Dan Auerbach‘s Easy Eye Sound has unearthed a collection of previously unreleased Son House recordings which will make up a forthcoming album, Forever On My Mind. Due out on March 18th, Easy Eye Sound has shared the first single and music video for “Preachin’ Blues”.
Forever On My Mind will feature new versions of eight songs, including the recording of “Preachin’ Blues” that Easy Eye Sound released on Wednesday. Also on the album will be the title track, “Forever On My Mind”, which never saw an official recording but appeared in live sets throughout Son House’s career.
Originally tracked during a November 23rd, 1964 performance at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, IN, the recordings laid dormant in the hands of Dick Waterman, one of the key figures in the 1960’s blues revival and the man who rediscovered Son House after the musician had receded from performing and recording for two decades.
Nearly six decades after the Wabash performance, Auerbach got the tapes from Waterman and began producing the record.
“When I heard those Son House recordings, it was really emotional, honestly,” Auerbach said in a statement to Rolling Stone. “Because I had such a deep connection to the songs, and to hear those old songs in a brand new light, to hear him singing so intimately, in such good form, sober, and the quality of the recording was so immaculate—I was just really overjoyed.”
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Auerbach continued, “Every time he performs a song, it’s a little bit different. He lives in the moment. And I think that that comes through loud and clear—how emotionally connected he sounds to the music that he’s making… The older think he got, the more powerful he got. He took his time, he stretched, he put everything he had into his songs. You can tell there was no time limit [with these recordings]. There used to be time limits [on records] because he only had so much time to record in the 40s. But when he was making these recordings, you could tell he closed his eyes and he just let it all hang out.”
That living-in-the-moment mentality is ever-present on the newly released recording of “Preachin’ Blues”. Son House’s enchanting vocals soar emotionally over the dissonance of his guitar as he sings valiantly about preaching in the halls of a Baptist church after giving up alcohol in favor of music and religion. The music video for the track compiles clips of various Baptist churches as well as images of the Delta in northwestern Mississippi.
Easy Eye Sound will release Forever On my Mind on black and orange vinyl, CD, and digital platforms. Check out the new single and music video for “Preachin’ Blues” below and click here for additional listening options. Furthermore, head here to pre-order the forthcoming album, due out on March 18th.
Son House – “Preachin’ Blues”