I don't want no man to put no sugar in my tea…
A big HELLO to old and new friends. ♥
Took off Friday to get four wisdom teeth out. We've left it about five years too late because of lack of insurance. Whew, baby. No one had much fun during that surgery. Let's just say that the staff went from "Oh, don't be so nervous, you'll be fine, some of our patients don't even use the laughing gas" to "Uh, now that we've jacked up the gas, leeeeeeeet's give you a scrip for painkillers before you leave" in a big hurry once the dentist got stuck on the first tooth. I've been on Vicodin for a lot of my long weekend -- wishing I had a cane and tennis ball to play with.
In the meantime, I gave myself permission to relax a bit lot as I recuperated. Back to work tomorrow, but thought I would share some blues before I do my weekly disappearing act.
Been getting through Bill Barlow's very thorough Looking Up at Down: The Emergence of Early Blues Culture with considerable help from Youtube, because what's the point of reading without listening?
Three videos of three very different rural blues for your listening pleasure below the cut. (Post-war urban cuts to follow sometime later.)
from Mississippi Delta: Charley Patton's "You Can Shake It"
Very early, as far as recording history -- very "unsophisticated" vocals (though I love them anyway) -- combined with some very clever guitar technique. You bear in mind that someone like Patton was not doing this professionally and you realize the depth of the music tradition being developed during off-hours.
from East Texas: Sam Lightning Hopkins's "My Starter Won't Start This Morning" (gee, wonder what HE's talking about)
Normally you always pick Muddy Waters to talk about early East Texas blues, but this is really outstanding audio quality for such an old recording:
from the Piedmont: Blind Willie McTell's "Searching the Desert Blues"
Comes to you without almost laughably old and awkward double entendres! McTell was a genius in both playing style and lyrics -- although he obviously uses a lot of stock lines, he also added some very original of his own.
It's a point of contention when everyone hears this recording whether the woman's vocal bits are ridiculous and commercial (they ARE a very commercial addition), or whether the woman's bits are an interesting counterpoint to the frustrated misogynism and therefore really make the song.
Leave a link to something you've been listening to lately, if you don't mind -- love to have some new tracks to listen to over morning coffee. :)
Took off Friday to get four wisdom teeth out. We've left it about five years too late because of lack of insurance. Whew, baby. No one had much fun during that surgery. Let's just say that the staff went from "Oh, don't be so nervous, you'll be fine, some of our patients don't even use the laughing gas" to "Uh, now that we've jacked up the gas, leeeeeeeet's give you a scrip for painkillers before you leave" in a big hurry once the dentist got stuck on the first tooth. I've been on Vicodin for a lot of my long weekend -- wishing I had a cane and tennis ball to play with.
In the meantime, I gave myself permission to relax a bit lot as I recuperated. Back to work tomorrow, but thought I would share some blues before I do my weekly disappearing act.
Been getting through Bill Barlow's very thorough Looking Up at Down: The Emergence of Early Blues Culture with considerable help from Youtube, because what's the point of reading without listening?
Three videos of three very different rural blues for your listening pleasure below the cut. (Post-war urban cuts to follow sometime later.)
from Mississippi Delta: Charley Patton's "You Can Shake It"
Very early, as far as recording history -- very "unsophisticated" vocals (though I love them anyway) -- combined with some very clever guitar technique. You bear in mind that someone like Patton was not doing this professionally and you realize the depth of the music tradition being developed during off-hours.
Click to viewfrom East Texas: Sam Lightning Hopkins's "My Starter Won't Start This Morning" (gee, wonder what HE's talking about)
Normally you always pick Muddy Waters to talk about early East Texas blues, but this is really outstanding audio quality for such an old recording:
from the Piedmont: Blind Willie McTell's "Searching the Desert Blues"
Comes to you without almost laughably old and awkward double entendres! McTell was a genius in both playing style and lyrics -- although he obviously uses a lot of stock lines, he also added some very original of his own.
It's a point of contention when everyone hears this recording whether the woman's vocal bits are ridiculous and commercial (they ARE a very commercial addition), or whether the woman's bits are an interesting counterpoint to the frustrated misogynism and therefore really make the song.
Leave a link to something you've been listening to lately, if you don't mind -- love to have some new tracks to listen to over morning coffee. :)