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Robert Davis

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One thing that gives blues guitar fans the blues is the lack of recordings by a country-blues performer named Robert Davis. All that exists is a single guitar instrumental titled "Poor Joe Breakdown." The track originated sometime in the summer of 1935, part of the field recording project undertaken during that period by Alan Lomax and John A. Lomax for the Library of Congress. Deep River of Song: Georgia is the title of a double-CD set that assembles much of the material they recorded, including the Davis track. This does not represent the only appearance of "Poor Joe Breakdown" on a compilation; neither was it the first. The Flyright label has utilized the track twice on compilations beginning in the late '80s. It is the sort of performance that just about any producer would like to be able to include in a collection, its rhythmic integrity only bolstered by the loud foot-stomping and the sound of the guitar vivid -- because Davis plays so well, not because the recording quality was so great. ~ Eugene Chadbourne, All Music Guide

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