Anyone Like The Blues?

[KingLouieLouie]

Anyone here like the Blues? It's among my favorite genres.....

I enjoy anything from Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, Robert Cray,
SRV, to even today's artists like Kenny Wayne Sheppard, Jonny Lang, etc....

One of the main reasons why I ask is that I'm wondering if anyone would want to check-out some of the best Blues talents at the Rhythm Room on 10th St. and E. Indian School in Phoenix....

Here's the website....

http://www.rhythmroom.com

 

[SECTION 11]

I love Blues. The Rythm Room is a fun place, so is Char's.

I like compilations because there's so much out there that you normally wouldn't hear.

91.5 on Sunday nights is where it's at!

 

[AZCB34]

I have gotten into the blues alot more recently. I always loved SRV and Buddy Guy...Robert Cray. Lately though, I have been out prowling for other artists in the genre.

I have been turning towards Blues and Jazz alot more in recent months. Very drawn to it.

I remember when I first moved out here in 93 I used to go see Carvin Jones Band at Ozzies Warehouse right there on University (I think it is a coffee shop now). That dude rocked. I assume he is still playing. I always thought he would really blow up nationally with the blues but I never heard much about that.

 

[Brian in Mesa]

I love the blues.

Used to be a regular at the Rhythm Room, whenever the Hoodoo Kings played there. Saw them at Char's, Ole Brass Rail, Blue Note, etc. Got to know the entire band and had a blast talking with them all...RIP Dave Trippy.

Hoodoo Kings, James Harman, Forbidden Pigs, Paladins, Juke Logan, etc.

 

[KingLouieLouie]

Lord... I'm listening to T-Bone Walker for the first time in awhile and he was beyond impressive....Just a true legend/pioneer

Anyways.. another reason for bumping this old thread up is because I would still love to finally get the "ASFN Music Club" to become a reality (but I know all our schedules have conflicted for this past month or so) and am still up for the idea presented in this thread from nearly a year-ago (about possibly meeting-up at The Rhythm Room)......

I just love the Blues...always have and never will become "sick of it" whatsoever...

 

[jstadvl]

I've got

an old vinyl 1930 ish era recording, 2 track of Robert Johnson stashed in my garage. Funny listening to the stuff others have copied tehn listening to the originals.

 

[justAndy]

...

I like the dirty, lowdown, lo-fi style.
The slick stuff that i've seen at Chars leaves me cold.

 

[therealnod]

an old vinyl 1930 ish era recording, 2 track of Robert Johnson stashed in my garage. Funny listening to the stuff others have copied tehn listening to the originals.

Holy Moses!! Which song(s) are they.

I'm not that keen on urban blues, prefering the raw country blues of Robert Johnson and Skip James. But when it comes to Chicago blues, there's Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, and then...a cliff. That Willie Dixon was a great songwriter. I prefer Wolf (that voice is just incredible), but Muddy ain't that far behind. Modern guys/groups don't excite me at all, really, but SRV was just too incredible to resist.

Man, I love blues.

 

[jstadvl]

I'll go

pull it out for you. Don't touch my records much anymore. Hang on.

 

[jstadvl]

Ok

side one:
Crossroads Blues
Terraplane Blues
Come On In My Kitchen
Walking Blues
Last Fair Deal Gone Down
32-20 Blues
Kindhearted Woman Blues
If I had Possession over Judgement Day
SIDE TWO:
Preaching Blues
When You Got A Good Friend
Rambling On My Mind
Stones In My Passway
Travelling Riverside Blues
Milkcow's Calf Blues
Me and The Devil Blues (a personal favorite, LOL)
Hellhound On My Trail

Sorry, I lied they were recorded in 1936 &'37

 

[therealnod]

So that's the Columbia LP King of the Delta Blues Singers that came out in either the 70s or 80s or something like that. Or was it the 90s? I can't remember off the top of my head when the first pressing was released but I'm having a strong feeling it was the 70s. Anyway, those are great recordings. I have the Charly two disc CD set that has the released takes and all the safety takes that are available. I can see form a cursory glance that that LP is missing "From Four 'Till Late," which is awesome, but there's no safety take for that one. I also don't see "Dead Shrimp Blues" which is just fine because that's not a great tune. Don't see "They're Red Hot" and that song is worth having. No "Love in Vain." Sorry, I'm not picking on you here, it's just been awhile since I saw that track listing. If you don't have the complete recordings already you should go get them if you care at all. My thoughts on the complete recordings:
"Preachin' Blues" is excellent; "Crossroad Blues" features the best guitar work among the recordings; "Come on in My Kitchen" features the best slide work among the recordings; "Hellhound on My Trail" is the best song of all time, okay, maybe not, but once I finally figured out the lyrics I was sold. Johnson was really quite an artist. Dig these:

From "Preachin' Blues" (a Son House cover, but I haven't heard a Son House version that includes this lyric, so I assume Johnson wrote it)

"The blues is an achin' old heart disease
Like consumption, killing me by degrees."

From "Hellhound on My Trail"
"You sprinkled hot foot powder all around my door
It keeps me with a ramblin' mind, rider
Every old place I go."

Skip James is the only blues artist that I think can come close to Robert Johnson. Willie Dixon, maybe

Sorry, I could do this all day.

 

[jstadvl]

Your right

about some tracks not being there. It was his style i was trying to pick up. Gotta try to have Love in Vain. It's a damn shame he died so young. I'm just not able to put the cash into alot of copies of the old LP's. and my wife would never understand me buying Johnson. I picked it up when they were still pressing vinyl so I think it's 80's, maybe a tad sooner. I'm getting old so all the decades seem to blur together. lol
I'll look into the set. Thanks for the tip.
Don't be sorry man, keep on, it's fun. You'll have me out at the cd store in a minute .

 

[therealnod]

I'm pretty well-read when it comes to Robert Johnson. I did a fifteen minute presentation on him for my Rock Music and Culture class (I know, but I needed to fill the back end of my schedule and I couldn't resist an A that easy). I did it without notes. I'd made some notes, but I never laid eyes on them even though they were right in front of me. That caused me to go off on a few tangents and forget to mention a few things, but no one seemed all that interested anyway. I have the complete recordings in front of me now.


You're missing, besides the tracks I already mentioned:

"I Believe I'll Dust My Broom"
--From the 11-23-36 San Antonio session, noted for providing the blueprint to Elmore James' career, the Dust My Broom lick shows up in well more than half of James' recordings.

"Sweet Home Chicago"
--From the 11-23-36 SA session, commonly played at the end of All Star blues concerts where everyone takes a turn.

"Phonograph Blues"
--Also from 11-23-36 SA session, has a safety take, though this isn't a tune that makes the complete recordings an important pickup.

"Walking Blues"
--From the 11-27-36 SA session, this is a tune that makes the complete recordings worth it. Very common delta piece that's the parent piece of many other delta songs. Has been recorded by everyone from Son House to Muddy Waters.

"I'm A Steady Rollin' Man"
--From the 6-19-37 Dallas session, a nice tune to have.

"Little Queen of Spades"
--From the 6-29-37 Dallas session, two takes, neither of which is all that spectacular.

"Malted Milk"
--From the 6-29-37 Dallas session, in the "Little Queen" strata of Johnson Tunes, no safety take.

"Drunken Hearted Man"
--From the 6-29-37 Dallas session, two takes, essentially a superior version of "Malted Milk" with different lyrics.

"Stop Breakin' Down"
--From the 6-29-37 Dallas session, two takes, covered by the Stones, good piece.

"Honeymoon Blues"
--From the 6-29-37 Dallas session, meh.

Out of those, "Dust My Broom," "Walking Blues," and "Steady Rollin' Man" are a must haves if you're a fan. And really, this music is essential for an understanding of American roots music. Sell the wife with that, and maybe she'll understand bringing home Leadbelly or Skip James, who I highly recommend. James' "Devil Got My Woman" is believed to be the parent piece of "Hellhound on My Trail," and he recorded a version of "22-20 Blues." I have the Yazoo cd The Complete Early Recordings of Skip James--1930. and it's quite excellent. Cream did a cover of "I'm So Glad," which is on this cd. I got the Robert Johnson complete recordings for under $15 at Zia and the James' recordings from Best Buy for around $9. The last time I was at Best Buy they had a James cd, but not this one. You could easily find them on the web, I expect.

 

[jstadvl]

Thanks

amigo. I'll look into them. I've got some old leadbelly in my stack also.
Funny though, you know some of the great copies and know what you've got, but don't pull them out. Well, in my case because they're records. But still, it's good to be reminded of some stuff I really enjoy.

 

[jstadvl]

Ya know

one of the reasons alot of people reached back into delta, Chicago and other original blues styles was because of bands like the Stones, Animals.
Imean. look at how many people didn't realize alot of Humble Pie's (and so many others) bigggies were Ray Charles songs. Just funny how when you get lit up by one thing it brings you to something else.

 

[therealnod]

If you've ever listened to Skip James you'll immediately recognize the Skip James influence in Canned Heat. Not musically, so much, but just in the voice that singer uses. Very Skip James.


Believe me, I am on familiar ground here. People often don't recognize how insightful I am when it comes to music.

For the record (nice audiophile pun), I've got a pretty good collection of vinyl, just no blues. That genre is unfortunately the domain of digital masters at this point.

I don't need to pull anything out from anywhere to have this discussion; I know what I have, and I can find it any old place I go. My apartment is about 30x30; I'm access ready. There's no trouble being taken on my part. I can spout off at memory about this stuff; I'm a student of the blues.

Man have we hit a nerve. I'm so glad to have been here. I'd love to point you in some unlikely directions. I'm all cd's, unfortunately.

 

[phillycard]

I honestly just can't get into it. Good music, but it just holds no appeal to me.

 

[jstadvl]

It's hard

because it's very raw and real. No fluff, no technicians, no engineering on those early tracks. But, when you listen to them, then listen to the copies and feel their techniques as players, their pain as people, it's pretty amazing stuff. We wouldn't have alot of what we've got if it was'nt for them.

 

[therealnod]

Using "blues" to describe a genre of music is a little misleading. There are vast differences between the urban blues of Big Bill Broonzy, the Chicago blues of Muddy Waters, and the delta blues of Charley Patton/Son House/Willie Brown, and the differences don't end there.

When I first began listening to the blues I was vastly disappointed in all outside of Waters and Wolf. Then I bought a cd that changed the way I felt about blues. Blues Masters, The Essential Blues Collection Vol. 8: Mississippi Delta Blues To get an idea of how much this cd means to me, I have purchased it twice. I lost the first one I bought, so I went to a couple of stores trying to find it before finding a copy at Best Buy. Thankfully. Here is the track listing for this cd:

"Big Road Blues"--Tommy Johnson
"Cool Drink of Water Blues"--Tommy Johnson
"Rattlesnake Blues"--Charley Patton
"Future Blues"--Willie Brown
"On The Wall"--Louise Johnson
"Mississippi Jail House Groan"--Rube Lacy
"Preachin' The Blues Pts. I and II"--Son House
"Cross Road Blues"--Robert Johnson
"Catfish Blues"--Robert Petway
"I Feel Like Going Home"--Muddy Waters
"Dark Road"--Floyd Jones
""Eyesight to the Blind"--Sonny Boy Williamson
"Sitting On Top of The World"--Howlin' Wolf
"Goin' Down to Eli's"--Robert Nighthawk
"I Believe"--Elmore James
"Something Inside Me"--Elmore James
"Sweet Little Angel"--B.B. King
"Crosscut Saw"--Albert King

The first 7 tracks are pretty rare recordings. The Nighthawk cut features the best slidework I've ever heard. The Sonny Boy track is flat out great. "I Believe" is James' best "Dust My Broom" and the other James cut is one of the best vocal performances I've ever heard, and James could really sing. This is, simply put, an incredible cd. Delta blues is the best brand of blues, imo. The older the better.

 

[O]

WHat a great thread. I love the blues.
I'm surprised there has not been more talk about Buddy Guy. Influenced by the Delta Masters even plating in the bands of some then becoming a master himself of the Chicago style, truly a living legend.
An great and inspiring singer but beyond that he is one of the most amazing guitarists living today.
All of you guitar players out there who have never seen Buddy Guy live, I highly recommend you do while he is still on the planet, you will not be disappointed, in fact you will be inspired. His influence reaches far and deep even though some people may not even realize it.
Schedules permitting myself and a few friends are going to see him June 28th at Humphries by the Sea in San Diego, as of right now he is not scheduled to play PHX this summer. I so looking forward to that show.

 

[DS]

Anyone Like The Blues?

No, and I don't like the Red Wings either!

 

[Brian in Mesa]

Jonny Lang

Have all of his music. Just bought his latest cd Turn Around on Tuesday. Hoping to give it a listen on Saturday.

 

[KingLouieLouie]

Have all of his music. Just bought his latest cd Turn Around on Tuesday. Hoping to give it a listen on Saturday.

I'm just going thru some threads I missed during my lengthy hiatus on here, so there's a lot for me to catch-up on.....

I dont know, but Ive been somewhat disappointed w/Lang since "Lie To Me"..... I thought by now he would be setting the Blues movement ablaze and would have taken the torch from Stevie Ray Vaughan, but he hasnt done so yet.. Perhaps I expected too much from him since he was quite the prodigy when he recorded his debut album at 14...maybe was a bit premature to rate him among the ranks of such legends as Vaughan, Clapton, Robert Cray..etc..... Although.. I must admit that the general interest in the Blues has waned considerably over the years, so perhaps if Lang emerged onto the scene a cpl decades earlier than he did, then he would be more well-received... But.. he is still an excellent talent with a lot more to offer....

 

[O]

JL's recent release is very religious. He has found God in his travels. Very disappointing.

 

[jstadvl]

check out Bonamassa'a new one. Walter Trout also.