Deeper in the Well

Eric Bibb: son of Leon Bibb, a fixture in the folk revival scene of the 1960s; nephew of John Lewis, founding member of the Modern Jazz Quartet; and godson of Paul Robeson. That's quite a heritage; perhaps it's not surprising that he is among the leaders of the 21st century Americana renaissance. Admittedly, this is an odd state of affairs given that the 61-year-old New York native has been living in Europe since his late teens. Reportedly, Helsinki is home these days. In this light, Deeper in the Well can be seen as an attempt to raise Bibb's profile in the land that shaped his early worldview if not his residential proclivities. On Booker's Guitar, his 2010 release dedicated to Booker ‘Bukka’ White, Bibb took a literal approach by playing the Delta blues master's guitar. On Deeper in the Well, which was recorded at Dirk Powell's Cypress House Studios in Point Breaux, Louisiana, Bibb dips deeply into the Acadiana songbook to produce an all-organic down-by-the-bayou gumbo, which incorporates Cajun, Creole and zydeco with an infusion of authentic 60s-era DNA (he covers ‘The Times They Are A-Changin’). Joined by Powell on second guitar, Grant Dermody on harmonica, Lafayette native Danny DeVillier on drums, and maestro Cedric Watson on fiddle and accordion, Bibb draws on church camp spirituals (‘Dig A Little Deeper in the Well’), gutbucket blues (‘No Further’) and chamber ensemble intricacies (‘Every Wind in the River’), among other things, to create a professionally crafted product, which nevertheless sounds like old friends pickin’ and grinnin’ on the back porch.