparently improvises lyrics between jagged guitar licks that make Bo Diddley's seem slick in comparison. With bass, drums, and occasional harp accompaniment creating a thunderous canvas for such a stripped-down affair, King talk-sings these low-down songs with appropriate gruffness. Tough yet tensile, he finds common ground between the sparse backwoods blues of his Delta birthplace and the more urbane but still crude funk-strains of the Crescent City's dark alleys. --Hal Horowitz
CD Reviews
This is as raw as it gets!
Cabman | New Awlins,La. U.S.A. | 05/18/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Thanks to the gang at Fat Possum for, once again, finding a unique and deserving bluesman and giving him a chance to reach a much larger audience. This CD is really Little Freddie at his best,down and dirty! If you like your blues a tad ragged and raunchy,you GOTTA check this one out!"Crack Head Joe" is the kind of song that shows you that Freddie has a real unique way of telling a story and the talent to make a great song out of it as well."Tough Frog to Swallow" is a much better song than the song clip demonstrates(who picks these clips anyway?).Freddie has had a big following overseas for sometime now and hopefully this CD will win over a whole new set of fans here in the States!Check It Out, Cabman"
Fat Possum Does it Again
N. Langston | Sarasota, Florida United States | 04/17/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Little Fredie kings earlier releases would lead you to believe that he wouldn't fit in well with the rest of the Fat Possum Roster. But this release proves that he fits in just as well as R.L. or Paul Wine Jones. King's music owes more to John Lee hooker and Lightning hopkins and even Junior Kimbrough (a La Crack Head Joe) than to Freddie King, unlike previous releases. The sound here is absolutely raw. Fat possum makes sure that he fits perfectly in by adding there trade mark Remixes to such songs as "Looking For my woman" and "Chicken Dance(Remix)". Fans of Fat Possum will want this."
THE LAST of a DYING BREED
Billy Boy | Planet Earth | 01/15/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"One of the most under under-recognized Bluesmaster cats on the planet.
This guy is self-taught, simple and direct in his approach. It is not 12 bar blues, it's Jump-Time and his band is amazing, how they flip the timing with him. His songs are life advantures in
the ghetto world of the blues.
Three things give him the blues, WOMEN (if they not trying to shoot him), lack of MONEY (living on SS)and DRINGKING (Port Wine, which after 3 opreations, I understand he finally gave up) - He calls it "WMD Blues". The Fat Possum release is a masterpiece and one of kind in the business. It is a versatile piece of Americana. Destin to be a collector's item. The songs keep your feet tapping. The 4-piece band is
damn good and the music is straight ahead in your face Gut-Bucket.
Thanks for "Messin' Around tha House" cd which is a continuation of
FP disk. Great cd!!!!"
Gut bucket; New Orleans delta Blues
Rev KM Williams | dallas, tx United States | 05/18/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I got to give it to Fat Possuum!They keep finding these unknown old masters of the Delta/country blues.Little Freddie King sounds like a cross between Asie Payton, Slim Harpo and John Lee Hooker with that New Orleans juke feel and the Remixes are good also. Little Freddie is right up there with T-Model Ford, Robert Belfour and R. L. Burnside. Great CD!"
Track Listings (11) - Disc #1