One-Dime Blues | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1991 | |||
Recorded | 1988–1990 | |||
Genre | Blues | |||
Label | Rounder | |||
Producer | Wayne Martin, Lesley Williams | |||
Etta Baker chronology | ||||
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One-Dime Blues is an album by the American musician Etta Baker, released in 1991.[1][2] Baker was awarded a National Heritage Fellowship the same year.[3] She supported the album by making a few live appearances.[4] One-Dime Blues was nominated for a W. C. Handy Award for best country blues album.[5]
The album was produced by Wayne Martin and Lesley Williams.[6] It was funded by the North Carolina Arts Council, which produced a documentary about Baker and One-Dime Blues.[7] The recording sessions took place over 21 months, between 1988 and 1990.[7] "But on the Other Hand Baby" is a cover of the Ray Charles song.[8] Baker played clawhammer banjo on "Marching Jaybird".[9] She sang on "Broken Hearted Blues", an original song.[10]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
MusicHound Blues: The Essential Album Guide | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The News & Observer | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Spin wrote: "Extremely well polished, honest, and sensitive, her unique guitar sound is technically and spiritually magnificent."[13] The News & Observer called the album "a powerful yet sensitive collection of mostly instrumental folk blues and parlor songs."[9] The St. Louis Post-Dispatch deemed it "extremely folksy" blues.[14] The Pittsburgh Press admired the "surprisingly strong vocal" on "Broken Hearted Blues".[10]
The Asbury Park Press concluded that Baker's "impeccable fingering techniques ... prove there's more to the blues than a slashing slide guitar."[15] The Washington Post determined that Baker's "sparse arrangements, leisurely tempos and light touch allow each melody note to shine, even as the harmony notes keep the music flowing ever forward."[16]
AllMusic praised "the arresting vocals, prickly accompaniment, and commanding presence."[11] Acoustic Guitar noted that "Baker's guitar work is characteristically deliberate, clear and lightly swinging whether she's addressing a blues, ragtime, or folk motif."[17]
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Never Let Your Deal Go Down" | |
2. | "One-Dime Blues" | |
3. | "Knoxville Rag" | |
4. | "Broken-Hearted Blues" | |
5. | "Lost John" | |
6. | "Dew Drop" | |
7. | "Going Down the Road Feeling Bad" | |
8. | "Near the Cross I Watch and Pray" | |
9. | "Spanish Fandango" | |
10. | "Round My Back Door Selling Coal" | |
11. | "But on the Other Hand Baby" | |
12. | "Crow Jane" | |
13. | "John Henry" | |
14. | "Alabama Wagonwheel" | |
15. | "Bully of the Town" | |
16. | "Going to the Racetrack" | |
17. | "Police Dog Blues" | |
18. | "Marching Jaybird" | |
19. | "Railroad Bill" | |
20. | "Carolina Breakdown" |