C.W. Stoneking - JungleBlues

Mon 10th Nov, 2008 in Music Reviews

He has risen again. Fletcher Henderson, that is. Or perhaps Benny Goodman, or Robert Johnson. Not the people, but the spirit of their music, have been resurrected. Victorian born olde-time music aficionado C.W. Stoneking lovingly restores the sounds and musical flavours of early 20th Century America in his sophomore release Jungle Blues.

Mainstream radio doesn’t often play acoustic country blues. Or jazz for that matter. Neither genre has had mass pop appeal since the 1940s. After all, it has been a few years since Henderson and Goodman were household names. However, that doesn’t seem to faze Stoneking, whose passion for the music truly comes through on Jungle Blues. He possesses a remarkable ability to create simple yet richly layered tunes that pay homage to the musical greats of the 1920s and – œ30s.

The album stays consistent in its vintage sound, from the more upbeat swing jazz sound of tracks Jungle Blues and Brave Son of America to the contemplative blues of Household Blues. Credit the consistency to Stoneking’s uncanny composing abilities, as he deftly interweaves multiple instruments into seemingly simple-sounding songs. Trombones and baritone saxophones mesh well with banjoes, washboards and fiddles. If Sufjan Stevens composed and recorded 80 years ago, he would probably sound like Stoneking.

The musicianship of Stoneking and his Primitive Horn Orchestra really make the compositions pop. The sound lacks the characteristic graininess that endears fans to old blues records, but the crispness and timing of the multitude of musicians adds a new clarity and energy to Jungle Blues. On top of the music, Stoneking’s clear yet raspy voice adds authenticity, with Kirsty Fraser’s Billie Holliday-style guest vocals on Housebound Blues for variety.

Stoneking’s songs have a retro simplicity, with topics from shipwrecks to General Douglas MacArthur. His lyrics don’t have much depth, but then again many of the old blues greats were straightforward too. Throughout Jungle Blues, Stoneking favours clarity – from simple storytelling lyrics to easily accessible compositions.

One of the more unfortunate aspects of the album is that Stoneking squanders his album’s theme as Jungle Blues progresses. The album’s first three tracks validate the Joseph Conrad meets King Kong Africa theme, set up by the whimsical story of scientists and voodoo on the back of the album. However, by track four, Jungle Blues wanders away from the Africa theme and into other topics.

The lack of theme consistency doesn’t mean Jungle Blues fails on its main objective, which is to transport the listener into an era of bathtub gin and speakeasies. Everything from Stoneking’s bluesy banjo twangs to the album’s simplistic yellow and black artwork pine for a bygone time. For fans of acoustic jazz and blues, C.W. Stoneking’s Jungle Blues is a rare, delightful contemporary album. It’s just 80 years too late for the pop charts.

Jungle Blues is out now on King Hokum/Shock.