sublime
His voice is out of this world and the songs sublime. This music sticks with you

Skip James: Hard Time Killing Floor Blues
The sound quality of his 1964 stuff may be better than his stuff from the 20's (understandably), but his performances were much better on his original, early recordings. I'm not some Blues snob, either, I'm actually just starting to get into the blues; but listening to them side by side it would be obvious to ANYONE which performance was better. Also, he used to play some awesome blues piano on a lot of his songs, it was kind of one of his trademarks--on this CD, alas, it's just guitar. You may still want to get this CD as it is some good blues, but definitely seek out his early stuff in addition. Oh, and one more thing: Skip James wrote "I'm So Glad," the song later covered by the blues-rock group Cream. But it's not on here! If you are like me and you are coming to the blues by way of British blues-rock, you'll definitely want to own James' version of "I'm So Glad."

Haunting blues...
Skip James recorded the songs on this CD in 1964, the same year he was "rediscovered" and performed at the Newport Folk Festival. This is simply one of the most direct blues recordings I've heard. This is just Skip James, nothing is added to the performances. Skip James frequently sings in a melancholy falsetto and accompanies himself on acoustic guitar tuned to minor keys. Even when he sings in a lower register he sounds like he is mumbling or talking to himself, which makes the music seem turned inward, as opposed to shouting out the blues to the world. This is dark, deep, brooding blues, and is such a great listen. The sound quality is great too and it sounds like he is right in the room with you. Skip James sings of his battle with cancer on "Washington D.C. Hospital Center Blues" and of course sings about woman trouble on songs like "Devil Got My Woman", my favorite song on this CD. This is one of my favorite acoustic blues CD's, there are times when only Skip James can hit the spot. The way he delivered his vocals was unique and combined with his guitar playing made for some incredible music. If you are a fan of acoustic blues Skip James has to be in your collection, and this disc is a great place to start.

A Masterpiece in the Annuls of Blues
Where would the Delta be without Skip James? Deeper and more soulfull than Robert Johnson's Crossroads, less preachy and more down-to-earth than the Death Letter Blues of Son House, Skip James strikes a beauiful minor chord in the soul. His soft hand on the guitar blends with the sweet eeriness of his voice in such perfect musical and emotional harmony as to command the casual listener to catch every note with the ear and savor each chord with his heart. A must-have in any respectable blues collection.

Wonderful slice of Blues history, w/ excellent sound quality!
I often find myself frustrated when I track down the recordings of various Blues legends, only to find the sound quality terrible. I grew up on Blues inspired Rock, and spent countless hours analyzing chords and solos, and find myself less than satisfied with scratchy hissing recordings of the Blues greats.

This recording is wonderful! The sound quality is fantastic, as he returned to record this in 1964. The price of the CD is worth it just to get the title song, and the rest of the CD demonstrates his range. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.