Joseph Spence must go down in history as one of our greatest folk musicians. He represents the stock of common folk that live their daily lives revolving around what we as Bahamians love so much, music. Spence played not only the calypso, ring dance, and, English folk tunes passed down from our British Colonial masters, but he played the music of the church that became an integral part of the common folk of the Bahamas. Spending time in the United States during the 40's and 50's gave him an even more global perspective in his music. We can hear the blues, jazz, work songs performed in the fields all over the Southern States, and the hymnals used for worship in that area. With his unique tuning method, Spence confined himself in later years to the key of "D". This allowed him to master un-orthodox lines that flowed through his songs making him technically one of the most proficient guitarist of his time. None to this day has reached his stature as a folk musician in his beloved homeland. I learned that those who play music from the heart are the best, and I'm sure that anyone who hears Spence knows where his music is coming from. Lyrics? Spence made up what he didn't know and sang them as if they were the correct ones. That's heart! There was no let's do it again because I made an error, there is no errors in music from the heart, what he gives you is what you're supposed to get. Lets listen to a few of his renditions of various styles and see how he played his way into everyone's heart.

 

The first excerpt presented is of a religious nature. Here, Spence demonstrates his virtuosity with his vocal styling's in the background. Usually accompanying himself, Spence expresses his music very freely in each of the following performances.

Click play to hear "Glory Glory"

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Interesting is this next excerpt of the popular sea chantey Sloop John B. Spence have no reservation in growling and vocalizing other sounds in his extraordinary library of sound effects. The influence of him having been on contract (farm worker) in the Southern United States is clear and evident in the rendition.

Click play to hear "Sloop John B."

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Spence spared no genre when it came to his music, listen as he perform this next popular dance song.

Click play to hear "Jump In The Line"

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I often tell my students that rap is a tradition that has been around for hundreds of years. Even Spence used this popular style to express himself.

Click play to hear "On The Rolling Sea"

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This next song finds itself in wakes and funeral services especially in the Family Islands of The Bahamas. Bidding one farewell when they die is often a celebration with lot's of singing, food, and socializing. Here it's done only how Spence would.

Click play to hear "Goodnight"

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Review from rounder.com
Kneelin' Down Inside the Gate: The Great Rhyming Singers of the Bahamas
When these recording were made in 1965 in Nassau, the Bahamas, these singers -- including Joseph Spence, the Pinder Family and Frederick McQueen -- were at the height of their powers. Coming from Nassau and the Andros, Abaco and Mores Islands, most of these singers were already over sixty years old when they recorded the lovely spirituals, anthems, rhyming songs and ballads heard here. Today, this powerful and complex music has virtually disappeared, making the release of these recordings all the more invaluable and historically important. Kneelin' Down Inside the Gate was recorded by Peter K. Siegel and Jody Stecher, the team responsible for the Elektra/Nonesuch label's two volume series titled The Real Bahamas. The first volume, issued in 1966, is a beloved and influential album, cherished and absorbed by countless musicians -- such as Ry Cooder and Taj Mahal -- and was the source for the Incredible String Band's "I Bid You Goodnight," a song that was the heartbreaking, joyous finale of live shows throughout their career. Except for three tracks recorded in 1965, the tracks recorded here come from the same legendary field trip that produced The Real Bahamas, and have never been issued before.

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Review from rounder.com
Joseph Spence was one of the most unusual guitarists of all time. He sounded unlike any other musician in his native Bahamas, yet his music reflected the real character and the local traditions of his own community. These informal sessions recorded by Guy Droussart in the 1970s feature Spence performing his syncopated renditions of hymns, quadrilles and popular songs, filled with endless melodic variation.

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Review from (Robert Gordon — The Memphis Flyer)
“Sounding like a delirious sea captain, a Delta bluesman on a tear, or a malfunctioning record player, Joseph Spence's mix of words and sounds is quite unique. The Bahamian guitarist's vocals bob like a fisherman's floater, sometimes leading the guitar and sometimes supporting it. He alternately picks, strums, and beats the acoustic instrument, and the sum total is the most unusual style I've ever heard from such a common setup. Hymns, sea chanteys, popular folk songs, and other tunes make up his repertoire. This reissue includes many previously unreleased performances. Joseph Spence is where fans of Tom Waits meet followers of Mississippi John Hurt.”

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Description from - http://www.arhoolie.com/titles/349.shtml
Joseph Spence - guitar and vocal sounds.

Joseph Spence (August 3, 1910 to March 18, 1984) was a master folk artist who developed a totally unique guitar style to express his largely religious repertoire. He was a community musician much loved and respected in his neighborhood, and was always ready to share his heritage and traditions with anyone who came to visit. In 1958 folklorist Sam Charters first recorded Joseph Spence's delightful rhythmic guitar improvisations (issued on the Folkways label) and stirred up a great deal of interest among folk music enthusiasts the world over. In 1971 Joseph Spence was invited to make several concert appearances in the north-eastern United States, and this recording was made during his appearance in the Boston area.

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Review from Rounder.com
Joseph Spence's music is a style unto itself. Working with songs learned from hymnals, from the radio and from local tradition in his native Bahamas, Spence developed an astounding guitar style with wild, syncopated rhythms and a unique but sophisticated sense of harmony, while he casually growled out excerpts of lyrics. Spence was a major influence on Ry Cooder. These are '70s recordings made near his home in Nassau and in concert in the U.S.

Solo albums:
• Living on the Hallelujah Side, Rounder (26 Otis St., Cambridge, MA 02134), 2021
• Joseph Spence, Arhoolie (10341 San Pablo Avenue., El Cerrito, CA 94530), 1061
• Happy All the Time, Elektra, EKL-273 (out of print)

With others:
• Music of the Bahamas, Vol. I, Folkways (43 W. 61st St., New York, NY 10023)
• Joseph Spence—Folk Guitar/John Roberts & Frederick McQueen—Bahaman Ballads and
Rhyming Spirituals, Folkways, FS 3847
• The Real Bahamas, in Music and Song, Nonesuch (dist. by Elektra), H-72013
• The Real Bahamas, Vol. II, Nonesuch, H-72078

Additional Discography Information -

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