Frank Stokes' Dream The Memphis Blues 1927 - 1931

Though the blues explosion of the 60s brought
many of the Delta bluesmen newfound
audiences and appreciation, many were still left
to languish in obscurity. Frank Stokes is one
such individual. Though a forgotten figure
nowadays, Stokes was a fixture of the
Mississippi blues scene, frequently performing
with other local bluesmen such as Garfield
Akers, Dan Sane, and others. Having performed
blues well before it began to flourish in the
South, Stokes was a consummate professional,
and deeply influential to future blues figures,
and even the country performer Jimmie
Rodgers, who took stylistic cues from Stokes.
His performances were noteworthy for his adept
guitar-playing, his booming, stentorian voice,
and for the numerous duets he recorded, which
features subtle vocal and rhythmic interplay.
Frank Stokes was largely forgotten among the
bigger names that resurfaced after the blues
explosion, but was eventually unearthed by
historians and dedicated blues crate diggers.
His legacy is captured in Frank Stokes' Dream,
which compiles not only some of Stokes' finest
works, but those of the contemporaries he
inspired, including recognizable Delta icons like
Furry Lewis, Memphis Minnie, and Cannon's
Jug Stompers, just to name a few.