The fifth volume in Bluebird's
Secret History of Rock & Roll is a stretch, albeit a good one. The 24 tracks included here all focus on the Great Depression; in fact, they mirror the current wild ride that is Wall Street in an eerily ironic way. While the other four volumes in the series focused on blues and hard country music, this set is all over the place. It opens with comedian
Eddie Cantor offering nearly vaudevillian comments on the stock market and slides through an early swing tune by
Frank Crumit entitled "A Tale of the Ticker" before abruptly opening onto the original version of "Brother Can You Spare a Dime" by
Leo Reisman. Also present are more obscure performers, such as the High Hatters, Alex Bartha, and Ramona &
Roy Bargy (most if not all of them unheard of since these recordings were first issued). But
Fiddlin' John Carson makes an appearance with "Taxes on the Farmer Feeds Them All,"
Uncle Dave Macon is here with his classic "All in Down and Out Blues," and the collection also features
Lane Hardin's "California Desert Blues,"
Woody Guthrie's "Dusty Old Dust,"
Reverend J.M. Gates (now famous for his "Oh Death, Where Is Thy Sting" on the Harry Smith Anthology of American Folk Music) with "President Roosevelt Is Everybody's Friend," and an early
Sonny Boy Williamson tune, "Welfare Store Blues." Much of the humor here is black, the blues are darker still, and the anger in some of the tunes is poisonous. Perhaps that's what this music has in common with the history of rock & roll, because these are the only connections visible to the naked ear. Nonetheless, it's a fine collection of topical songs and should be considered by every historic American music enthusiast. ~ Thom Jurek