Chicago Blues/Mississippi Delta

lonnnie pitchford has a whole album that is great, but i think it's out of print, sadly.

there are a few copies on amazon for $15, i'd recommend picking it up: http://www.amazon.com/All-Around-Man-Lonnie-Pitchford/dp/B000000DOV

19. DRINKIN' ANTISEPTIC

Mississippi Fred Mcdowell, RL Burnside, Junior Kimbrough

Right, Mississippi John Hurt's Avalon Blues is contemplative, unpretentious, remembering how various deals went down. Can call the fluid quality "genteel," but he's pretty straight-forward, and a good picker.
Mississippi Sheiks' Stop and Listen is along the same lines, but more ambitious: they wanted to cross over, get some of that Jimmie Rodgers money, and they do have music hall x radio-ready, Asheville-before-Nashville, travelling country blues appeal. On Yazoo Records, later replaced with Best Of, which I haven't heard. Collections on other labels too.
McKinley Morganfield AKA Muddy Waters incl. lot of his earlier sides, when the vocals were more flexible and dynamic; Hard Again, produced and w some accompaniment by Johnny Winter, is a real good later album. I also used to play the hell out of Fathers and Sons, a live/studio double-LP with Waters, Otis Spann, Mike Bloomfield, others; Mud's the main man here for sure.
Chester Burnett AKA Howlin Wolf and Back Door Wolf are also good earlier and later recordings.
Also check a couple of books, Charles Keil's Urban Blues and Robert Palmer'sDeep Blues.
The Martin Scorsese-produced public tv documentary blues series on the is really good too.

john hurt isn't Drone-y at all though. very melodic by blues standards.

19. DRINKIN' ANTISEPTIC

underrated IMO

http://www.clarionledger.com/story/life/2015/08/26/fife-drum-tradition-heartbeat-annual-picnic/32351381/

Bet that was fun. Sharde Turner is keeping her grandfather's fife and drum tradition alive

Made it to the Barbequecued Goat Fest in Senatobia , MS that Sharde runs. She and her drummers performed between sets of the other acts. I also saw Anthony Sherrod and his band do a nice set at Red's in Clarksdale, MS.

This is coming up in Mississippi (see below). I don't know of these folks-- the next generation of great bluesmen, Jontavious Willis, Marquise Knox and Kingfish Ingram

http://www.deltastate.edu/news-and-events/2017/08/fourth-blues-conference-feature-aaron-neville/

•an opening reception and tour of the John Lee Hooker exhibit at GRAMMY Museum Mississippi
•a keynote breakfast featuring Alan Lomax scholar, Dr. John Szwed of Columbia University, New York City
•a free, open-to-the-public John Lee Hooker tribute concert at Bolivar County Courthouse in downtown Cleveland featuring a trio of the next generation of great bluesmen, Jontavious Willis, Marquise Knox and Kingfish Ingram
•an open mic “Blues in the Round” event at Mississippi Grounds coffee shop in downtown Cleveland
•a lunch conversation with Aaron Neville
•a blues-related film festival in the Sanders Theater at GRAMMY Museum Mississippi
•a presentation by renowned blues photographer Dick Waterman
•free admission to GRAMMY Museum Mississippi with paid conference registration
•a closing concert performance by Aaron Neville at Delta State’s Bologna Performing Arts Center with tickets ranging from $25-$50 and a special 10 percent discount for conference registrants

The conference is scheduled for Oct. 1-3.