> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.unknowndivide.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Hill Country Blues Explained: Where to Start With RL Burnside and Junior Kimbrough - URL: https://www.unknowndivide.com/hill-country-blues-explained-rl-burnside-junior-kimbrough/ - Published: 2024-07-05T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-29T06:17:32.000Z - Description: Hill country blues is raw, hypnotic and built on deep grooves. Here is how to start with RL Burnside and Junior Kimbrough, from All Night Long and Too Bad Jim to Come On In. - Author: unknowndivide staff - Tags: Music Most people meet the blues through polished studio records, twelve bar song forms and tidy guitar solos. Hill country blues from north Mississippi works differently. It is loose, loud and hypnotic, built on long grooves that can ride a single riff for minutes at a time. If you have ever wondered where that raw, droning sound comes from, two names are the best place to start: RL Burnside and Junior Kimbrough. Both men recorded their best known albums for [Fat Possum Records](https://fatpossum.com/?ref=unknowndivide.com), the label that released the albums that made their names in the 1990s. This guide walks through what makes the style special and which records to hear first. ## What hill country blues is Hill country blues takes its name from the hill country of north Mississippi, and it sounds as rooted in place as any music you will hear. Rather than following a fixed chord pattern, the songs tend to lock into one repeated riff and build tension through rhythm, volume and repetition. The effect is closer to a trance than a story with verses and a bridge. Junior Kimbrough summed up the approach better than anyone. In words Fat Possum shares on one of his album pages, he said his songs have just the one chord, and that if he found another chord he would leave it for another song. That idea, a single chord pushed as far as it will go, is the heart of the style. Fat Possum calls RL Burnside the last genuine performer of the raw Mississippi hill country sound and, at the same time, one of the most cutting edge crossover artists the blues has produced. Both halves of that description matter, and you can hear them on the records below. ## Start with Junior Kimbrough If you only hear one hill country record, make it [All Night Long](https://fatpossum.com/products/all-night-long?ref=unknowndivide.com), Junior Kimbrough's first album, released in 1992\. It was recorded live in the converted church that replaced his original juke joint, with Kimbrough on vocals and guitar, Garry Burnside on bass and Kenny Malone on drums. Robert Palmer produced it, and he kept the rough edges intact. That choice is the reason it works. There is no studio polish here, just a band locked into deep, slow grooves and biting rhythms that feel like they could go on all night. Songs like Work Me Baby and Meet Me in the City show how much power a simple riff can carry. Next, try [Sad Days Lonely Nights](https://fatpossum.com/products/sad-days-lonely-nights?ref=unknowndivide.com). It opens and closes with two versions of the title track, one with the full band and one solo, which makes it a great way to hear how Kimbrough's songs shift between a crowded room and a single voice and guitar. ## Then RL Burnside According to Fat Possum, RL Burnside's first big break came in the early 1990s when a documentary featured him as one of its highlights. Robert Palmer then produced [Too Bad Jim](https://fatpossum.com/products/too-bad-jim?ref=unknowndivide.com) for the young label. The label describes Too Bad Jim and All Night Long together as among the most important and influential blues albums of the decade. It includes Shake 'Em on Down and Goin' Down South, two songs that turn up again on later Burnside releases. From there, Burnside's career took a turn nobody expected. Too Bad Jim reached Jon Spencer, and Burnside went on to tour extensively with the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. That partnership produced [A Ass Pocket of Whiskey](https://fatpossum.com/products/a-ass-pocket-of-whiskey?ref=unknowndivide.com), recorded in a rented hunters' cabin near Holly Springs, Mississippi, with the amps turned all the way up. Fat Possum says it turned Burnside into an unlikely champion of the indie rock world. ## The crossover years In 1997 Burnside released Mr. Wizard, which Fat Possum notes was its first record through its new distribution deal with Epitaph. It features his hardcore touring partners, grandson Cedric Burnside and adopted son Kenny Brown. Then came [Come On In](https://fatpossum.com/products/come-on-in?ref=unknowndivide.com) in 1998, which set his raw blues against modern electronic production by Tom Rothrock. The label calls it a critical and commercial success, and the track It's Bad You Know became a radio hit. Purists may prefer the earlier records, but Come On In shows how well those hypnotic grooves translate to beats and loops. Later, Wish I Was In Heaven Sitting Down arrived as what Fat Possum describes as the accumulation of 73 years of hard earned experience. The label points to it as some of his best singing ever, with a voice that had gained maturity and depth. ## A simple listening order - Junior Kimbrough, All Night Long: the purest entry point to the style - RL Burnside, Too Bad Jim: the companion piece produced by the same hand - Junior Kimbrough, Sad Days Lonely Nights: full band and solo sides of his sound - RL Burnside, A Ass Pocket of Whiskey: the loud, rowdy crossover with the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - RL Burnside, Come On In: the electronic remix era - RL Burnside, Wish I Was In Heaven Sitting Down: a late career highlight ## How to listen Hill country blues rewards volume and patience. The songs are long by design, and the magic happens when a groove keeps going past the point where a pop song would end. Play these records on a decent turntable or speakers with some low end, let a full side run without skipping, and pay attention to how the rhythm section and guitar push against each other. It also helps to listen for the family ties. As Fat Possum points out, the Burnsides and Malones turn up all over its releases, and you will hear the same names and songs travel from record to record. ## The final word Hill country blues is one of the most distinctive sounds in American music, and it is easy to get into once you know where to begin. Start with All Night Long, follow it with Too Bad Jim, and let the grooves do the rest. By the time you reach Come On In, you will understand why these records still sound so fresh. Keep exploring with our [Blue Note Records starter guide](https://www.unknowndivide.com/blue-note-records-starter-guide-essential-albums/), the [Light in the Attic starter guide](https://www.unknowndivide.com/light-in-the-attic-records-starter-guide-essential-reissues/), our explainer on [Record Store Day](https://www.unknowndivide.com/record-store-day-explained/) and our pick of the [best turntables for beginners](https://www.unknowndivide.com/best-turntables-for-beginners/). Browse the [vinyl hub](https://www.unknowndivide.com/vinyl/).