MR017. Life Is A Problem. V/A.

From the liner notes.

“Compilation of raw electric guitar-based gospel recorded between 1949 & 1976. Hard to find & unreleased gospel that makes most rock & roll sound weak & contained. Features Utah Smith, Rev. Lonnie Farris, Sister O.M Terrill & many lesser known artists. Fourteen tracks in all.”

From J. Spaceman (Spiritualized)

This is a collection of various artists singing heavy gospel. I like the way the cover and the back is all handwritten in crayon. It feels like the person who put it together is imparting some kind of secret knowledge. It has Utah Smith’s “Take a Trip” for that love/drug/religion combo that’s so irresistible to these ears (Utah used to wear wings in church!) and also features Elder Charles Beck’s “Rock and Roll Sermon Pts. 1 and 2,” which is the most rock-and-roll anti-rock-and-roll sermon in the history of such things. He’s saying all these lines about rock and roll being evil and the congregation is shouting “Yeah!” at him between every line. It sounds unwittingly like the best rock song ever made. The insert has a “further listening” list that name-checks the formidable Rev. Charlie Jackson’s “God’s Got It,” Fred McDowell’s “Amazing Grace,” and the Sinner’s Crossroads radio show on WFMU. It also comes with a seven-inch of George “Bongo Joe” Coleman’s street preaching. There’s a great line on the insert that says “ragged, raw, and beautiful,” and that sums up the whole record. Also, my copy has typo corrections written in black ballpoint.

I think this is my favourite Mississippi release. All cannot be recommended enough, but this has this loose, ragged quality. Check the filthy ‘I Pound A Solid Rock’, or the simply beautiful ‘Pray On’. The closer  ‘Amazing Grace’ is perhaps the most original rendition i’ve ever heard of a stupidly familiar song.  Features Mississippi stalwarts Sister Ola Mae Terrell, The Straight Street Group, and Utah Smith. It’s pretty much perfect.

9.5/10

As a side note, two tracks of this release are deliberately tagged wrong, according to a source. Whilst this doesn’t change the sheer quality of the music, it’s a bit curious. A hangover from the legal grey-area Mississippi Records occupies.

Spend A Night In The House Of Prayer! (Megaupload link)

Put your money down at Boomkat

Thanks to kicktokill.blogspot.com for the original download.

Next up…. The Malcolm X Memorial!