Taj Mahal is a national treasure. Two albums of his that I recommend are “Giant Steps”/”The Old Folks at Home” and “Ohhh So Good ‘n Blues.”
The first is a double record set, with acoustic and electric records. It is perhaps his best known album. The later is lesser known but every song is terrific. The man has recorded a tremendous amount of music.
Another version of “Little Red Hen” was on a live record entitled “In Progress & In Motion,” a compilation Mahal’s music from 1965 to 1998. It’s a great version. I couldn’t find the identities of the background singers on the original. On the live version above The Pointer Sisters help Mahal. My guess is that they are on the original as well, but I’m not sure.
The Daily Music Break covered Mahal — whose given name is Henry Saint Clair Fredericks — here. We put together a playlist that got partially deleted. I’ll fix it and post it soon.
Not everything Mahal has recorded is available at Amazon and iTunes. Here is product information for those interested: “Ohhh So Good ‘n Blues” is available at Amazon. “Giant Steps”/”The Old Folks at Home” is on Amazon. Finally, Mahal’s debut album — which includes a great version of “Statesboro Blues” — is available at iTunes.