He
was most attached to Son House, a hapless derelict who could not be entrusted
with a pawnable guitar, and had reached the stage of advanced alcoholism known
as "wet brain," where a few gulps of wine were sufficient to make him
drunk. Yet for three years, Waterman managed to make a concert performer out of
the emotional cripple who was Son House, who could not travel alone, or perform
without being given infusions of wine, the poison he referred to as "my
medicine." Whether it was in House's best interests to pursue a career
under such circumstances is another matter.
This is a great read for anyone looking for the to see the flip side of the blues revival through the eyes of one of the true originals. Would love to see Calt's Charlie Patton volume on here. It goes for like $400 and has been out of print for years.
ReplyDeleteAnon, unfortunately I don't have that Patton book, if anyone else does, as always contributions are very welcome. for more on James and this scene in general, will be posting Fahey's books at some point.
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