'If Trouble Was Money' - Albert Collins LIVE

The Master of the Telecaster, the Iceman Albert Collins, was known for his unique guitar playing and obscure tuning (open F# minor or some shit like that) and his high pitched Telecaster sound known as the 'icepick' sound. That sound is playing the Tele on the bridge pickup with the tone all the way up.

His soul / R&B touches also made him stand out along the bluesmen.

Here's one of his signature tunes called 'If Trouble Was Money':

I'm Now Part of TRIPLEW.ME's Artist Roster

Shameless self-promotion here, but you can now find me on the creative community website triplew.me under the Makshoof Music tab; I'm also the only person in the 'blues' category (not like there was any doubt!)

You can read my bio, hear my tracks, and see my videos up on my profile page [here].

Thanks to triplew.me for their interest and support! You can also see the dozens of musicians and artists from the Middle East on that site so please take a look!

Watch Paul McCartney Jam With Some Old Bluesmen and... Johnny Depp

Paul McCartney released a video on his official Youtube channel few days ago, showing backstage jamming with some old bluesmen and Johnny Depp, when he was filming the video of 'Early Days', off his new album called... NEW. 

This almost 30 minute jam session has some serious blues goin' on. The bluesmen playing are Roy Gaines, Al Williams, Dale Atkins, Henree Harris, Motown Maurice, Lil Poochie and Misha Lindes. 

Otis Spann Covers Muddy's 'My Home is in The Delta' and Features Him on Guitar

Muddy Waters' essential album Folk Singer from 1964 is considered one of the best blues albums of all time; with it's haunting acoustic sound (which by this stage Muddy was known to be an electric blues performer.).

One song on the album is the reflective and homesick laden song 'My Home is in The Delta', where Muddy yearns:

Well my home's in the delta,
Way out on that farmer's road.
Now you know I'm living in Chicago,
And people, I sure do hate to go.

Now you know I'm leaving here in the morning,
Won't be back no more.

The version below comes from long time pianist for Muddy's band and also one of his closest friends, even to the point that Muddy called him his brother, Otis Spann, who covered it on his 1967 album 'The Blues is Where It's At', featuring none other than Muddy on signature slide guitar while Spann takes the lead vocals.


Sip your bourbon and mellow out on this one:

My Review Article on Rock Era Magazine is Now Up!

I've recently teamed up with Rock Era Magazine as a contributing writer for blues related material (did you guys have any doubt?) and you can now read my review of the Muddy Waters album 'Muddy Waters Blues Band ft. Dizzy Gillespie'.

Let me know what you think! Here you [go].

Stevie Ray Vaughan 12-CD Collection Coming Soon

[SOURCE]

A 12-CD collection of the late Texas blues legend Stevie Ray Vaughan will be released on October 28 called "Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble: The Complete Epic Recordings Collection" which will include all his studio and live recordings under the Epic Label for the first time, as well as two CDs of rare tracks. 

In a word:

EPIC

Modes of Transport in the Blues

The blues isn't about having it easy. You're always on the move because life doesn't stand still. Sometimes you gotta go back to your hometown, sometimes to find your woman (or man) or to go to Louisiana to meet that gypsy woman who told your mother when you was only the age of 5 that... ummm... anyways; here are a few modes of transport for the blues as described by the artists in their songs:

V8 FORD

CHEVY TRUCK

65 MUSTANG 

GREYHOUND BUS

DODGE MONACO (POLICE CRUISER VARIANT)

MISSISSIPPI-BOUND STEAM TRAIN

50's CADILLAC

and of course, WALKING

Fender Rumor Mill: Classic Player Rascal Bass

Just last week I reported 2 rumored Fender basses, and here's another spotted in the wild (not confirmed officially by Fender).

ITS FUCKING AWESOME; retro and unusual for a Fender design:

The Fender Classic Player Rascal Bass (Ocean Turquoise)

Product description off of Dawsons UK:

"The new Fender Classic Player Rascal electric bass guitar has been a labour of love for Master Builder Jason Smith. Few could say that Fender runs through their veins like Smith, whose father is Dan Smith - a Fender legend in his own right. Drawing from his experience of the Fender family, and utilising his impeccable skill set, Smith has created a sublime model that is set to become a modern classic.

Short-Scale Body

The Classic Player Rascal bass features a curvy and perfectly proportioned short-scale body that revives the look and feel of vintage models. The body has been crafted using alder, a tonewood that has been favoured by Fender since the late 50s due to its delightfully balanced tonal output. Alder is capable of producing rumbling lows, punchy mids, and crisp highs, with the utmost articulation across the frequency spectrum. The stunning ocean turquoise finish is complimented exquisitely by the pearloid pickguard.

Supportive Maple Neck

Fitted to the body is a bolt-on maple neck, which offers a supportive and slender playing surface to navigate. Married to the neck is a sumptuous rosewood fingerboard, home to 21 eager frets that are adorned with white dot position inlays to guide you along in style. The neck plays very fast, allowing you to execute fingerboard gymnastics with the greatest of ease.

Classic Lipstick Pickups

In order to recreate the sound of vintage models, Jason Smith has fitted the Classic Player Rascal with three 'Lipstick' single-coil pickups in the neck, middle and bridge positions respectively. Control over the pickups comes in the form of master volume and master tone pots that are paired with a 5-way Strat-style pickup selector switch. The tonal versatility of this little beauty cannot be overstated, with a huge range of sounds waiting to be pulled out for you to play with.

Tough and Ready Hardware

The Rascal is fitted with a rugged and reliable hard tail bridge, which creates a seamless connection between the strings and body. Adjustment of each string is easy, which means that controlling intonation is straightforward. Vintage-style tuning machines maintain tuning integrity throughout each and every performance with the utmost precision. No matter how enthusiastically you play, the Rascal is more than a match for you.

As you'd expect from a guitar designed and built by a Master Builder, the Fender Classic Player Rascal electric bass guitar in ocean turquoise is one that both collectors and players can appreciate. The attention to detail shown by Jason Smith is remarkable, and as he's an accomplished musician himself, you just know the Rascal is a dream to perform with."

Here's a video demo by GAK UK:

Detroit Blues Playlist

Detroit's famous Hastings Street, where the blues is king. 

Last week I made a playlist of 10 Chicago Blues songs; and this week keeping up with the urban blues, I made a list of 10 Detroit Blues songs!

Both styles are pretty much the same, but Chicago blues is the more prominent of the two. Detroit is just as gritty, but being the city of Motown it was overshadowed. The biggest name in Detroit blues is John Lee Hooker.

So strap in and dig the sound of the big city somewhere around Hastings Street and the Black Bottom neighborhood:

10 - 32-20 - Doctor Ross

9 - Hard Hearted Woman - Eddie 'Guitar' Burns

8 - Have Blues Will Travel - Calvin Frazier

7 - Soft Pillow - Joe Weaver

6 - Stop Breakin' Down - Baby Boy Warren

5 -  Freak Blues - Andre Williams

4 - I'll Get Over You - Johnnie Bassett

3 -  I Cried My Last Tear - Alberta Adams

2 - 10 Below Zero - Bobo Jenkins

and finally, a full album from John Lee Hooker, Urban Blues:

Some Voodoo Items Used in the Blues

Previously on the blog I wrote about Voodoo and it's relationship with the blues; check that post out for a brief history about it, along side some blues songs with voodoo references in them.

For today, I'll highlight some of the voodoo items that are mentioned in blues songs, to bring a more visual representation of the blues imagery to life, and some of their uses:

MOJO HAND

Or a mojo bag, used to create a magic spell or effect by combining several ingredients in it.

BLACK CAT BONE

Used to bring the bearer positive effects, even though the black cat is usually seen as a sign of evil.

americanbluesscene.com 

JOHN THE CONQUEROR ROOT

From the plant of the same name, given by legends of folk hero John The Conqueror; used in many combinations in creations of spells or curses. 

GOOFER DUST

From the old school term meaning to cast a voodoo spell, this dust is mostly made up of dirt from a graveyard, used to harm others when mixed in a mojo hand.