Record Store Day 2024 has officially come and gone, and with it came this year, many interesting new releases, including re-issues. From re-visitings of music from The Beatles to music from EDM duo Daft Punk to even a never-before-released live recording from blues-gospel legend Sister Rosetta Tharpe and more, Record Store Day this year offered audiences so much to appreciate. Speaking of the new live recording from Tharpe – Live in France: The 1966 Concert in Limoges — that recording is a presentation that Tharpe’s fans will appreciate just as much as aficionados of blues and gospel in general. Its appeal comes in part through the liner notes featured throughout the recording’s companion booklet. They set the stage for the recording before audiences hear even the first song featured here. Speaking of the songs, Tharpe’s performance of said songs builds on the foundation formed by the liner notes. It is fully immersive, as audiences will discover for themselves. The recording’s production, considering the age of the recording, puts the finishing touch to the presentation, completing its appeal. That is because of the positive aesthetic that it creates for the recording. Each item noted here is important in its own way to the whole of this recording. All things considered they make Live in France: The 1966 Concert in Limoges a surprisingly welcome addition to this year’s field of new live CDs (and vinyls).
Live in France: The 1966 Concert in Limoges, the new live Sister Rosetta Tharpe concert recording from fledgling record label Deep Digs, is among the most notable presentations released during this year’s Record Store Day celebrations. Its appeal begins with the liner notes presented throughout the recording’s booklet. The notes literally and figuratively set the stage for the concert, beginning with discussion by Deep Digs founder Zev Feldman. Feldman points out in his brief notes, the recording is previously unreleased and that its unearthing came as a result of research he was doing in 2017 and that the delay in getting it released was due to him trying to find a label that was truly devoted to giving the recording its proper attention. As he points out, that search led him to found Deep Digs and release this recording as its first offering.
Professor Gayle Wald and author Jean Buzelin continue the story with their own insights. Wald offers audiences the first portion of the story, outlining Tharpe’s roots in the Great Migration of African-Americans from the American south to Chicago in the early 20th century and her musical roots in the Church of God in Christ. Wald points out that it was Tharpe’s attempt to escape an abusive marriage in her early 20s that led her to leave the church and branch out, leading to the beginning of her fame nationally and internationally. Her growing fame especially in Europe receives plenty of focus by Wald.
Buzelin continues the story, pointing out that at the time Tharpe started touring Europe, gospel was not necessarily a popular genre overseas, but thanks to her abilities as a musician and the appeal of her personality on stage, she and the genre really started gaining acclaim. In addition, Buzelin makes sure to point out Tharpe’s moniker of “Sister” had nothing to do with religion, despite her background, but rather a nickname she received years prior when she was much younger. That revelation will make for plenty of entertainment. She goes on to point out the concert recording featured here was not Tharpe’s first performance in France; that in fact she had performed and recorded a concert two years prior in 1964. That revelation, the other items raised by Buzelin and Wald, and so much more that the pair note, do so much to help illustrate what made Tharpe so beloved.
Speaking of being beloved, the testimonials from the likes of Susan Tedeschi and Henry Rollins (of all people) add even more to that understanding. All things considered, those testimonials and all of the information provided in the liner notes does an impressive job of setting the stage for the recording.
Knowing the engagement that the liner notes create as a starting point, they ensure plenty of engagement and entertainment from the concert itself, and the concert lives up to expectations, too. The way in which Tharpe blends blues and gospel in each performance makes it so easy to overlook that at their core, each composition is still gospel. There is also something in the way in which she collectively sings and plays that creates such a unique air. Her performances give thought at points, to Bessie Smith when she really gets powerful, and at others to Mavis Staples when she is a little softer. To that end, her ability to balance her vocals and performance on guitar makes for such an immersive presentation.
As if her performance alone is not enough (and it isn’t), the subjects she tackles are just as interesting. Case in point is her taking on the very divisive nature of the different religious denominations in Washington Phillips’ ‘Denomination Blues.’ To this day, America (and the world) continues to be separated by denominational differences, even within the Christian faith. This despite the reality that in their roots, all protestant faiths preach essentially the same message. It was a message then that was so ahead of its time and that today still rings sadly so true.
Tharpe also takes on the negative impacts of alcohol in the aptly titled ‘Moonshine’ in which she points out the impact that it has on loosening people’s tongues, causing them to show their true selves. What’s really great here is that she brings the message about the dangers of alcohol in a way that is somewhat preachy but is still appealing despite this. That is because of the soul that she puts into her performance as she highlights what alcohol can and does do to many people. Like the message delivered in ‘Denomination Bles,’ it is one that resonates to this day.
Her performance of the traditional ‘Give Me That Old Time Religion’ is yet another standout note of what makes her performances so notable. The soul is her voice as she sings here is just so powerful in its own right. It really pulls listeners in. When it is considered alongside the other performances noted here and with the rest of the record’s performances, the whole therein gives listeners just as much to appreciate as the liner notes that lay the groundwork for the recording.
The performances featured here are so immersive not just for themselves and their content but also because of the production that went into bringing the recording back to life. Considering this first-time release was originally captured way back in 1966, the work put in to restore the audio is impressive. It is a testament to those who took the time to restore the masters. It is so clear that audiences will be left feeling like they are right there with Tharpe’s audience at that October 1966 concert in Limoges, France. The result is an impressive aesthetic impact that audiences will appreciate just as much as the concert itself. All things considered they make the recording in whole such a surprisingly enjoyable offering whether one is a fan of Tharpe, of gospel or even of blues. It is a presentation that, in other words, is among the best of this year’s new live CD offerings.
Dig Deep and Elemental Music’s brand-new presentation of the 1966 Rosetta Tharpe concert recording, Live in France: The 1966 Concert in Limoges, is a fully immersive presentation that transcends musical boundaries so to speak. It will find appeal among so many audiences, in other words. The liner notes that fill the recording’s booklet form its foundation, offering audiences plenty of appeal in their own right. The performances presented by Tharpe throughout add even more to that appeal, building on that foundation and strengthening it even more. The recording’s production puts the finishing touch to its presentation, ensuring a welcome aesthetic to the whole, completing the concert. Each item examined does its own key part to make this recording enjoyable for so many audiences. All things considered they make Live in France: The 1966 Concert in Limoges a work that is among the best of this year’s Record Store Day offerings and new live CD offerings.
Live in France; The 1966 Concert in Limoges is available now no CD and vinyl. More information on this and other titles from Deep Digs Music Group is available at:
Website: https://deepdigsmusic.com
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