After digesting
Patrick McHale's
I found a music video
he animated called "Zombie"
from Australian calypso
delta blues musician
C.W. Stoneking.
All those words clumped
together and I still
didn't describe him properly.
At the time
of the first video
viewing, I didn't
know what I was
getting into.
What followed
was a rabbit hole
(see also: worm hole)
of great music
and playful videos
from a modern era
trapped inside yesteryear.
Capsule blues
lost in time.
I don't really
have a point of reference
for Stoneking’s songs
(maybe Junior Kimbrough,
maybe Odetta)
but they remind me
of Beirut's horns,
of DeVotchKa's sadness,
of Lemony Snicket's
imagination,
all thrown into
a cauldron
with a heavy splash
of voodoo
potion boogaloo.
If anyone has the blues,
it's C.W. Stoneking,
and boy will
his blues
move you.
After burning through
the three music
videos above
from Ole C.W.
(who was born in the 70s
despite remaining perpetually
in the 20s, 30s, 40s),
I found his Bandcamp
and haven't stopped listening.
While he has a few
other albums
from his earlier days
that I have yet
to experience,
his Bandcamp hosts
three LPs,
all worth your while.
His album Jungle Blues,
my personal favorite
of the three,
is a conceptual time piece,
both entertaining
and deeply moving.
"Jailhouse Blues"
and
"Talkin' Lion Blues"
and
"Jungle Lullaby".
All three of those
songs
get me every
single
time.
If you've made it
this far down the article,
be sure to read
the concept of
Jungle Blues
below,
and press play above
to enjoy
'a lazy afternoon
in paradise.'
