Skip James - Hard Time Killing Floor Blues

Hard Time Killing Floor Blues was the first session Skip James recorded following his rediscovery by John Fahey and Henry Vestine in the mid-'60s. Though he had not played the blues for more than 20 years, his skills were largely undiminished, and he turns in a fantastic set here. James was the pinnacle of the Bentonia (Mississippi) sound, which combines complex fingerpicking with falsetto vocals, resulting in somewhat spooky-sounding strain of blues. James reprises several of his 1931 Paramount sides on this session, as well as a couple new tunes that chronicle the illnesses of James' latter days. Read More