When I stumbled on the music of Tony Joe White while compiling my weekly Notable Shows post, I thought I was unearthing an obscure treasure. Launching the player on his official website, I started listening and didn’t stop for the rest of the day. With a voice so deep that you feel it in your pelvis before it even hits your ears, a penchant for playing his guitar in the lower registers and rhythms that feel fresh even on songs written thirty-some years ago, it’s easy to fall for White’s music. And it’s easy to see why he can count Dan Auerbach and the White Stripes among his fans and why he’s been covered by everyone from Elvis Presley to Brook Benton, Ray Charles and, ahem, Great White.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrzbjgpVjO4?fs=1]
The name may be as unfamiliar to you as it was to me, but it’s likely that you’ve heard his music as White, a.k.a. The Swamp Fox, penned the classic “Polk Salad Annie” and “Rainy Night in Georgia”. And White is still going. He released the album Shine this year and was tour earlier this month. You can sign up for a free mp3 of the lovely “Season Man” from the new album at his website.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6diOn54OWs?fs=1]