Eddie Lee Jones and Family – Yonder Go That Old Black Dog

Blues, Spirituals and Folksongs from Rural Georgia.

This unique recording, result of a chance encounter between folklorist Bill Koon and Georgia singer-guitarist Eddie Lee jones, documents a number of archaic black folksong traditions that hearken back to a pre-blues stage of black folk music. Made informally at Jones’ home, with friends and neighbors dropping in to join the festivities, these recordings comprise a remarkable, vividly candid document of a way of life that has completely disapeared from the America scene.

Track Listing:
1. Yonder Go That Old Black Dog - 2:15   2. Baby, Please Don't Go - 1:56   3. She's Mine, She's Yours - 3:55   4. Oh Graveyard, You Can't Hold Me Always - 1:56   5. You're Gonna Need My Help Someday - 2:23   6. Slide Instrumental - 1:19   7. Stop and Listen - 2:52   8. I May Never See You Anymore - 2:29   9. I Got a Yellow Gal - 1:59   10. John Henry - 4:31   11. I Won't Be Troubled No More - 2:49   12. I'm Talking 'Bout You - 1:26   13. Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning - 3:06   14. Instrumental - 1:37   15. Let That Liar Alone - 1:44   16. Which Way Does the Blood Red River Run - 2:15

Personnel:
Eddie Lee ‘Mustright’ Jones (vocals, guitar)

Reviews:

1. AllMusic - Steve Leggett
Yonder Go That Old Black Dog is a very special album, perhaps more important for the atmosphere it sets than for the quality of the actual recordings. Compiled by folklorist Bill Koon from field recordings he made after encountering Eddie Lee "Mustright" Jones playing guitar on a porch in Lexington, GA, in 1965, the album has the feel of an early 19th century African-American singalong, with Jones' family and friends adding spoken interjections and impromptu background vocals to whatever Jones is singing. The material isn't blues as such, although Jones' guitar playing and slide work definitely has a bluesy tone to it, but tends to drift closer to folk spirituals and guitar renditions of fiddle dance tunes. Nothing here is slick or polished, but the easy, communal intimacy of hearing Jones and his family tackle "Yonder Go That Old Black Dog," "I May Never See You Anymore," "I'm Talking 'Bout You," "Let That Liar Alone," the blues spiritual "Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning," and the folk chestnut "John Henry" makes this a valuable document of how families entertained themselves before radio, television, and computers came along to alter everything. Insular, gentle, amateur, and endearing, Yonder Go That Old Black Dog is a fascinating album, intended mostly for music scholars, but with an undeniable charm that should appeal to the casual listener.