Dixon Brothers – Complete Recorded Works 1936-1938 Vol 3 (1937-1938)

The third of four volumes, chronicling the recording career of one of country music�s most individualistic of the so-called �brother acts� which flourished in during the thirties. Dorsey and Howard Dixon hailed from South Carolina. Among their influences was Darby and Tarlton. Howard was awed by Jimmie�s skill in playing lap style slide on his National steel guitar. In turn the Dixon brother�s recordings influenced many others including Darby and Tarlton who recorded a cover of Weave Room Blues as The Weaver�s Blues. Their repertoire encompassed a mixture of blues, ballads, a handful of religious songs and even a few cowboy songs. This collection kicks off with Just Because a song which had been a hit for the Shelton Brothers and would later be recorded by Elvis Presley. Bootleggers Story sung to the tune made famous two years earlier by Roy Acuff is the first of two references to the singing cowboy star. I Didn�t Hear Anybody Pray is a moralising tale of drunken driving. Dorsey based it upon an incident that he witnessed himself when there was a wreck at the Trianlge Filling Station in Rockingham in 1936. It seems that Acuff heard the Dixon Brothers recording and, assuming the song was �traditional�, recorded it under the title Wreck On The Highway. Litigation followed and resulted in Dorsey�s favour. Though their recording career was short, spanning only two years, their records sold well. As these four volumes demonstrate, the Dixon brothers were one of the finest country vocal / guitar duets to record. Informative booklet notes by Keith Briggs and detailed discography.