Taj Mahal – The Best of Taj Mahal

Truism or not, Taj Mahal’s blues sound like no other. Raised in a multi-ethnic New England community with family roots in the South as well as Jamaica and the West Indies, Mahal has always regarded cultural variety as a given. His resultant musical masala, grounded in the anything-goes ethic of the late-’60s, is a seemingly effortless blending of colorful heritage and varied interests: blues, country, New Orleans second line, jazz, Memphis R&B, reggae, calypso — they’re all part of the same rich tapestry. And his touch is so sure and unfailing that his material always sounds natural, even inevitable, with none of the self-conscious trappings of “name that influence.”

Still, after more than 30 years mining the rich expanses of a singular style, Mahal stands as a great artist who’s never released a truly great album (last year’s Kulanjan, a collaboration with Malian kora master Toumani Diabate, was a near miss). So, despite likely protestations from the converted, Mahal is perhaps best enjoyed on one of his many extant anthologies: the country blues-leaning Taj’s Blues, his cross-label, career-summing box In Progress And In Motion, or the consistently excellent (and newly remastered) The Best Of Taj Mahal. Originally released in 1977 as The Taj Mahal Anthology — Volume I, the album documents the singer’s initial creative burst, from 1968-71.

The Best Of opens with two selections from Mahal’s debut, Blind Willie McTell’s “Statesboro Blues” and Sleepy John Estes’ “Leaving Trunk”. Marked by wailing harp, razor-sharp slide, shifting rhythmic textures and the singer’s huge, laughing voice, the tracks established the groundwork for Mahal’s career-long journey. Working changes on country blues staples, Mahal and his pivotal collaborator, lead guitarist Jesse Davis, created a sound that was contemporary yet redolent of tradition — and so original and unforced that it still sounds fresh today.

Once firmly established, Mahal’s marriage of rural blues with a distinctly modern sensibility yielded a wildly diverse, endlessly engaging body of work: “Corinna” shuffling to a Caribbean lilt; “Six Days On The Road” as counterculture recontextualization; “Fishing Blues”, rawer and looser than Henry Thomas’ original; and (a personal fave) “Take A Giant Step”, a shimmering Goffin-King melody graced by Mahal’s warm, luxuriant rasp.

The collection’s sole misstep, “Going Up The Country”, a Mahal-penned “straight” blues, is rendered generic by the song’s stellar surroundings. In its 1977 configuration, Anthology closed with the lovely “Ain’t Gwine To Whistle Dixie (Any Mo’)”; backed by a full complement of brass and riding a seductive groove, a triumphant Mahal whistles off into the sunset.

The current reissue generously adds seven bonus tracks to the mix, extending the period covered through 1974’s Mo Roots. Though the appended selections don’t share the original’s seamless flow, they are nonetheless welcome additions. Only “Johnny Too Bad” pales in comparison to its storied forebear, and Mahal’s “Cakewalk Into Town” sounds at home bumping shoulders with the likes of “Frankie And Albert” and “Oh Susanna”.

In fact, after sampling Mahal’s ample gifts, you may wish to dig even deeper. Though less consistent, the remaining titles in Columbia/Legacy’s reissue series (Taj Mahal, The Natch’l Blues and The Real Thing) offer a wide variety of additional gems. After all, once you’ve developed a taste for Mahal’s blues, there’s really no substitute.