Son of Skip James

Son of Skip James is the thirtieth album by American singer/songwriter Dion. It was released on November 6, 2007 on the Verve Forecast Records label.[1] The album stayed on the Billboard Blues Albums chart for twelve weeks, peaking at #4 on November 24, 2007.[2]

Son of Skip James
Studio album by Dion
Released	November 6, 2007
Studio	Sounds Great Production
Genre	Blues, pop, rock
Length	43:35
Label	Verve Forecast
Producer	Dion[1]
Dion chronology
Bronx in Blue (2006) Son of Skip James (2007) Tank Full of Blues (2011)

The album serves as a follow-up to Dion's 2006 Grammy Award-nominated blues album, Bronx in Blue.[3] The majority of tracks on Son of Skip James are covers of well-known blues songs, some of them classics.[1] The album's title references blues legend Skip James, a friend of Dion's. Dion described the use of James's name for the album as "a kind of mission statement for the project".[4]

Critical reception

Son of Skip James

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic[1]
PopMatters[3]
Standard-Speaker[5]
The Philadelphia Inquirer[6]

The album was generally positively received by critics, who called out its authenticity,[1] simplicity,[7] and emotional depth.[3] The original tracks, particularly "The Thunderer", were considered to stand on equal or even superior footing to the cover tracks.[1][3] Most critics agreed that Dion had effectively personalized the covers,[1][8] although Tony Sclafani of PopMatters disagreed, calling the track selection "too familiar", and his recordings "too reverent" to bring the project fully to life.[3] Martin Halo of JamBase highlighted Dion's dedication to researching the origins of the cover songs as part of what made the album distinctive among other blues cover albums.[8]

Joel Selvin of SFgate.com called it "another landmark in a career littered with them".[9] Thom Jurek, writing for AllMusic, called it "one of the best records of the year".[1] Chris Jones of BBC Music called it "every inch the equal of its predecessor".[7] Nick Cristiano of The Philadelphia Inquirer found it "exceptionally warm and intuitive".[6] Despite his criticism of the track selection, Sclafani said the album "does not fall short when it comes to ass-kicking".[3] Halo felt that the album featured "master musicianship and stunning vocals", but called it "nothing we haven’t heard before."[8]

Track listing

Except where noted, credits are adapted from AllMusic.[1]

No.	Title	Original artist	Length
1.	"Nadine"	Chuck Berry	3:33
2.	"My Babe"	Willie Dixon	3:12
3.	"Hoodoo Man Blues"	Junior Wells	2:45
4.	"Drop Down Mama"	Sleepy John Estes[5]	4:12
5.	"Hoochie Coochie Man"	Willie Dixon	4:00
6.	"Baby I'm in the Mood"	Bob Dylan	3:30
7.	"I'm a Guitar King"	Tommy McClennan	3:19
8.	"The Thunderer"	Dion	4:34
9.	"Interlude – Spoken Word"	Dion	0:38
10.	"Son of Skip James"	Dion	3:29
11.	"Preachin' Blues"	Robert Johnson[5]	3:34
12.	"If I Had Possession (Over Judgement Day)"	Robert Johnson[5]	3:50
13.	"Devil Got My Woman"	Skip James	2:59

Personnel

Adapted from AllMusic.[1]

Musicians

• Bob Guertin – Audio engineer, organ, percussion
• Dion DiMucci – Audio production, composer, guitar, harmonica, producer, vocals
• Rick Krive – Piano

Additional personnel

• Bill Bush – Photography
• Susan DiMucci – Photography
• Michael Friedman – Photography
• Richard Gottehrer – Executive producer
• Hollis King – Art direction
• Emily Lazar – Mastering
• Kazumi Matsumoto – Graphic design

References

1. "Son of Skip James - Dion | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 2018-11-19.
2. "Dion Son Of Skip James Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-11-19.
3. "Dion: Son of Skip James". PopMatters. 2007-12-18. Retrieved 2018-11-19.
4. "'The Wanderer' Has Got the Blues". NPR.org. Retrieved 2018-11-19.
5. Tarone, L.A. (13 Jan 2008). "Soul-baring 'Skip James' helps Dion add to legacy". Standard-Speaker. Hazleton, Pennsylvania. p. 33. Retrieved 2019-06-27.
6. Cristiano, Nick (25 Nov 2007). "New recordings: Country/Roots". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2019-06-27.
7. Jones, Chris. "BBC - Music - Review of Dion - Son Of Skip James". Retrieved 2018-11-19.
8. "Dion: Son of Skip James". JamBase. 2008-02-11. Retrieved 2018-11-19.
9. "CD review: 'Son of Skip James'". SFGate. 2007-12-02. Retrieved 2018-11-19.