Robert Belfour - What's Wrong With You (2000)

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The wolf from the hills

Robert “Wolfman” Belfour was 60 and had on his back 35 years of hard labor as a truck driver in the construction business when this album, his first, came out in 2000. He had learned to play guitar by himself, first observing his father, then when this one died while he was 13 and left him his guitar, by imitating artists he heard on radio  (Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker…)

Contrary to what's been often said, he repeated many times that he was never taught by his neighbor Junior Kimbrough. Is it really true ? Or was he tired to be systematically compared to his elder ? What is almost certain though is that he was rhythmically influenced by the fife & drum music of Otha Tuner and Syd Hemphill.

From his father's death, he never quit playing guitar. In 1959, he married his beloved Noreen or Norene (the eponymous song is of course about her) and the couple moved to Memphis a few years later. In the 1980s, encouraged by Noreen/Norene, he started playing in the Beale Street clubs with growing success.

He was recorded for the first time by famous musicologist-talent discoverer David Evans, from the University of Memphis : eight of his songs appeared on Evans's compilation “The Spirit Lives On: Deep South Country Blues and Spirituals in the 1990s”, released by the German Hot Fox label in 1994. This drew the attention of Fat Possum Records that decided him to record two albums, this one and “Pushin' My Luck“in 2003, his second and last one. During the following years he toured regularly the clubs and festivals circuit in the US and Europe.

In 2013 though, on his last tour in Europe, he was recorded live at the Blues Rules Festival, in Switzerland. An album, titled “Wolfman - Live at Blues Rules” was edited in a limited number of copies just after his death (in February 2015 at the age of 74), as a crowdfunding to raise money to build Belfour a proper memorial grave, with no plan to be commercialized in the future. The lucky ones who bought this album indeed possess a collector's !

His powerful very rhythmic guitar playing fits his deep low voice that earned him his nickname of Wolfman. But don't be fooled, if his raw rhythmically repetitive style sounds primary at first, it is more complex than it seems (as shown in the “Norene” intro), particularly in his use of various open tunings, of his thumbing the upper strings, suddenly shortly moving toward the high range strings like for example on “Walkin' the Floor” or “Holding My Pillow”.

Despite his hypnotic style and his North Hills of Mississippi origins, in a way Belfour is as close to Fred McDowell and even to John Lee Hooker as to R.L. Burnside or his neighbor Junior Kimbrough from whom he still gives two versions of “Black Mattie” and “Done Got Old” on this album.

The Wolf

Like these illustrious elders, he is the true kind of Mississippi country bluesman : authentic, unspoiled by music industry, and truly emotional in his lyrics (he signed seven from the nine titles) : his songwriting mostly reflects the hard times of life, particularly in human relationships and love, which in itself is not different from most bluesmen, but his singing delivers a real feeling of heart-felt sorrow and gravity.

These nine songs are superb pieces of vintage Mississippi country blues. Personally my preference goes to the outstanding “Norene”. Just one negative touch : the album cover photo is awful and doesn't honor him. Except this detail for which he is certainly not responsible, nothing is wrong with “What's Wrong With You” because nothing is fake in Robert Belfour. ☻

Interviews

■ Potts Camp, North Mississippi Hill Country Picnic, Interview with Robert "Wolfman" Belfour :

→ Pt 1 : https://youtu.be/-KdjgllSBR4?t=509

→ Pt 2 : https://youtu.be/sVVVdUj088U

■ Two shorts extracts from a 2009 documentary where Robert Belfour talks about his life and sings :

→ About his wife “Norene”, 2009 : https://youtu.be/gODUG-44owg

→ Paid in whiskey, “Catfish Blues” : https://youtu.be/JMGe5gebfVc & https://youtu.be/OGz6hLcj0tM

Live videos (because a short video is better than a long speech)

■ “Done Got Old”, from the "Blues: The Road to Memphis" DVD : https://youtu.be/d_Es_oKzC44

■ Festival Int. de Blues, Coimbra, Portugal, 2005 : https://youtu.be/Hjr8yBPvfBE?t=307

■ "Pushin' My Luck", 2007 : https://youtu.be/sTYJbAyYJD8

■ Blues Under the Bridge, Colorado Springs, CO, 2007 :

→ #1 : https://youtu.be/efxnkXy49Lg

→ #2 : https://youtu.be/qGNj1krxngA

■ Deep Blues Festival, River Falls, WI, 2007 (unfortunately spoiled by people conversations) : https://youtu.be/tv1jcTveepI

■ Juke Joint Festival, Clarksdale, MS, 2008 : https://youtu.be/mmY-nOBEcM0

■ “Hoochie Coochie Man”, Juke Joint Festival, Clarksdale, MS, 2009 :

→ https://youtu.be/35ZknjCXNac

→ https://youtu.be/3F0p2Ws89nw

■ River Arts Festival, Memphis, TN, 2010 :

→ "Smokestack Lightning" : https://youtu.be/cgaVSjwakFM

→ Unknown title : https://youtu.be/FH4fYbeZwRY

■ "Two Trains Running" & "Breaking My Heart", Sunflower Blues Fest., Clarksdale, MS, 2010 : https://youtu.be/EflH22DSRdU

■ "Poor Boy Long Way From Home", Clarksdale, MS, 2011 : https://youtu.be/0JyapY3Boa8

■ Blues on the street, Sunflower Blues Fest., Clarksdale, MS, 20111 : https://youtu.be/I79DvkTztwg

■ Colorado College, Colorado Springs, CO, 2011 (?) :

→ “Breaking My Heart” : https://youtu.be/bPPPU20gyxg

→ “You Got Me Crying” : https://youtu.be/HLiPDYTuCas

■ "Hill Stomp", North Mississippi Hill Country Picnic, Potts Camp, MS, 2011 : https://youtu.be/NyoYi3zmtIE

■ “Breaking My Heart”, Juke Joint Festival, Clarksdale, MS, 2011 : https://youtu.be/I6CnlSuW3_U

■ “Boogie Chillen”, Juke Joint Festival, Clarksdale, MS, 2012 : https://youtu.be/aN1UiZeBbqw

■ Sparky's BBQ, Hatch, New Mexico, 2012 :

→ #1 : https://youtu.be/tvu6_3TolKc

→ #2 : https://youtu.be/iB5jE4dKxB8

→ #3 : https://youtu.be/L5u_vsi_XE4

→ #4 : https://youtu.be/sSBt9cRZptg

→ #5 : https://youtu.be/A4q9G0SynpU

→ #6 : https://youtu.be/1Va-G1d0qH8

→ #7 : https://youtu.be/vQTPTSs_02E

→ #8 : https://youtu.be/jwZQFxMdRTA

■ Red's, Clarksdale, MS, 2012 : https://youtu.be/lCsJe27VxKs

■ Muddy Roots, Cookevile, TN, 2012 : https://youtu.be/G4bN5x1IDA4

■ Blues Rules Crissier Tour, Paris, France, 2013 :

→ “Hobo Blues" : https://youtu.be/NNE3FB5OGa8

→ Unknown title : https://youtu.be/oEAblq1XHbk

Robert "Wolfman" Belfour, 1940-2015