John Lee Hooker – The Standard School Broadcast Recordings
BMG Records
https://www.bmg.com/
8 songs – 59 minutes
When John Lee Hooker left us on 21 June 2001, he left behind a legacy of recorded music matched by few others. His influence on the likes of the Rolling Stones, the Yardbirds, the Animals and Canned Heat was a foundation stone in the late-60s resurgence of the blues. So what a thrill it is to hear this previously unreleased 1973 recording that captures him in prime form.
The Standard School Broadcast was founded in 1928 as a groundbreaking educational program sponsored by Standard Oil (later Exxon), dedicated to music appreciation and American history, reaching schools across the Western USA via the NBC network. Hooker’s studio session, recorded at San Francisco’s Coast Recorders, is an object lesson in how the blues should be played.
On the session, Hooker’s band comprised his long-term rhythm section of bassist Gino Skaggs and drummer, Ken Swank, together with Hooker’s then-20-year-old son, Robert Hooker on piano. Together, they recorded eight tracks, but only three were ever broadcast. That makes this release pretty much unmissable by any true fan of the blues.
Of course, Hooker had a reputation for somewhat variable quality in his performances at times over the years. In this case, however, the production is sparkling and clear (with a glorious, reverb-laden sound not dissimilar to Muddy Waters’ Folk Singer album), and the performances are simply stunning. Recorded live, with no overdubs, edits, or even significant mixing, this is one of the best blues albums released in years.
There is a rare intimacy here, with Hooker on top form vocally, whilst playing some superb yet restrained guitar. Skaggs and Swank follow their leader subtly but most effectively, while Robert Hooker’s piano is a revelation, adding depth and colour to his father’s songs. He never over-plays or over-shadows his parent but instead lifts John Lee’s performance in the same way that Otis Spann used to do for Muddy.
The album opens with the one chord drone of “Bad Boy”, before switching seamlessly into “Hard Times”, a moving reimagining of Hooker’s own “No Shoes”. The classic Hooker boogie comes out in both “Rock With Me”, and “Should Have Been Gone”, the latter a reworking of “I’m Leaving”. There is also a solo rendition of his 1948 classic “Sally Mae”. But it is in the slower, meditative, emotionally brutal and scorchingly raw tracks such as “I Hate The Day I Was Born” and the medley of “When My First Wife Left Me” and “Hobo Blues” that Hooker’s true genius is found. He isn’t playing this music for an audience. He is playing for himself, exorcising inner demons, confessing untold sins and releasing deep, existential despair. It is painful and joyful, mournful and uplifting. It is life.
If you’re already a John Lee Hooker fan (and who isn’t?), this is an essential purchase. If you’re not yet a John Lee Hooker fan, you will be after hearing this album. It is a hauntingly beautiful release.
