Description

On vinyl for the first time. Second volume in a series of three.

Reissued in time to celebrate 25 years of Fat Possum, showcasing their fine blues roots.

This aint no sequel, but the title was so good we decided to recycle it. Recycling being an honorable blues tradition. · Are things really so bad? In case you havent noticed, American teenagers, the record buying public, dont associate blues with anything good. How could they when all theyve been exposed to is the cheesy, cigar-smoking, frat-rock, and tourist trap side of it. At the other end of the spectrum, and the other side of the bar, but just as distasteful, are the folklorists, museum keepers, and musicologists cozy existence insulated from reality with non-profit corporate checks. What place does Fat Possum Records have in all this? All we care about is capturing the vitality and subversive intensity our artists possess that is relevant in todays world. Blues used to be revered for its outrageousness, but it doesnt even serve as an outlet for frustration anymore. Hey were frustrated as hell. And we think it shows. Like, right now were having to waste time arguing with Kenny Brown about that dent in his van hes trying to claim wasnt there before the tour so Fat Possum should fix it. Were about to release Kennys solo record and all hes worried about is a quarter panel on a Chevy. Goddamn, Kenny Brown.

We are trying our best, thats our motto, in case you didnt know; and like the title, it fits. Our customers seem to like it, and it keeps everyone focused. Try your best, thats all you can do, when youve got a job this big.

I dont make sequels and Im not a folklorist. I didnt start Fat Possum to document practitioners of a dying culture with archival field recordings that rarely sound good, much less do any artist justice. Its hard enough to make a good record when you are trying to; its impossible to make one when all you are trying to do is record something. Fat Possum is always being criticized for being disrespectful, or for not being reverent, in our marketing and publicity. F*ck it. Old blues men are supposed to be bad people. I didnt find an impressionist painting at a flea market or discover some long forgotten Pharaohs tomb. I didnt discover anybody, I record blues guys that were overlooked by other labels because they: hadnt toured, had only limited repertoires, were unreliable or refused to play standing up. Guys who sometimes have trouble standing up, who are better at falling down. But hey, thats the blues. At least, thats what I call the blues. Check it out. Matthew Johnson