Karin, I have indeed mentioned Leavin' Trunk Blues a few
times, but mostly to point out how disappointed I was by it.
I'm like you in usually not being thrilled by supernatural
overtones and I thought it strange that Atkins seemed to
assume most readers would not know who killed Billy Lyons --
any blues fan would certainly know. I liked the first,
Crossroads Blues, much better, which dealt with the
continuing mystery of Robert Johnson's death.
By the way, let me again recommend Cecil Brown's Stagolee
Shot Billy -- turns out he really did shoot him, and this
book tracks down the facts and social context of that event,
looking at why this one of five murders that night in East
St. Louis was immortalized while the other four were quickly
forgotten. Finally, Brown looks at the many variations of the
song and why it continues to have social value.
Mark
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