Some Tunes . . . (no waiting) . . .

[christina]

So literally after decades of trying to find this song, I stumbled across it tonight by accident. Presenting..., way to ur heart

[christina]

RIP Sean

[Pixie]

Just heard about it. This is sad news. I grew up watching the real James Bond movies. Other actors could play James Bond, but none was ever James Bond. Whenever I read one of Ian Fleming's books, Sean was the only Bond I pictured. Pixie

[christina]

Oct 31, 2020 8:43:49 GMT -5 Pixie said:

Just heard about it. This is sad news. I grew up watching the real James Bond movies. Other actors could play James Bond, but none was ever James Bond. Whenever I read one of Ian Fleming's books, Sean was the only Bond I pictured. Pixie

Yes my mom had me watch Dr. No when I was only 6. Well maybe 8. A rerun! She taught me to love James Bond movies and Sean Connery

[anderson]

Other thread quote that we may not get back to normal, reminds me of songs from the 70s.  We may, or may not, pass this way again: 

[anderson]

[Pixie]

Little Walter and Juke. Listen to it and hear what the amplified harp is all about. If you don't like it, you don't got no soul!



For you non musicians who have trouble hearing the turnarounds, they are obvious in this song. Of course they are obvious in most blues, but often non musicians don't hear them. This may be your Aha! moment.

[2rvrrun]

Pixie, this is great. I must confess I am not a musician, but if this does not make you shake it you must be dead. Thanks for bringing the music to us.

[Pixie]

Nov 8, 2020 22:33:28 GMT -5 2rvrrun said:

Pixie, this is great. I must confess I am not a musician, but if this does not make you shake it you must be dead. Thanks for bringing the music to us.

Glad you enjoyed it, but could you hear the turnarounds? That's what's important. Non musicians probably won't hear the chord progressions, but you should at least hear the turnarounds (end of the third verse, [V chord] going back to the first verse which is the I chord. It's not difficult, just listen for it. Pixie

[2rvrrun]

Uh, is that the repetition at the beginning. Not a musician, but glad you are. Something tells me you sound very good because you really work at it. I had to listen to it on You-tube to figure out one of the turnarounds. Duh. I did learn that Little Walter was the first artist inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for harmonica playing. I did not know he was born in LA. I knew he played in Chicago and was with Muddy Waters, but turnarounds and chords--it is not within my skills. Thanks for sharing. I love this part of the blog. The variety of music put here is so wonderful, and helps one to escape a bit.

[Pixie]

Nov 9, 2020 22:42:10 GMT -5 2rvrrun said:

Uh, is that the repetition at the beginning. Not a musician, but glad you are. Something tells me you sound very good because you really work at it. I had to listen to it on You-tube to figure out one of the turnarounds. Duh. I did learn that Little Walter was the first artist inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for harmonica playing. I did not know he was born in LA. I knew he played in Chicago and was with Muddy Waters, but turnarounds and chords--it is not within my skills. Thanks for sharing. I love this part of the blog. The variety of music put here is so wonderful, and helps one to escape a bit.

So glad you looked him up and read about him. He was a genius but a really troubled soul. Drinking and brawls took their toll on him. He died in 1968, age 38, from injuries suffered in a fight earlier in the day.

Muddy Waters told me years ago, "I have heard harp players from all over the world; I have heard good ones and I have heard not so good ones, but Walter was the best I ever heard." Don't get an endorsement much better than that. I can't argue with Muddy, but I would invite the reader to listen to Walter Horton's (Big Walter) solo on Jimmy Rodger's Walking By Myself. He takes two twelves on it, and is probably the best harp solo ever recorded. Ironically Big Walter wasn't booked for that session with Chess records, but was called in when the booked harp player was laid up drunk and didn't make the session. Can't remember his name, but really doesn't make any difference as Big Walter made the gig.

The turnarounds occur once every 12 bars. It gets everybody back to the "top," or to the I chord. A 12 bar blues structure looks like this:

I I I I (I chord)

IV IV I I (IV chord)

V IV I I-V (V chord, or turnaround)

In the blues, the turnaround is most distinctive. Even non musicians ought to be able to hear it. Some musicians occasionally do turnarounds differently at the end (I-V), but this is the way I hear most of them and think this is the classic way to go back to the I. At the end of the song (the last verse) the I will be substituted for the last V at the end. I wanted to put that in there so when you heard the I and not the V, you wouldn't think I got it wrong.

There, now that I have explained it in excruciating detail, I sure you will be able to hear it.

If not, then maybe anderson can jump in and explain it better.

[2rvrrun]

Nov 10, 2020 8:35:04 GMT -5 Pixie said:

Nov 9, 2020 22:42:10 GMT -5 2rvrrun said:

Uh, is that the repetition at the beginning. Not a musician, but glad you are. Something tells me you sound very good because you really work at it. I had to listen to it on You-tube to figure out one of the turnarounds. Duh. I did learn that Little Walter was the first artist inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for harmonica playing. I did not know he was born in LA. I knew he played in Chicago and was with Muddy Waters, but turnarounds and chords--it is not within my skills. Thanks for sharing. I love this part of the blog. The variety of music put here is so wonderful, and helps one to escape a bit.

So glad you looked him up and read about him. He was a genius but a really troubled soul. Drinking and brawls took their toll on him. He died in 1968, age 38, from injuries suffered in a fight earlier in the day.

Muddy Waters told me years ago, "I have heard harp players from all over the world; I have heard good ones and I have heard not so good ones, but Walter was the best I ever heard." Don't get an endorsement much better than that. I can't argue with Muddy, but I would invite the reader to listen to Walter Horton's (Big Walter) solo on Jimmy Rodger's Walking By Myself. He takes two twelves on it, and is probably the best harp solo ever recorded. Ironically Big Walter wasn't booked for that session with Chess records, but was called in when the booked harp player was laid up drunk and didn't make the session. Can't remember his name, but really doesn't make any difference as Big Walter made the gig.

The turnarounds occur once every 12 bars. It gets everybody back to the "top," or to the I chord. A 12 bar blues structure looks like this:

I I I I (I chord)

IV IV I I (IV chord)

V IV I I-V (V chord, or turnaround)

In the blues, the turnaround is most distinctive. Even non musicians ought to be able to hear it. Some musicians occasionally do turnarounds differently at the end (I-V), but this is the way I hear most of them and think this is the classic way to go back to the I. At the end of the song (the last verse) the I will be substituted for the last V at the end. I wanted to put that in there so when you heard the I and not the V, you wouldn't think I got it wrong.

There, now that I have explained it in excruciating detail, I sure you will be able to hear it.

If not, then maybe anderson can jump in and explain it better.

Wait, Muddy Waters told you...


Pixie, you are are so much more than a cat herder. I will listen again and try to pick it out.

[Pixie]

Nov 11, 2020 0:17:26 GMT -5 2rvrrun said:

Nov 10, 2020 8:35:04 GMT -5 Pixie said:

So glad you looked him up and read about him. He was a genius but a really troubled soul. Drinking and brawls took their toll on him. He died in 1968, age 38, from injuries suffered in a fight earlier in the day.

Muddy Waters told me years ago, "I have heard harp players from all over the world; I have heard good ones and I have heard not so good ones, but Walter was the best I ever heard." Don't get an endorsement much better than that. I can't argue with Muddy, but I would invite the reader to listen to Walter Horton's (Big Walter) solo on Jimmy Rodger's Walking By Myself. He takes two twelves on it, and is probably the best harp solo ever recorded. Ironically Big Walter wasn't booked for that session with Chess records, but was called in when the booked harp player was laid up drunk and didn't make the session. Can't remember his name, but really doesn't make any difference as Big Walter made the gig.

The turnarounds occur once every 12 bars. It gets everybody back to the "top," or to the I chord. A 12 bar blues structure looks like this:

I I I I (I chord)

IV IV I I (IV chord)

V IV I I-V (V chord, or turnaround)

In the blues, the turnaround is most distinctive. Even non musicians ought to be able to hear it. Some musicians occasionally do turnarounds differently at the end (I-V), but this is the way I hear most of them and think this is the classic way to go back to the I. At the end of the song (the last verse) the I will be substituted for the last V at the end. I wanted to put that in there so when you heard the I and not the V, you wouldn't think I got it wrong.

There, now that I have explained it in excruciating detail, I sure you will be able to hear it.

If not, then maybe anderson can jump in and explain it better.

Wait, Muddy Waters told you...


Pixie, you are are so much more than a cat herder. I will listen again and try to pick it out.

Yes, I knew Muddy. We weren't friends, mainly because of the age difference, and . . . well, he was Muddy Waters. But he knew my name, and we would talk whenever he was in town, or I went to an out of town concert to see him. I was friends with his band members as they were younger, and we had more in common; plus, they weren't . . . well, Muddy Waters.

My best friend in the band was Luther Johnson (Guitar Jr.), who was a big guy. My running partner and I always felt safe when we were with him. I was also friendly with George "Mojo" Buford, Muddy's harp player at the time. In listening to the Blues channel, I have only heard George on two or three songs.¹ That tells me he only recorded one album with Muddy. Back in the late 70s/early 80s, being a friend and a fan of Mojo, I asked Muddy why he didn't use him on his albums. His answer was a bit vague. I later learned he wanted the best available harp player for his records. He almost always used his touring band, but if a better harp player were available for the sessions (such as Little Walter or James Cotton) Muddy would use them.

A little history on Muddy's harp players (if I can get it right). When James Cotton left in the late 60s, Muddy called Rod Piazza, a California master of the blues harp. Unfortunately, Rod was in the hospital with colon cancer. Rod told me that was the greatest disappointment of his life. By the time Rod got healed, Muddy had hired Paul Oscher, a top notch harp player from NYC. Paul stayed with him until '73 or '74 when he left for a solo career. George "Mojo" Buford then joined the band. That's when I got to be friends with the great Muddy Waters' Blues Band. What an exciting time that was.

During the late 40s/early 50s, Muddy's first harp player was Little Walter, followed by Jr. Wells, Henry Gray and James Cotton. There may have been a few others in there whose names escape me. Even after Little Walter left the band, Muddy used Walter on his records when he was available. James Cotton was also on several of them.

I could never find any evidence of Henry Gray on Muddy's records and didn't find out until recently why that was. I really wanted to hear what he sounded like, but alas, that will never be. Henry was only with Muddy for a short time, and never toured or recorded with him. His time with the Muddy Waters Blues Band was cut short by a jealous girlfriend who took a butcher knife to him. Muddy and a few other band members rushed him to the hospital, but the butcher knife had done too much damage. I think he died in the car on the way to the hospital.

Mojo stayed with Muddy until the mid to late 70s when he was replaced by Jerry Portnoy, briefly known as J. P. Gordon when he first joined the band. Jerry was an excellent harp player, but without the flash of Rod Piazza or Paul Oscher. He later developed the flash, however. Jerry told me he loved being in the Muddy Waters' Blues Band, and he would be the last harp player Muddy ever had. And he almost was, but for a falling out the band had with Muddy. The whole band quit, but that is a telling for another time. When I asked about Mojo, I got vague answers.²

And no, I never met Muddy's last harp player, and really don't recognize him as such. Don't even know his name.

I'm not telling any tales out of school here, but Muddy wanted a harp player who could not only back him and play the fills, but also be capable of playing stunning solos. Mojo did an excellent job of playing the fills in his understated style, which I loved, but his solos didn't meet with Muddy's expectation, which is my analysis only. No one told me that, and they wouldn't. See FN ² 

By the mid to late 60s, Muddy was playing for mostly white audiences. He thought it best to integrate the band so his audiences would more readily relate to his music. I didn't necessarily agree with that thinking as I related to the band just fine when they weren't integrated. In fact, my best friends in the band, Guitar Jr. and Mojo were Black. But Muddy being Muddy did things the way he thought best. He added Bob Margolin (rhymes with rollin') in about '77, who was an excellent lead and rhythm guitarist. He fully understood Muddy's music and was able to give Guitar Jr. a break on some lead duties.

And Muddy had white harp players, starting with Paul Oscher in the late 60s. Mojo was the only Black harp player during that time period. I knew Jerry Portnoy, but we were never friends. We were friendly, but never close. I also knew and liked Bob Margolin, who was very personable, but we never got to be friends.

There may be errors in this history, as I am doing it strictly by memory. Also I wasn't around during the 50s/early 60s, but I think it is mostly accurate.

As this is November 11, I have some extra time to think back to those days long ago. Happy Veterans Day.  Pixie 
____
    ¹ I can recognize harp players and guitar players by their playing style. Recognizing Mojo's style is easy for me.
    ² The band was tight knit, and kept internal matters to themselves. I thought it best to leave it alone. Unfortunately, I never saw Mojo again after he left the band.

[2rvrrun]

Pixie, I am absolutley floored. Herding cats is way beneath you.

Buddy Guy wrote about Muddy's influence on him when he started out in Chicago. Of course, he mentioned Little Walter. I never heard of Mojo. I will look him up on YouTube. I am surprised at the music and old clips one can find on it.

Thanks again for sharing.

[Pixie]

Looked up Mojo and found that he died in 2011. I didn't even know it. Sad to hear it; he was a good guy.

I also found a YouTube video with Big Walter Horton's solo on Walking By Myself. Probably been 20 years since I listened to it. While it is great, there have been many other talented harp players since then that somewhat diminish the impact the solo has on me.

Notice the band starts off on the turnaround. That is a frequent method for giving a song an intro. The solo comes in on the fourth verse, and Walter takes two twelves. If you listen closely, he came in on the third verse and wanted to start the solo then. He only hit one note before he caught himself and went back to comping (accompanying). These mistakes are common on the Chess releases and other blues records. Unless one is a musician, they are seldom, if ever, noticed.

The video following the one I posted is from Jimmy Fallon's Late Show where Jimmy Rodgers' band does the song. The harp player on this video is very talented. I don't know him but think he was Jimmie's harp player back then. He does a very good job of recreating the solo note for note, but he leaves out the mistake at the beginning of the third verse. I initially thought the harp player might be Rod Piazza because of the sunglasses, but when the third verse came around, and the mistake was eliminated, I knew it wasn't Rod. He is such a perfectionist and recreationist, he would have played the mistake, just the way it was originally played on the record.

The harp player on the video has excellent tone, due in part to the equipment he is using. He is playing through a Fender Bassman amp, pre 1964,* with Jensen 4X10s and two 6L6 tubes, which give it that incredible sound.

________
* I believe, but not positive, that 1963 was the last year for the tweed Bassman.

[acttwo]

Nov 13, 2020 1:42:57 GMT -5 2rvrrun said:

Pixie, I am absolutley floored. Herding cats is way beneath you.

Buddy Guy wrote about Muddy's influence on him when he started out in Chicago. Of course, he mentioned Little Walter. I never heard of Mojo. I will look him up on YouTube. I am surprised at the music and old clips one can find on it.

Thanks again for sharing.

Yes, Pixie, dealing with us crazy cats truly is beneath you! But very glad you do!

[2rvrrun]

Mojo is great on the YouTube of him and Muddy in 1981, Chicago. That 1973 video of them was an amazing job by Mojo on Got My Mojo Working. I saw Muddy in concert in the early 70s, at least before 1976.

I see Mojo has several albums. I will see what is available. I do not have a turntable. We like many other sold it years ago and all the albums. Do you have a turntable? Any thoughts on buying one as a start over.

I am reading Danny Barker'S book, A LIfe In Jazz. He highly recommended Little Brother Montgomery's Vicksburg Blues. Little Brother gave Danny his first experience playing outside New Orleans. In 1925 they traveled through several Mississippi towns playing jukes (dances). Danny was underage about 12, but ha had been playing banjo on the streets and in a few bars for several years. His grandfather was Isadore Barbarin, an important figure in New Orleans music.

[fowlfinder]

I was just listening to this tune a week ago. Then yesterday my wife told me Dawn Wells had passed. Had to give it another listen.

Here's to you Dawn.



I always loved that she like the song enough to be in the video.

[Pixie]

Nov 13, 2020 22:36:01 GMT -5 2rvrrun said:

Mojo is great on the YouTube of him and Muddy in 1981, Chicago. That 1973 video of them was an amazing job by Mojo on Got My Mojo Working. I saw Muddy in concert in the early 70s, at least before 1976.

I see Mojo has several albums. I will see what is available. I do not have a turntable. We like many other sold it years ago and all the albums. Do you have a turntable? Any thoughts on buying one as a start over.

I am reading Danny Barker'S book, A LIfe In Jazz. He highly recommended Little Brother Montgomery's Vicksburg Blues. Little Brother gave Danny his first experience playing outside New Orleans. In 1925 they traveled through several Mississippi towns playing jukes (dances). Danny was underage about 12, but ha had been playing banjo on the streets and in a few bars for several years. His grandfather was Isadore Barbarin, an important figure in New Orleans music.

Yes, I have two turntables, but don't know where one of them is. So, I guess that means I only have one turntable. Have no idea what to get as a replacement. I would think that one of the good brands back 30 years ago would be the way to go, if they are still in business. A top brand today is Audio-Technica (SP?), but they are pricey.

I just did a search for turntables to see what is out there. The old brands seem to have disappeared, but the link below will give you some ideas for less expensive turntables, as well as more expensive than the Audio-Technica, which I believe is around $500. Pixie

www.google.com/search?safe=active&q=best%20audiophile%20turntable&ved=2ahUKEwjinaP77fjtAhWFzVkKHZveDEYQmoICKAB6BAgEEBE&biw=1252&bih=649

[carrickfergus]

Turntables used to all be belt driven, so wear and tear would throw off the rpms. I have a turntable from the early 80s that has a strobe so you can adjust the timing to get it exactly to 45 or 33. Wonder if that's still a thing?

Speaking of harp players, I recall a scene from the last waltz where robbie was talking about a show he was at where junior wells (I think) was blowing so hard he needed a bucket next to him so he could have a receptacle to spit blood in.