Aspiring Blues guitar players should check out this blog by Bluestab. The text is in French, but it's pretty easy to follow (for non French speakers/ readers I mean!). 27 pages of tabs to songs by a host of Blues legends. http://bluestab.skyrock.com/1.html
Another charity shop find. A freebie from the December 2002 issue of Uncut magazine, it is what it says on the cover. I don't think our old friend the Devil would expect much credit for the Aaron Neville track, mind.
Amos Milburn - Down The Road Apiece Jackie Brenston - Rocket 88 Robert Johnson - Preachin' Blues (Up Jumped The Devil) Muddy Waters - Rollin' Stone Jimmy Rogers - Goin' Away Baby Leadbelly - The Midnight Special Clarence 'Gatemouth' Brown - Okie Dokie Stomp Clifton Chenier - Ay-Te Te Fee Professor Longhair & His Shuffling Hungarians - Mardi Gras In New Orleans Little Richard - Good Golly Miss Molly Billie Holiday - He's Funny That Way John Lee Hooker - I'm In The Mood Bob Marley & The Wailers - Jah Is Mighty Hank Williams - You Win Again Ike & Tina Turner - I Can't Believe What You Say B.B. King - Everyday I Have The Blues T-Bone Walker - (They Call It) Stormy Monday Howlin' Wolf - Moanin' At Midnight Blind Willie McTell - Talkin' To Your Mama Clarence 'Bon Ton' Garlow - Bon Ton Roulet Aaron Neville - Tell It Like It Is Albert King - That's What The Blues Is All About Irma Thomas - Ruler Of My Heart Otis Redding - Pain In My Heart (alt. take) Booker T. & The MG's - Baby, Scratch My Back Al Green - Take Me To The River
all you need ... is five strings, two notes, two fingers and one asshole. - Keith Richards
May the 8th is possibly the centenary of the birth of Robert Johnson. He was an itinerant musician who died at the age of 27 and recorded less than 30 sides. His influence on Blues and consequently rock and roll is difficult to express without recourse to lazy superlatives. This, largely, was thanks to the release of King of the Delta Blues Singers in 1961. There is a theory that these recordings were 'speeded up' .
The evidence on which this is based and examples of slowed down versions can be found here. The Search for Robert Johnson (1991) is a good watch. It's on YouTube.
I am always pleased to be able to respond to requests, and this is for regular correspondent Mona.
I mentioned these two compilations in last week's posting on Kicking Against The Pricks. If you already downloaded that, don’t worry, there are only 2 repeats on here.
Volume One:
1. Tim Rose - Long Time Man
2. Gene Vincent & the Blue Caps - Cat Man
3. Leonard Cohen - Avalanche
4. Karen Dalton - Katie Cruel 5. The Sensational Alex Harvey Band - Hammer Song
6. Tom Jones - Weeping Annaleah
7. The Loved Ones - Sad Dark Eyes
8. Scott Walker - The Big Hurt
9. John Lee Hooker - Tupelo Blues
10. Lefty Frizzell - The Long Black Veil
11. Johnny Cash - The Folk Singer
12. Odetta - Another Man Done Gone
13. Blind Willie Johnson - I'm Gonna Run to the City of Refuge
14. Edwin Hawkins Singers - Oh Happy Day
15. Serge Gainsbourg & Jane Birkin - Je t'aime... moi non plus 16. Isaac Hayes - By the Time I Get to Phoenix
Volume Two:
1. Harry Belafonte - Did You Hear About Jerry?
2. Tom Waits - Way Down in the Hole
3. Fred Neil - A Little Bit of Rain
4. Gang of Four - Love Like Anthrax
5. Bob Dylan - Sara
6. Tim Rose - Hey Joe
7. The First Edition - Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was in)
8. Elvis Presley - In the Ghetto
9. Nina Simone - Plain Gold Ring
10. The Stooges - Loose
11. Leadbelly - Looky Looky Yonder/Black Betty/Yellow Women's Door Bells
12. Hoyt Axton - Double Dare
13. Lou Reed - Perfect Day
14. Alice Cooper - Street Fight
In 1986, for their, third studio album, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds, looking like the house band from a David Lynch dream sequence, released a selection of cover versions- Kicking Against The Pricks.
What we have here are earlier versions of the songs featured on that LP.
I’m not saying that these are the original or even definitive versions of the songs- just earlier versions.
Not to be confused with Original Seeds (vol 1&2) or The Roots of Nick Cave- I ploughed/ plowed through /thru my collection to put this one together, so the br is extremely v. I was going to post The Bad Seeds versions as well, but the album was re issued back in April.
Let’s see: Muddy Waters- Johnny Cash I’m Gonna Kill That Woman- John Lee Hooker Sleeping Anneleah- Tom Jones The Long Black Veil- Johnny Cash Hey Joe- The Leaves The Folk Singer- Johnny Cash Black Betty- James Ironhead Baker Running Scared- Roy Orbison All Tomorrow’s Parties- The Velvet Underground and Nico By The Time I Get To Phoenix- Glenn Campbell The Hammer Song- Alex Harvey Something’s Gotten Hold Of My Heart- Gene Pitney Jesus Met The Woman At The Well- Mahalia Jackson The Carnival Is Over- The Seekers
Well, I succumbed. This LP cost £1.99 at the YMCA shop. It looks and sounds brand new. So, white men play the blues- a damned fine record too. The second LP by the Texan band who whilst not commercially successful won critical acclaim in the era when RnB still meant solid 12 bar boogie music with some raw harmonica thrown in.
Jimmie Vaughan*-guitar Kim Wilson-vocals, harmonica Keith Ferguson-bass Mike Buck/ Fran Christina -drums
* Apparently Jimmie had a brother called Stevie Ray who was quite handy on the blues guitar...
I beat scars into my arms waiting for an early death- JLP
Here’s a blues album. Ramblin' Jeffrey Lee, is of course,Jeffrey Lee Pierce (June 27 1958 - March 31 1996) frontman of one of the most exciting bands of the 1980's, The Gun Club, who churned out a haunting mix of blues and punk . If you like high octane music with a dark edge and you haven't heard their 1981 masterpiece Fire of Love, then get it today. If you can't find it anywhere let me know and i'll post it. Go Tell The Mountain, Pierce's slim volume of autobiography and lyrics, is much sought after, often changing hands for £100 or more, so if you see it in the local Oxfam it's a good investment. This 1992 LP features a couple of Pierce numbers and versions of songs by blues masters such as Howlin Wolf, Skip James and Son House. I don’t know much about guitarist Cypress Grove except that he took his name from a Skip James number.Of the others i know even less. Line up: Ramblin'Jeffrey Lee - guitars & vocals Cypress Grove - guitars Willie Love - drums Carl La Fong - acoustic bass, bass guitar Kimberley S. - bluesharp produced by Jeffrey Lee Pierce
