SWAMP THING; TONY JOE WHITE DOESN'T LET LABEL TROUBLES GET TO HIM.Byline: Fred Shuster Daily News Music Writer When we got swamp rocker Tony Joe White on the phone a few months ago, things were looking up. He had just completed a terrific new album for Mercury Records Mercury Records is a record label currently headquartered in the UK, and is a subsidiary of Universal Music Group. In the US, its name and logo were now only used on back catalogue, country releases, and re-issues until recently. , due to be issued shortly afterward. But weeks later, news broke that the label was about to be devoured - and dismantled. Today, six months after advance cassettes of ``One Hot July'' were mailed out to critics across the country, White's 11th album is still on hold and may not be issued by the label in the U.S. at all. A Mercury spokesperson said the record was too good to toss away and would eventually be released by the label or another imprint this summer. ``One Hot July'' is in stores, however, in Australia, where White has maintained a large fan base for decades. White - known for his 1969 Top 10 bayou-rock hit ``Polk Salad Annie'' (covered by Elvis Presley) and for writing Brook Benton's chart-topping r&b smash ``Rainy Night in Georgia'' - takes such setbacks with a laid-back shrug. ``I never cared much about show business,'' he says. ``I haven't changed a whole lot; I'm almost like a lone wolf Lone Wolf, d. 1879, Kiowa Chief. He led some Kiowas on raids in 1874 after his son had been killed by whites, but he was defeated and with a number of followers was deported to Florida, where he remained in military confinement for three years; he died one year after out there. I just play my guitar and don't worry about it.'' Born 55 years ago on a cotton farm in Oak Grove Oak grove may refer to
Oak Grove is a common name for several places in the United States of America. , La., White is a true son of the Deep South. With a husky, smoldering smol·der also smoul·der intr.v. smol·dered, smol·der·ing, smol·ders 1. To burn with little smoke and no flame. 2. voice and an eloquent guitar style finger-picked on his 1961 Stratocaster, White draws upon an earthy voodoo folklore of alligators, hoot owls and all manner of swamp life. Friends and fans include Eric Clapton, J.J. Cale and occasional jam partner Mark Knopfler. ``The four of us get a lot of flak because we sometimes sound the same,'' White said. ``It's because we all listened to Delta guys like Lightnin' Hopkins Sam "Lightnin'" Hopkins (March 15, 1912 – January 30, 1982) was a country blues guitar musician, from Houston, Texas. Life Born in Centerville, Texas, Hopkins learned the blues when young in Buffalo, Texas from Blind Lemon Jefferson and his older cousin, and John Lee Hooker growing up. If anything, I don't think anyone can touch Knopfler on guitar. He hits some kind of thing that just kills me. He comes to my house, and we hang out, build a fire, get a couple of acoustic guitars and you can't believe the licks falling around the campfire.'' Although White's vinyl albums are collector's items, and CDs cut for his own Swamp Fox Swamp Fox was a nickname of various Americans:
``A lot of people think if they can't hear or see you, you've quit,'' said White, who worked with Tina Turner  The of this article or section may be compromised by "weasel words".You can help Wikipedia by removing weasel words. on her 1989 ``Foreign Affair'' album, writing four songs and playing guitar and harmonica harmonica. 1 The simplest of the musical instruments employing free reeds, known also as the mouth organ or French harp. It was probably invented in 1829 by Friedrich Buschmann of Berlin, who called his instrument the Mundäoline. . But while success has eluded him at home, he draws huge crowds in France and Australia, often accompanied only by a drummer. ``A rhythm section Noun 1. rhythm section - the section of a band or orchestra that plays percussion instruments percussion section, percussion section - a division of an orchestra containing all instruments of the same class isn't a necessity,'' said White, a father of three, grandfather of one and husband to wife Leann for 35 years. ``It's almost a luxury to play 30 or 40 minutes alone. The crowd is shouting out every swamp tune I ever wrote, and by then it's rocking so hard you don't need anything else.'' The hopefully forthcoming ``One Hot July'' continues White's earthy mix of Mississippi blues, r&b and deep-fried soul with such standouts as ``Across From Midnight'' and the moody ``Cold Fingers,'' featuring some of the most plain sanctified sanc·ti·fy tr.v. sanc·ti·fied, sanc·ti·fy·ing, sanc·ti·fies 1. To set apart for sacred use; consecrate. 2. To make holy; purify. 3. Strat work since Dire Straits' debut album or the last Cale effort. ``What you leave out is what's really important,'' White explained. ``We cut it in the swamp, in this studio on 40 acres of woods complete with alligators and everything. The realness of the thing is what does it. There's a lot of breathing room in the music, and it gives the listener space to be part of it. ``Because a lot of those songs are one-takes - just turn on the tape recorder and let it roll.'' CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: Tony Joe Smith's ``One Hot July'' has been released in Australia but not in this country, and there's no telling when that might happen. |
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