BLACK MOUNTAIN SIDES 05 JACK ROSE KENSINGTON BLUES

MOJO PRESENTS... 15 FOLK AND BLUES VISIONARIES FROM OVER THE HILLS AND FAR AWAY

01 BERT JANSCH BROUGHT WITH THE RAIN

Unassuming progenitor of the ’60s British folk revival, Glaswegian Jansch – with contemporaries like Davy Graham – laid the foundations for Page’s adventures in acoustic music. This elegant traditional, from Jansch’s 1973 album Moonshine, was released just after Pentangle’s demise. Ralph McTell’s harmonica adds a bluesy edge. (Trad, arranged by Jansch). Publishing: Bucks Music Group. Licensing: Licensed from Sony BMG. Taken from the album Moonshine. Available at www. earthrecordlabel.com

02 RYLEY WALKER ON THE BANKS OF THE OLD KISHWAUKEE

Early in his career, the young Chicagoan singer-songwriter formed kinships with Danny Thompson and John Renbourn, Jansch’s Pentangle bandmates, and a freewheeling vibe is audible on this gem from 2015’s Primrose Green. Walker’s latest LP, in late November, will revisit the Dave Matthews Band’s Lillywhite Sessions. (Walker). Songs in Numerical Order (BMI) administered by Covertly Canadian Publishing. Taken from the album Primrose Green. Available at https:// www.ryleywalker.com/

03 JAKE XERXES FUSSELL HAVE YOU EVER SEEN PEACHES GROWING ON A SWEET POTATO VINE?

The son of a folklorist, Fussell grew up on the Georgia-Alabama border, schooled in the South’s rich musical culture. He unearthed this countryblues by Jimmy Lee Williams, a farmer whose songs were recorded by a friend of Fussell’s father. (Fussell). N/A – this performance & arrangement © 2017 Jake Xerxes Fussell. ℗&©2017 Paradise of Bachelors. Taken from What In The Natural World (2017, PoB-031, LP/CD/digital). Available at http:// www.paradiseofbachelors.com/jake-xerxes-fussell

04 NATHAN SALSBURG SKETCH FROM LIFE

Salsburg’s name may be familiar from his work backing the fine Louisville singer Joan Shelley (for news of their next album together, see page 18). He is also, though, a magical solo guitarist, with a Pagelike grasp of how the rural musical traditions of North America and the British Isles intertwine. Sketch From Life is a sprightly, timeless original from his 2018 set, Third. (Salsburg). ℗&©Root Hog or Die 2018 (BMI). Taken from the album Third available on No Quarter. Available at www.noquarter.net

09 JOHN HULBURT AFTER THE STORM

Some American Primitive masters have long flown off the radar, primed for rediscovery. Take Hulburt, a Chicagoan guitarist once with ’60s garage rockers The Knaves. He privately released one album in 1972 (Opus III), only for it to be found in a record store by Ryley Walker 40 years later. Its reissue brought more tapes to light, like this gorgeous 1998 workout. (Hulburt). Tompkins Square Music Publishing (admin. by Concord Copyrights) (BMI). Taken from the album Leap Frog. Available at tompkinssquare.com

10 DANIEL BACHMAN WINE AND PEANUTS

Another Ryley Walker connection – Virginian Bachman was an early duo partner to the well-connected guitarist. Bachman, though, is a terrific solo player in his own right; one of the wilder and more experimental of the current scene. Here, from his eponymous 2016 LP, he tackles a rag with characteristic vigour and lightness of touch. (Bachman). Daniel Bachman (BMI), administered by Domino Publishing Company of America, Inc. (BMI) on behalf of Branch Music, LLC . Taken from album Daniel Bachman, 2016 Three Lobed Recordings. Available at threelobed.com

11 ROY HARPER TIME IS TEMPORARY

Of all Black Mountain Sides’ serried ranks, the indefatigable Roy Harper has the most explicit links to Page: his enduring friendship was memorialised on Led Zeppelin III’s Hats Off To Harper. This poignant reverie is from Harper’s 22nd and last LP to date, Man And Myth (2013), part-produced by Jonathan Wilson. Page must’ve enjoyed the mention of “an old pre-Raphaelite dream”. (Harper). Publishing administered by District 6. Label - Bella Union / Science Friction. Taken from the album Man And Myth. Available at www.royharper.com

12 GWENIFER RAYMOND SOMETIMES THERE’S BLOOD

A fiercely talented newcomer from the Welsh valleys via Brighton, her 2018 debut album posits her as a reincarnation of the cantankerous godfather of outsider guitar music, John Fahey. She’s told MOJO she felt connected with those who play guitar in a “meaningful, non-flashy way”, yet this track showcases her amazing fingerpicking technique. (Raymond). Tompkins Square Music Publishing (admin. by Concord Copyrights) (BMI). Taken from the album You Never Were Much Of A Dancer. Available at Tompkinssquare.com

THE LEGEND OF LED ZEPPELIN OFTEN REVOLVES AROUND A SENSE of how brutally imposing rock’n’roll could be. Fifty years on from their formation, however, what also endures is their range; not just heft and force, but nuance and subtlety, too. In our interview with Jimmy Page this month, he talks about “the extremities of being on the road,” then coming home to an uncanny quiet, and settling back into “a completely different way of life”. That way of life involved sessions at Bron-Yr-Aur, a Welsh cottage without running water or electricity. It manifested in Page’s portrayal of himself as The Hermit, climbing high above Loch Ness beneath a full moon in the film The Song Remains The Same. And it can be heard in the Led Zeppelin acoustic music that drew on the most raw and intimate folk and blues traditions. Beyond the Sturm und Drang, Page could turn his virtuosity into something which honoured ancient ways and, at the same time, presented fresh musical possibilities for himself and a secret legion of musicians; a visionary caucus of American and British players, old and new, we’re proud to showcase on Black Mountain Sides… A giant of American Primitive guitar music, Rose inspired a generation of players to make radical new currency out of roots music, before his untimely death in 2009 (fellow Philadelphian Kurt Vile pays homage on page 60). Kensington Blues, a rag at once stately and downhome, technically astounding and apparently effortless, is on his 2005 masterpiece of the same name. (Rose). Published via Jack Rose LLC, Licensed from VHF. Taken from the LP/CD Kensington Blues. Available at www.vhfrecords.com 06 MICHAEL CHAPMAN MEMPHIS IN WINTER An idiosyncratic Yorkshireman who first surfaced on the mid-‘60s folk circuit, Chapman has long made connections between old and young musicians from the UK and US. This 2017 version of a cherished Chapman song features fellow Black Mountain Sides contributor Steve Gunn, adding electric counterpoint. (Chapman). 2017 Bucks Music Group Ltd. ℗ &©2017 Paradise of Bachelors. Taken from 50 (2017, PoB-029, LP/CD/digital). Available at http://www. paradiseofbachelors.com/michael-chapman/ and http://www.michaelchapman.co.uk/ 07 MARISA ANDERSON CLOUD CORNER A Portland, Oregon musician who’s quietly accumulated a strong underground following over the past few years, Anderson’s skill is such that it frequently sounds as if her solo guitar has been enriched by multiple overdubs. Cloud Corner, from her 2018 Thrill Jockey debut of the same name, is a filigree country blues of breathtaking dexterity. (Anderson). ©Marisa Anderson ℗Thrill Jockey Records. Taken from the album Cloud Corner. Available at thrilljockey.com and marisaandersonmusic.com 08 STEVE GUNN OLD STRANGE Gunn’s questing imperative has led him from solo folk workouts to jazztinged improvs, to a more robust, psych-tinged folk-rock on his most recent albums. Here, from pivotal 2013 LP Time Off, he pays tribute to his old friend Jack Rose, with a mantric hymnal that echoes both desert blues and American folk. (Gunn). 2014 Poor Moon, ASCAP. ℗&©2014 Paradise of Bachelors. Taken from Time Off (2014, PoB-008, LP/CD/digital). Available at http://www. paradiseofbachelors.com/steve-gunn and http:// www.steve-gunn.com/ 13 CHUCK JOHNSON RANSOM STREET BLUES Oakland-based Johnson has built a reputation on ethereal pedal-steel playing, notably on key 2017 set, Balsams. He’s recently resurfaced as half of the quasi-ambient duo, Saariselka, with Marielle Jakobsons, but Ransom Street Blues is a handy reminder of his extreme aptitude as a solo acoustic guitarist, from 2013’s visceral Crows In The Basilica. (Johnson). Publishing and licensing info: Sruti Music (ASCAP). Taken from the album Crows In The Basilica 2013 Three Lobed Recordings. Available at www. chuckjohnson.net and threelobed.com for Three Lobed Recordings. 14 CIAN NUGENT AND THE COSMOS HIRE PURCHASE An eclectic, irreverent player from Dublin, Nugent’s taken in garage rock, powerpop, acoustic solo and a duo, Desert Heat, with Steve Gunn. His finest work has come fronting the Cosmos, a band who take folk-blues themes and expand them into psych jams – hear this pulsating track from 2013 for Matador’s singles club. (Nugent). ℗&©Rough Trade Publishing. Taken from a limited release 7-inch through Matador Record’s subscription series now available on bandcamp. Available at https://ciannugent.bandcamp.com 15 75 DOLLAR BILL I’M NOT TRYING TO WAKE UP To close, another hypnotic, thrilling, minimalist rethink of the blues, this from a New York duo of Rick Brown (percussion, horns) and Che Chen (guitar). A highlight of their last album, 2016’s Wood/Metal/Plastic/ Pattern/Rhythm/Rock, it makes droning powerplay out of a simple loping blues, suggesting a Gnawan ritual enacted by Junior Kimbrough. tak:til / a glitterbeat label. Taken from the album Wood/Metal/Plastic/Pattern/Rhythm/Rock by 75 Dollar Bill (out now on tak:til). Available at http:// glitterbeat.com/artists/75-dollar-bill/