Show 76: USA Blues, Pt. 1: Alabama to Arkansas
This opens the long state-by-state march, treating the blues as a national map instead of a single region. The show starts in the deep South and nearby ground, showing how local birthplaces, migration routes, and regional styles all feed one bigger American songbook.
We'll be celebrating our independence from England in the best way I know how, with a multi-part series featuring blues musicians from every state, except the hard ones like Alaska, from A to Z. Today's show is a trio of doozies: Alabama, Arizona, and Arkansas. Up first is my favorite country blues artist out of Alabama. It's Hank Williams chasin' rabbits, walkin' on his hands, and howlin' at the moon. Here it is.
This opens the long state-by-state march, treating the blues as a national map instead of a single region. The show starts in the deep South and nearby ground, showing how local birthplaces, migration routes, and regional styles all feed one bigger American songbook.
| Order | Track | Artist | Segment | Bridge | Story |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Howlin' At The Moon | Hank Williams;Drifting Cowboys | 1 | - | |
| 2 | Let's Jam | The Foster Brothers;Lefty Bates | 1 | - | |
| 3 | Black Gal, What Makes Your Head So Hard? | Joe Pullum;Robert Cooper | 1 | - | |
| 4 | I Got Money | Detroit Junior | 1 | - | |
| 5 | It's Love Baby (24 Hours A Day) | Louis Brooks & His Hi-Toppers;Earl Gaines | 1 | - | |
| 6 | Big Rock Jail | Ed Bell | 1 | - | |
| 7 | Alabama Mis-Treater | Cow Cow Davenport with Dora Carr | 1 | - | |
| 8 | Don't Ask Me No Questions | Little Sonny | 1 | - | |
| 9 | Red Cross Blues | Walter Roland | 1 | Yes | - |
| 10 | Hard Luck Man | Sonny Scott | 2 | Yes | - |
| 11 | Goin' Away Blues | Charlie Campbell | 2 | - | |
| 12 | Suicide Blues | Peanut The Kidnapper | 2 | - | |
| 13 | No Name Blues | Johnny Shines | 2 | - | |
| 14 | Why'd You Do It | Ralph Willis | 2 | - | |
| 15 | Cryin' Blues | Charles Mingus | 2 | - | |
| 16 | Singing the Blues | Marty Robbins | 2 | - | |
| 17 | Stormy Monday | Roy Buchanan | 2 | Yes | - |
| 18 | Caldonia | Louis Jordan & His Tympany Five | 3 | Yes | - |
| 19 | Confusion Blues | Big John Greer;The Du Droppers | 3 | - | |
| 20 | Evil Is Going On | Luther Allison | 3 | - | |
| 21 | Bad Avenue | Lefty Dizz | 3 | - | |
| 22 | The Blues Ain't Nothin' but a Woman Cryin' for Her Man | Dinah Washington | 3 | - | |
| 23 | Boogie Woogie | Calvin Frazier | 3 | - | |
| 24 | Blues in the Night | Johnnie Taylor | 3 | Yes | - |
| 25 | Crying In The Courthouse | Ike Turner;Houston Boines;Little Milton | 4 | Yes | - |
| 26 | Respect Me Baby | Shakey Jake | 4 | - | |
| 27 | Hold That Train | Willie D. Warren;Howard Glazer | 4 | - | |
| 28 | Wicked Devil's Blues | Wesley Wallace with Robert Peeples | 4 | - | |
| 29 | Sykes Advice Blues | Roosevelt Sykes | 4 | - | |
| 30 | Baby I Done Got Wise | Big Bill Broonzy | 4 | - | |
| 31 | Where Were You Last Night? | Washboard Sam | 4 | - | |
| 32 | Dark Road | Floyd Jones | 4 | - | |
| 33 | Bricks in My Pillow | Robert Nighthawk | 4 | - | |
| 34 | Good Morning Blues | Arbee Stidham | 4 | Yes | - |
| 35 | Waiting for a Train | Johnny Cash | 5 | Yes | - |