Tail Dragger
American People
(Delmark 728)
Tail Dragger was born James Yancy Jones in Arkansas in 1940. His life
sounds like the hard times that would turn someone into a blues singer.
Learned to play guitar by playing with broomwire nailed to the side of the
house. Gave up guitar when his fingers were crushed while fixing a car. But,
learned the blues by listening to a battery-powered radio hidden under his
pillow at night. Tried to make a living singing the blues, but spent more
time as a heavy equipment mechanic and tractor-trailer driver than as a
musician. Tail Dragger's first inroad as a musician was as a Howlin' Wolf
imitator in Chicago. This act led him to meet and eventually be mentored by
The Wolf himself. Decades of playing small clubs around Chicago, while
working full time outside of music, has given TD that raw, years of
heartache sound that cannot be learned. American People is a collection of
eleven songs, with the strongest sounds being the seven originals. Backed by
a sterling group of musicians that include Rockin' Johnny, Billy Branch,
Aron Burton, Johnny B. Moore, Jimmy Dawkins and Eddie Shaw, American People
shows that there is still tremendous blues muscle coming out of Chicago. The
song titles reflect the roots of where the blues come from; "Bought Me
a New Home," "You Gotta Go," "My Woman Is Gone,"
and "My Head Is Bald." American People shows Tail Dragger's
Arkansas roots, where his people knew Bill Clinton's people. Tail Dragger is
a wonderful Chicago style blues player who has finally emerged with a
recording that will enable him to share his music with the rest of the
'American People.
- Scott Ferman -
Southwest Blues CD Review - July 1999
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