Skin And Bones
David Jacobs-Strain

Hang-Dog Music HDM-9902

recorded at Don Ross Studios, Eugene, Oregon
Songlist:

  1. Cottonwood Grove - David Jacobs-Strain
  2. Poor Boy - traditional, arr. David Jacobs-Strain
  3. Stagolee - traditional, arr. David Jacobs-Strain
  4. Big Hands - David Jacobs-Strain
  5. Mama, Don't You Know - Taj Mahal
  6. Skin And Bones - Roosevelt Sykes
  7. Rain So Hard - Otis Taylor
  8. Way Down - David Jacobs-Strain
  9. Swing Low - traditional, arr. David Jacobs-Strain
  10. Back-Water Blues - Bessie Smith
  11. Brownsville - Sleepy John Estes
  12. Nobody's Fault - tradtional, arr. David Jacobs-Strain
AVAILABILITY:

On the web:

   NWblues.com
   Nadeau Music

Retail distribution by Burnside Distribution Corp. (BDC)

reviews


"Solo, and From the Soul. Haunting and Surrealistic. Sincere heartfelt effort by 15 year-old David Jacobs-Strain on his new CD titled: Skin And Bones.

Inside the music, lies the magic. Although his voice is still developing, I hear his Soul singing, and it's Real. His National Resophonic guitar--lets your mind and ears travel to another time and another place."

Rockin' Ralph
Oldies Unlimited
Blues Rocket--KHDC 90.9FM


In an age when most teenagers are into everything alternative, along comes David Jacobs-Strain breaking the mould and turning his musical talent towards the Delta. At 16 years of age David plays delta country blues like no other kid his age. David was awarded a 'Blues In The Schools' scholarship in 1998 to attend the Port Townsend workshop and the next year was invited back to teach blues slide guitar. He has since gone on to share the stage with Steve James, Ann Rabson, Robert Lowery, Del Rey and many others.

Skin and Bones was recorded when he was 15, and features twelve tracks including three original songs, Cottonwood Grove the opening track that reminded me of Skip James' Cypress Grove will give you goosebumps as will Big Hands and Way Down. David's choice of covers are excellent and include Sleepy John Estes' Brownsville, Roosevelt Sykes' Skin and Bones, Taj Mahal's Mama, Don't You Know, and Bessie Smith's Back Water Blues a song he first played when he was 9 or 10 years old. A couple of the more interesting songs included are the instrumental of Nobody's Fault played on a fretless hawaiian guitar, and Stagolee with David playing a diddley bow a piece of wire strung between two nails on a post and played with a bottleneck slide. The fashion in which many blues greats learnt to play.

Davids execution of all the songs presented is superb, as he pours his heart and soul into each and every one bringing new life and meaning to them. The future of delta blues is in safe hands.

Eric Black, Blue Country 101 FM
Logan City, Queensland, Australia