Details of
Baptist Town
by The Mike Eldred Trio
Liner Notes:
Producer: Mike Eldred
Engineer: Matt Ross-Spang, Chad Franzcoviak, Mike Eldred
Recorder At: Sun Studio
Mastered By: Mike Eldred - El Rancho Del Soul Studios
About the Album
Recorded at Sun Studio in Memphis, "Baptist Town" is steeped in the rich history of the South and the folklore that is so important to American culture. The catalyst for the record is the small neighborhood outside Greenwood Mississippi where legendary blues guitarist Robert Johnson was murdered in 1938. The track "Somebody Been Runnin'" references the final chapter of Johnson's "deal with the devil" made at the crossroads, and some say fulfilled in the tiny community of Baptist Town the night he died.
The record also focuses on the poverty and racism of the past, and still existing in the Deep South today. Baptist Town remains mostly as it did in Johnson's time and is a stark contrast to the surrounding city of Greenwood Mississippi. The dichotomy between love and hate, rich and poor, sin and salvation, black and white, are apparent throughout the record, and reflect many of society’s struggles that continue to haunt us all.