Robert Wilkins (1896-1987) was born in Hernando, a small town in northern Mississippi, which nonetheless managed to contribute such musicians as Frank Stokes, Jim Jackson, Garfield Akers and Joe Callicott to the story of the Blues. Wilkins lived his adult life in Memphis and recorded 13 sides between September 1928 and February of 1930, and an additional 4 sides in October of 1935. He had a real flair for composition and often invented new forms for his songs. Many of these have become landmark performances in the story of the Country Blues.

Robert Wilkins’ playing and singing from his 1920s recordings show us a musician with a pronounced compositional bent and an unusual imaginative gift for varying the blues structure in interesting ways. His lyrics are equally originally and profoundly poetic. His subtly powerful guitar-playing and soulful vocals combine for a sound that is unforgettable.

The accompanying booklet includes lyrics and TAB/standard notation transcriptions of the songs.

Titles include: I Do Blues, Jailhouse Blues, Rolling Stone, Police Sergeant Blues, That’s No Way To Get Along and I’ll Go With Her

82 minutes / Level 2/3 / 48 page tab/music booklet

Available on DVD

gw 811   no longer available on VHS