Dewey & Gassie Bassett

Dewey Bassett and his wife Gassie made a series of old-time or mountain music recordings for Bluebird from 1939-1940, during a time when record companies had largely stopped taping this genre. Like many artists of the time, Bassett extensively re-wrote or arranged many of the traditional pieces, part of the ongoing trend toward utilizing songwriting rather than purely traditional material in country music. The recording opportunity came through via Bassett's sister Georgia Dell (real name: Adelle Bassett) who was a member of the old-time group the McClendon Brothers and Georgia Dell. A total of 11 records were issued by this musical married couple featuring Bassett's guitar picking as well as some lead guitar from younger brother Jesse Bassett. The guitar gremlins must have been at work, because apparently the younger brother's playing was seriously hampered by a broken arm that had never been set correctly, hampering the effectiveness of his picking to a great extent. Jesse is also blamed for advising his older brother to play in a different style than he was used to, again detracting from the picking quality. Dewey and Gassie Bassett both hailed from Randolph County, an area between western Georgia and central eastern Alabama. They married in 1924 and began singing together pretty soon after that. Bassett was heard on radio stations in both Alabama and Georgia, performing with the McLendon group as well as the Sunset Entertainers, the legendary Gid Tanner's Skillet Lickers, and Charlie Mitchell. The Bluebird sessions were the last recordings made by the Bassetts, who eventually switched to an all-gospel program, performing at many gospel events and meetings during their last years. ~ Eugene Chadbourne