Swamp Dogg Re-Released on Vinyl.

Rat On!
Original Release Date: 1971

Total Destruction to Your Mind.
Original Release Date: 1970

     Alive Natural Sound Records has announced that it will re-release Swamp Dogg's first two albums on vinyl for the first time since their original release dates- Total Destruction to Your Mind (1970) and Rat On (1971).  Apparently, the date has not been nailed down yet, as Alive describes the releases only as "coming soon".
     Born Jerry Williams Junior in Portsmouth, VA (Jul 12, 1942), Swamp Dogg's first recording ("HTD Blues"/"Nat's Wailing") was completed in 1954 under the moniker "Little Jerry".  By 1970, he had taken on the better known persona of Swamp Dogg and, in the same year, released his first LP, "Total Destruction to Your Mind", described as "one of the most gloriously gonzo soul recordings of all time".  Williams has also had the spectacularly awesome honors of having made Nixon's infamous "Enemies List" as well as his 1971  recording, "Rat On!" earning a rank in the top 10 worst album covers of all time.
     Curiously, Williams states that he was raised on country music: "Black music [on the radio] didn't start 'till 10 at night until 4 in the morning and I was in bed by then... If you strip my tracks, take away all the horns and guitar licks, what you have is a country song."  And you can hear it too, if you listen, creating a southern roots foundation to the music (both aesthetically and thematically) you can almost reach out and touch.
     The gonzo preaching, so unique to that time and place in American culture, the country influences, and the pure soul- straight from the horses mouth- create a uniqueness and honesty in the sound that just make it so worth listening to. Swamp Dogg was an unusually pleasing discovery for me (I was smiling straight through the first half of Total Destruction) and I hope it is for you too. Have a listen below.