Robert Johnson's Real Voice, Love in Vain

Posted in Robert Johnson on August 27th, 2012 by Willie

I’m convinced.  Slow down his voice, and you hear the real man.  Someone on the internet put it much more eloquently than I, that it’s like meeting Robert Johnson again for the first time, and what better thing could there be?  I suppose I should explain myself, so I’ll do it as succinctly as possible.  Robert Johnson, godfather of confessional guitar oriented blues, which is essentially the underpinning of all modern pop music, has been misrepresented.  His precious 30 or so recordings, which represents the majority of the scant evidence of his very existence, was recorded at a speed 15% faster than the reality of the performance.  The main consequence  being that his guitar playing was cartoonishly sped up, and his voice given the Alvin and the Chipmunk treatment.  Why was it done?  Probably to fit more songs on the record.  I doubt it was done for any artistic reason on part of Robert or the producer.  It wouldn’t so much of a crime if there existed more than what we have, but we don’t have anymore, so all we are left with are crazy people like me who hear slowed down versions and state baseless certitudes with reckless abandon on the ole fashioned internet.  Alright, enough of my craziness.  Time to listen for yourself.  I present below “Love in Vain,” his most beautiful and haunting broken love ballad, in both its original form (tampered form,) and in the ‘fixed’ form.  You be the judge.

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