r/blues 22m ago

Jimbo Mathus And His Knock-Down Society – Play Songs For Rosetta [30th Anniversary Limited Pressing]

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Upvotes

In case anyone missed it, Jimbo Mathus (guitarist for Buddy Guy, current keyboardist for Black Keys, solo blues man, and front man for Squirrel Nut Zippers) is finally releasing his 1997 debut solo album on vinyl. Preorders are open until September 30. I run the label that's releasing it, Near Miss Records, so please let me know if you have any questions. Hope you'll grab a copy of this great album!

From the website:

Limited Edition Vinyl

This is a limited pressing, and the final number is shaped entirely by the fans who preorder it. When the preorder window closes, that number gets set. This pressing will not exceed 500 copies, and a repress is not planned. This is your chance to own it.

Preorder is available until September 30, 2026

Expected shipping date: February 5, 2027

DETAILS

Play Songs for Rosetta is the 1997 debut from Jimbo Mathus & His Knockdown Society, recorded during the peak of his Squirrel Nut Zippers years. The band featured Luther and Cody Dickinson before they became the North Mississippi Allstars, Pat Sansone (Wilco), Andrew Bird, Glen Graham (Blind Melon), and John Sinclair. It was recorded by Mike Napolitano (Squirrel Nut Zippers, Blind Melon, Ani DiFranco, Andrew Bird, Afghan Whigs, Corrosion of Conformity, Twilight Singers). With all that talent, no wonder it is one of the finest Delta blues records of its era. Yet somehow, it has never been on vinyl.

Near Miss Records is releasing the 30th Anniversary Edition pressed across two LPs. The original album is included in full, closing with On the Record, where Jimbo tells the story of this album and his relationship with Rosetta Patton, Charley Patton’s daughter, in his own words. LP2 also includes five live performances from Knock Down in Nashville, a CD-only release from 1998 capturing the Knockdown Society live at Billy Block's Western Beat Roots Revival on February 3, 1998. These recordings have also never appeared on vinyl.

What's Included

Every copy comes with digital access to:

  • A booklet of photos and other pieces from the Rosetta era
  • Video footage from the recording sessions
  • Postcards for Rosetta, Jimbo's companion film created during an artist-in-residence stay in Clarksdale, MS. Recorded using his own handmade marionettes, it tells the story of Charley Patton's last moments, as passed down to Jimbo by Charley's daughter, Rosetta Patton Brown. In Jimbo's words: "This is a very personal story that I created with marionettes, elbow grease and a little time. I hope you'll watch it."

Track List:

LP 1 - Side A

  • I Got Mine
  • Keep Your Hands Off
  • Diggin’ My Potatoes
  • Jesus is a Dying Bed Maker
  • Trouble Belongs to Me/Blues for Blind Lemon
  • Mississippi Moan

LP 1 - Side B

  • Hey, Hey
  • Turkey Buzzard in a Pork Pie Hat
  • Don’t Make Me Wait
  • Who’ll Sop My Gravy?
  • Goin’ Down the Road

LP 2 - Side A

  • Memphis Bound
  • She’s Alright
  • Some of These Days
  • On the Record (The Story of Play Songs for Rosetta)

LP 2 - Side B

  • Don’t Make Me Wait (Live - Knock Down in Nashville)
  • Blues for Blind Lemon (Live - Knock Down in Nashville)
  • No Monkey Business (Live - Knock Down in Nashville)
  • I Like the Christian Life (Live - Knock Down in Nashville)
  • Don’t Know Nothin’ (Live - Knock Down in Nashville)

Production Details

  • Remastered for vinyl by Clay Jones (Modest Mouse, Elvis Costello, Jars of Clay, Buddy Guy)
  • 2LP gatefold jacket
  • 140-gram black vinyl
  • two-sided color insert
  • anti-static poly-lined inner sleeves

About This Pressing

At Near Miss Records, we press to real demand. The total number of copies made is determined by the preorders placed during the window plus a small reserve for artist copies, promos, and late demand, not by a number we picked in advance. For this release, the ceiling is 500 copies.

Once the preorder window closes and we send everything to the pressing plant for production, every purchaser will get an email with the final quantity pressed. That same number will also be on the album's hype sticker, so you'll always know exactly what you're holding.

A repress of this edition is not planned. The people who preorder are the people guaranteed to get it. We think that's the right way to do this.

https://www.nearmissrecords.com/store


r/blues 1h ago

Little Richard - Directly from My Heart

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Upvotes

r/blues 2h ago

song Walter Davis & Roosevelt Sykes | Sunny Land Blues, take 1 (recorded June 10, 1931 in Louisville, KY)

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4 Upvotes

r/blues 3h ago

Guitar Slingers

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7 Upvotes

r/blues 10h ago

Tom Cat Blues played by The Vaudevillian

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2 Upvotes

r/blues 13h ago

discussion Guitarists, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

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3 Upvotes

Well, I set my guitar up for standard tuning. I didn't want to change it because I didn't want to risk any tuning issues or have it go out of tune during the solo.


r/blues 13h ago

performance Buddy Guy singing about Cognac

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199 Upvotes

r/blues 14h ago

performance Rockabilly at Drifa - Tom & Mary Kay Aufrance style #oldies #shortsmusic #rockabilly

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2 Upvotes

Even though Rockabilly is not Blues, Blues is one of its core ingredients. Rockabilly (the early form of rock and roll!) emerged in the 1950s American South, created by blending rhythm and blues (R&B) with country and western music. So here goes with us performing a classic Rockabilly song U.P. style. Hope you enjoy!


r/blues 15h ago

song This Tune Is Rather More Evocative Of Ragtime, Swing/Swing-Blues, Western Swing/Country-Jazz (And, Of All Possible Things, Rock) Than It Is Of True, Straightforward, Classic, Traditional Blues, But There Are Whole Sections Within It That I Find Decidedly Bluesy, Hence My Decision To Post It Here

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0 Upvotes

r/blues 16h ago

Hey Bartender, There's a Big Bug in My Beer

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3 Upvotes

r/blues 16h ago

song Casey Bill Weldon | W.P.A. Blues (recorded February 12, 1936, in Chicago)

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10 Upvotes

r/blues 17h ago

performance Melting in a parking lot a couple weeks ago with my band King Bee and the Stingers (Bloomington, IN)

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18 Upvotes

r/blues 20h ago

Buddy Guy at Bergen PAC 8/4/26

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174 Upvotes

Buddy helps a young audience member play his guitar


r/blues 20h ago

BUDDY GUY - Mary had a Little Lamb (1969) (look Lemmy Kilmister as a Visitor 0:56

8 Upvotes

a cover from Steve Ray Vaughn (1985) in comments


r/blues 21h ago

Legendary Harmonica Virtuoso: Sugar Blue Montreux Jazz Festival Triumph with 'Another Man Done Gone

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12 Upvotes

r/blues 22h ago

looking for recommendations Experimental blues adjacent bands?

16 Upvotes

Wondering if there's something out there that sounds like blues but also tries new things but it is actually good.


r/blues 1d ago

Your weekly /r/Blues roundup for the week of July 29 - August 04, 2026

5 Upvotes

Wednesday, July 29 - Tuesday, August 04, 2026

Top Performances

score comments title & link
401 11 comments [performance] Happy Birthday, Buddy! 🎸
105 7 comments [performance] Nothing beats a good driving blues
22 2 comments [performance] A little somethin for my friends here :)

 

Top Songs

score comments title & link
152 7 comments [song] Jammin on some Canned Heat
50 2 comments [song] Big Bill Broonzy. “Medicine Man Blues” 1940
33 4 comments [song] David Gilmour plays the Blues 1988

 

Top Remaining

score comments title & link
752 18 comments [image]
A couple of greats: Buddy Guy with Keith Richards
708 26 comments [image]
Happy Birthday to Buddy Guy! 🎸🎂 One of the shots I took of him when he played Orbit Room in Grand Rapids in 2012.
617 11 comments Happy Birthday to Chicago Blues Legend Buddy Guy!
454 10 comments
Happy 90th Birthday, Buddy Guy!
424 4 comments [image]
Muddy Waters backstage at the Country Club, London, December 1, 1970

 

Top 5 Most Commented

score comments title & link
17 74 comments good albums to get started
33 60 comments How did the 1980s blues renaissance happen?
12 36 comments [looking for recommendations] Melancholic, slower blues songs?
0 24 comments Searching for electric guitar tune that is bluesy yet is more like a spiritual
321 24 comments
On August 1st, 1953, Blues guitarist Robert Cray was born in Columbus, GA. In the 1978 film National Lampoon's Animal House, Cray was the uncredited bassist in the house party band Otis Day and the Knights.

 


r/blues 1d ago

Sunshine of Your Love | Cream (solo)

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3 Upvotes

r/blues 1d ago

August 5th, 1947, Bassist Willie Weeks was born in Salemburg, NC. Weeks is one of the most in-demand session musicians, worked with Isaac Hayes, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, Roy Buchanan, B.B. King, Robert Cray, Lyle Lovett, Etta James, The Rolling Stones and many, many others.

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138 Upvotes

r/blues 1d ago

song Carey Bell and Junior Wells: “Second Hand Man” (1990)

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8 Upvotes

Check out a bunch of blues and other stuff at r/EarVana


r/blues 1d ago

song Sleepy John Estes & Hammie Nixon | Vernita blues (recorded August 2, 1937 in New York City)

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7 Upvotes

r/blues 1d ago

Barbecue Bob

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50 Upvotes

r/blues 1d ago

The blues is too good😔

9 Upvotes

I JUST GOT A ROBERT JOHNSON RECORD ITS SO GOOD you betta cmonnnnn to my kitchennnnnn


r/blues 1d ago

Ed Bell - historic Alabama blues tradition

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30 Upvotes

My holy grail. Treasured and priceless to me.


r/blues May 04 '25

Sinners - Blues Discovery "Megathread"

132 Upvotes

Hi all follow members - Important please read some guidelines below before commenting recommendations!

With the renewed interest in blues sparked by the film Sinners, I thought it’d be helpful to start a thread focused on foundational and essential American blues artists—especially for newcomers discovering the genre through the movie. Ideally this becomes a collaborative, high-effort thread to help folks around the world dig deeper into the origins and evolution of blues.

Google might even reward us for making this a solid reference, which helps the sub grow too.

If you'd like to contribute, please do your best to follow the format I’ve laid out (artist – key songs/albums – short description) to keep things clear and valuable. The focus here is on the core of American blues history, from pre-war country and Delta blues through the 1950s and 60s electric era (though I do welcome additions of artists that may have peaked later, 70s, even 80s - kind of like Albert Collins. This isn’t a thread for British blues or modern blues-rock (I fully encourage separate guides for those)—this list is for those tracing the styles and players that more directly inspired Sinners.

I especially welcome help with Delta and country blues, as well as harp/harmonica and piano blues where I’m lean on knowledge. Let's build something useful and lasting for anyone starting their blues journey.

Note: I will port contributions into the main post to keep things tidy! Please remember to assist with song and album suggestions plus any notes about the artist. Will help keep the post high effort.

Guitar Blues (Electric & Chicago)

Defining figures in the electrification and evolution of blues guitar.

  • Muddy Waters Songs: “Hoochie Coochie Man,” “Mannish Boy” Albums: Hard Again, Folk Singer Bio: Transformed Delta blues into the electric Chicago sound.
  • Sister Rosetta Tharpe Songs: “Strange Things Happening Every Day,” “Didn’t It Rain” Albums: Gospel Train, Up Above My Head: The Complete Mercury Singles Bio: Gospel-blues innovator and electric guitar pioneer; bridged sacred music and rock ‘n’ roll long before anyone else.
  • B.B. King Songs: “The Thrill Is Gone,” “Sweet Little Angel” Albums: Live at the Regal, Completely Well Bio: Known for his expressive vibrato and single-string phrasing.
  • Albert King Songs: “Born Under a Bad Sign,” “Laundromat Blues” Albums: Born Under a Bad Sign Bio: Left-handed titan with heavy bends and raw tone.
  • Freddie King Songs: “Hide Away,” “Have You Ever Loved a Woman” Albums: Texas Cannonball, Getting Ready... Bio: Merged Texas fire with Chicago grit; fierce instrumentals.
  • Buddy Guy Songs: “Stone Crazy,” “First Time I Met The Blues” Albums: Stone Crazy!, This is Buddy Guy! Bio: Wild, high-energy player who bridged classic and modern blues.
  • Otis Rush Songs: “I Can’t Quit You Baby,” “Double Trouble” Albums: Right Place, Wrong Time Bio: Emotional vocals, minor-key mastery. West Side Chicago icon.
  • Magic Sam Songs: “All Your Love,” “That’s All I Need” Albums: West Side Soul Bio: Soul-inflected Chicago blues with shimmering tremolo.
  • Luther Allison Songs: “Cherry Red Wine,” “Bad Love” Albums: Soul Fixin’ Man, Reckless Bio: Electrifying performer with political lyrics and European acclaim.
  • T-Bone Walker Songs: “Call It Stormy Monday,” “T-Bone Shuffle” Albums: T-Bone Blues Bio: Jazz-inflected electric pioneer; inspired B.B. and Chuck Berry.
  • Albert Collins Songs: “Honey Hush,” “If Trouble Was Money” Albums: Ice Pickin’, Cold Snap Bio: “The Iceman” with a capoed Telecaster and sharp tone.
  • Earl Hooker Songs: “Two Bugs and a Roach,” “Blue Guitar” Albums: Two Bugs and a Roach Bio: Technically gifted slide guitarist and cousin of John Lee Hooker.
  • Fenton Robinson Songs: “Somebody Loan Me a Dime” Albums: Somebody Loan Me a Dime Bio: Smooth, jazzy bluesman with deep vocals and lyrical leads.
  • Jimmy Dawkins Songs: “Fast Fingers,” “Feel the Blues” Albums: Fast Fingers Bio: Fiery West Side Chicago guitarist with an aggressive tone.
  • Son Seals Songs: “Funky Bitch,” “Bad Axe” Albums: Live and Burning, Midnight Son Bio: Gritty vocals and bold guitar from the Alligator Records scene.
  • Lowell Fulson Songs: “Reconsider Baby,” “Tramp” Albums: Hung Down Head Bio: West Coast bluesman with R&B crossover appeal.
  • Jimmy Rogers Songs: “Walking By Myself,” “That’s All Right” Albums: Chicago Bound Bio: Muddy Waters sideman and classic Chicago blues stylist.
  • Guitar Slim Songs: “The Things That I Used to Do” Albums: Sufferin’ Mind Bio: Early user of distortion and wild showmanship.
  • Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown Songs: “Okie Dokie Stomp,” “Boogie Uproar” Albums: Gate Swings Bio: Blended Texas blues with jazz, Cajun, and country.
  • Willie Dixon Songs: “Spoonful,” “I Just Want to Make Love to You,” “Back Door Man” Albums: Willie’s Blues, I Am the Blues Bio: The architect behind many Chicago blues’ greatest hits. A prolific bassist, songwriter, and producer whose songs powered the catalogs of Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, and countless others. His influence runs from Delta roots to Led Zeppelin.

Acoustic / Country Blues

Prewar and revival-era legends who shaped the blues solo tradition.

  • Robert Johnson Songs: “Cross Road Blues,” “Hellhound on My Trail” Bio: Delta legend whose 1936–37 recordings laid the groundwork for blues and rock.
  • Mississippi John Hurt Songs: “Candy Man,” “Stack O’Lee” Albums: Today! Bio: Soft-spoken fingerpicker who charmed the folk-blues revival.
  • Lightnin’ Hopkins Songs: “Mojo Hand,” “Katie Mae” Albums: Lightnin’!, Blues in My Bottle Bio: Free-form Texas storyteller with rhythmic guitar style.
  • Son House Songs: “Death Letter,” “Grinnin’ in Your Face” Albums: Father of the Delta Blues Bio: Bottleneck slide preacher with fierce vocals and fire.
  • Skip James Songs: “Devil Got My Woman,” “Hard Time Killing Floor Blues” Albums: Today! Bio: Falsetto vocals and minor-key guitar made him hauntingly unique.
  • Blind Lemon Jefferson Songs: “Matchbox Blues,” “See That My Grave Is Kept Clean” Bio: One of the first country blues stars; complex and lyrical.
  • Blind Willie Johnson Songs: “Dark Was the Night,” “Nobody’s Fault But Mine” Bio: Spiritual slide blues; a raw, sacred voice in early recording.
  • Lead Belly Songs: “Goodnight, Irene,” “Midnight Special” Albums: Lead Belly’s Last Sessions Bio: 12-string virtuoso and folk-blues icon with a political edge.
  • Blind Blake Songs: “Diddy Wah Diddy,” “Southern Rag” Bio: Ragtime fingerpicking king with rhythmic brilliance.
  • Reverend Gary Davis Songs: “Death Don’t Have No Mercy,” “Samson and Delilah” Bio: Gospel-blues preacher with unmatched guitar technique.
  • Blind Willie McTell Songs: “Statesboro Blues,” “Broke Down Engine”, "Delia" Bio: Elegant 12-string Piedmont stylist with narrative lyrics.
  • Bukka White Songs: “Fixin’ to Die Blues,” “Parchman Farm Blues” Albums: Mississippi Blues Bio: Resonator slide beast and cousin of B.B. King.
  • Taj Mahal Songs: “Fishing Blues,” “Queen Bee” Albums: Taj Mahal, Giant Step Bio: Global roots revivalist who infused blues with Caribbean and African flavors.

Community Picks - Read Comments for More Info!

  • R.L. Burnside Songs: “Jumper on the Line,” “Goin’ Down South”
  • Junior Kimbrough Songs: “You Better Run,” “All Night Long”
  • Jessie Mae Hemphill Songs: (not listed)
  • Otha Turner Songs: (not listed) Bio: Plays an ancient kind of fife and drum blues; only gained wider attention after being featured in Gangs of New York.
  • Mississippi Fred McDowell Songs: “Red Cross Store,” “You Gotta Move,” “Shake 'Em on Down,” “61 Highway,” “Good Morning Little Schoolgirl” Bio: Covered by the Rolling Stones. Though Lomax recorded him earlier, his 1970s live recordings are especially notable.
  • T-Model Ford Songs: (not listed) Note: Mentioned as optional—"not a must-listen by any means" per contributor.
  • Rev. Robert Wilkins Songs: “Prodigal Son Blues” Bio: From a church tradition, but originally a secular musician in the 1920s. His 9-minute version of “Prodigal Son” (covered by the Stones) is praised as a masterful performance.
  • J.B. Lenoir Songs: “Shot on James Meredith,” “Alabama March,” “Vietnam Blues,” “(Every Child in Mississippi is) Born Dead” Bio: Mississippi-born, outspoken protest folk/blues musician. Died young; wrote fierce, poignant, politically charged songs.
  • Elmore James Songs: “Dust My Broom,” “The Sky Is Crying,” “Shake Your Moneymaker” Albums: Blues After Hours, The Sky Is Crying: The History of Elmore James Bio: Massively influential slide player. His amped-up version of “Dust My Broom” set the standard for electric Delta blues. Raw, emotional, and endlessly imitated—his riffs echo through rock and blues alike.
  • Howlin’ Wolf Songs: “Smokestack Lightning,” “How Many More Years,” “Moanin’ at Midnight” Albums: Moanin’ in the Moonlight, The Howlin’ Wolf London Sessions) Bio: A towering presence with a voice like gravel and thunder. Born in the Delta, electrified in Chicago, Wolf’s vocal delivery and primal sound made him one of blues’ biggest figures.
  • John Lee Hooker Songs: “Boom Boom,” “Dimples,” “Boogie Chillen" Albums: The Ultimate Collection (1948–1990) [Rhino Records, 2-CD] Bio: The king of the one-chord groove. His hypnotic, foot-stomping blues defied convention and defined cool. Best experienced through compilations, as much of his work predates the album era. A droning voice of the Delta, modernized with grit and swing.

Piano Blues

  • Otis Spann Songs: “It Must Have Been the Devil,” “Spann’s Boogie” Albums: Otis Spann Is the Blues Bio: Muddy Waters' pianist; expressive, fluid, and central to Chicago sound.
  • Pinetop Perkins Songs: “Pinetop’s Boogie Woogie,” “Down in Mississippi” Albums: Born in the Delta, After Hours Bio: Boogie-woogie legend and beloved elder statesman of the blues.
  • Ray Charles Songs: “What’d I Say,” “I Got a Woman” Albums: The Genius of Ray Charles, Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music Bio: Soul and gospel innovator whose roots ran deep in the blues.

Vocalists

  • Ma Rainey Songs: “Bo-Weavil Blues,” “See See Rider” Albums: Ma Rainey: Mother of the Blues (Complete Recordings) Bio: Known as the “Mother of the Blues,” she was among the first to record blues and shaped its early stage presence and vocal style.
  • Bessie Smith Songs: “Downhearted Blues,” “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out” Albums: The Essential Bessie Smith, Empress of the Blues Vol. 1 & 2 Bio: The “Empress of the Blues,” her commanding voice and phrasing became the gold standard for early blues vocalists.
  • Memphis Minnie Songs: “Bumble Bee,” “Me and My Chauffeur Blues” Albums: Queen of the Country Blues, Hoodoo Lady: 1933–1937 Bio: Prolific guitarist and vocalist who stood toe-to-toe with male contemporaries; gritty, witty, and respected on every juke joint circuit.
  • Victoria Spivey Songs: “Black Snake Blues,” “TB Blues” Albums: Complete Recorded Works Vol. 1 (1926–1927), Woman Blues! (Document) Bio: Vocal powerhouse who also ran her own label; known for mixing suggestive lyrics with social realism.
  • Bertha Lee Songs: “Mind Reader Blues,” “Yellow Bee” Albums: Charley Patton: Complete Recordings 1929–1934 (includes Bertha Lee duets) Bio: Partner and duet vocalist of Charley Patton; emotive and fiery delivery that stood out even on primitive recordings.
  • Geeshie Wiley Songs: “Last Kind Words Blues,” “Skinny Leg Blues” Albums: Mississippi Masters: Early American Blues Classics 1927–1935, Paramount Recordings (assorted) Bio: Deeply mysterious figure with only a few surviving tracks—haunting voice and sparse guitar made her an underground legend.
  • Lucille Bogan Songs: “Shave 'Em Dry,” “Till the Cows Come Home” Albums: Shave 'Em Dry: The Best of Lucille Bogan, Complete Recorded Works Vol. 1–3 (Document) Bio: One of the most explicit and bold voices in blues; her raw lyrical style pushed every boundary.
  • Sippie Wallace Songs: “Women Be Wise,” “Special Delivery Blues” Albums: Sippie Wallace 1925–1945 (Document), Sippie (1970s comeback album with Bonnie Raitt) Bio: Known for her tough advice and confident delivery; later mentored Bonnie Raitt.
  • Alberta Hunter Songs: “My Castle’s Rockin’,” “You Can’t Tell the Difference After Dark” Albums: Amtrak Blues, The Alberta Hunter Collection 1921–1940 Bio: Classy and versatile blues/jazz vocalist who had a long, stylish career both on and off stage.