thestraightman
Hand to mouth to Jaksie
heh heh. just missed the devils post count.
Who was the best old school bluesman?
- Thread starter thestraightman
- Start date
remember there's 2 Sonny Boy Williamsons tho when looking for his stuff.. I forget how you tell them apart, one's early and ones later though.ICB said:Word.
A particular favourite of mine is Sonny Boy Williamson and Big Joe Williams compilation "Blues from the Fields to the Town"
Great tribute by John Mayall as well "I heard Sonny Boy Blow"
(now he's a mean old man, but I love him so)
thestraightman
Hand to mouth to Jaksie
download Killing floor by Howling wolf
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changingman
Cyber curmudgeon
Sonny Boys 1 + 2
Gorblimey, we gotta sort this out..
The original Sonny Boy Williamson (SBW1) was a Chicago bluesman in the 40s or thereabouts.. he was John Lee Williamson. He played a very countryfied style harp but in a city context (i.e. in bands), and was a major influence on Little Walter, who took John Lee's style and more or less invented electric harp (i.e. thru a handheld cupped mic and amp).
Then Alec Rice Miller showed up in.. er.. Arkansas I think, in the 50s. He nicked the name and became Sonny Boy Williamson 2. Oddly, he was much older than SBW1. They were not related.
But SBW1 was murdered so SBW2 outlived him. SBW2 is by far the better known - the one who wore a bowler hat, had hardly any teeth, carried an umbrella and a briefcase full of harps and a bottle of whisky, toured here with the Yardbirds and Animals and appeared on British telly (I have a VHS copy of a wonderful B&W Granada show from the 60s my wife purloined for me, with SBW2 - doing his trick of playing the harp stuck endways in his mouth - plus Memphis Slim, Muddy, Matt Guitar Murphy, Willie Dixon et al...).
Mayall's "Sonny Boy Blow" would've been about SBW2 (I'm pretty certain). Mayall would never have had the opportunity to see SBW1 live...
Great SBW2 quote. When he was playing over here with Eric et al (both Erics!) he famously said: "Those white English boys wanna play the blues so bad. And man, do they play the blues so bad.."
Gorblimey, we gotta sort this out..
The original Sonny Boy Williamson (SBW1) was a Chicago bluesman in the 40s or thereabouts.. he was John Lee Williamson. He played a very countryfied style harp but in a city context (i.e. in bands), and was a major influence on Little Walter, who took John Lee's style and more or less invented electric harp (i.e. thru a handheld cupped mic and amp).
Then Alec Rice Miller showed up in.. er.. Arkansas I think, in the 50s. He nicked the name and became Sonny Boy Williamson 2. Oddly, he was much older than SBW1. They were not related.
But SBW1 was murdered so SBW2 outlived him. SBW2 is by far the better known - the one who wore a bowler hat, had hardly any teeth, carried an umbrella and a briefcase full of harps and a bottle of whisky, toured here with the Yardbirds and Animals and appeared on British telly (I have a VHS copy of a wonderful B&W Granada show from the 60s my wife purloined for me, with SBW2 - doing his trick of playing the harp stuck endways in his mouth - plus Memphis Slim, Muddy, Matt Guitar Murphy, Willie Dixon et al...).
Mayall's "Sonny Boy Blow" would've been about SBW2 (I'm pretty certain). Mayall would never have had the opportunity to see SBW1 live...
Great SBW2 quote. When he was playing over here with Eric et al (both Erics!) he famously said: "Those white English boys wanna play the blues so bad. And man, do they play the blues so bad.."
Mrs Magpie
On a bit of break...
Although Memphis Minnie is my favourite and there's a lot of blues artists in the poll that I love to listen to, I'll point those who haven't yet heard him towards Thomas Shaw...
http://www.wirz.de/music/shawfrm.htm
http://www.wirz.de/music/shawfrm.htm
where's Son House, you monkey
Just for the record I was talking about SBW1 and the compilation was of recordings made in the 30s
http://www.island.net/~blues/johnlee.html
http://www.island.net/~blues/johnlee.html
ICB said:Just for the record I was talking about SBW1 and the compilation was of recordings made in the 30s
http://www.island.net/~blues/johnlee.html
^^ a fab read & lots of things for me to go and look for later
The list of titles there has loads more than I ever knew existed
Only really Robert Johnson, Broonzy and Leadbelly are oldschool on that list, others are post war mainly (based on recorded output).IMO
You're takilng about Robert Johnson, Patton, Son House, Tommy Johnson, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Skip James, Furry Lewis, Blind Joe Reynolds, Blind Willie Johnson, Bukka White, Leroy Carr, Mississippi John Hurt, Ishmon Bracey, Blind Blake and Blind Willie McTell as your main oldschool bluesmen.
Loads more TBH.
Any of the first four will do for me.
You're takilng about Robert Johnson, Patton, Son House, Tommy Johnson, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Skip James, Furry Lewis, Blind Joe Reynolds, Blind Willie Johnson, Bukka White, Leroy Carr, Mississippi John Hurt, Ishmon Bracey, Blind Blake and Blind Willie McTell as your main oldschool bluesmen.
Loads more TBH.
Any of the first four will do for me.
changingman
Cyber curmudgeon
Urban blooze night out??
This just in..
Top London bloozegroove band Juke and the Hazzards have just had their next gig rescheduled (i'd have asked u all down to last Tuesday's but this post didnt appear till Wednesday!)
Juke and the Hazzards @
The Tuesday Club
Chez Stelios
10 Paddington St
Marylebone
8:30-11:00 pm
this is off the Marylebone one-way system. nearest tube Baker St.
we're in the cellar bar which is where the ultragroovy Kashmir Klub used to be. It's a lovely 60s hippy bohemian space, all arches and eastern furnishings. Might be the last chance to see it too as the pub management are closing up (a week before Xmas!!) to refurbish, i.e. ruin it. Which is why our gig's been moved forward a week.
Top harmonica-driven (by yours truly) r'n'b. and that's proper r'n'b, not a load of fat-legged shop girls warbling away in imitation of Mariah Carey.
All we gotta do is find a dep guitarist as our regular's at the Jazz Cafe that night. ...
(edit.. it's Tues Dec 13 by the way.)
This just in..
Top London bloozegroove band Juke and the Hazzards have just had their next gig rescheduled (i'd have asked u all down to last Tuesday's but this post didnt appear till Wednesday!)
Juke and the Hazzards @
The Tuesday Club
Chez Stelios
10 Paddington St
Marylebone
8:30-11:00 pm
this is off the Marylebone one-way system. nearest tube Baker St.
we're in the cellar bar which is where the ultragroovy Kashmir Klub used to be. It's a lovely 60s hippy bohemian space, all arches and eastern furnishings. Might be the last chance to see it too as the pub management are closing up (a week before Xmas!!) to refurbish, i.e. ruin it. Which is why our gig's been moved forward a week.
Top harmonica-driven (by yours truly) r'n'b. and that's proper r'n'b, not a load of fat-legged shop girls warbling away in imitation of Mariah Carey.
All we gotta do is find a dep guitarist as our regular's at the Jazz Cafe that night. ...
(edit.. it's Tues Dec 13 by the way.)
changingman
Cyber curmudgeon
hahaha
forgot the date!!
Tues 13 Dec
forgot the date!!
Tues 13 Dec
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