Release Info

This is the kind of collection that may well flash right past most American listeners, which would be their loss. For the uninitiated, skiffle was a brand of music melding folk, blues, gospel, and country (with some elements of jazz) that was uniquely (and immensely) popular in England from 1956 until the end of the decade. For some mature listeners, skiffle constituted a lively adjunct to jazz (especially "trad," aka Dixieland), which was how the music came to be showcased in the first place; while for younger Britons, it provided a way into appreciating (and, even more important, performing) such uniquely American musical genres as blues and, later, rock & roll, for which there were no direct antecedents in English music. This nearly two-and-a-half-hour double-CD set, containing 55 cuts, would seem to be the last word in an overview of skiffle, but for the fact that it was merely the first of (so far) four such volumes from Smith & Co. It is a phenomenal jumping-off point, either for the longtime fan or the neophyte: most of the key bases are covered, including the major early contributions of Lonnie Donegan, Ken Colyer, Chris Barber, Wally Whyton, and the Vipers Skiffle Group, Johnny Duncan, et al. Beyond such expected fare, however, are contributions from such figures as jazz legend Humphrey Lyttelton; indeed, Lyttelton's instrumental cuts, and those by Johnny Parker's Washboard Band, are special highlights on a collection otherwise dominated by cuts with vocals; they put the music into a legitimate jazz context, while in other places skiffle's blues and gospel influences (often ignored in less ambitious compilations) are showcased. What's more, most of the best of the artists here -- and all of those named, would fit into that category -- know how to "swing" in the jazziest sense of that word. The result is a collection that not only shows off early skiffle at its best, but also the many sides of that music, which is mostly remembered today (outside of England, anyway) as the basis for a lot of future rock & rollers from the Beatles on down picking up guitars for the first time. American blues figures such as Leadbelly were obvious influences, but listening to this set, one is reminded that '20s and ‘30s jazz also contributed. There are also two direct American contributions on this set: one from Alan Lomax, who put out a skiffle recording with the Ramblers circa 1956 (which manages to embrace country and jazz within the same song, "Hard Case," and thus crosses swords with western swing), and Ramblin‘ Jack Elliot, who appears with the City Ramblers Skiffle Group on "Midnight Special." Those are just two of the surprises here -- most of the others are more of a home-grown nature, including the Ken Colyer Skiffle Group's all-acoustic-guitar rendition of "K.C. Blues," and acts such as Beryl Bryden's Backroom Skiffle and the Clyde Valley Stompers (featuring Mary McGowan). They're all worth discovering. ~ Bruce Eder

Tracks

1. Don't You Rock Me Daddy-O - Vipers Skiffle Group
2. Mama Don't Allow - City Ramblers Skiffle Group
3. Streamline Train - Colyer, Ken
4. Bring a Little Water Sylvie - Donegan, Lonnie Skiffle Group
5. Where Could I Go
6. Canine Stomp
7. Midnight Special - Colyer, Ken
8. John Henry - Donegan, Lonnie
9. I Shall Not Be Moved - City Ramblers Skiffle Group
10. Railroad Man
11. Ain't You Glad - Vipers Skiffle Group
12. Doin' My Time
13. Down by the Riverside - Colyer, Ken
14. Bad Penny Blues - Parker, Johnny
15. I Want a Girl - City Ramblers Skiffle Group
16. Railroad Bill - Donegan, Lonnie Skiffle Group
17. Go Down Old Hannah - Colyer, Ken
18. No. 69
19. Picket Line - City Ramblers Skiffle Group
20. Open Up Them Pearly Gates
21. Pick a Bale of Cotton - Vipers Skiffle Group
22. Oh Lula
23. Take This Hammer - Colyer, Ken
24. Casey Jones - Bryden, Beryl Backroom Skiffle
25. The Fox's Tail
26. I'm So Glad
27. Backroom Joys - Lazy Ade Late Hour Boys

1. Rock Island Line - Donegan, Lonnie
2. When the Saints Go Marching In - City Ramblers Skiffle Group
3. Muleskinner Blues - Colyer, Ken
4. Gypsy Davy
5. Up There
6. I'm 'Alabammy' Bound - Donegan, Lonnie
7. Stack O Lee Blues - Colyer, Ken
8. Midnight Special
9. 10,000 Years Ago - Vipers Skiffle Group
10. Old Time Religion
11. Kansas City Blues - Bryden, Beryl Backroom Skiffle
12. K. C. Moan - Colyer, Ken
13. Hard Case
14. Dead or Alive - Donegan, Lonnie Skiffle Group
15. Mr. Freddy Blues
16. 2.19 Blues - City Ramblers Skiffle Group
17. Can't You Line 'Em
18. Downbound Train - Colyer, Ken
19. Worried Man Blues - Donegan, Lonnie
20. Hook, Line and Sinker - Lazy Ade Late Hour Boys
21. 900 Miles - City Ramblers Skiffle Group
22. Hold That Thing
23. Casey Jones - Colyer, Ken
24. Won't You Come Over to My House Baby
25. It's Tight Like That
26. Fag Paper Stomp
27. Union Train
28. Crawdad Hole