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Elder Curry & Elder Beck 1930 - 1939

Elder Curry and Elder Beck both were singing evangelists, solid instrumentalists (Curry on guitar, Beck on piano and trumpet), and with their fervent, stomping approach to a sort of blues-tinged gospel, they inadvertently prefigured rock & roll. Many have sited Curry’s 1930 recording of Memphis Flu (which features Elder Beck on piano) as the first glimmer of rock & roll, and with its relentless 4/4 drive and the energy of Curry’s clapping and foot-stomping congregation added in, it certainly rocks, although the message is a little sobering, as Curry tells his listeners in a fire-and-brimstone style that influenza is a manifestation of God’s wrath at sinners. Given that some 700,000 Americans died during the influenza outbreak of 1918/1919, the tone of Memphis Flu seems to lack any degree of compassion, but it is a fascinating song, full of an odd, contrary joy that seems to belie its intent, and it definitely gets your feet moving. This release from Document Records contains Memphis Flu as well as the rest of Curry’s recorded work, done for Okeh Records in 1930. Continued...




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Elder Charles Beck Vol 2 1946 - 1956
Note: Elder Charles Beck`s 1937-1939 recordings are on Document BDCD-6035.



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Church Choirs, Gospel Singers & Preachers Vol 2 1925 - 1955



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God Don`t Like It - Document Shortcuts Vol 1 Blues Sampler
Maybe you already know something about Document, maybe (to use a music biz term) you are just “scratching the surface”. Either way, here is a clip, a snippet, an appetizer made up from tracks found within the catalogue. You don’t have to be a collector, worrying about matrix numbers or what colour socks such and such an artist was wearing during his 1953 recording of his big hit “I’m Really Happy Blues”, to appreciate the Shortcuts albums. This music was never recorded to be analysed, it was just for people to dig it, savour it, perhaps to hear it’s message, more than likely dance to it.



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