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A remarkable collection
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This review first appeared in the November 2, 1992 issue of the North County Blade-Citizen (now North County Times).
Mississippi delta bluesman David "Honeyboy" Edwards is, with the death this summer of Johnny Shines, one of the last pre-war country blues artists still performing.
This anthology includes recordings from 1942, 1979 and 1991, providing a fair overview of his career.
Two things immediately come to mind after listening to this CD. The first is that in 1942, at the age of 27, Edwards was already fully in his prime. The second is that while his guitar playing has held up to the years, his voice has not.
But if Edwards' vocals are no longer silky smooth, they still convey his passion for life. And his guitar has granted no quarter to time, with his 1991 recordings being, if anything, more compelling than those of a half century ago.
With 27 tracks, including a half-dozen spoken reflections from both then and now, this generous collection is a real bargain.