LITTLE ROCK — When someone as famous as Charlie Louvin — one half of harmonizing The Louvin Brothers — says, "Let's start jammin'," it's time to jam. The spoken-word intro kicks off The Oxford American's Southern Music CD No. 12, a collection of 27 tunes featuring a "magnificent variety of musical superstars from the state of Alabama." And it does jam — in it's own weird way.
This is the second year the CD that accompanies The Oxford American's Music Issue (out Wednesday) focuses on the musical heritage of one Southern state in particular. The inaugural year Arkansas was the focus, and this year, OA editor Marc Smirnoff and company chose the Heart of Dixie for their musical exploration. The 27 tracks are either produced in Alabama, or written and performed by native Alabamians. (The actual Music Issue will also include a special editorial section with articles dedicated to the musicians and tunes on the album.)
Alabama doesn't have the rich musical history of a Memphis, New Orleans or Mississippi Delta region, but it does offer a deep and diverse musical bedrock. Hank Williams is an Alabamian. Emmylou Harris, too. Three of the original five Temptations — Eddie Kendricks. Paul Williams and Melvin Franklin — were born in Birmingham, and Dennis Edwards, the man who replaced Temptations lead singer David Ruffin, is also a native Alabamian. Percy Sledge and Wilson Pickett — also Alabama. Of course, country music super band Alabama is from Alabama. Sun Ra was born there, and the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section backed some legendary bands at FAME Studios and Muscle Shoals Sound Studio. The state is home to a contemporary sound as well, with three of the Drive-By Truckers having north Alabama roots, and Jamey Johnson calling Alabama his native state. Indie acts Vulture Whale, The Dexateens and A.A. Bondy have Alabama roots as well.
So that's a brief, incomplete history of the music of Alabama. But for a fuller, complete history of the state, one needs to turn to the Southern Music CD No. 12. Smirnoff and company are into the business of digging deeper, beyond the crust to the mantle, uncovering gems. None of the above artist are found on the Southern Music CD No. 12. Is the music present obscure? Yes, but it's important.
One doesn't turn to an Oxford American music CD for the hits or the famous. It's intended as an introduction to the obscure — a musical time capsule delivering lost gems. Consider it an anthropology lesson via a thin sliver of plastic, a cultural study one can dance to. The Southern Music CD No. 12 is a launching pad for true fans of music. Not just Alabama-made music, but music in general. It's an adventure, what music should be.
And the beauty of the Southern Music CD No. 12 is that it includes more than its share of adventures. Let's start with the second track, following Louvin’s intro: "Match Box" by Ralp "Soul" Jackson, a forgotten '60s soul singer. Cut with Muscle Shoals organist Spooner Oldham, the track marries Carl Perkins' "Match Box" with a driving, distorted fuzz rhythm similar to Norman Greenbaum’s "Spirit in the Sky." And so with a propulsive gallop, the adventure begins over the next few songs, touching upon rockabilly Hall of Famer Curley Money, garage rockers The K-Pers and Mary Gresham, a lost R&B singer with the pipes to rival Aretha Franklin. Each track is worthy of research.
Of course, the Southern Music CD No. 12 is not all obscure and forgotten. Indie act Phosphorescent’s feisty 2010 ode to Alabama, "It's Hard to Be Humble (When You're from Alabama)," is four and a half minutes of celebratory horns and sliding guitars. The Alabama born, Brooklyn living Matthew Houck loves the South and Alabama in particular, and reminds listeners, "Alabama, I can hear you when you’re calling my name." Jim Bob and the Leisure Suits' "Gangland Wars" is New Wavish college rock from 1982, and Huntsville rap duo G-Side (Yung Clova and ST 2 Lettaz) offer five minutes of risk-taking hip hop with "Huntsville International," with its stabbing, hard rock guitars and synths, and name-checking Nick Saban.
Sam Dees, the songwriter who wrote such classics as "One in a Million You" and "Save the Overtime (For Me)," is here with his own recording of "The World Don't Owe You Nothing," and jazz great Dinah Washington is present with her torching "Cold, Cold Heart." The album digs up the roots of '80s country star Vern Gosdin with his "There Must Be Someone (I Can Turn To)" recording with his brother Rex as The Gosdin Brothers.
But the penultimate track is perhaps the album's best: "Precious Lord Lead Me On" from the album King Britt Presents: Sister Gertrude Morgan. In 2005, Britt, a Philadelphia DJ and part-time performer with the Digable Planets, set the '70s recordings from Let's Make A Record of Alabama-born, New Orleans-based preacher, folk artist and musician Sister Gertrude Morgan to hip-hop beats. The result here is Morgan’s shimmying tambourine over a lush orchestra, creating a strange yet beautiful merger of electronica meets hymnal.
Like most of the Southern Music CD No. 12, "Precious Lord Lead Me On" is a little weird but still gorgeous — just enough off-kilter to be soul stirring. That's what Smirnoff and company do with their Southern Music CDs: Discover the little known and offer these beautiful gems to the world. Once again, with the Southern Music CD No. 12, they have succeeded.