Upcoming New CD Release for 2022!
"Rested When the Roll is Called"
Our acoustic string band has expanded to a quartet and is now going by “Spyder Stompers and Sugar Pie”
The Spyder Stompers trio released Cannonball in 2014 with a focus on acoustic prewar blues and string band classics. Our first CD was the culmination of decades of gigging, made up of the trio of Ray DeForest, Kevin Richards, and Jack DiAlesandro.
Our trio grew to a quartet in 2014 when multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Sheela Das (AKA Sugar Pie) joined us. The new lineup of SpYder Stompers and Sugar Pie expanded its vocal repertoire. We feature the vocal trio of Kevin, Ray, and Sheela on cuts on this release such as “I’ll Be Rested” and “Lay My Armor Down.” Early roots classics like the “St Louis Blues" and “Up Above My Head” demonstrate the lead vocal talent of Sheela. The latter two songs contain the irrepressible piano of our dear friend Rockin' Robin Montgomery, who passed away in August of 2020. Our sophomore collection of prewar blues and string band classics is dedicated to Robin and is titled “I’ll Be Rested When the Roll is Called”.
We hope you will enjoy the music of “Spyder Stompers and Sugar Pie."
- Jack DiAlesandro
For more details about the each song, see the liner notes in the player below.
The Spyder Stompers trio released Cannonball in 2014 with a focus on acoustic prewar blues and string band classics. Our first CD was the culmination of decades of gigging, made up of the trio of Ray DeForest, Kevin Richards, and Jack DiAlesandro.
Our trio grew to a quartet in 2014 when multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Sheela Das (AKA Sugar Pie) joined us. The new lineup of SpYder Stompers and Sugar Pie expanded its vocal repertoire. We feature the vocal trio of Kevin, Ray, and Sheela on cuts on this release such as “I’ll Be Rested” and “Lay My Armor Down.” Early roots classics like the “St Louis Blues" and “Up Above My Head” demonstrate the lead vocal talent of Sheela. The latter two songs contain the irrepressible piano of our dear friend Rockin' Robin Montgomery, who passed away in August of 2020. Our sophomore collection of prewar blues and string band classics is dedicated to Robin and is titled “I’ll Be Rested When the Roll is Called”.
We hope you will enjoy the music of “Spyder Stompers and Sugar Pie."
- Jack DiAlesandro
For more details about the each song, see the liner notes in the player below.
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- 01 - Joliet Bound Written by Kansas Joe McCoy and Memphis Minnie, our version of this eleven bar classic features Sheela on guitar and vocal. Kevin plays fingerstyle on a 1931 National Steel Guitar in G fingering capo 3, Ray is on acoustic bass, and Jack plays the country blues harmonica. Key of B flat.
- 02 - Stomp that Thing We recorded a Frank Stokes tune on the first CD, and we can’t have a new SpYder release without adding another Stokes tune. Lead vocal and guitar by Jack using C fingerings capo at the second fret. Kevin on mandolin, response sung by Sheela, Kevin and Ray. Key of D.
- 03 - I’ll Be Rested When the Roll is Called The original version is by Blind Roosevelt Graves playing his 12 string and his brother Uaroy Graves on tambourine. Our version has Kevin on lead vocal and flat picked guitar. Sheela and Ray sing harmony, with tambourine and bass by Sheela and Ray respectively. Jack Travis picks E fingerings capo 3. Key of G. We dedicate this song to Rockin’ Robin.
- 04 -Frankie and Albert The first version of this is said to be written in 1899 by Bill Dooley after the Frankie Baker murder trial in St Louis and he called it Frankie and Allen. The song also was rewritten and recorded many times as Frankie and Johnny. Sheela is on vocals and guitar, Jack on guitar playing out of G positions capo two, in the style of Mississippi John Hurt. No tone Richards on the fiddle.
- 05 - Jackson’s Cow Cow Stomp Cleveland bluesman Cow Cow Davenport recorded this on the piano in 1929 as “Cow Cow Blues”. Charlie McCoy and his string band, the Mississippi Mud Steppers retitled it the “The Jackson Stomp”. Charlie was a prewar blues master and he knocks this out of the park on his Banjo Mandolin. Charlie was the younger brother of Memphis Minnie’s husband, Joy McCoy. Raymond on acoustic bass shines on this one. Kevin on mandolin, , Jack on guitar and harmonica and Sheela on washboard. Key of A.
- 06 - Up Above My Head A gospel song of traditional origin. The inspiration for our version comes from Sister Rosetta Thorpe 1947 recording. Sheela is on vocals and piano pounder Rockin’ Robin bangs out a solo. Key of C. Up above my head, there’s music in the air.
- 07 - Georgia on a Horn John Jackson was a piedmont blues picker from beautiful Rappahannock County, Virginia. We got to meet John at the Cuyahoga Valley Festival and also at MerleFest. Jack stole his version and sings lead. The vocal harmonies on the chorus by all four of us. Kevin plays the hot intro and solos on the mandolin. Key of G.
- 08 - Jumping at the Spider This is our take on Blind Blake’s West Coast Blues. Kevin and Jack share the east coast ragtime style guitars. Kevin does the recitation and tells us all about a typical night at the Barking Spider Tavern. In doing so he mentions all the usual suspects you would find there. We named our band after the Barking Spider where we performed regularly for over a decade. Fingerpicked in C.
- 09 - Pay Day The story of a hungry man looking for a meal and is trying to keep his skillet good and greasy all the time. Sources include the playing of Mississippi John Hurt. Sheela lends timeless vocals and guitar to Payday. Jack adds the banjo and Kevin the fiddle to support the old time feel. Key of D
- 10 - Take These Chips Away Kevin stole this from a 1927 recording by Fiddling Doc Roberts- a great Kentucky fiddler. On his early track Doc played the mandolin! This one has a few more chords than the usual old-time tune and is a lot of fun to pick. Key of F. Kevin plays the melody on his Banjo Mandolin, Jack is playing his Guild D 35, Raymond is on the Bass, Guest Musician is Eric Seddon joins us on clarinet. Sheela is on the Washboard.
- 11 - Elk River Blues This slow fiddle whistle tune has a haunting rhythm pattern. We feature Sheela on the penny whistle and Kevin on the fiddle. The Elk River is formed in the Allegheny Mountains and runs west and empties into the Kanwaha river in Charleston West Virginia.
- 12 - Highway 61 This is our arrangement of Mance Lipscomb’s version of this blues classic. We used this for a Roots of American Music school project to teach the Great Migration with theses verses being written by the students at a Cleveland school. Key of E.
- 13 - I Ain’t Going to Lay My Armor Down This is a beautiful gospel tune. Unfortunately, the southeastern Kentucky duo of McVay and Johnson only recorded two tunes in 1928. Jack’s banjo is in his special double C tuning with the drone string tuned to A, capo 5! We feature the vocal trio of Ray, Sheela and Kevin in the spiritual style.
- 14 - St Louis Blues Hailing from St. Louis, Sheela brings the vocals and ukulele on this classic. We performed this song in a movie entitled, “My Blind Brother” which debuted at the Cleveland International Film Festival. The film shoot took place on blazing hot summer day. Rockin’ Robin Montgomery joins us on piano in this rendition.
- 15 - Rufus Johnson (Levee Camp Blues) Kevin wrote this one and he tells the plight of an African American sharecropper during the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927. Rufus Johnson was left stranded by his field boss and died on the levee. Jack on the country style harmonica. Key of A, and the guitar has a dropped D.
- 16 - Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning We borrowed this version from the playing of Reverend Gary Davis. Jack and Sheela do a vocal duet on the verses and the four of us sing the chorus. Reverend Gary is one of our heroes.
- 17 - Jackson’s Cow Cow Stomp (Fast Version) A snappier version of the song...Cleveland bluesman Cow Cow Davenport recorded this on the piano in 1929 as “Cow Cow Blues”. Charlie McCoy and his string band, the Mississippi Mud Steppers retitled it the “The Jackson Stomp”. Charlie was a prewar blues master and he knocks this out of the park on his Banjo Mandolin. Charlie was the younger brother of Memphis Minnie’s husband, Joy McCoy. Raymond on acoustic bass shines on this one. Kevin on mandolin, , Jack on guitar and harmonica and Sheela on washboard. Key of A.
- 18 - Robin Ain’t Here No More A tribute to Rockin’ Robin Montgomery who was an unofficial member of SSSP. No performance ever passed at the Barking Spider Tavern without Robin playing a set or two with us. Written by Jack and Kevin. A wonderful video accompanies this piece on our website thanks to dedication and effort of Kevin. Guest artists Meredith Pangrace on accordion, Roy King on percussion. Ray Flanagan added the harmony vocal.
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SpYder Stompers' 2014 CD Release:
"Cannonball"
During a dance in Cleveland, Mississippi, WC Handy was handed a note from a “black” patron asking for “local boys” to play “our native music”. During a performance break, a colored band with a beat-up acoustic guitar, a battered mandolin and a worn-out acoustic bass played a style of music that WC considered “haunting”. The pick-up band made more money, thanks to a crowd of supporters, and WC and his entire orchestra.
The music on this CD belongs to this prewar era. It reflects a time in history that began with the start of the 20th century, and lasted nearly 50 years. It’s music that was played by string bands, blues musicians and those who imitated the ragtime styles of the piano. This music we genuinely love, and we hope that “Cannonball” is a CD that you just can’t put down.
Over 35 years ago, Jack DiAlesandro and Kevin T Richards started performing traditional American music together. Raymond DeForest joined 20 years ago. Jack is a Fingerstyle guitar master and works as a professor of mathematics at Kent State University. Kevin plays mandolin, fiddle and various guitar styles and is the artistic director of Roots of American Music. Ray is a highly sought-after acoustic bass master who performs and teaches any style of roots music.
The music on this CD belongs to this prewar era. It reflects a time in history that began with the start of the 20th century, and lasted nearly 50 years. It’s music that was played by string bands, blues musicians and those who imitated the ragtime styles of the piano. This music we genuinely love, and we hope that “Cannonball” is a CD that you just can’t put down.
Over 35 years ago, Jack DiAlesandro and Kevin T Richards started performing traditional American music together. Raymond DeForest joined 20 years ago. Jack is a Fingerstyle guitar master and works as a professor of mathematics at Kent State University. Kevin plays mandolin, fiddle and various guitar styles and is the artistic director of Roots of American Music. Ray is a highly sought-after acoustic bass master who performs and teaches any style of roots music.
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- 01 - Cannonball Blues
- 02 - Baby It Must Be Love
- 03 - Ticket Agent Blues
- 04 - Raggin' with Ray
- 05 - Handy's Florida Blues
- 06 - Wee Midnight
- 07 - Nashville Blues Blues
- 08 - Ragged But Right
- 09 - Ninety Nine Year Blues
- 10 - Ain't Nobodies Business
- 11 - Going Down Slow
- 12 - Dallas Rag
- 13 - When I Get the Mississippi Blues
- 14 - Going Down to Georgia on a Horn
- 15 - Buck Dancer's Choice
- 16 - I Got Mine
- 17 - Flopped Ear Mule
- 18 - It Won't Be Long Now
- 19 - Memphis My Home Town
- 20 - Carroll County Blues
- 21 - Papa Wants a Cookie
- 22 - Mean Mistreater Mama
- 23 - Shuffle Rag
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