https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVhyv-S3R0g&t=117s
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Great footage, Cool to see Yank & Sleepy John. I did meet Yank & heard him live a couple times, but unfortunately not w Sleepy John. Dug Bukka White clip, too.
Joe B
That was fun.
Well, now, there was a time capsule! From the opening number, Rufus Thomas "Walking the Dog" backed by The Bar-Kays to the closer by Mississippi Fred McDowell (and the Bar-Kays playing ""Let The Sunshine In" over the credits), there's a good funky downhome vibe here.
Yank Rachell and Sleepy John Estes show up during the day (12:00) and night (20:30), and there's also some mandolin featured in the Jefferson Street Jug Band (47:00). Other standout moments include Bukka White at night, playing behind his head (42:30), Johnny Winter (57:00), and maybe most of all, Furry Lewis (36:00). :cool: Plenty of other good stuff too.
"Put a smile on your face, put a song in your heart. Open up your minds and let the sun shine in." Good advice, then and now. :mandosmiley:
Looks like they're plugged into the same Twin Reverb.
Oh, I forgot to mention the most remarkable (to my mind) appearance in the film - John D. Loudermilk playing the great song he wrote, "Tobacco Road," an emblematic 60s song. I've known him as a songwriter only; never seen him perform before. It was a gritty. soulful performance, both vocally and instrumentally. The way he played the same licks the Nashville Teens did in their hit single version, with more grit and soul on his solo acoustic guitar than they showed in plugged-in, full force fashion, he did himself proud.
@journeybear
A-
(The - for not telling where to find Loudermilk in there)
I've heard John D do Tobacco Road before, but now I have to hear this one, and just kidding about the A- because I'm gonna watch the whole thing anyway. BTW, Johnny Winter's little brother recorded my all time favorite version of Tobacco Road.
Dang! Ya got me! My bad. :redface: And that's all right. Serves me right to suffer ... :(
John D. Loudermilk starts about the 31:00 point.
Thanks for that. I've been busy and it's taken me a while to get to it. I hadn't seen footage of Yank and Sleepy John together before, so that was a treat. It's a shame that the sound quality was so poor during their performances. As for that guy in the Jefferson Jug Band interrupting their own performance so that he could yell incoherently... Well, it was 1969, and there was much to be angry about -- but does that ever change? I'm looking forward to watching the rest soon, when I can enjoy it uninterrupted.
Yeah, I think that was meant to be street theater or political protest or performance art or some such. There was a lot of that back then. Why not in Memphis, too? But I don't think that was interrupting - I think it was planned as part of the band's performance of "Fixing To Die Rag" - just not well done. :(
I watched the whole show and enjoyed it very much. -- legends, little known greats, and newcomers. I especially liked the fact that "the world's oldest bluesman" played electric guitar.
That was new for me, too. Sort of. I had to go looking it up, and it was just that year that he recorded and released his first album featuring electric guitar, "I Do Not Play No Rock 'n' Roll." That made a splash in its day - partly because it kind of was like rock 'n' roll. ;) It was so long ago I forgot about it, being more familiar with his acoustic work. Yes, good stuff. :cool:
I associate "I Do Not Play No Rock 'n' Roll" with Fred McDowell. I liked his performance, but I'm referring to Nathan Beauregard (at 10 min.), who was possibly 106 years old. I was surprised to see Fred playing electric guitar too, though I had known many blues musicians played old-style, acoustic music for the blues revival crowd, and rocked-up, electric blues for Black audiences. In fact, many older musicians blew the cobwebs off their acoustic instruments after the revivalists came knocking. Of course, this tells us more about the tastes of the paying audiences than about what the individual musicians preferred to play.Quote:
Originally Posted by journeybear
Oh, yah, right. My bad. :redface: Guess I was just so excited by the Mississippi Fred appearance.
BTW, introduced as "Nathan Beery-guard?" :confused:
Great stuff there. I love seeing/hearing Yank. A tip of my hat to a lot of performers I haven’t heard anyone calling out in years like Lum Guffin and Piano Red.
Jo Ann Kelly is new to me and wow! I’ve got some searching to do!
Hi,Quote:
Originally Posted by Kenny
Jo Ann Kelly is well worth checking out. She was an exceptional musician and regular fixture in the UK blues scene. She died really young probably back in the 90’s. Her brother Dave Kelly played in the Blues Band, but also performed with her on a regular basis. I think he’s still about.
Regards,
What I’ve found of Jo Ann Kelly so far is beyond impressive. She should’ve lived forever instead of passing on at just 46 years old. There’s an old soul in that woman’s talent and I’m heartbroken that her run was so short. I’m also thanking @lowtone2 for posting that for us.
You know the story of Doc Watson's discovery? He was playing functional music for square dances on a Les Paul, and Ralph Rinzler told him to put it up and never play it again. The BIG audiences were interested in authenticity. Irony is everywhere!Quote:
Originally Posted by Ranald
That's a new one to me. Here's another good example of what we're talking about. On the director's commentary to "Louie Bluie," the documentary about the mandolin and fiddle player, Howard Armstrong, director Terry Zwigoff comments on his annoying Armstrong's longtime musical partner, the guitar player, Ted Bogan. Zwigoff said that he didn't blame Bogan for being irritated. After all, Ted had spent his whole life learning chords and improving his guitar playing, but Terry was asking him to play like he did in 1934 when Ted and Howard recorded, "State Street Rag" as young men. I can understand the viewpoints of both Bogan and Zwigoff.Quote:
Originally Posted by lowtone2