'Can Starbucks Save Jazz?'

Everytime I walk into a Starbucks I am impressed that there is some good quality Jazz music being played. I especially remember when one time 'Freddie Freeloader' from Miles Davis's album Kind of Blue was on and I got so overexcited that I told the barista 'Hey that's Freddie Freeloader!' while he looked at me in bewilderment.

While I thought it was a nice way to get people to hear jazz, I also thought that most people would just use it as ambient music while sipping their frappachinos; afterall, jazz is is no longer the music of the people. It's become music of the sophisticated, and these days people couple sophistication with coffeeshops.

What about an expert opinion on the matter?

Jazz historian Ted Gioia is a leading jazz critic and author; he has written several books on jazz and blues, as well as being active on the internet by starting up and co-chairing several jazz websites.

Most recently he wrote an article for the Daily Beast where he asks 'Can Starbucks Save Jazz?' or 'Jazz (The Music of Coffee and Donuts) Has Respect, But It Needs Love'.

In it, he argues:

'Jazz helps sell millions of cups of coffee, but sales of jazz records are in dire need of a caffeine jolt. Jazz festivals flourish by tapping into this allure of jazz—but increasingly fill their stages with artists from other genres.

So even if I applaud Starbucks and other retailers for exposing the general public to jazz, I still can’t take much comfort from its prominence in these settings. Let me be blunt: I don’t want the next generation of music lovers to associate jazz with Frappuccinos and frosted donuts.'

What do you think? Are we taking the matter too seriously (for more about purism read by article Blues Purism vs Evolution)

Standard of the Week: 'Boom Boom'

John Lee Hooker's classic blues standard 'Boom Boom' entered the Billboard charts in the Pop and  R&B sections today in 1962. To celebrate it's 52 years of release, I thought I'd make in this weeks standard. 

The song's appeal is in the repeated riff in stop time, and the boogie jam in the middle. In live situations, the boogie jam would extend almost forever with each musician taking extensive solos and John Lee Hooker wailing with his raspy voice. 

What makes it also a bit unusual too is that unlike other bluesmen such as Muddy Waters or Albert King, is that Hooker is primarily known as a solo artist; with this song he is accompanied by a backup band and it led to great sounding jams. 

Here's the original studio recording:

And here's a live video version:

The song was inducted into the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame's list "The Songs That Shaped Rock n' Roll" as well as the Blues Hall of Fame in the "Classic Blues Recording" section.

The song was covered was dozens of artists, including:

The Animals:

Bruce Springsteen: 

Eric Clapton:

ZZ Top (with John Lee Hooker)

and... there's a German Metal version:

I'm Back to Blues Duty & News Roundup

After my short vacation, I'm back on the blog!

Hope you guys missed having some of the daily blues dosage I was dishing out!

Here's a roundup of some of the things that happened while I was away:

1) I Performed in Turkey

I had a blues jam with a band while I was on vacation in Turkey which was pretty awesome.


                           2) Don Cheadle Goes to IndieGogo for Miles Davis Film Funding

The Miles Davis biofilm which I wrote about previously, is now in need of funding. Don Cheadle, actor and director of the film, has posted the project on crowdfunding site IndieGogo.

3) Fender to Release an American Standard Jaguar Bass

New rumors (which are more or less confirmed) have surfaced about Fender releasing a US made Jaguar Bass, because of listings on Sweetwater's website. It looks amazing and it would be a nice match for my Jaguar Bass!

My Jag:

4) Walter Trout is Recovering

After reporting about his illness earlier, Walter Trout has had a liver transplant and is recovering. You can check out the news here and a video interview with him below post-op:

That's all for now, I'll be back tomorrow and regularly for more blues!!

Heads Up: On Vacation

#Throwback: Classic Blues Gig in Beirut (2004)

On Dec. 21, 2004 in Beirut, we performed a gig that (in my eyes at least) was considered a classic blues performance. 

Our blues band, Evergreen, performed to over 200 people at the now closed blues pub Roadhouse Blues in Monot Street. 

This was the last big performance I had with the band before I left Lebanon to Kuwait.

I have this poster hanging on my wall as a reminder of the good times; now ain't that the blues!

See more about my musical adventures in Lebanon [here].

Standard of the Week: 'Crawling King Snake'

via ArtLetter

'Crawling King Snake' is a blues standard that has been covered by many artists. It's origins go back to the old Mississippi Delta blues of the 1920's. It is thought to be inspired by 'Black Snake Moan' by Blind Lemon Jefferson.

The heavy riff and the lyrics immediately became a favorite. The original version is disputed to be between Big Joe Williams and Tony Hollins (though I could not find the latter's version).

Big Joe Williams (1941)

Since then, some of the bluesmen who covered it were: 

John Lee Hooker (1949)

The Doors (1970)

Muddy Waters (1971)

George Thorogood (1985)

Buddy Guy (2003)

Celebrating the Birthday of Miles Davis

On May 26, 1926, Miles Davis, the legendary jazz leader, composer, and trumpeter, was born.

I've spent many articles on Miles in the past; but you can never have enough of talking or discussing this great figure, for his contributions to music generally, and jazz specifically, are far too numerous.

Never seeking to stay stagnant or fade into obscurity or being considered a 'relic' of the past, Miles always kept pushing his music further.

It started when he moved away from bebop, into cool jazz, a style that he was monumental in developing, to his shift to hard bop during the early to mid, 50's. His leap into modal jazz was cemented when he released the best selling jazz album of all time, Kind of Blue, to much acclaim.

He started playing with electric sounds and literally creating the genre of fusion, Miles released In a Silent Way, and then the Electric Miles phase was born.

Electric Miles

He even released (although posthumously), a hip-hop/jazz album with the help of Easy Mo Bee called Doo Wop.

His trumpet style is also widely duplicated, in the philosophy of "less is more".

His legacy lives on through his music, and all the awards such as the Lifetime Achievement Award, several  Grammys  and the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame. 

We salute the King of the Cool, Miles Davis, and I leave you with one of his most recognizable songs, a live version of "So What" of the Kind of Blue album, featuring John Coltrane on the tenor sax, and don't forget the block party being hosted by his estate in NYC for the Miles Davis Way celebration!

The New Hendrix Movie Offends & Tainting A Musician's Legacy

The new biofilm of Jimi Hendrix 'All Is By My Side' has been on the receiving end of some controversy. The film stars Andre 3000 (of Outkast fame) as the legendary Jimi Hendrix, and while the film initially had some buzz about it, it quickly died down once it was revealed that no actual music from Jimi Hendrix will be used in the film (not even as a cover version). The producers say that this is due to the film being made about Jimi's pre-fame era.

However, a film about a legendary musician without a hint of his music misses the point. It's like showing how Pink Floyd were created without showing off their most famous material, or even before David Gilmour joined the band. 

The film also shows some violence against women, particularly in the character of Kathy Etchingham, who was Jimi's girlfriend. According the article, he never did beat her as shown in the film, as told by his biographer Charles Cross. 

What we are left with is an origin story, much like all these famous Hollywood superhero movies being churned out yearly. While that is nothing too major to pick upon, but if you want to watch a movie about Hendrix, you expect to see him at full glory, concerts and Strat-burning and all, not just the periods before and at the end and missing the meat of what Jimi contributed to the music world.

Years ago, the movie 'Cadillac Records' was released, loosely portraying the real Chess Records of Chicago's blues fame. While they used the same names of the musicians like Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry, Howlin' Wolf etc, it was not 100% accurate, yet it was able to give us the lasting legacy. Using the real music from that day by those musicians adds to the realism and immersion. 

Cadillac Records wasn't accurate, but it told the story very well.

The 2000 movie 'Hendrix', acted by Wood Harris, might not have been the best film and had a much lower budget, but it gave us the full round story including the infamous Monterrey performance. 

When doing a biofilm, especially about a highly revered artist or cultural icon, you have to expect that the fans, not the critics, are final line in deciding the film's rating. Much like other icons like Kurt Cobain, Bob Marley, etc, the directors and producers will be held to close scrutiny. 

Respecting an artist's legacy and their contribution is something that is held sacred by the fans, and if movie makers can't uphold this sanctity, the end result will always be negative. 

The film opens June 13 in the UK. 

'Hold That Train Conductor' - Byther Smith

Byther Smith is a great Chicago bluesman, who still tours and plays until today. He found his success late, however since the 80's he's been releasing albums and performing live constantly.

He's well known for his gritty blues guitar and soulful voice. Here's 'Hold That Train Conductor':

Blues Sketch on 'In Living Color' (with Jim Carey)

In Living Color was a comedy sketch show back in the early 1990's and featured the young Jim Carey, Jamie Foxx, the Wayans brothers and many more.

Here's one sketch about a fictional bluesman named Calhoun Tubbs (played by David Alan Grier) trying to teach Jim Carey's character (with a bad English accent) about the blues. Hilarity ensues!