Blues,Blues,Blues [Archive] - Audio & Video Forums

PDA

View Full Version : Blues,Blues,Blues



shokhead
05-22-2005, 05:51 AM
OK,i like blues but not the older stuff so much. I have some Blues Bros.,James Brown,Freddy King,Bonnie Raitt,Eric Clapton,Robery Cray,Aerosmith-Honkin' on Bobo,pretty good,New Joe Bonamassa,very good,New Gary Moore,power of the blues,maybe his best,Thunderbirds live,SRV and a few others. Give me some suggestions on new stuff. I like the faster more rock like blues but not out of control. Also i'm looking for something different,maybe some fast latin funk type music,i like horns and percussion. Oh please help me. :p

cam
05-22-2005, 08:10 AM
I don't particularly know anything about blues but one guy (a fellow Canadian) does stick out for me, Colin James. But I would classify him as rock and blues. I will be going to see him on Canada day, July 1st at the Cloverdale Amphitheater. It's absolutely free with fireworks afterwards. This guy is a great guitar player, very under rated when you think of great(est) guitar players.

Jim Clark
05-22-2005, 08:24 AM
Straying way outside my realm, and IMHO that seems like quite a bizarre list. Guess that comes from reading posts from people who are more into the blues than yourself. I guess people who would consider themselves purists. Based on your list you have a halfway decent chance of liking:

The Black Keys - The following of these fans rivals those drooling all over Tool in their fanaticism. Seems to be a natural fit for what you are looking for.
The White Stripes
Los Lobos
Chris Thomas King
R.L. Burnside

The last two are probably more in the traditional blues standing although updated enough to be considered modern. Samples abound at the websites as well as bites at the usual haunts, Allmusic.com, Best buy.com and amazon.com

shokhead
05-22-2005, 08:45 AM
Straying way outside my realm, and IMHO that seems like quite a bizarre list. Guess that comes from reading posts from people who are more into the blues than yourself. I guess people who would consider themselves purists. Based on your list you have a halfway decent chance of liking:

The Black Keys - The following of these fans rivals those drooling all over Tool in their fanaticism. Seems to be a natural fit for what you are looking for.
The White Stripes
Los Lobos
Chris Thomas King
R.L. Burnside

The last two are probably more in the traditional blues standing although updated enough to be considered modern. Samples abound at the websites as well as bites at the usual haunts, Allmusic.com, Best buy.com and amazon.com

Bizarre how?

Swish
05-22-2005, 09:27 AM
Bizarre how?

bizarre in that most Blues purists would consider the Blues Brothers to be a joke, and a bad one at that. Then you have Robert Cray, who is "blues lite" IMO, same for Bonnie Raitt, although I don't really think badly of either of them. I saw RC live at the New Orleans Jazz Fest and he was pretty good, as was his band. Freddie King is aok in my book, and James Brown certainly had his moments. SRV? I was certainly a fan back in the day, but I can't listen to his stuff without getting bored.

I'm sure JC will chime in with the same sort of response. I'm not the biggest blues fan in the world, but that's my 2 cents. There are some true Blues fans on this board. I know that J has an extensive collection, but since it's "old", you probably won't appreciate it. He send me some monster comps years ago and they are chock-full of classic blues. He also typed up details on each track, making it an educational experience, not just an audio delight.

Swish

kexodusc
05-22-2005, 09:28 AM
I find most modern blues artists are just too darn derivative of the classics (and not as good, though maybe more polished). The artists I do like are generally smaller performers without record deals.
I'd LOVE to get exposed to some "new" blues music...it's hit a real rut IMO...most festivals I go to are nothing but rehash classics...I love the classics, but ya can only take so much.

Blues-Rock/Southern Rock is still kicking with Gov't Mule, the Allman's, Widespread Panic, etc...
but the real hard-core blues stuff is just not as easy to find anymore...

We could really benefit from a weekly "Blues" thread to keep up on the good stuff, avoid the bad stuff, etc...

MindGoneHaywire
05-22-2005, 10:25 AM
Unfortunately I don't think there's enough out there to sustain a weekly blues thread. Perhaps a monthly one.

I probably wouldn't have used the word bizarre, but the stuff mentioned in the initial post, as Swish pointed out, is probably a bunch of stuff that would be considered outside of what a lot of purists would enjoy. With the exception of Freddie King I think a lot would be considered to be a sort of offshoot. But then we get into labels & elitism, which is unnecessary. I'll just say one thing I think is relevant: a lot of this stuff comes out of the prominence of the guitar as the focus of blues music. I've always seen the guitar as only one way to express the emotions that led to the creation of the music itself. The harmonica is prominent also, but blues has seemed to be mostly about guitar for a long time now, say since players such as Clapton brought it to the fore in the 60s. I'm also not 100% into the canonization of Robert Johnson, but that's another story. The Clapton RJ covers album was the first thing from him I liked in nearly 40 years.

Given the list mentioned, I think there are guys like Jimmy Thackery & Ronnie Earl you may like. I'm not into 'em myself, but it may be close to the type of thing you're talking about. There's some good stuff that comes out on a label called Blind Pig...ya might want to check it out. Then there's this guy I do like a LOT, Nick Curran. He put out a record last year I thought was great--Player, by Nick Curran & The Nitelifes. But it's more like jump blues than a SRV-type thing. Perhaps a bit more traditional would be Roomful Of Blues. Duke Robillard is amazing, though I don't think he's with them anymore. Didn't he replace Jimmy Vaughan in the Fab Ts? I don't know, I don't really follow that scene too much & was never a Fab Ts fan, really. But I've seen Duke a couple of times & he's pretty darned good. FWIW I did like the last Roomful Of Blues record I heard a lot. I think it came out a couple of years ago.

Regardless of the virtuosity of guys like Bonamassa, I think a guy like David Johansen gets the spirit of the blues across in a manner far more consistent with the reasons the genre exists in the first place. You could check out either LP he's done with the Harry Smiths. Way more Howlin' Wolf than, uh, Aerosmith, but that's a rivalry of sorts that goes back more than 3 decades now. Howlin' Wolf being my favorite blues artist, I guess I'm biased.

I'd take issue with Swish that the Blues Brothers were a bad joke...the recs may suffer from some glossy production & sound dated, but they provided some direly needed exposure to work at a time when there were few ways to find it, so much of it being out of print by the mid-70s. And they chose some great players. Steve Cropper & Donald Duck Dunn? You could throw Meg White into that mix & it'd still cook, and that's saying something. And the movie showcased some people who had, sadly, fallen out of the limelight--Aretha Franklin, James Brown, Ray Charles--and some who had never exactly seen it--like John Lee Hooker. The recs may not stand up well today, but I think it was a great idea & made some money for some people who deserved the shot in the arm. But then Swish brings up the comps he got & if it sounds like anything any of you'd be interested in--a lot of old stuff, but a wide variety--hit me w/a PM.

shokhead
05-22-2005, 10:29 AM
ZYou might like Joe Bonamassa,he's a young guy. Over at AVS,they have a blues thread. A guy over there,redbone or something says SRV is the only real blues guy and all the old times say hes the best. Imo,thats bs. As for the Blues Bros, i can understand a "real" blues fan thinking it as a joke but if you listen,its not bad.

Jim Clark
05-22-2005, 10:46 AM
Well Swish and J hit it pretty good. As far as a bluze man would go, that list is gonna be pushing it. I'm not a bluze man and it's obvious to me. And nobody even touched on Honkin' on Bobo. Maybe that one was too obvious?

jc

shokhead
05-22-2005, 01:30 PM
Everything on my list is blues. Its also for the most part what i like. Do i like every song on each cd,no. There's different kinds of blues just like jazz and rock. I was asking for new suggestions,not approvable of what i like. I'm not into the old,traditional,slower type blues. I like the newer,rock,faster blues or Texas blues some call it. I would say i'm sorry my list bothers some but if you know me you know i dont give a sh$t. I'm sure most have stuff most others would laugh at.

ForeverAutumn
05-22-2005, 01:52 PM
I don't particularly know anything about blues but one guy (a fellow Canadian) does stick out for me, Colin James. But I would classify him as rock and blues. I will be going to see him on Canada day, July 1st at the Cloverdale Amphitheater. It's absolutely free with fireworks afterwards. This guy is a great guitar player, very under rated when you think of great(est) guitar players.

I don't know the first thing about Blues music, but I am a Colin James fan. I saw him several years ago during a road trip up to North Bay, Ontario (about 350K north of Toronto). It was just after his second Little Big Band CD came out and Colin and his band were outstanding! I agree that he is totally under-rated. Colin is one of the best Canadian musicians around IMO and doesn't get his dues at all.

Have a fantastic time at the Canada Day show!

shokhead
05-22-2005, 02:08 PM
Well i know you know that old saying,it takes one to know one. I can see why nobody comes to RR. I really didnt want to but thought i would try to spark some interest,my bad. Hey Slosh,oh never mind,its not worth it. :D

richmon
05-22-2005, 02:20 PM
My tastes also run more towards the blues rock side, with guitar heavy stuff being my favoritist.

There's an american indian band from North Dakota called Indigenous, that would be my first and highest recomend. Try either their latest S/T album, Live at Pacyderm Studio, or their first album. All of their releases are good tho.

Ronnie Earl's problem is that theres one or two good songs on each of his fifteen albums, I had to collect several albums to constuct one good CDR, although he's terrific if you get to see him live.

MindGoneHaywire
05-22-2005, 02:22 PM
Not sure why you seem so defensive. If you're not interested in checking out any of the names I mentioned, then don't. Maybe you'd like it, maybe you wouldn't. I think guys like Thackery & Robillard are in the ballpark of what you're looking for. There's a Popa Chubby DVD coming out soon also, might be this Tuesday. I don't see how you could construe yr list as bothering anyone, come on. But keep in mind that guys like Bonamossa...a guy who titles his albums after Jethro Tull and Blind Faith songs is a guy who some people aren't going to consider 'blues,' and that's just the way it goes even if you don't care (and I don't, either). But one thing you should keep in mind is that 'blues' isn't just a genre of music or a state of mind or a SRV record, it's also a technical term for a particular structure involving a specific type of musical progression that is the basis for a hefty percentage of not only what we know as blues music, but also plenty of rock and pop music as well.

I do think that labels like Blind Pig & even Rounder have some of the types of players you're looking for. Since it's not my cup of tea I just don't know much beyond what crosses my desk from time to time. But you were looking for new suggestions, I gave ya what little I have in that area & I don't see how that has anything to do with approval or disapproval of what you like. However, if someone says 'I'm really into ska & I want to hear more stuff like No Doubt' then someone else might point out that a band like that is actually working an area that constitutes a variation on that genre to anyone who takes the time to pay attention to labels. I don't always like the way that works but I have to function within it, so that's why I'd make that comment on a player like Joe Bonamossa. In other words, if you like him, great, but I don't see the harm in at least trying to understand why some people wouldn't consider him 'blues' in the sense of the term as they use it to define that genre of music. In any case it's just not that big a deal.

shokhead
05-22-2005, 03:28 PM
You must be talking about my post #8 which was a reply to #6 but you got inbetween while i was chicken peck'n and you for sure type faster then me. I for sure will check out your suggestions as i have already written them down,thats why i posted,for suggestions,not for others that think my list is strange.

Jim Clark
05-22-2005, 03:35 PM
Everything on my list is blues. Its also for the most part what i like. Do i like every song on each cd,no. There's different kinds of blues just like jazz and rock. I was asking for new suggestions,not approvable of what i like. I'm not into the old,traditional,slower type blues. I like the newer,rock,faster blues or Texas blues some call it. I would say i'm sorry my list bothers some but if you know me you know i dont give a sh$t. I'm sure most have stuff most others would laugh at.

Relax man. You asked - I replied. I replied with honesty and prefaced everything with:

1. In my humble opinion
2. "Guess that comes from reading posts from people who are more into the blues than yourself. I guess people who would consider themselves purists"
3. I'm not a bluez guy.

Still, based on what you listed I gave a serious reply. I think there is a very good chance that you would adore The Black Keys and maybe some of the others I listed. If not, it didn't cost much to find out.

jc

shokhead
05-22-2005, 05:11 PM
And so? I'm relaxed. I took yout suggestion and added it to my list,thanks. Bizarre,isnt it? LMAO :D
I just asked for suggestions and put down a few i have so some would have an idea and i get its a bizarre list,blues bros are a joke and rag'n on honkin' on bobo. Kind of a bunch of crap if you ask me. But in the long run i got some good suggestions and will check them out.

Jim Clark
05-22-2005, 06:09 PM
And so? I'm relaxed. I took yout suggestion and added it to my list,thanks. Bizarre,isnt it? LMAO :D
I just asked for suggestions and put down a few i have so some would have an idea and i get its a bizarre list,blues bros are a joke and rag'n on honkin' on bobo. Kind of a bunch of crap if you ask me. But in the long run i got some good suggestions and will check them out.

OK I get it. Maybe if I said "unusual" instead of bizarre it might have stemmed your worries. Sorry I didn't realize you were so delicate.

Here's something else on BOBO for you to digest:
"That might mean that Honkin' on Bobo is something that could be close to anathema to blues purists, since it's a rock album pure and simple, but chances are the bandmembers don't care, since they're just here to have a good time playing songs they love."

Allmusic.Com

Gee, sound familiar? Well it should.

jc

shokhead
05-22-2005, 06:19 PM
I like how you spin things back away from you,your good.Whens the last time band members played songs they didnt love? I'm not saying its a end all blues cd,geez,its ok. I'll check out allmusic.

Jim Clark
05-22-2005, 06:44 PM
I like how you spin things back away from you,your good.Whens the last time band members played songs they didnt love? I'm not saying its a end all blues cd,geez,its ok. I'll check out allmusic.

If that makes you feel better about your reading comprehension skills then I say run with it.

As to band members playing songs they don't love, I'll leave that to someone like J. My immediate thought would be daily. Maybe even every minute of every single day. Every hear of contractual obligations? Fan expectations? Record company meddling? Just a guess though.

Here's some more factoids for fun:

From dictionary.com: Anethema

# A formal ecclesiastical ban, curse, or excommunication.
# A vehement denunciation; a curse: �the sound of a witch's anathemas in some unknown tongue� (Nathaniel Hawthorne).
# One that is cursed or damned.
# One that is greatly reviled, loathed, or shunned

Kind of makes bizarre seem pretty innocuous, no?

'night bud.

jc

MindGoneHaywire
05-22-2005, 08:43 PM
Whens the last time band members played songs they didnt love?

I thought this was discussed recently in another thread...Jim's spot-on here. There are tons of musicians out there playing songs they don't love. It's what they do for a living. There are probably just as many who don't love the songs they're playing as much as they once did because of the grind of having to play the same songs all the time. Experiencing burnout on songs you love can be as powerful an experience as enjoying them to begin with, perhaps more powerful, for fans as well as musicians.

Again, I don't see those negative responses you got as that much of a big deal, and I realize you don't care, which is good. But just for kicks, look at it this way, and please keep in mind that I'm not casting any aspersions on the stuff you like. Hypothetical: a poster is looking for suggestions for jazz, they like Kenny G but they don't like any of the 'old' jazz. Or, they're looking for heavy metal, and they like the Darkness, but not AC/DC or Judas Priest or any of the older acts--or they like Mudvayne & Chevelle, but not 'old' bands like Metallica or Megadeth. Or, as I mentioned above, they're looking for ska using No Doubt as a reference point, but...they don't like the Specials or Desmond Dekker. Or, they want to hear more acts like Garth Brooks, but they're really not into Hank Williams or Johnny Cash. Now, these analogies are probably more extreme than your post, granted. But...in any of these cases a response will likely come along that will kinda suggest that the acts mentioned that the poster likes might not be considered to be 'authentic,' and it can be difficult to understand someone liking a contemporary name while not being into the precursor--in a way that can lead to rudeness. Which is unfortunate. But the thing is, if you're posting on a board like this, it makes sense to assume that you're more interested in music than the average person. As such, the average poster on a board like this is probably going to be knowledgeable about a given genre of music...and may be given to a knee-jerk response that might fall into the unfortunate category of denigrating someone else's taste. But that seems to be the nature of the beast--and while it may seem demeaning, it's also a matter of someone trying to provide more information. That doesn't make it right, mind you. But I think I understand where those sentiments are coming from, just trying to get you to see it from a different point of view. For better or worse, there's going to be a tendency to look at this from a, yes, elitist angle. As such one might feel like they're trying to steer someone who's enthusiastic about fast food towards finer cuisine. And don't take that the wrong way, because I know damn well that a player with the ability of a Joe Bonamossa is not someone to be compared to fast food. But...if someone comes forward with the opinion that he shouldn't be considered 'blues,' I don't think it's completely without merit.

Reminds me of when a cousin of mine--a middle-school principal--was raving about this blues musician she'd brought in to her school to put on a presentation for the students. And all of his songs carried positive messages, very uplifting. Uhh...they call it the blues for a reason, you know? Beyond the structures, of course. It was as though she was oblivious to the history of the music itself, the nature of some of the people who pioneered and defined the genre, the emotions involved, the misery, the substance abuse issues, the unhealthy lifestyles, the premature deaths. I told her, that's great, for the kids, I guess, you know, but that's not what the blues is really about. She looked confused, so I told her a rather extreme story to offer some balance: a guitar player who played in Muddy Waters' band, Pat Hare, wrote a song called "I'm Gonna Murder My Baby." I've heard he was mentally ill, but, in any case, apparently, he did exactly that. A horrifying story, to be sure, but my cousin was extra-special horrified. Actually, she looked at me as though I thought this was cool, or something. Ridiculous. But I thought that was a better story to get across, to provide some perspective, than to go into the story of Robert Johnson, or Bessie Smith, or the Chess bluesmen being ripped off by various parties over the course of their careers, stuff like that. To this day I don't think she gets that the blues wasn't created to spread positive messages to preteens. If someone wants to use those structures to do this, good for them. But some people feel there's a spiritual element to the nature of those structures that enable them to most effectively deliver emotional messages that convey negativity of some sort. I'd be one of those people. But...being a purist for the sake of it is a badge I find stupid. Hendrix did some incredible things with the blues that were more about musical experimentation than it was about moaning about how my baby left me & I'm hung over & I can't make the rent this month & blah blah blah. Then again, when it comes to experimentation, I'm of the view that few do it well. Especially when it comes to the blues, because most of the time it seems like a case of trying to fix something that is a little too rigid by nature to be tampered with, not to mention being something that really doesn't need fixing in the first place.

I primarily discovered jazz through people like Miles Davis & John Coltrane. And to this day I happen to prefer their work to the work of the people who pioneered the genre. But I liked what they did enough to go & look into the stuff that preceded them. I'll never be a big fan of Dixieland, but looking at the history of the development of jazz brought some insight to the stuff I do prefer that I never would've had if I hadn't gone & researched it...and I consider that insight to be invaluable. So, just as a suggestion, you might want to consider this even though you're not really interested in the older blues stuff. There are so many collections out there that you can probably find one that'd cover major artists, the ones who'd likely be listed as 'influences' on AMG when you go to the pages of the artists you do like. And you never know, there are some surprises...I got an extra buzz the first time I heard Willie Mabon's original version of 'I Don't Know,' as well as plenty of the other BBs covers that I became familiar with through their versions years before hearing the originals. Just something to think about...

mwheelerk
05-22-2005, 08:57 PM
OK,i like blues but not the older stuff so much. I have some Blues Bros.,James Brown,Freddy King,Bonnie Raitt,Eric Clapton,Robery Cray,Aerosmith-Honkin' on Bobo,pretty good,New Joe Bonamassa,very good,New Gary Moore,power of the blues,maybe his best,Thunderbirds live,SRV and a few others. Give me some suggestions on new stuff. I like the faster more rock like blues but not out of control. Also i'm looking for something different,maybe some fast latin funk type music,i like horns and percussion. Oh please help me. :p


I think you might like Eddie Turner's new (and first) release called Rise. If you are possibly familiar with Otis Taylor, Eddie is the guitarist in his group. His vocal is reminiscent of Jimi and his guitar playing nods to him and Stevie. You can also hear the dark side of Otis's influence.

shokhead
05-23-2005, 04:49 AM
If that makes you feel better about your reading comprehension skills then I say run with it.

As to band members playing songs they don't love, I'll leave that to someone like J. My immediate thought would be daily. Maybe even every minute of every single day. Every hear of contractual obligations? Fan expectations? Record company meddling? Just a guess though.

Here's some more factoids for fun:

From dictionary.com: Anethema

# A formal ecclesiastical ban, curse, or excommunication.
# A vehement denunciation; a curse: �the sound of a witch's anathemas in some unknown tongue� (Nathaniel Hawthorne).
# One that is cursed or damned.
# One that is greatly reviled, loathed, or shunned

Kind of makes bizarre seem pretty innocuous, no?

'night bud.

jc

Thats good,first you spin,now its the education. Keep it going as i cant wait to see whats next. Your good,i have to give it to ya.

Mike
05-23-2005, 09:11 AM
OK,i like blues but not the older stuff so much. Also i'm looking for something different,maybe some fast latin funk type music,i like horns and percussion. Oh please help me. :p

I like blues but it tends to be the older stuff, Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, BB King etc. Freddie King's Burgular album is one of my all time favourite funky rock blues CD's from the 70's if you don't have it check it out.

Sounds like you need to hook up with Yech who used to hang around here until he was banned! He's put me onto some excellent modern day blues people like Brian Auger, Dr Duke Tormatoe, John Hammond, Joe Bonamassa, Jimmy Thackeray even Boz Scaggs. Or there's somebody else round here (can't think of his monicker right now) who has done about 20 or so modern day blues comps but I don't know if he still hangs around here, maybe somebody can chime in.

Widespread Panic and Govt Mule do some good modern Allman type rock blues and have you checked out Los Lonely Boys for a SRV Santana type sound.

If you like DVD's check out Eric Claptons Crossroads Guitar Festival, over 4 hours of some of the greatest living guitarists mainly in the blues style.

Cheers
Mike

shokhead
05-23-2005, 10:25 AM
What about Tommy Castro,Johnny Copeland,Joss Stone,North Mississippi Allstars,Jimmy D Lane?

3-LockBox
05-23-2005, 11:26 AM
OK,i like blues but not the older stuff so much. I have some Blues Bros.,James Brown,Freddy King,Bonnie Raitt,Eric Clapton,Robery Cray,Aerosmith-Honkin' on Bobo,pretty good,New Joe Bonamassa,very good,New Gary Moore,power of the blues,maybe his best,Thunderbirds live,SRV and a few others. Give me some suggestions on new stuff. I like the faster more rock like blues but not out of control. Also i'm looking for something different,maybe some fast latin funk type music,i like horns and percussion. Oh please help me. :p

EC has turned into somewhat of a hack IMO.

I really liked Robert Cray when he first came out because he sort of a throwback to '60s blues/pop, but then he proceeded to make the same album over and over again.

You have to pick up SRV's Austin City Limits Live DVD. This man is best appreciated being seen as well as heard.

Johnny Winter; you must hear this guy as well. I used to own <i>Second Winter</i> back in '88 and its a good one.

A good blues album to get is (now brace yourselves) The Black Crows Live w/ Jimmy Page; lots of blues covers as well as LZ classics in a modern setting and pollished production. I know purists hate Led Zepplin, but if you can get past the blatant plaguerism of the first two albums, no one in rock did the blues as purely as LZ did.

Check out the movie Crossroads starring Ralph Machio. (ducks for cover) I know, I know...its the 'Karate Kid' plays air-guitar, but Ry Cooder does the soundtrack and there is some good music, even if the plot is stupid. Its a guilty pleasure of mine.

And speaking of Ry Cooder...check him out as well.

AMG is a good sorce of info for a lot of these performers as well as links to related acts.

Not a big blues man myself, but not too many blues efficienados reference The Blues Brothers as a viable act, though they did help pave the way for a short revival back in the early '80s. National Public Radio still carries Dan Akroyd's weekly radio show (under the guise of Elwood Blues) devoted to blues music, the artists and blues lore and history (I forget the name).

3-LockBox
05-23-2005, 11:42 AM
. Or there's somebody else round here (can't think of his monicker right now) who has done about 20 or so modern day blues comps but I don't know if he still hangs around here, maybe somebody can chime in. Mike

His moniker was Chip B and yes, he and Yech were <i>the</i> blues afficienados around these parts.