Elmore James & His "Broom Dusters" - Modern 983 (1956)

From wikipedia

Elmore James (January 27, 1918 – May 24, 1963) was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, band leader. He was known as "the King of the Slide Guitar" and had a unique guitar style, noted for his use of loud amplification and his stirring voice.

James was born Elmore Brooks in the old Richland community in Holmes County, Mississippi (not to be confused with two other locations of the same name in Mississippi). He was the illegitimate son of 15-year-old Leola Brooks, a field hand. His father was probably Joe Willie "Frost" James, who moved in with Leola, and so Elmore took this as his name.

James played a wide variety of "blues" (which often crossed over into other styles of music) similar to that of Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf and some of B. B. King's work, but distinguished by his guitar's unique tone coming from a modified, hollow body traditional acoustic guitar, which sounded like an amped up version of the "more modern" solid body guitars. He most often played using a slide, but on several recordings he plays without. His voice and style were as instantly recognisable as King's, Muddy's and Wolf's and until he fell afoul of the Chicago union, he and his 'Broomdusters' were as popular in the Chicago clubs as any of these musicians' bands. James could be reportedly 'difficult' (drinking on the job, not paying out cash, abandoning musicians, double booking etc.)

I may be mistaken but this may be the only record he recorded on Modern. He recorded prolifically for the other Bihari labels.

Recorded in Chicago on January 4, 1956.


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