The Folk Lore of John Lee Hooker

The Folk Lore of John Lee Hooker
Studio album / live album by John Lee Hooker
Released	August or September 1961 (1961)[1][2]
Recorded	1960–1961
Venue	Newport Folk Festival, Newport, Rhode Island
Studio	Universal Recording, Chicago
Genre	Blues
Length	36:56
Label	Vee-Jay
Producer	Esmond Edwards

The Folk Lore of John Lee Hooker is an album by blues musician John Lee Hooker, released by Vee-Jay Records in August or September 1961.^[1][2] Hooker recorded most of the songs on January 4, 1961, in Chicago, with two recorded live at the Newport Folk Festival June 25, 1960.^[3]

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[4]
The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings	[6]
The Virgin Encyclopedia of The Blues	[5]

The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings wrote that "Vee-Jay were reaching for Hooker's perceived new audience among folkniks, yet only 'Tupelo' and 'The Hobo' from his set with acoustic guitar at the 1960 Newport Folk Festival, represent the 'folk blues' angle Hooker had begun to develop a year earlier; the rest is typical of his Vee-Jay work, especially the four tracks with a band."^[6]

AllMusic reviewer Al Campbell stated: "The Folk Lore of John Lee Hooker was released in 1961, combining 12 tracks of both acoustic and electric tunes ... recommended."^[4]

Track listing

All compositions are credited to John Lee Hooker.

1. "Tupelo" – 3:22
2. "I'm Mad Again" – 2:39
3. "I'm Going Upstairs" – 2:56
4. "Want Ad Blues" – 2:16
5. "Five Long Years" – 3:38
6. "I Like to See You Walk" – 2:52
7. "The Hobo" – 3:01
8. "Hard-Headed Woman" – 2:31
9. "Wednesday Evening Blues" – 3:59
10. "Take Me As I Am" – 3:02
11. "My First Wife Left Me" – 3:35
12. "You're Looking Good Tonight" – 3:00

Session details

Details are taken from the original Vee-Jay album liner notes.^[3] Tracks 1 and 7 were recorded at the Newport Folk Festival on June 25, 1960; the remaining tracks were recorded at Universal Recording Studio in Chicago on January 4, 1961.

• John Lee Hooker – guitar, vocals (unaccompanied on tracks 1, 6, 7, 9–12)
• Jimmy Reed – harmonica, guitar (tracks 2–4, 8)
• William "Lefty" Bates – guitar (tracks 2–4, 8)
• Quinn Wilson – bass (tracks 2–4, 8)
• Earl Phillips – drums (tracks 2–4, 8)

References

1. "New LP Releases". Billboard. August 28, 1961. Retrieved June 21, 2019.
2. "The Folk Lore of John Lee Hooker" (PDF). The Cash Box. October 7, 1961. Retrieved October 23, 2019.
3. The Country Blues of John Lee Hooker (Album notes). Berkeley, California: Riverside Records. 1961. Back cover. VJLP 1033.
4. Campbell, Al. John Lee Hooker: The Folk Lore of John Lee Hooker – Review at AllMusic. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
5. Larkin, Colin (1998). The Virgin Encyclopedia of The Blues. London: Random House. p. 280. ISBN 9781448132744.
6. Russell, Tony; Smith, Chris (2006). The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. London: Penguin. p. 270. ISBN 978-0-140-51384-4.