Blues – Page 3 – PowerPop… An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture

Buddy Blue – Upsettin’ Me

I really like the mood of this one. It reminds me of Fever but it is different. A very finger-snapping song. It was written by Buddy Blue (Bernard Seigal). I could picture this being played in a blues club in the 50s or 60s…such a groove to it…and it swings…slowly. After listening to it a couple of times I was hooked on it. I feel like I found a gem that no one knows about.

Originally a member of bands like The Beat Farmers and The Jacks, Buddy Blue was a figure in the roots rock and Americana genres. When I was on my break I was listening to different music but this is one of the guys I was listening to.

It was released in 2000 on the album Diposmania. He also did a different version of the song in his 2003 album Sordid Lives. I like the original version a little more because it’s more minimalist and his solo in the middle is fantastic.

He was the frontman and guitarist for The Beat Farmers. Buddy Blue’s musical roots began to paint its first strokes on the canvas of American rock ‘n’ roll. The band’s fusion of rock, punk, and country elements was a sonic cocktail that left audiences thirsty for more. With Blue’s vocals leading the band, The Beat Farmer’s energy became their trademark.

This song has a nice blues/jazz feel that I love. The sound sounds modern but also goes back to the 1950s.

Upsettin’ Me

The way you move when you walk in your black satin high heel shoes
Your perfume and your deep green eyes turn me into a fool
Well look on your faces everywhere I go
The heat of your body is all that I want to know
I’m never going to give you up baby you’re upsetting me

Nobody else can love you the way that your daddy do
Can’t you feel better at all I’m raising my flag just for you
Well I don’t have no money or fancy things
But Buddy is going to give you everything that you need
I’m never going to give you up you’re upsetting me
How you’re upsetting me

With your skin so sweet and your lips such a ruby red
You bending my soul baby yet and deep inside of my head
Well I tell you one thing honey ain’t no Lie
Another man touch you and he’s going to die
I’m never going to give you up babe you’re upsetting me
Yeah you’re upsetting me
Yeah you’re upsetting me

…

John Mayall and The Bluesbreakers – All Your Love

Every weekend I try to post some artists I never have posted before and this weekend it’s John Mayall and another band tomorrow. I’ve read his name and I’ve heard bits and pieces but never dove in so to speak. The one thing I can say…is tone. His band has some of the best tones I’ve ever heard from a guitar.

I could have picked about anything they did so I searched out some and found this one. This British blues band was formed in the early 1960s by singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist John Mayall. The band is known for its huge role in the British blues boom and for launching the careers of many great musicians. Just to name a few, Eric Clapton, Peter Green, John McVie, Mick Taylor, Mick Fleetwood, Jack Bruce, Aynsley Dunbar, Chris Mercer, Harvey Mandel, Jesse Ed Davis, and the list keeps going.

Their most famous album I’m aware of is the album Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton (often referred to as the “Beano” album due to Clapton reading a Beano comic on the cover). This album helped make Clapton a superstar guitarist to many. It was released in 1966 and was the debut studio album of the band. The album peaked at #6 in the UK. I love that the band was fluid with members. Who is on this album? John Mayall, Eric Clapton, John McVie, and Hughie Flint.

The song was originally composed by American blues musician Otis Rush. It was first recorded by him in 1958 as “All Your Love (I Miss Loving).” I added a later live version by Otis Rush with Eric Clapton below. Make sure to listen to the studio cut of it as well…why is that? It’s because of the tone and playing by Clapton. It was back when Clapton was still playing a Les Paul through a Marshall. In the Cream reunion, he played a Fender and you could tell the difference.

John Mayall sadly passed away July 22, 20024. He was 90 years old.

All Your Love

All the love I miss loving, all the kiss I miss kissing
All the love I miss loving, all the kiss I miss kissing
Before I met you baby, never knew what I was missing

All your love, pretty baby, that I got in store for you
All your love, pretty baby, that I got in store for you
I love you pretty baby, well I say you love me too

All your loving, pretty baby, all your loving, pretty baby
All your loving, pretty baby, all your loving, pretty baby
Since I first met you baby, I never knew what I was missing

Hey, hey baby, hey, hey baby
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, baby, oh, oh, baby
Since I first met you baby, never knew what I was missing

T-Bone Walker – T Bone Shuffle

I’ve heard his name most of my life but never heard him. I’ve really enjoyed what I’ve been hearing going over his catalog. T-Bone Walker singing T-Bone Shuffle is so smooth. He has a blues and jazz thing going on and it’s hard to beat. It was released in 1949. He wrote the song and it’s been covered 42 times by The Robert Cray Band to Jools Holland.

T-Bone Walker (Aaron Thibeaux Walker) in Linden, Texas, Walker grew up in a musical family and began performing in his teens. He was influenced by Blind Lemon Jefferson, whom he often played with. Walker’s parents were musical and encouraged him to play. He could play several instruments including guitar, piano, and banjo.

In 1929, Walker made his recording debut under the name “Oak Cliff T-Bone,” recording Wichita Falls Blues and Trinity River Blues. He is credited with being one of the first musicians to use the electric guitar as a lead instrument. His 1942 recording of Mean Old World featured his pioneering electric guitar work.

1971, he won a Grammy Award for Best Ethnic or Traditional Recording for his album Good Feelin’. He was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1980 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. He passed away in 1975 following a stroke.

I added a bonus pick today…Two Bones and a Pick was recorded in 1955 and released as part of the T-Bone Blues album in 1959.

T-Bone Shuffle

Let your hair down babyLet’s have a natural ballLet your hair down babyLet’s have a natural ballCause when you’re not happyIt ain’t no fun at all

You can’t take it with youThat’s one thing for sureYou can’t take it with you babyThat’s one thing for sureThere’s nothing wrong with ya babyThat a good T-Bone shuffle can’t cure

Have fun while ya canFate’s an awful thingHave fun while ya canFate’s an awful thingYou can’t tell what might happenThat’s why I love to sing

…

Streetwalkers – Daddy Rolling Stone

I love the energy of this song. It has rock, soul, gospel, a tinge of blues plus a super lead singer. They did a great job of this Otis Blackwell song.

CB sent a link months ago on this band and got lost in the shuffle. I really like Roger Chapman’s voice. They were not a singles band…more like really great album tracks and I was enjoying them on my work trip last week. This song, however, would have fit in on the radio beside the Stones with no problem.

After the breakup of the band Family in 1973, Roger Chapman and Charlie Whitney decided to continue their musical collaboration. They initially formed a group called Chapman-Whitney Streetwalkers, which later became simply Streetwalkers. They knew the lineup would be fluid and it was from then on.

The initial lineup included Chapman and Whitney, along with other musicians such as John Wetton (bass), who later became famous with King Crimson and Asia, and drummer Ian Wallace, also from King Crimson. Another bass player they had, Nicko McBrain, later joined Iron Maiden. Ric Grech (bass player for Blind Faith) was also with them at times.

This song was on their album Red Card released in 1976. It’s full of great songs. That is the album I’ve been listening to recently. Red Card peaked at #20 on the UK charts in 1976.

The band had some internal tensions and the changing musical tastes (disco) led to the band’s disbandment in 1977. Roger Chapman and Charlie Whitney went on to pursue solo projects, with Roger Chapman achieving some success as a solo artist in Europe.

They released 4 studio albums, 2 live, and one greatest hits. They were a band that deserved more attention globally than they got. I’m also going to check the band Family out more now. Below is a video of them on the Old Grey Whistle Test…it should be ready to play Daddy Rolling Stone.

Daddy Rolling Stone

Now girls you think you’ve had lovin’ (yeah)
And girls you think you’ve had fun (yeah)
And sisters you ain’t seen nothin’ (yeah) till I come along

(Daddy Rolling) Oh, what’s my name ?
(Daddy Rolling) Yeah yeah yeah, what’s my game ?
(Daddy Rolling) Oh well, I’m Daddy, I’m Daddy, Daddy Rolling Stone, yeah yeah yeah

I’ve got a friend named Tony (yeah)
He’s got a girl named Cherise (yeah)
I’m gonna get that girl though he’s twice my size and I know I can do it like this

(Daddy Rolling) Oh, sing it to me
(Daddy Rolling) Yeah yeah yeah …
(Daddy Rolling) Oh well, I’m Daddy, I’m Daddy, Daddy Rolling Stone

That’s my name

Now girls you think you’ve had lovin’ (yeah)
And girls you think you’ve had fun (yeah)
And sisters you ain’t seen nothin’ (yeah) till I come along

(Daddy Rolling) Oh, what’s my name ?
(Daddy Rolling) Yeah, what’s my game ?
(Daddy Rolling) Oh well, I’m Daddy, I’m Daddy

…

Cream – N.S.U.

Looking through my index…I can’t believe I’ve never posted this one by Cream before. I’m rectifying that mistake today! The song was born from a riff they played in their first rehearsal.

You probably will ask yourself…what did NSU stand for? That would be courtesy of Eric Clapton. He had a venereal disease at the time that was called Non-Specific Urethritis. They thought it would be fun to name the song with the initials.

How this band must have sounded to ears when they first got played. Compared to what was going on it must have sounded like aliens. I would also include Jimi Hendrix with this wash of hard rock psychedelic music.

Cream was formed in 1966 and consisted of Eric Clapton (guitar, vocals), Jack Bruce (bass, vocals), and Ginger Baker (drums). They were one of the first supergroups, with members already having successful careers. Eric had played with The Yardbirds, Bluesbreakers, John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, Powerhouse, and more. Jack Bruce played with Manfred Mann, Blues Incorporated, and helped form The Graham Bond Organisation. Ginger Baker played with Blues Incorporated, Johnny Burch Octet, and The Graham Bond Organisation before Cream.

The song was on their debut album Fresh Cream released in 1966. The album peaked at #39 on the Billboard Album Charts and #6 in the UK. I can’t find a reliable source but one source has it peaking at #39 in Canada.

This song was written by bassist Jack Bruce.

N.S.U.

Driving in my car, smoking my cigar,
The only time I’m happy’s when I play my guitar.

Singing in my yacht, what a lot I got,
Happiness is something that just cannot be bought.

I’ve been in and I’m out, I’ve been up and down,
I don’t want to go until I’ve been all around.

What’s it all about, anyone in doubt,
I don’t want to go until I’ve found it all out.

…

Little Walter – You’re So Fine

I’ve read so many artists influenced by Little Walter including The Band. I never really listened to him until recently. The man was magical on harmonica. He sounded so different at the time. He played using an amplified harmonica. He played it through a microphone and amp, giving it a loud, distorted sound that was new and exciting at the time and still is. As I read more about him…some call him The Jimi Hendrix of the Harmonica.

Little Walter’s (Marion Walter Jacobs) career took off when he joined Muddy Water’s band in the early 1950s. His first release was in 1947 with Ora Nelle Blues. He did really well in the R&B charts in the 1950s. He continued to perform and record throughout the 1960s, but his health and personal life crumbled. Little Walter died on February 15, 1968, at the age of 37 from injuries sustained in a fight.

You’re So Fine peaked at #2 on the R&B Charts 1954. It was written by Little Walter.

Here is a super-live version with Otis Rush.

You’re So Fine

You’re so fine pretty baby, let me love you all the time

Well and I got a girl she’s fine and brown
What I like about her, she’s mine all mine
She’s so fine, yes she’s so fine
You’re so fine pretty baby, let me love you all the time

Well I wanna give you all my money buy you diamond, everything
Till you be mine, baby then we will make romance
You’re so fine, yes you’re so fine
You are a fine healthy thing, I wanna love you all the time

Now you fill my conversation baby, you made me talk myself to death
I’m in love with you baby and I don’t want nobody else
You’re so fine, yeah you’re so fine
You are a fine healthy thing, I wanna love you all the time

Yeah you’re so fine baby, let me love you all the time

Now you know I love you baby and I just can’t help myself
Goin’ crazy ’cause you’re lovin’ someone else
You’re so fine, yeah you’re so fine
You are a fine healthy thing, let me love you all the time

Fleetwood Mac – Albatross

Albatross is an instrumental from Fleetwood Mac…the 60’s version of the band with the great guitar player Peter Green. I first heard about the song in a book. The Beatles were recording Abbey Road and they played this song constantly through the sessions. You can hear the reverb effect used on Sun King by Lennon that resembles Albatross.

When this song was released, Fleetwood Mac was six years away from their pop conversion of the Stevie Nicks/Lindsey Buckingham era. The lineup on this track was Peter Green (vocals, guitar), John McVie (bass), Danny Kirwan (guitar), and Mick Fleetwood (drums). The song was released on November 22, 1968, with ‘Jigsaw Puzzle Blues’ (written by the band’s James Kirwan) on the B-side.

It remains one of the band’s most recognizable songs from their early blues- period. The song peaked at #1 on the UK Charts, #45 in Canada, and #4 on the Billboard Bubbling Under the Hot 100 Charts (per Wiki) in 1969. Peter Green wrote this song. Albatross was re-released in 1973 peaking at #2 on the UK Charts. In 1989, it was released again and peaked at #96 on the UK Charts…and in 2020-2023 it was released yet again and peaked at #8 on the UK Singles Charts. The song keeps on giving.

Funny enough…this song remains their only #1 UK song! That surprises me with the later commercial success they had. Few bands could evolve like they did. Genesis is one and David Bowie is another one that pulled off different sounds but remained popular.

The title came from a bird called The Albatross, which sailors regarded as a sign of bad luck. That is where the saying “like an Albatross around your neck” came from. Green was also influenced by the Santo and Johnny song Sleep Walk…which you can hear that sound in this. Green also said some of it came from notes that Clapton would play with the John Mayall Bluesbreakers on the song The Last Meal but just slowed down. Peter Green would replace Eric in that band.

Peter Green remains one of my favorite guitar players. My admiration for him has grown through the years. Sleep Walk from Santo and Johnny remains one of my favorite instrumentals and I can hear it in this clearly…makes me like it more.

Danny Kirwan: Well, that was Monsieur Peter Green – I called him Monsieur, you know – and I played with him. On “Albatross” he told me what to do, all the bits I had to play.

George Harrison: “So we said, ‘Let’s be Fleetwood Mac doing Albatross, just to get going.’ It never really sounded like Fleetwood Mac… but that was the point of origin.”

Peter Green talking about LSD and Albatross

Pretty Things – Don’t Bring Me Down

I’ve heard of this band for so long but never listened to many of their songs. This one is right up my alley…raw, garage-sounding, and slightly punk. They formed in London in 1963. They were known for their raw sound and rebellious image, they are often cited as one of the most influential bands of the 1960s and 1970s. They didn’t have a lot of hits but their sound was copied.

This song was released in 1964, and The Pretty Things was probably the scruffiest band around in 1964… and that includes the Stones.

The song peaked at #10 in the UK and #34 in Canada in 1964. The song was a stand-alone single. They would release their self-titled debut album in 1965. The song was written by Johnny Dee, the manager of a British band at the time called The Fairies.

The Pretty Things continued to evolve after “Don’t Bring Me Down” exploring different musical styles including psychedelia and hard rock. Despite numerous lineup changes and challenges, they remained active for decades, maintaining a cult following.

In 1968 they released the album S.F. Sorrow, one of the first rock operas, predating The Who’s Tommy. It is a concept album that tells the story of a character named Sebastian F. Sorrow from birth to death. Though not a commercial success at the time, it has since been recognized as a groundbreaking work and a classic of that genre.

Don’t Bring Me Down

I’m on my own, nowhere to roam
I tell you baby, don’t want no home
I wander round, feet off the ground
I even go from town to town
I said I think this rock is grand
Say I’ll be your man
Don’t bring me down, don’t bring me down

I met this chick, the other day
And then to me, she said she’ll stay
I get this pad, just like a cave
And then we’ll have, our living made
And then I’ll lead her on the ground
My head is spinning round
Don’t bring me down, don’t bring me down

I, I, I, I, I need a lover ’cause someone new
And then to her I will be true
I’ll buy her furs and pretty things
I’ll even buy a wedding ring
But until then I’ll settle down?
Say I’ll be your man
Don’t bring me down, don’t bring me down

Until then I’ll settle down?
Say I’ll be your man
Don’t bring me down, don’t bring me down
Don’t bring me down

Dave & Phil Alvin – Mister Kicks

I hope everyone is having a great weekend. I’ve told people that I love blogging on the weekends because I use this time to explore more than I do during the week. I’ve posted about The Blasters before and this time it’s the brothers…Dave and Phil Alvin. I like stories about making deals with the Devil and this song falls right into that. It’s been explored in movies and books…this theme is always interesting.

I think the Devil is playing guitar on this one…because it is wicked sounding. No, that is Dave Alvin and his playing and tone are perfect. You cannot get a better tone than what he has on this. When I first heard it… that guitar stood out so much.

Dave and Phil Alvin are the brothers who founded The Blasters. This 2015 album was the duo’s second album called, Lost Time. When Dave left The Blasters in 1986 it created a riff but in 2012…a near-death experience for Phil..reunited the brothers to record a new album of Big Bill Broonzy songs called Common Ground.

The song was written by Oscar Brown Jr. an American singer, songwriter, playwright, poet, and civil rights activist. This song came from Brown’s musical called KICKS & CO. in 1961. They opened it up in Chicago but it closed early. It made it to Broadway 35 years later.

It’s a well-written song thanks to Brown and it works today.

Mr. Kicks

Permit me to introduce myself, the name is Mr. Kicks
I dwell in a dark dominion way down by the river Styx
The devil has sent me here because I’m full of wicked tricks
And I’m such a popular fellow among all you lunatics
I teach a course in ruination from the Devil’s text
For fools who can’t withstand temptation,
Step right up you’re next
I hail from a hollow hell hole down around the river Styx
Allow me to introduce myself the name is Mister Kicks
When a old wolf starts a prowlin’
Out among the young lambs howling
Don’t you know he’s looking for kicks?
When a young cat full of sly tricks
Spends his evenings chasing fly chicks
Ten to one he’s looking for kicks
Kicks is always in demand
Cause kicks is full of fun and laughter
Lots of folks get out of hand
Because it’s only kicks they’re after
Shady lady and her lover operating undercover
She knows sin and virtue don’t mix
Her momma raised her prim and proper
But now wild horses couldn’t stop her
When she’s on a manhunt for kicks
Oh kicks, looking for kicks
Just kicks, nothing but kicks
I’m satan’s simple servant sent to get in a fix
So look me up just anytime
The name is mr., name is mr.,
Name is Mister Kicks

Savoy Brown – A Hard Way To Go

I’ve heard a lot about this band but never listened to them much. Yesterday I did and they were stacked with great musicians. They have a big blues punch and melodic songs.

I just started to listen to many of their songs and this one caught my attention because of the tight bass intro. That is when I noticed a little of Santana’s sound in there as well. This song is a brief 2:20. If you get a chance on Spotify or Youtube…check them out. So far I’ve been going through their first 4 albums.

They are a British blues rock band formed in 1965 by guitarist Kim Simmonds. They are one of the pioneering bands of the British blues rock scene and bands like The Rolling Stones and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers.

Over the years, the band’s lineup has changed numerous times, with Simmonds being the only constant member. Savoy Brown has released over 30 albums, with their early work being highly influential in the blues-rock genre.

They have Kim Simmonds’ expressive guitar work and the band’s tight rhythm section. The song was on the album Raw Sienna released in 1970. The album peaked at #75 in Canada and #121 on the Billboard Album Chart. It was written by the then lead singer Chris Youlden who would be with Savoy Brown from 1967 to 1970.

A Hard Way To Go

Ain’t got time for doubts or fearsAin’t got time for shallow tearsAin’t got time to bare my soulBecause I still got a hard way to go

Said that you got a losing handAin’t no point in you raising sandAin’t got time to bare your soulBecause I still got a hard way to go

And it’s a crying shameThat you can’t lay the blameOn anybody else but yourself

Wish that you had my sympathyYou ain’t got no hold on meAnd my heart is getting coldAnd I still got a hard way to go

And it’s a crying shameThat you can’t lay the blameOn anybody else but yourself

And I still got a hard way to go

Gregg Allman – These Days

Last week I had a UK-flavored week…this week I’m going to have a southern feel.

Right before recording the Allman’s Brothers and Sisters album…Gregg brought a song in for the Brothers and they rejected it because it didn’t fit as well with them. Gregg wanted to expand and use the folk and the California vibe that he had. He thought…I’ll just make my own album. The Allman Brothers fully supported him in this.

In the sixties, Gregg and Duane were in the band Hourglass… Gregg roomed with Jackson Browne for a while. Gregg has stated that he picked up a lot from Browne on songwriting. They kept that relationship for the rest of their lives. Gregg did this song that was written by Browne. He slowed it down and added some more soul to it and Jackson ended up changing the way he did it to match this live. The song was the B side to the biggest hit on the album, Midnight Rider. Allman would continue to play this throughout his career.

This song was on Gregg’s first solo album Laid Back released in 1973. He recorded this album while recording the great Brothers and Sisters album with the Brothers. He was also battling addiction brought on by the loss of his brother Duane and the passing of bassist Berry Oakley.

The song has a history dating back to the 1960s. Nico of the Velvet Underground recorded it first in 1967. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band did it in 1968. According to Secondhandsongs the song has been covered 75 times!

Allman went on tour with Laid Back which included a string orchestra. The tour was a huge success and helped to chart the album at #13 on the Billboard Album Charts and #19 on the Canadian Charts.

Allman’s recording somewhat overshadowed Browne’s version and many have called Allman’s version the definitive version. Jackson Browne even alluded to that as well. Greg Allman and Jackson Browne covered it in 2014. Just my two cents…it’s hard to beat Allman’s voice and his soulful feel.

Jackson Browne: Gregg Allman was one of the most gifted singers of the last fifty years. We became friends in LA in the late sixties when he and Duane were in The Hourglass. He was a blues singer first, and he was so natural, and so soulful, that when he sang songs that were written in a major scale, he found all the most soulful and expressive passages through those changes. It was just how he heard it. That’s how it was with my song, These Days. He slowed it down, and felt it deeply, and he made that song twice as good as it was before he sang it. I got to speak with him in the week before he passed, and I got to tell him how much his music and his friendship has meant to me. He recently recorded one of my early songs, Song For Adam, and he and Don Was sent it to me to sing on, and I did. That song, the way he sang it and where he sang it from – at the end of his life – well, he completed that song, and gave it a resonance and a gravity that could only have been put there by him.

Jackson Browne Version

Allman and Browne…I kept the quick bio and interview with Don Was in at the beginning.

These Days

Well I’ve been out walkingI don’t do that much talking these daysThese days-These days I seem to think a lotAbout the things that I forgot to doAnd all the times I had the chance toI’ve stopped my ramblingI don’t do too much gambling these days, These days-These days I seem to think aboutHow all the changes came about my waysAnd I wonder if I’d see another highwayI had a loverI don’t think I’ll risk anotherThese days, these daysAnd if I seem to be afraidTo live the life that I have made in songIt’s just that I’ve been losing so longI’ve stopped my dreamingI won’t do too much schemingThese days, these daysThese days I sit on corner stonesAnd count the time in quarter tones to tenPlease don’t confront me with my failuresI had not forgotten them

…

John Hiatt – Memphis In The Meantime

Underneath a pork pie hatUntil hell freezes overMaybe you can wait that longBut I don’t think Ronnie Milsap’s gonna everRecord this song

I somehow missed this Hiatt song. I absolutely love the guitar on this track. Come to find out there is a reason I like it. Ry Cooder is on guitar, Nick Lowe on bass, Jim Keltner on drums, and Paul Carrack on keyboards and backing vocals. Later on, B.B. King and Eric Clapton covered this song.

Hiatt had only four days to make an album and this song kicked off his 1987 album Bring The Family. The song has a cool groove and shuffle to it. Hiatt was in Nashville at the time when he took a trip with his family to Memphis which of course inspired this song.

He mentions Ronnie Milsap in this song. At the time Nashville was known to make slick country songs. They would produce the soul out of a song. Milsap was listening though. On his next album, he recorded a John Hiatt song called Old Habits Are Hard To Break and yes… he inserted some Memphis funk in the song. Probably more than Hiatt could have thought at the time. Another thing that was happening at this time was Dwight Yoakam and Steve Earle were shaking Nashville out of its rut.

Hiatt found himself drawn to the city’s renowned musical history and culture. I’m not sure how it was in the 1980s as much but now on Beale Street, there is always something interesting going on.

John Hiatt: “It sounds like a car with four bald tires, it’s like a four-man groove sputtering down the road, and I really like the record for that.”

John Hiatt: “It’s a day trip, only three hours, and it’s a terrific city, I’d been there before and there is truly something in the air, although there’s nothing going on musically speaking, they say. It’s just a great town and one of the only truly integrated cities in America, it seemed to me, where black people and white people actually live together in the neighborhoods and not only that, seem to get along I was real impressed by that.”

John Hiatt and The Goners…featuring Sonny Landreth…I really like this live cut. They add another dimension to the song.

Memphis in the Meantime

I got some’n’ to say little girlYou might not like my styleBut we been hangin’ around this townJust a little too long a whileYou say you’re gonna get your act togetherGonna take it out on the roadBut if I don’t get out o’ here pretty soonMy head’s going to explodeSure I like country musicAnd I like mandolinsBut right now I need a TelecasterThrough a Vibrolux turned up to 10

Let’s go to Memphis in the meantime babyAhw, Memphis in the meantime girlLet’s go to Memphis in the meantime babyMemphis in the meantime girl

I need a little shot of that rhythm babyMixed up with these country bluesI wanna trade in these ol’ cowboy bootsFor some fine Italian shoesForget the mousse and the hairspray sugarWe don’t need none of thatJust a little dab’ll do ya girlUnderneath a pork pie hatUntil hell freezes overMaybe you can wait that longBut I don’t think Ronnie Milsap’s gonna everRecord this song

Lets go to Memphis in the meantime babyLet’s go to Memphis in the meantime girlLets go to Memphis in the meantime babyLet’s go to Memphis in the meantime girl

Maybe there’s nothin’ happenin’ thereBut maybe there’s somethin’ in the airBefore our upper lips get stiffMaybe we need us a big ol’ whiff

If we could just get off-a that beat little girlMaybe we could find the grooveAt least we can get ourselves a decent mealDown at the Rendezvous‘Cause one more heartfelt steel guitar chordGirl, it’s gonna do me inI need to hear some trumpet and saxophoneYou know sound as sweet as sinAnd after we get good and greasyBaby we can come on homePut the cow horns back on the CadillacAnd change the message on the CordaphoneBut

Lets go to Memphis in the meantime babyLet’s go to Memphis in the meantime girlLets go to Memphis in the meantime babyLet’s go to Memphis in the meantime girl

I’m a talking about MemphisI’m talkin’ ’bout MemphisMemphis

…

Powerhouse – I Want To Know

Last week I ran across the one-off “supergroup” The Buzzin’ Cousins that John Mellencamp formed with Joe Ely, Dwight Yoakam, John Prine, and James McMurtry. I thought I would look around for any more that I don’t know about.

Many of you probably know this band but I had no clue about it. It’s been called different things like Eric Clapton’s Powerhouse. This band featured Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, Steve Winwood, Paul Jones (Manfred Man) Pete York (Spencer Davis Group drummer), and Ben Palmer (piano, previously played with Clapton and Jones as a member of the Roosters and the Grands) and they recorded this in 1966.

This was meant to be and was a short-term one-off band that included some heavy players back in the day and huge historically. They recorded three songs that appeared on the Elektra Records compilation What’s Shakin’ in 1966. A fourth song, “Slow Blues”, was recorded but remains unreleased to this day.

It’s been said that I Want To Know was written by Paul Jones but he used his wife’s name in the credit…Sheila McLeod. I would guess for contract reasons. Also due to contractual restrictions, Stevie Winwood is listed as Steve Angulo. The songs are I Want To Know (Shelia McLeod), Steppin Out (Memphis Slim), and Crossroad (Robert Johnson) which Cream would later cover.

Later on these songs were released on collections by Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, and Steve Winwood. This was around the time that Jack Bruce was in Manfred Man.

Here is a link to the complete album on youtube.

I’m going to include their released discography here…all three songs.

I Want To Know

I want to know why do you always run around
I want to know why do you always run around
Every man I know is watching you pull me down
I want to know, do you really mean to hurt me
I want to know, do you really mean to hurt me
Well, I’m tryin’ to understand the dirty way you always treat me
I want to know if I can come home every night
I want to know if I can come home every night
Well, oh woman, oh woman, why can’t you try to treat me right

I wanna know, I wanna know
Hey hey I want want, I wanna know, oo oh
All right, what do you say
Well woman, oh woman, why can’t you try to treat me right

Taj Mahal – Leaving Trunk

The harmonica intro to this song is dirty as hell. You can hear the slide cutting in like a knife while the rhythm is chugging along. The song was written by Sleepy John Estes, son of a Tennessee sharecropper and blind in one eye, in 1930. He wrote it as Milk Cow Blues. It was recorded in Memphis with piano, mandolin, and Este’s guitar.

Leaving Trunk was on Taj Mahal’s self-titled debut album released in 1968. Like Ry Cooder two years after…he had a great band backing him up. On slide guitar and harmonica is Taj Mahal. The great Jesse Ed Davis is on slide guitar also on this album as well as Ry Cooder on rhythm guitar.

He covered songs written by Estes, Robert Johnson, himself, Sonny Boy Williamson II, and Blind Willie McTell. Leaving Trunk is a song that has been covered by many artists over the years, and it continues to be a favorite among blues fans. Secondhandsongs.com says it has 39 different versions to date. Everyone from Bob Willis to The Black Keys has covered this song. This album played a big part in influencing Duane Allman with Statesboro Blues.

I’ve listened to this album in the past few days I’ve been off of work. I’ve been rotating this one and the debut album of Ry Cooder. The slide guitar work on this album is blistering. I can’t state the importance of this album enough. I can see why Duane Allman was so inspired by it. I won’t go through the complete story but Duane was sick with a cold and his brother Gregg gave him a bottle of Coricidin and this album for Duane’s birthday. Below Gregg Allman tells it.

Gregg Allman: And then I looked on the table and all these little red pills, the Coricidin pills, were on the table. He had washed the label off that pill bottle, poured all the pills out. He put on that Taj Mahal record, with Jesse Ed Davis playing slide on “Statesboro Blues,” and starting playing along with it. When I’d left those pills by his door, he hadn’t known how to play slide. From the moment that Duane put that Coricidin bottle on his ring finger, he was just a natural.

Looking back on it, I think that learning to play slide was a changing moment in his life, because it was like he was back in his childhood—or maybe not his childhood, because it never seemed to me like Duane was a child, so it was more like going back to his first days of playing the guitar. He took to the slide instantly and mastered it very quickly. He practiced for hours and hours at a time, playing that thing with a passion—just like he did when he first learned to play the guitar.

Leaving Trunk

I went upstairs to pack my leavin’ trunk
I ain’t see no blues, whiskey made me sloppy drunk
I ain’t never seen no whiskey, the blues made me sloppy drunk
I’m going back to Memphis babe, where I’ll have much better luck

Look out mama you know you asked me to be your king
She said, “You kiddin’ man, if you want it, keep it hid
But please don’t let my husband, my main man catch you here
Please don’t let my main man, my husband catch you here”

The blues are mushed up into three different ways
One said, “Go the other”, two said, “Stay”
I woke up this mornin’ with the blues three different ways
You know one say, “Go baby, I want to hang up”
The other two said, “Stay”

Wake up mama, I got something to tell you
You know I’m a man who loves to sing the blues
Now you got to wake up baby, mama now
I got something, I got something to tell you
Well, you know I’m the man, I’m the man
Oh yes, and I love to sing the blues

Come on Davis
Come on, come on

I went upstairs to pack my leavin’ trunk, you know
I ain’t see no blues or whiskey made me sloppy drunk
I never seen no whiskey, the blues made me sloppy drunk
I go home baby and I lay down on the lawn

Rolling Stones – Prodigal Son

It’s nice to be back to normal… no holiday is mentioned in this song!

When I bought Beggars Banquet I knew about Sympathy for the Devil and Street Fighting Man… this song drew me into the rest of the album. I love the acoustic blues played by Keith. It sounds old…really old. This album doesn’t have a bad track on it to me.

This sounds like what influenced the Stones in the first place. This album is one of the Stones’ great ones and the first one produced by Jimmy Miller. Prodigal Son has remained one of my favorite Stones tracks.

Beggars Banquet peaked at #5 in the Billboard Album Charts, #3 in the UK, and #3 in Canada in 1969.

This song was written by Robert Wilkins, a reverend who recorded Delta Blues in the 1920s and 1930s. Keith Richards enjoyed Blues music and admired the work of Wilkins in the ’60s, which is how The Stones came across this song. Robert Wilkins’ original version was titled “That’s No Way To Get Along.” The Stones gave their version the title “Prodigal Son.”

The Prodigal Son is a story told in the Bible (Luke 15: 11-32) about a father who has two sons. The younger son asks for his inheritance early and goes off to spend the money on hedonistic pursuits. After wasting all the money, he comes home repentant, and the father welcomes him with a feast in his honor. This doesn’t go over well with the older son, who feels that he should be rewarded for good behavior, but the father stresses the value of forgiveness.

Prodigal Son

Well a poor boy took his father’s bread and started down the road
Started down the road
Took all he had and started down the road
Going out in this world, where God only knows
And that’ll be the way to get along

Well poor boy spent all he had, famine come in the land
Famine come in the land
Spent all he had and famine come in the land
Said, “I believe I’ll go and hire me to some man”
And that’ll be the way I’ll get along

Well, man said, “I’ll give you a job for to feed my swine
For to feed my swine
I’ll give you a job for to feed my swine”
Boy stood there and hung his head and cried
Cause that is no way to get along

Said, “I believe I’ll ride, believe I’ll go back home
Believe I’ll go back home
Believe I’ll ride, believe I’ll go back home
Or down the road as far as I can go”
And that’ll be the way to get along

Well, father said, “See my son coming home to me
Coming home to me”
Father ran and fell down on his knees
Said, “Sing and praise, Lord have mercy on me”
Mercy

Oh poor boy stood there, hung his head and cried
Hung his head and cried
Poor boy stood and hung his head and cried
Said, “Father will you look on me as a child?”
Yeah

Well father said, “Eldest son, kill the fatted calf,
Call the family round
Kill that calf and call the family round
My son was lost but now he is found
Cause that’s the way for us to get along”
Hey