Piedmont bluesman
John Dee Holeman mixes a little Texas into his North Carolina guitar approach, even covering
Lightnin' Hopkins' "Give Me Back My Wig" as the first track of
Bull Durham Blues, his debut album.
Holeman isn't as irascible as
Hopkins, with a gentle vocal approach that's closer to
Mississippi John Hurt in demeanor, and his guitar playing isn't as distinctive as either
Hopkins or
Hurt, but he gets the job done with a good deal of charm. On songs like the easy, relaxed "Crow Jane" (a wonderful example of how to use the floating verses that are in every good bluesman's tool kit), the gentle "Little Country Gal," and the slightly paranoid "Stranger Blues,"
Holeman conjures up a timeless, back porch feel without getting too generic about it. The half-spoken, half-rapped "Hambone" is a clear highlight, with
Holeman doing the hambone with a buckdancer's grace. Recorded in 1998 in Pinnacle, N.C.,
Bull Durham features
Taj Mahal on several tracks helping out on bass, guitar, piano and the hambone, too.