Bringin' It All Back Home (Johnny Copeland album)

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Bringin' It All Back Home
Bringin' It All Back Home (Johnny Copeland album).jpg
Studio album by
Johnny Copeland
Released1985
Genre Texas blues, African folk music
Length35:17
Label Rounder [1]
Producer Dan Doyle
Johnny Copeland chronology
Texas Twister
(1984)		Bringin' It All Back Home
(1985)		Blues Power
(1989)

Bringin' It All Back Home is an album by the American musician Johnny Copeland. [2] [3] It was released in 1985. [4] Copeland supported the album with a North American tour. [5]

Contents

Production

Copeland recorded the album in March 1984 in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, where he collaborated with African musicians. [6] [7] It was produced by his manager, Dan Doyle. [8] Bringin' It All Back Home is considered the first time an American blues musician recorded an album in Africa. [9] Copeland decided to record there after his 1982 tour of the continent; many of the album's songs were inspired by the trek. [10] [11] Copeland included African percussion and the kora on many of the tracks. [12]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [13]
Robert Christgau B+ [14]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [15]
MusicHound Blues: The Essential Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [4]

Robert Christgau wrote that the band "finds a groove somewhere between an airborne Congolese rumba and a Gulf Coast shuffle with some tricky dance figures thrown in." [14] The Chicago Tribune noted that "African rhythms and instruments wind their way in and out of Copeland's more familiar Texas blues, sometimes seeming exotic, other times seeming perfectly normal." [16] The New York Times stated that Copeland "sings with a strong, persuasive urgency," and concluded that he "comfortably extended his reach by working with an African rhythm section." [17]

The Globe and Mail determined that "the singer-guitarist's music at its best moves, and the accompanying horn and rhythm sections here prove a cumbersome weight on the motion." [18] The Toronto Star deemed the album "compelling listening, an almost off-handed synthesis of African roots music and raw, elemental blues." [10]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Johnny Copeland except where noted.

Bringin' It All Back Home track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Kasavubu" 5:20
2."The Jungle" 3:29
3."Ngote"T.P. Polyrhythmo8:15
4."Djeli, Djeli Blues" Djeli Mousa 1:09
5."Djeli, Djeli Blues" (Continued)Mousa2:12
6."Abidjan" 3:37
7."Bozalimalamu" 3:14
8."Same Thing" 3:53
9."Conakry" 4:08
Total length:35:17

Personnel

Musicians

Technical

References

  1. ↑ The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. Penguin Books Ltd. 2006. p. 134.
  2. ↑ "Johnny Copeland Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
  3. ↑ Dicaire, David (October 1, 1999). Blues Singers: Biographies of 50 Legendary Artists of the Early 20th Century. McFarland. ISBN   9780786406067.
  4. 1 2 MusicHound Blues: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1998. p. 92.
  5. ↑ Haight, Kathy (March 21, 1986). "Copeland Found Piece of Soul in West Africa". Charlotte Observer. p. 1E.
  6. ↑ Herzhaft, Gérard (September 17, 1997). Encyclopedia of the Blues-2nd (p). University of Arkansas Press. ISBN   9781610751391.
  7. ↑ Snowden, Don (February 2, 1986). "Copeland Takes Blues 'Home' to Africa". Calendar. Los Angeles Times. p. 74.
  8. ↑ Snowden, Don (1986). "From Out of the Blues". The Reggae & African Beat. Vol. 5, no. 2. pp. 26–29.
  9. ↑ Komara, Edward M. (September 17, 2006). Encyclopedia of the Blues: A-J. Taylor & Francis US. ISBN   9780415927000.
  10. 1 2 Quill, Greg (April 25, 1986). "Bringin' It All Back Home, Johnny Copeland". Toronto Star. p. D20.
  11. ↑ Joyce, Mike (April 17, 1987). "Texas Blues & the Horns of Africa". The Washington Post. p. B7.
  12. ↑ Snider, Eric (August 12, 1988). "Lean, Lone-Star Blues". Weekend. St. Petersburg Times. p. 22.
  13. ↑ "Johnny Copeland Bringin' It All Back Home". AllMusic.
  14. 1 2 "Johnny Copeland". Robert Christgau.
  15. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 2. MUZE. p. 543.
  16. ↑ Brogan, Daniel (January 24, 1986). "Johnny Copeland, Bringin' It All Back Home". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. 50.
  17. ↑ Holden, Stephen (January 30, 1987). "Johnny Copeland". The New York Times. p. C21.
  18. ↑ Miller, Mark (April 24, 1986). "Bringin' It All Back Home Johnny Copeland". The Globe and Mail. p. D5.
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