# Music by Genre > Jazz/Blues Variants, Bossa, Choro, Klezmer >  Old Mandolin Blues players???

## lowdown

Hey I'm looking for some old time blues mandolin to listen to.  Any suggestions?

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## Samjessin

Get the original Sonny Boy Williamson recordings with Yank Rachell playing mandolin.

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## Perry

The Testament release Mandolin Blues is a fantastic introduction to a variety of styles.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...e=UTF8&s=music

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## Pete Summers

This fellow does pretty well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PwucS53AsY

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## JEStanek

There is the Yank Rachell tribute CD Jim Richter was involved with (with many great guest artists too!) as well.

Jamie

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## Ed Goist

Cafe member Big Rig as Spearman Brewers.

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## lowdown

cool thanks guys


I will definitely check out that Sonny Boy stuff....

who did Johnny Young play with?

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## mandocrucian

*Sleepy John Estes - I Ain't Gonna Be Worried No More 1929-1941*

Yank Rachell, mandolin, on about half of the CD.

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## MandoSquirrel

Charlie McCoy(brother of Joe, not the harmonica player)
Carl Martin
Coley Jones with the Dallas String Band
Vol Stevens with the Memphis Jug band & others
Will Weldon with the Memphis Jug band, Big Bill Broonzy, & others
Louis Ford on a few cuts on Muddy Waters earliest recordings in Mississippi
Will Hatcher  (see Perry's recommendation for "The Testament release Mandolin Blues )
Johnny Young for more Chicago blues sound
Find a copy of _Rags Breakdowns Stomps & Blues_ and *Vintage Mandolin Music Vol 1* and read the liner notes.

And Yank was great with Sleepy John(good album, Niles) or Sonny Boy, or on his own.

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## MandoSquirrel

> who did Johnny Young play with?


Some on his own, also with others, but the only one coming to mind right now is Ted Bogan on "Mandolin Blues(Perry's recommendation).

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## barney 59

In the back of Rich Del Grosso's book "From Memphis to Maxwell St." He has pretty much the most comprehensive discography of old mandolin blues that I know of and it's a pretty short list.
Yank Yachell, Carl Martin of Martin,Bogan and Armstrong, (Howard Armstrong was a great mandolin player in his own right) Johnny Young. These have all been mentioned. Memphis Jug Band maybe hasn't. I was lucky enough to spend a weekend with M,B and A when they came to a tiny festival in Talcott WVa in maybe '73. I spent the whole time camped out with them and those old guys( '73 they were really only 60+ but I was really young so I thought they were really old) went 48 hours straight! Howard borrowed my mandolin to do duets with Carl and I got to sit in on some stuff. Howard Armstrong was one of the most amped up characters that I have ever met he was going a mile a minute the whole time! It was really fun!  
Unfortunately there isn't a great deal of recordings of early mandolin blues players, either because maybe there never were a lot or maybe they just got bypassed and missed out on being recorded. I'll bet there are probably a lot of musicians from the early years that never got "collected".
Johnny Young played with Big Walter and had a band -- "Johnny Young and his Chicago Blues Band"

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## bluesmandolinman

the above poster 'samjessin' is actually today´s KING of oldtime blues mandolin ! 
He plays together with the Little Brothers ( search the tube ! ) 
Just listen and close your eyes and you jump right back on a 78s record
Just awesome !

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## allenhopkins

R W Durden with the Three Stripped Gears:

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## Big Rig

Hunt down some Matthew Prater.  There's only four sides that I know of, but they're great.  I think one is on that Rags Breakdowns Stomps & Blues album.

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## MandoSquirrel

> Hunt down some Matthew Prater.  There's only four sides that I know of, but they're great.  I think one is on that Rags Breakdowns Stomps & Blues album.


Yes to all of the above.

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## Big Rig

Check out the Northside Southpaws out of Chicago as well, great stuff going on there as well.
I'm loving this thread, been stuck on listening to Big Bill Broonzy for a week plus, reminded me to load up some Prater again.

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## Ed Goist

I just found this comprehensive mandolin blues discography on Rich DelGrosso's fine website.

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## mandopops

Yeah this is all great stuff. The Sleepy John w/ Yank is outstanding. My favorite Yank trax, since I prefer him backing up & not the lead vocal, Sleepy John is great. It's also unusual w/ Guitar. Piano & Mandolin line-up. They did about a dozen tunes, all gems. They did reunite 30 years later for Delmark. Good stuff,but check out the early trax 1st.

Charlie McCoy,also superb. He also recorded in different line-ups,his own name,"Jazz" Style w/ the Harlem Hamfats(mainly on Guitar) & The McCoy Brothers w/ Joe. The batch of McCoy Brothers trax are great. Good little band w/ Joe mainly the singer. I prefer his singing over Charlies'. Also, Charlie played back-up to Ishman Bracey (Brown Mama,Leaving Town,I think are the tunes with Mandolin),& Memphis Minnie(Anyone seen My Man, I'd Rather see him dead) these are unbeatable. I think he's on a couple of Big Bill Broonzy's (I've got a reason,Oh babe) also top notch. Find any or all of these.
 Johnny Young of course. Both acoustic or amplified. My faves , for more acoustic,( on an album where he mainly played Guitar,) he did 4 Mando trax w/ the great Otis Spann on Piano. Spann is so great at backing up,the Piano could over ride,but he rolls in and out letting Johnny go for it. The "I Can't Keep my Feet from Jumping" (if you can find it) is good Amplified Chicago style.The great Guitarist from the Aces, Louis Myers on rhythm and lead. He did a couple of really wailing Chicago type Mandolin on a Bob Reidy Blues Band album also.(Johnnies Jump & Mandolin Boogie). The thing w/ Johnny for me, he's my favorite cuz I like his singing. I like him as a Blues guy who happens to play Mandolin.
Oh yea, find the Chicago String Band LP w/both Johnny & Carl Martin. 
I'm done for now.

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