Catfish Keith – Wild Ox Moan
Fish Tail Records
15 Tracks – 59 minutes
Catfish Keith returns for his 22nd album of traditional-styled acoustic blues mixing dives into the Delta with American roots music with a few surprises thrown in this time, including a song from The Sons of The Pioneers, the Western swing group first formed by Leonard Slye, who later changed his name to Roy Rogers, the famed TV cowboy from the 1950’s. He adds four original songs into the mix with eleven carefully selected covers for this album.
Catfish was inducted into the Iowa Blues Hall of Fame in 2008. He won the Blues Blast Music Award for Best Acoustic Guitarist in 2019, 2021, and 2022 and for Best Acoustic Blues Album in 2022. All of his albums rise to the top of the Blues and Roots music charts. This album is certainly no exception, as it was sitting at #6 on the charts after its first week of release.
The album opens with an original “Don’t Know Right from Wrong”, which he describes as inspired by Memphis blues Legend Frank Stokes and played on his Santa Cruz Catfish Special. The song mixes some fine strumming with some slide as he sings “Daddy likes to take his time, dreaming of ways I can satisfy your mind”. Next up is Blind Lemon Jefferson’s “One Dime” and is “informed by the singing of Blind Connie Williams, Butch Cage has a great version also”. Catfish says he is “broke and don’t have a dime… want your friend to be like Jesse James”. Blind Joe Taggart’s “God’s Gonna Separate the Wheat from the Tares” which Catfish plays on a Fraulini Lorette Parlor Guitar. The title indicates that the packaging is removed to weigh the actual product, which would indicate that we stand exposed on Judgment Day.
He plays a National Reso-Phonic Baritone Tricone on the title track, “Wild Ox Moan” from Vera Hall, a slow cry as he asks her if she wants to go to Texas with him. The second original, “World Gone Wrong”, played on a Ralph Bown 12-string guitar, gains some energy as he says, “he has nobody to throw my arms around”. He also notes that “He is a mighty good leader and your bosom pal, but he is gonna tell you you’re on the road to hell”. Big Bill Broonzy’s “Saturday Night Rub” is a bouncy instrumental.
His third original, “Swim Deep, Pretty Mama” was first recorded in 1992 on his Cherry Ball album. Rev. Edward W. Claborn’s gospel song, “Your Close Friend” is played on a bottleneck slide on his National Reso-Phonic and addresses itself to soldiers as he says, “enemies cannot harm you so watch your close friend”. Nancy Wilson’s jazz song “How Glad I Am” is transformed into a traditional country blues by Catfish.
“I’m Going Home” is a song from a UK family band, Kitty, Daisy and Lewis. Keith smoothly sings “I left my baby all alone, did you no wrong so you aren’t going to weep and moan”. “Cool Water”, the aforementioned song from the Sons of The Pioneers, is played on his 12-string and is instantly recognizable but given a new unique sound by Catfish. “Spinach for Old Popeye” is an original based on an old fiddle tune that Catfish plays “Clawhammer banjo style on his Pete Howlett Resolele Prototype uke”.
Lil Son Jackson’s Texas blues “Milford Drowning” is “A deep dark journey on the Fraulini Loretta”. Blind Blake’s “Come on Boys, Let’s Do That Mess Around” is another energetic song encouraging “Buzzing around like a bee, shaking like a ship on the sea, come on let’s have some fun”. He closes the album with another instrumental, Dave Evan’s “Mole’s Moan”.
The album certainly offers many very obscure titles and artists, all ably performed by Catfish Keith and sung by him in his warm, strong vocal style. He clearly shows an expertise on each of the cited instruments on the album.
