| White African | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 2001 | |||
| Recorded | 2000 | |||
| Genre | Blues | |||
| Label | NorthernBlues Music [1] | |||
| Producer | Kenny Passarelli | |||
| Otis Taylor chronology | ||||
| ||||
White African is an album by the American musician Otis Taylor, released in 2001. [2] [3] The album won Taylor a W. C. Handy Award for best new blues artist. [4]
Recorded in 2000, the album was produced by Kenny Passarelli, who also played bass. [5] [6] Taylor's daughter Cassie sang on the album. [7] The album booklet contains mugshots of Black men arrested for vagrancy in Kansas in the early part of the 20th century. [8] Taylor played a 1949 Gibson L-50 guitar. [9]
"Saint Martha Blues" references the lynching of Taylor's great-grandfather. [10] "Lost My Horse" is about alcoholism. [11] "3 Days and 3 Nights" deals with the consequences of a lack of affordable medical care. [12]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [13] |
| Calgary Herald | [14] |
| Robert Christgau |  [15] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music |  [16] |
| The Gazette | [17] |
| Ottawa Citizen | [6] |
| The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings | [5] |
Robert Christgau praised "My Soul's in Louisiana" and "Saint Martha Blues". [15] The Gazette wrote that Taylor "draws you into the songs with riveting, trance-like rhythms that lend powerful support to his passionate, often angry, vocals." [17] The Commercial Appeal noted that the album "ties [John Lee] Hooker's guitar style to socially and politically charged lyrics." [18]
The Globe and Mail stated that "the album's minimalist trance-blues are delivered with a sparse elegance through Taylor's gruff vocals and acoustic guitar, banjo and mandolin." [19] The Calgary Herald deemed White African "a stunning display of traditional blues in a sparse and timeless context." [14] The Philadelphia Inquirer called Taylor "a contemporary artist who captures the stark immediacy of traditional blues while sounding like no one else." [20]
AllMusic wrote: "Greatly influenced by John Lee Hooker, the very soulful Taylor often favors moody, dusky, haunting grooves." [13]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "My Soul's in Louisiana" | |
| 2. | "Resurrection Blues" | |
| 3. | "Momma Don't You Do It" | |
| 4. | "3 Days and 3 Nights" | |
| 5. | "Round and Round" | |
| 6. | "Stick on You" | |
| 7. | "Rain So Hard" | |
| 8. | "Lost My Horse" | |
| 9. | "Saint Martha Blues" | |
| 10. | "Ain't No Cowgirl" | |
| 11. | "Hungry People" |
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