HURT ME

Tony Peyser
Mirror contributing writer

   I recently found a mildewed, vinyl copy of a Mississippi John Hurt album I bought in high school. This acoustic LP had fabulous but low-key guitar-playing and was possessed by a gentle spirit. It was released on Vanguard Records and, appropriately, so is Avalon Blues, the new tribute album to this famous Southern bluesman. 
   Peter Case (who produced it) sings “Monday Morning Blues” with Dave Alvin. The song has, for want of a better term, a lot of white space as Case sings on his own for a while before Alvin takes his turn. It seems very contemporary, the kind of tune that would have appeared on Case’s Flying Saucer Blues or Alvin’s Grammy Award-winning Public Domain. 
   Blues slinger Mark Selby takes an electrified and pulsing whack at one of Hurt’s most famous compositions, “Make Me A Pallet On Your Floor.” (L.A. Times columnist Patt Morrison recently interviewed Jimmy Carter on her new KCET book show. The former President talked about being so poor that he often slept on a pallet —- a kind of bedroll —- as a child. Despite having heard Hurt’s song dozens of times over many years, that was the first time I ever knew what the heck a “pallet” was).
   John Hiatt closes the festivities with just guitar and vocal on another Hurt gem, “I’m Satisfied,” which will leave you feeling the way the second word in the song’s title suggests. 
   Tribute albums are iffy propositions as producers try to juggle all the elements together in search of the perfect artists, each singing the song that’s just right for them. I wasn’t crazy about a recent album of Dylan covers which proves how tricky these efforts are to pull off. But Avalon Blues is as good as Tulare Dust, the 1994 Merle Haggard tribute CD. That effort also had songs on it sung by Case and Alvin, which suggests that the first thing any producer should do on a similar project is give Peter and Dave a call. 
   One of the best songs on Avalon Blues is Bill Morrissey singing “Payday.” His new CD is Something I Saw Or Thought I Saw. A Morrissey album is like a Raymond Carver collection of stories and poems only Morrissey’s are set to music. With a scratchy voice somewhere between Tom Waits and Greg Brown, he’s a low-key, highly literate folkie. “Buddy Bolden’s Blues” is an Edward Hopper painting set to music. 
   The title character is a symbol of all the struggling souls in this world who are hanging on by their bitten fingernails. Once you hear the song, you’re destined to invoke the name Buddy Bolden whenever bad luck comes your way. “Moving Day” is about a man and woman splitting up their home and their relationship: “My car is packed to the roof/Yours looks just like mine/There’s no room for the dreams we had/I guess they stay behind.” I heard this song the day before I recently moved but I’m happy to report that my dreams went with me. 
   CDNow has Avalon Blues and Something I Saw Or Thought I Saw for $12.99. 
   The Goofy Band Name Of The Week is ...Ghetto Cowgirls.