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Giant Step/De Ole Folks at Home

Giant Step/De Ole Folks at Home
Studio album by
Taj Mahal
Released1969
GenreBlues, country blues, Delta blues, Cajun
Length69:15
LabelColumbia
ProducerDavid Rubinson
Taj Mahal chronology
The Natch'l Blues
(1968) 		Giant Step/De Ole Folks at Home
(1969) 		The Real Thing
(1971)

Giant Step/De Ole Folks at Home is the third studio album by American blues musician Taj Mahal. A double album, the first disc (Giant Step) is electric, while the second (De Ole Folks at Home) is acoustic.

Esquire included the album at number 27 on its list of "The 75 Albums Every Man Should Own".[1]

Background

The original LP was a double album. Disc one, Giant Step, features performances backed by Jesse Ed Davis, Gary Gilmore, and Chuck Blackwell, while disc two, De Ole Folks at Home, consists of Mahal's solo performances.[2]

"Take a Giant Step" is a cover of a song written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin for the Monkees. Mahal had also recorded a cover of the song under the name Rising Sons prior to his solo debut, although the Rising Sons version remained unreleased until 1992.[3]

Reception and legacy

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusicStarStarStarStarHalf star[4]
The Penguin Guide to Blues RecordingsStarStarStar[5]
Rolling Stone(unfavorable)[6]

With this album, Mahal achieved his first entry into the top 100 of the U.S. charts, reaching a peak position of number 85 on the Billboard 200 dated October 25, 1969.[7] The original song "Further On Down the Road" from the album was later covered in a reggae arrangement on Eric Clapton's album Old Sock (2013). Mahal himself also appeared as a guest on Clapton's version.[8]

Track listing

Giant Step

  1. "Ain't Gwine Whistle Dixie No More" (Taj Mahal, Jesse Ed Davis, Gary Gilmore, Chuck Blackwell)
  2. "Take a Giant Step" (Carole King, Gerry Goffin)
  3. "Give Your Woman What She Wants" (Taj Mahal, Joel Hirschhorn)
  4. "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl" (Don Level, Bob Love)
  5. "You're Gonna Need Somebody on Your Bond" (Blind Willie Johnson)
  6. "Six Days on the Road" (Carl Montgomery, Earl Green)
  7. "Farther on Down the Road (You Will Accompany Me)" (Taj Mahal, Jesse Ed Davis, Gary Gilmore, Chuck Blackwell)
  8. "Keep Your Hands Off Her" (Huddie Ledbetter)
  9. "Bacon Fat" (Robbie Robertson, Garth Hudson)

De Ole Folks at Home

  1. "Linin' Track" (Huddie Ledbetter)
  2. "Country Blues No. 1" (Traditional; arranged by Taj Mahal)
  3. "Wild Ox Moan" (Vera Hall, Ruby Pickens Tartt)
  4. "Light Rain Blues" (Taj Mahal)
  5. "Little Soulful Tune" (Taj Mahal)
  6. "Candy Man" (Rev. Gary Davis)
  7. "Cluck Old Hen" (Traditional; arranged by Taj Mahal)
  8. "Colored Aristocracy" (Traditional; arranged by Taj Mahal)
  9. "Blind Boy Rag" (Taj Mahal)
  10. "Stagger Lee" (Harold Logan, Lloyd Price)
  11. "Cajun Tune" (Taj Mahal)
  12. "Fishin' Blues" (Henry Thomas, Taj Mahal)
  13. "Annie's Lover" (Traditional; arranged by Taj Mahal)

Personnel

Giant Step

  • Taj Mahal - vocals, harmonica, banjo, Mississippi national steel-bodied guitar
  • Jesse Ed Davis - electric guitar, acoustic guitar, piano, organ
  • Gary Gilmore - electric bass
  • Chuck "Brother" Blackwell - drums

De Ole Folks at Home

  • Taj Mahal - vocals, harmonica, guitar, banjo
Technical
  • Brian Ross-Myring, Chris Hinshaw, Jerry Hochman - engineer
  • Virginia Team - cover design
  • Jesse Ed Davis - typography/hand lettering

References

  1. ^ "The 75 Albums Every Man Should Own". esquire.com. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  2. ^ Taj Mahal - Giant Step / De Ole Folks At Home (Vinyl, US, 1969) | Discogs
  3. ^ Planer, Lindsay. "Take a Giant Step - The Monkees - Song Info". AllMusic. Retrieved November 10, 2018.
  4. ^ Planer, Lindsay. Giant Step at AllMusic. Retrieved April 5, 2012.
  5. ^ Russell, Tony; Smith, Chris (2006). The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. Penguin. p. 623. ISBN 978-0-140-51384-4.
  6. ^ Ward, Ed (February 7, 1970). "Records". Rolling Stone (51). San Francisco: Straight Arrow Publishers, Inc.: 40.
  7. ^ "Taj Mahal Chart History - Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved October 16, 2025.
  8. ^ Horowitz, Hal (March 15, 2013). "Eric Clapton: Old Sock". American Songwriter. ForASong Media. Retrieved November 10, 2018.
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