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Post by JamesP on Apr 14, 2019 12:26:53 GMT -5
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Post by JamesP on Apr 14, 2019 13:21:34 GMT -5
The Blues
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Post by jbone on Apr 14, 2019 23:59:51 GMT -5
I'm not too impressed with Bruce. I can play some of the covers he does, better than him!
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Post by JamesP on Apr 15, 2019 10:22:32 GMT -5
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Post by JamesP on Apr 16, 2019 6:45:28 GMT -5
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Post by jbone on May 2, 2019 7:56:50 GMT -5
And DeFord Bailey.
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Post by whitefang on Jun 11, 2019 5:17:40 GMT -5
I'm not too impressed with Bruce. I can play some of the covers he does, better than him! You talkin' 'bout WILLIS? Or...THIS Bruce....?  And while I can agree with Doc about McCoy, there are others... This guy, that I posted somewhere else.... And too....... Whitefang |
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Post by jbone on Jun 11, 2019 6:50:51 GMT -5
Mr. Willis. Jack did a damn good job imho.
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Post by whitefang on Jun 12, 2019 5:17:16 GMT -5
My best friend when I was a kid, well, his Dad was a member of SPAH ( Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica ) and had a really fancy and expensive looking chromatic harmonica he kept in a mahogany box lined with purple velvet! He'd take it out now and then and blow our brains out! MAN, that dude could play! I'd even bet he could blow THIS guy outa town!  And remember when we all thought( us BOOMERS and older at least) THIS TUNE was "cool"? Whitefang |
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Post by jbone on Jun 12, 2019 10:11:17 GMT -5
Chromatic is a whole nother deal regarding playing harp. I worked with diatonic- 10 hole- for the first approximately 25 years I played or tried to at all. I had heard some of my blues heroes getting the much bigger sound with a chromatic but had no idea how they did it, and the bigger more complex harps were pricier. Still, I found some cheaper models and got a couple. Eventually I learned how to play them.
Strictly speaking of diatonic harps, a lot of players sort of learn by rote and repetition how to do a few licks and stop there. I did that for a long time and it was enough to get me spots playing in bands. I wanted more. And even though my challenges with traditional learning were apparent I struggled my way into some theory and a sort of higher music experience.
A guy like Magic Dick, I admire A LOT. I think he's been a natural always. He learned a lot the traditional way and continued into some great harp work along with being a sax player and branching into other stuff as well. He's more than a technician or copycat.
Jerry Murad and his peers were from an era where the cream really rose to the top. No matter what it took those guys learned everything they needed by hook or crook, and made their living playing harmonicas. The Vaudeville era was where the harmonica was found in large groups, each member playing certain parts.
Harmonica has taken off in a big way in the past 25 years or so. We see customizers and optimizers all over the world, much like those who hot rod engines. They make harps work the best they can. This has caused makers like Hohner, Suzuki, Seydel, and others to up their game and build better instruments. New makers have also risen, like Eastop and Knogsheng among others.
More to the point of the original post, if I was a millionaire I could buy a good band and play at being a player. A guy like Bruce had realized his dream long before he touched a harp. He's a fair player with a good bunch backing him. I'm different. I struggled for years to find my way into being a good player. I have explored a lot of areas that many players don't get around to. I am a true gut player. If I cover a song I put 120% into it. When I write a song it's 200%.
Music in retirement is more than a fun hobby. It's our way to connect with people of all ages and races wherever we happen to be. It's a sort of food for the soul. It makes us a buck here and there. It's at the core a wonderful thing my wife and I share. I have a level of satisfaction in music that was decades coming to me!
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Post by whitefang on Jun 13, 2019 5:59:36 GMT -5
Never having made a living( or even as a sideline) in music, my playing is mostly for cathartic outlet. I, like many "boomers", first started paying harmonica placed in a holder in an attempt to emulate BOB DYLAN. And really, I've not noticed any "resurgence" of harmonica use lately. Most modern music is what I sardonically refer to as, "Canned beats in Autotune sauce". Now long being familiar( and a lover of) blues music at a very young age(long story I'll skip for now) I'd hear a lot of harp being used, but only at the time, being familiar with my buddy's Dad's harmonica, figured there was much more to playing one than I later discovered. Now, I wouldn't compare myself to Junior Wells, but I do a fair job of it. And to further tell the truth.... I thought Hohner WAS the only maker, never seeing or hearing of the other makes you mentioned in any music shops I used to frequent( many sadly, going by the wayside). And I'm happy enough with my old MARINE BAND. Whitefang |
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Post by whitefang on Jun 14, 2019 6:20:56 GMT -5
Gotta have a "classic" too! Whitefang |
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Post by whitefang on Jun 17, 2019 5:36:28 GMT -5
There's something about this guy's style I never cared for, but I gotta admit; he CAN blow that thang! Whitefang |
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Post by jbone on Jun 17, 2019 9:31:48 GMT -5
Well hats off to John Popper. He saw that being one more blues harp guy was not going to catapult him into fame and fortune, so he took harmonica into psychedelic rock balladry. And succeeded. And no, I can't get behind his style either.
A young Stevie Wonder did a lot for harmonica's popularity. A genius.
I say resurgence of harp but not in pop top 40 music. I agree about how formula and insipid music is these days over all. What they call R&B turns my stomach. A lot of the pop stars who touch a harp play it very badly. But I WAS referring to the uptick in interest in playing harmonica, not just by oldsters like me, but there is the next gen set who are dedicated and devoted to the tin sandwich in all its modern glory. Guys like Dennis Gruenling and Aki Kumar to name a couple. Jason Ricci.
The wave of customizing that started about 25 years ago, driven by Joe Spiers and Joe Filisko and Richard Sleigh ushered this new interest in at least in part. At the time Hohner was cranking out tons of bad harps because they were trying to fill an increased demand for product. They lowered their quality standards and let their tooling wear down which resulted in hardly playable harps. Filisko ultimately went to them and asked them to tighten up. Which they did. They saw the value of tapping a higher quality demand. And they introduced the MB Deluxe, the Crossover, and a better quality Special 20 as well.
Other makers either stepped up their game or put out more of their high end products as well. The door is open now to big business taking on the challenge of supplying millions of instruments to millions of players worldwide. And they are striving to nail a place as credible makers with good quality products.
We see Asian makers stepping up as well, like Eastop and Kongsheng. Brendan Power has developed several innovations around special application harmonicas. Different tuning but also new mechanical concepts. He is allied with Asian makers to bring his visions to the table.
My Granddad played harp with the big ragtime band in town when I was a tot. He also played solo at family gatherings and this was what influenced me at an early age.
Later I heard Dylan, Young, and others, but I was never a guitar player.
The guys who really caught me were, like many others, the blues harp guys, who made "that sound" I could just not figure out for decades, though I did find a few bent notes.
Jo and I have been semi pro for some years now. We may one day break even for all the expense we've incurred to get the gear right, the time and effort writing, arranging, getting recorded, and generally self producing 3 original work CD's. But the cathartic element, and the chance to connect with people and maybe share some joy, that is the first and foremost goal.
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Post by whitefang on Jun 18, 2019 5:36:37 GMT -5
I mentioned my childhood's best friend's Dad belonging to SPAH, right? Well, I haven't seen him for 25 years now( since his Mom's funeral) and I never got around to asking whatever became of his Dad's harmonica. Actually, my first harmonica was a Hohner "Echo". I was just 14 and thought that double row of reeds looked so "cool" Yeah...... 1965 is a fondly remembered year... Whitefang |
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