Beginning with the release of two
Mississippi Fred McDowell albums in 1965 and 1966, Arhoolie Records became permanently identified with the man and his music. Released in 1994, Arhoolie's
Good Morning Little School Girl combines secular and sacred material from sessions that took place in 1964 and 1965. This portion of the
McDowell legacy more or less picks up where the earlier
Alan Lomax recordings left off. On most of the spirituals ("Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning," "Get Right Church," "I'm Going Over the Hill," "Amazing Grace," "You Got to Move," "It's a Blessing," and "I Wish I Was in Heaven Sitting Down"),
McDowell's wife
Annie Mae McDowell sings with him in a shrill and passionate voice. The other 15 tracks are solo Delta blues rituals of great hypnotic power and depth.