15. Hellhound on My Trail - Robert Johnson

"I got to keep movin'", Johnson sings in the opening lyrics of Hellhound on My Trail, and move he did. Reports say that he spent the last years of his life traveling around the southern delta, strumming the blues wherever he rambled before poisoned whiskey allegedly took his life one evening in 1938-- just one year after recording this tune. Robert Johnson's influence on modern music is unquestionable. From the 1960s rock stars he inspired to his induction in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Johnson left a posthumous legacy that few have matched. It's a shame he never saw such fame or fortune during his lifetime.

I wanted to share an episode of NPR's Radiolab that discusses the Johnson myth and tries to undercover some truth behind the legend. It's a great listen and it fleshes out much of the Johnson story that I do not discuss in this blog. This song was also featured in NPR's 100 best songs of the 20th century.

Hellhound on my Trail seems like an autobiographical piece by the nomadic Robert Johnson; and his mastery of the blues is once again quite evident in this song. I still prefer his Cross Road Blues tune a bit more, but I enjoy almost all of the 29 songs that survive by this blues legend. This delta blues classic gets a well-deserved "Worth Hearing" seal.

Click the seal below to listen to the Robert Johnson's Hellhound on My Trail.

Worth Hearing

14. Cross Road Blues - Robert Johnson

One lonely dark Mississippi night, a young Robert Johnson took his guitar to a crossroads near Clarksdale and began playing a tune. Around midnight, as Johnson was strumming his instrument, he was approached by none other than the devil, himself. The melodic demon took Johnson's guitar, tuned it, and began to play a few songs. When the guitar was returned to Robert Johnson, he became a master blues musician--all for the price of his soul.

I cannot think of anyone in music who fits the word "legend" quite like Robert Johnson. His backstory is as much myth as it is fact. Did he sell his soul to the devil at the crossroads on a lonely Mississippi night? Was he actually poisoned to death by a lover's jealous husband? Where was he buried? Johnson died at the young age of 27, and never saw fame or fortune. It wasn't until the 1960s--when his music was re-released on vinyl--that his fame and legacy began to take shape. Musicians at the time such as Eric Clapton, Brian Jones, and Jimmy Page discovered his music and became enthralled with his sound. This particular tune was made famous because of Eric Clapton's electric version of it from the 1960s.

Knowing the myth, there is something eerie about hearing Johnson sing about the crossroads; even though the song has nothing to do with that fateful night in which he was diabolically imbued with musical talent. Johnson's sound would eventually help shape modern rock and roll, and it is easy to see the roots of rock in Cross Road Blues. Robert Johnson's legacy and history are fascinating, which makes me appreciate his music and this tune all the more. It is more than deserving of my 3rd Doc's Gold Seal of Approval.

Click the seal below to listen to the Robert Johnson's Cross Road Blues.

Doc's Gold Seal of Approval

13. Can the Circle Be Unbroken (By and By) - The Carter Family

"The First Family of Country Music" laments their way onto the list with the mournful Can the Circle be Unbroken. The Carter Family would go through many members over the group's lifetime (including Johnny Cash's wife, June Carter). However, when this song was performed in 1935 the group was comprised of its original members-- A.P. Carter, his wife Sarah Carter, and his sister-in-law Maybelle Addington Carter.

The Appalachian farming family helped lay the foundation of country music, and this sorrowful melody about a mother's funeral speaks to the hardships and loss that were so prevalent in the Depression Era. Throughout the song, one can hear Maybelle's signature melodic guitar style that would help define not only the group, but also a whole generation of music. Can the Circle Be Unbroken is a haunting and memorable tune that has earned itself a "Worth Hearing" seal.

Click the seal below to listen to the Carter Family's Can the Circle Be Unbroken (By and By).

Worth Hearing

12. Hula Girl - Sol Hoopii

Hula Girl brings about visions of laying on a sunny beach in the south Pacific with a fruity umbrella-dressed cocktail in hand. What makes this melody so distinctly Hawaiian is the Ki oh'alu or slack-key guitar style. According to the book this typically involves placing an open-tuned guitar across one's lap and sliding a steel instrument across the strings.

Sol Hoopii is often considered one of the best slack-key guitarists of his generation, and his undeniable skill is on full display with this Hawaiian-style tune. Hoopii was so famous for his mastery of the instrument that he was mistakenly credited with inventing the steel guitar (which actually came about around the end of the 19th century). The song is jazzy, upbeat, fun, and is a great representation of a genre of music that gained American popularity around World War I; but Sol Hoopii mastered in the 1920s and 1930s. I shall emphatically award it with my Worth Hearing seal.

Click the seal below to listen to Sol Hoopii's Hula Girl.

Worth Hearing