New Orleans is known for two things: the variety of gumbo recipes and the abundance of blues bars. So when Louisiana Claude, the hallmark of the New Orleans blues scene, releases an album, Sitting In The Jailhouse, listeners prepare themselves for one ride across American lands, with the static of the radio station blurring the song lyrics now and then.
As one would expect from a folk-rock album, songs in Sitting In The Jailhouse reveal a voracious musical vocabulary that spans gospel, rock, R&B, and even country. “On the Bayou” is a surprisingly very empowering country-rock ballad, describing hardships that women face and how victims of domestic violence are falsely punished. “Sittin in the Jailhouse” is more fun and uplifting despite describing an emotional turmoil of a youth bailed out of jail. Claude’s songs soar with emotions, sounding both exotic and humble. “Seattle I’m Coming Home” swells with string guitars, enlivened by style and rhythm and tells a nostalgic tale of the ever 20-something Kurt Cobain, to use the legendary Nirvana lead singer and guitarist as inspiration as both touching and unique, and Claude deserves more recognition for carefully building an empire of sounds and words around picked themes and stories.
Louisiana Claude Hitt’s Sitting In The Jailhouse contains some of the greatest folk-rock/country rock/ Americana guitar numbers that could easily place him next to folk-rock and blues legends such as Simon and Garfunkel, Johnny Adams, and The Allman Brothers.
