Pink Anderson – Vol. 1 – Carolina Blues Man
More famous today for being the original “Pink” in the legendary progressive rock band name Pink Floyd, though never a member of the band. The late Syd Barrett “created” Pink Floyd by combining Pink’s first name with North Carolina bluesman Floyd Council. But before that distinction, Pink Anderson (guitar/vocals) was a bona fide rural medicine show entertainer & later a blues stalwart.
The majority of these 10 blues classics that dominate this remastered reissue of Pink Anderson – Vol. 1 – Carolina Blues Man (Drops Oct 17/Craft Recordings/Concord/Prestige/39:40) were produced & recorded in South Carolina by Samuel Charters/Kenneth S. Goldstein. It’s a collection focused primarily on blues numbers & originally captured in 1961 for Prestige/Bluesville. This issue is also available on high-fidelity vinyl.
The tunes with spare instrumentation are played solo with Pink’s voice & acoustic guitar. Sometimes being capable of singing songs like this with the inventive skill Mr. Anderson possessed is a far better tonic than taking medication for doldrums. Despite the material, Pink didn’t consider himself a bluesman originally, but a medicine show entertainer. He mixed up his repertoire with novelty-oriented tunes (called “hokum” in those days), folk songs, & popular tunes of the early 20th Century.
Born in 1900 in South Carolina, Mr. Anderson became active as an artist as far back as 1914, entertaining crowds for a remedy company (yes, selling bottles of elixirs like in the old west medicine shows). Unlike some blues purveyors with raw, gritty vocals, Pink was a good vocalist for the genre with a copper-hued tone & you could often understand the lyrics (“Mama Where Did You Stay Last Night”). His Piedmont blues, tricky, finger-picking style was colorful with the addition of strumming that accompanied his storytelling blues.
Pink’s vocals are penetrating. He accentuates certain words effectively without being too boisterous. His inflections are perfectly applied, & the lack of showboating only intensifies the authenticity of the music. The song is obviously more important than the singer (“I Had My Fun”) struts along effectively as Pink recounts a conversation with his mother.
The majority of the songs in this collection are uncredited traditional compositions except for “Baby Please Don’t Go,” by Big Joe Williams. If your collection is fat with Muddy Waters, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Howlin’ Wolf, Son House, Sonny Boy Williamson (I & II), Mississippi John Hurt, John Lee Hooker, Robert Johnson, B.B. King, & so many others — it’s not complete if it lacks Pink Anderson.
Highlights – All
CD @ Bandcamp & https://craftrecordings.bandcamp.com/album/vol-1-carolina-blues-man-remastered-2025
