Spirit and the Blues is a funky folk-blues delight: a bubbling pot of authentic bottleneck spirituals and memorable hum-alongs, especially for hardcore Deacons fans. Bibb blends the muddy-river vocal style of Delta gospel and the drive of white vagabond balladeers like Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger. Choice cuts "Lonesome Valley" and "Satisfied Mind" are gorgeous understated revisits of neglected gems; "Where I Shall Be" is a meditative adaption of an old field prayer recorded by Blind Lemon Jefferson. Bibb's fingerpicking technique engages the "micro-melodies" happening between melody and bassline, skillfully accompanied by the harmonica-wielding Rev. Dan Smith on "Keep Goin' On" and the traded leads with Göran Wennerbrandt's steel-bodied National Style "O" on "Lonesome Valley." Bibb's songs successfully trade visits with gospel as well as sassy, lazy blues tunes about sex and old-fashioned romance, as in "Braggin," also a favorite cut. A modern and beautifully mixed record, graced with spirit and a real timelessness factor. Spirit and the Blues is a funky folk-blues delight: a bubbling pot of authentic bottleneck spirituals and memorable hum-alongs, especially for hardcore Deacons fans. Bibb blends the muddy-river vocal style of Delta gospel and the drive of white vagabond balladeers like Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger. Choice cuts "Lonesome Valley" and "Satisfied Mind" are gorgeous understated revisits of neglected gems; "Where I Shall Be" is a meditative adaption of an old field prayer recorded by Blind Lemon Jefferson. Bibb's fingerpicking technique engages the "micro-melodies" happening between melody and bassline, skillfully accompanied by the harmonica-wielding Rev. Dan Smith on "Keep Goin' On" and the traded leads with Göran Wennerbrandt's steel-bodied National Style "O" on "Lonesome Valley." Bibb's songs successfully trade visits with gospel as well as sassy, lazy blues tunes about sex and old-fashioned romance, as in "Braggin," also a favorite cut. A modern and beautifully mixed record, graced with spirit and a real timelessness factor. false 2023-07-29 08:34:37 10 1999 1999-02-16 1999-02-16 60 Blues Folk 132657 2221792 6ac2643d-206f-48d2-ba9e-c47fc1165963 2eb6240d-f5e7-4ba4-8003-2c5b2d651dfb 2c79fb4f-1bab-35be-ae3b-fccf3bca37bc Eric Bibb AlbumArtist Eric Bibb Artist Eric Bibb Eric Bibb 1 03:51 2 04:42 3 05:12 4 03:00 5 03:44 6 02:04 7 04:18 8 04:09 9 02:47 10 02:58 11 04:28 12 05:28 13 07:06 14 04:03 15 02:01 Eric Charles Bibb (born August 16, 1951) is a Grammy-nominated American-born blues singer and songwriter. EarthBeat!