Otis Taylor - Below The Fold (2005)

Otis Taylor (born July 30, 1948, Chicago, Illinois) is an American blues musician. He is a multi-instrumentalist whose talents include the guitar, banjo, mandolin, harmonica, and vocals. In 2001, he was awarded a fellowship to the Sundance Film Composers Laboratory.

Genre-defying, critically-acclaimed singer/songwriter Otis Taylor's seventh CD, Below the Fold, marks the award-winning artist's third disc for Telarc, the premiere blues/jazz/classical label. Featuring a variety of styles that stem from a blues-based core, the 10-track set results in a diverse and rhythmically complex cycle of songs which bond acoustic Delta blues with Appalachian country blues.
On Below the Fold, Taylor's signature trance sound, marked by his artistic fearlessness, is fleshed out by the use of surprising instruments. Fiddle, organ and banjo meld into passionate narratives giving the songs an unearthly cast. "I'm obsessive about trying out new ideas and sounds," the 2005 WC Handy Award nominee explains. "And I'm particularly drawn to the banjo because it's originally from Africa. In old-time music, banjoists would tap on their fifth string, a process which carries right through to Delta blues." And for the first time, Taylor employs drums on several tracks. Standout selections include the brazen opener "Feels Like Lighting," the warmly sung "Working for the Pullman Company" delivered by Taylor's daughter Cassie, and the closer "Right Side of Heaven" which bustles with the sounds of a New Orleans-style cajun marching band.

Revered as a riveting live performer whose music is equal parts John Lee Hooker and Nick Cave, Taylor has carved a unique niche for himself by creating music that Rolling Stone hails for "murky swamp drones and intricate African folk that move right past entertainment–into a realm where the blues can again be about illumination and provocation."

Tracklist

1. Feel Like Lighting
2. Boy Plays Mandolin
3. Hookers In The Street
4. Mama's Got A Friend
5. Working For The Pullman Company
6. Your Children Sleep Good Tonight
7. Didn't Know Much About Education
8. Went To Hermes
9. Goverment Lied
10. Right Side Of Heaven