Granted, there will always be blues compilations flooding the market as an
introduction to an imprint’s wares. The Rough Guide to Bottleneck
Blues takes a unique
approach by concentrating solely on those purveyors who interpreted the blues
with mystic and mesmerizing effects by sliding a glass, metal object or a knife
across the guitar strings. And, instead of just showcasing today’s contemporaries
like Martin Simpson and Bob Brozman (both featured here), why not reveal their
sources of inspiration? Usually shellac-swooshing recordings are not the norm
of such slicked-up compilations, but these selections from ’20s-’30s
slide stalwarts Charley Patton, Furry Lewis, Fred McDowell, Bukka White, Son
House and others are remarkably clean. Obscurer figures like Dan Pickett and
Willie Harris are included too, indicating that World Disc ventured off the beaten
path more than once. The liner notes theorize on the influence the Hawaiian slide
style conceivably had, so it’s thought-provoking to evaluate “St.
Louis Blues” from Jim & Bob and “The Twelves (Dirty Dozens)” from
Kokomo Arnold who played Hawaiian style with a guitar flat across his lap.
Finally, the collection rounds out with modern stylists Stefan Grossman and
John Fahey
who apprenticed with the masters. Recommended.