Blind Willie Johnson sang to God with his voice and his slide. Primal, soul stirring, passionate singing accompanied by a solitary guitar. He sang gospel songs with a blues attitude. He was a slide guitar player who many consider to be the best of the country blues era. His music has been covered by Led Zeppelin, the Grateful Dead, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, and now the Cigar Box Nation.
The Cigar Box Nation is a social network for people who build and play instruments made from cigar boxes. The instruments range from very primitive acoustic boxes to magnificent works of art. The creator of the nation, Shane Speal, had the idea to do a Blind Willie Johnson tribute CD for contributing members to sell at performances. As a bonus, the CD is available as a free download for a limited time.
There are a total of 28 recordings on this project. The interpretations are as varied as the artists. Country gospel, country blues, slide guitar instrumentals, blues rock, North Mississippi style blues and more. The artists are people who love playing music with homemade instruments. Remember these are not Martin or Gibson guitars, they are cigar boxes with 6 strings, 4 strings, 3 strings, and even a 1 string. The recordings were made in garages, basements, spare rooms, and out buildings. This is music from the hands and hearts of the everyman. This is pure fun.
Please download and listen to the sounds of the cigar box nation. (The music player starts as soon as you go to the page so you may want to adjust volume)
Blind Willie Johnson tribute CD
Hope you enjoy!
NightOwl
