Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with blues

Excellent blues bars in Philadelphia

schroedinger — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:17:34 -0800

I'm looking for an excellent jazz/blues/blues-rock bar in Philly. Grizzled old guys on their guitars, grizzled old patrons, bad lighting, laid-back bartenders and a relaxed atmosphere with a little bit of room to sway if you're feeling it. If you've ever been to the Cat's Eye Pub in Baltimore, something like that. All of my bar exposure so far has been in Old City (too swank), University City (too fratty), or Northern Liberties or South Street (too hipster). The few blues bars I've been to were upscale and I am cheap and don't like dressing up. Where do the old tattooed men and women go to do their soulful Led Zeppelin covers and play John Lee Hooker?

Others like St. James Infirmary?

Baby_Balrog — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 07:53:25 -0800

My band does a great cover of St. James Infirmary Blues. What else should we do that's in the same vein? Here's a bozillion .mp3s of St. James so you can get a feel for it. It looks like it's been categorized under pre-war blues. It sounds great - we do it as a three-piece... guitar, banjo, fiddle with three-part vocal harmonies. It plays well on the fiddle - what other tunes capture this kind of dark, painful sound in a blues way that translates well to string band?

Best sounding CD of Robert Johnson recordings ?

Brandon Blatcher — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:59:08 -0800

What's the best sounding CD that contains music by the delta blues singer/guitarist Robert Johnson? Currently I have a CD of his recordings titled "King of the Delta Blues Singers". It sounds like shit. I'm not talking the fuzz and pop of an old recording, but on the some of the higher notes, say in Terraplane Blues, the sound gets distorted and it sounds like the speaker is about to blow. This has happen on different audio equipment, be it at home, work or in the car. Also the actual volume of the recording sounds quite low.

Now, I'm sure I've heard better versions of these recordings, but of course don't have anything to back that up other than "I could have sworn this sounded better on another CD!"

Is there a comprehensive list of the CDs have been put out with Johnson's music and (This the key part) is there one that sounds particularly good despite the obvious archival qualities of the recordings?

What are the canonical "cocksman" blues performances?

Joe Beese — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 10:42:44 -0800

What are the canonical "cocksman" blues performances? i.e. Howlin' Wolf - "Back Door Man". I'm planning a "mixtape". That's what we called 'em. And we wore onions on our belts... which was the style at the time...

Help me avoid having the Dallas club experience while I'm in Vancouver

Unicorn on the cob — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 08:45:10 -0800

Techno in Vancouver? Is there such a thing? If no techno, how about a really good blues bar? Help me find it before September 6. I'm about to be in Vancouver for a week (returning to US September 6). My mother is coming along; she likes live blues, I like techno. When I say techno, I don't mean remixes of top 40 music, I mean stuff like The Black Dog, Heartthrob, Drexciya, Rob Hood, Cybotron, that sort of thing. I also like tech-house and electro, even DnB, but kind of can't stand vocal or deep house or bad dubstep being drowned out by a crappy MC.

I see that Mark Farina is playing while I'm there, and that Lotus might be a good venue. But all the club listings look like they do here in Dallas; there's a lot of hype talk on flyers and all-caps Twittering, but I can't tell crap about the sound system or what style of music the djs play there. I don't care about the crowd or how much it costs to get in; I want a good sound system and a bar where I can get a decent drink without waiting 45 minutes or ordering bottle service for a few hundred just to sit down.

Alternatively, I'd also like to know what DJs to look for by name or if there are underground parties (I see there is an afterhours scene there too).

If there's none of that to be had, a dive bar with a jukebox would be just great. I'm not super-picky, but I don't want to pay $30 to go into a place that sucks, you know?

My mom would like a place where we can sit and hear local blues musicians play, or at least hear blues and jazz of some kind if it's not live and possibly eat dinner.

If anyone has suggestions on how I should dress for going out fashionably in Van, it'd be welcome, too; I see that "dress code" is listed on some clubs' pages. I'm sort of the anti-jeans and tshirt girl to begin with; I'm just trying to avoid being gauche, I suppose.

We will be staying near Robson and Granville.

Shout-out, Vancouver MeFites! If you see this and want to meet up, MeMail me. I won't have my laptop but I'll have my Blackberry which is always reliable for hitting up MeFi. :) I'll be wearing my Metafilter shirt at least once, so if you see a super-short girl walking down the street with one on, it might be me. Say hi!

Help me play with my feet!

metajc — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 10:59:19 -0800

I play guitar with my hands and want to play beats with my feet. Can't figure out what kind of (digital) equipment I would need to accomplish this. I didn't get the idea from Bob Log III but he definitely inspired me push for it. I already fool around with a little bass drum and cymbal stand but it would be nice to be able to rig up some triggers (?) and a drum machine. Is that what I would need?

Any ideas for the fullest foot-powered percussion possible?

Baby making music

jadepearl — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 08:30:04 -0800

songfilter: I heard the fragment of a song years ago and it is a long shot. Hope me! I heard this song years ago like circa 1999-2000 in the bay area and thought it was by Janis Joplin but no dice on the phrase lyric, "I just want to make sweet love to you" Style is similar to R&B Blues of Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings and Joplin's Move on Over.

I am horrible in tracking down music and hope that the powers of the green are strong enough to provide artist and song.

What are some books or educational DVD's for learning rock, blues and jazz piano and Hammond B-3 soloing and licks

doppler68 — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 21:28:52 -0800

What are some good books or educational DVD's, besides Jamie Abersol, for learning rock, blues and jazz piano and Hammond B-3 soloing and licks. I am a very competent keyboardist. I can play by ear, chord chart and written music. I am a good band musician. I can comp and sound great. But I can't solo for the life of me. I have a good digital piano and Micro B mark II. I don't really have any good licks. Where can I go to learn this stuff?

BluesFilter: Help with a blues sub-genre

Gerard Sorme — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 22:52:58 -0800

I had no idea there were so many different sub-genres of "blues" music. After doing a little research, I'm still confused at to what the style of blues I like is actually called. (More inside) I like the slower blues that we heard in "Love Song For Bobby Long" (great movie!), typified most I suppose for many by Robert Johnson. As much as I like Johnson, Fred McDowell, Son House, etc. my favorites incorporate the acoustic guitar along with use of the harmonica and some piano. And like I said, at a slower pace and not the frenetic "blues" you hear so often today with heavy electric guitar riffs. So what is the "blues" genre I like called? Suggestions for musicians I may have never heard of?

I'm pretty new to the whole blues thing, but since I've been listening, it sounds like I've known this stuff for decades. I feel at home with it, though I was raised thousands of miles from the hotbeds of blues music. It's odd. But it would sure be nice to know what it is I actually like.

Help?

As always, thanks in advance.

What songs did Bob Dylan steal from?

malapropist — Fri, 22 May 2009 12:59:42 -0800

What old or traditional songs has Bob Dylan bogarted for his own use? To give you an idea of what I'm talking about, I like Dylan's song I Dreamed I Saw Saint Augustine off John Wesley Harding. I was watching a Pete Seeger documentary recently that featured his performance of "I Dreamed I Saw Joe Hill Last Night," and I couldn't believe the similarity of these two lyrics; the phrasing and cadence of these lines was exactly the same, except replacing "St. Augustine" for "Joe Hill Last Night."

I already knew Dylan writes this way. There are other, more apparent examples of Dylan taking a phrase or sentence (or song) and reappropriating it for his own uses, such as Rollin' and Tumblin' off Modern Times. Just to be clear, I don't find this controversial at all, that's simply how folk music works. But after hearing "Joe Hill" I'm starting to realize that there must be many more examples of this that I'm completely unaware of. Do you know of any?

I've been looking to get more into old folk, country and blues lately, but it all seems a bit overwhelming to this listener's 21st century ears. However, I think if I could listen to a song and draw a connection from there to somewhere in Dylan's work, it would make it that much more interesting to me. So please, your examples of an old-timey song that Dylan pays homage to, references, or just plain flat-out steals?

Hit me with your best blues artist and album recommendations.

DrDreidel — Tue, 19 May 2009 12:03:58 -0800

Almost every type of music I love is inspired by blues. What are the quintessential blues artists and albums I should explore to really get a basic understanding of the genre?

Song lyrics search--Humdrum Blues, unknown female singer

Slinga — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 13:49:53 -0800

Heard a song at work on the Muzak, googled it, couldn't find it. It was a female singer, jazzy-sounding. I recall her mentioning the "humdrum blues." The lyric I wrote down was "work like a dog but I'm mighty poor." I googled "humdrum blues," but what I found was a different song, and googling the lyrics got me nothing.

I've Got to Hear More of This!

konig — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 23:56:01 -0800

I've just discovered Kutiman on YouTube. Does anyone else come close to his mashup genius? He is an Israeli musician who apparently is new to his craft, but his work is awesome! The samples linked are of the R&B/Funk variety, not sure if he does anything else, but I love this stuff. If you know anyone else even close to being this talented, please advise. Listen to this and this and this. If this is the future of music, I am all aboard!

Blues harp in modern classical music?

No-sword — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 06:12:26 -0800

Are there any good examples of contemporary "classical"/art music featuring the diatonic blues harp? I have found few works scored for chromatic harmonica, like Villa-Lobos's concerto, but these don't interest me as much. I'm more interested in composers who have engaged with traditional blues harp sounds and techniques, the way composers from Country X will often write a "Concerto for Traditional Folk Instrument of Country X and Orchestra."

Okay, so "muddy water" may be a stretch.

the luke parker fiasco — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 10:24:46 -0800

Ultimate Thanksgiving music set: Help me find as many food-referential jazz, blues, jump-blues, swing, and generally dance-y songs as possible. A few years back, I used to frequent a dance night in Chicago where, during the week of Thanksgiving, would play a "food set"--basically, 4-ish hours of jazz and blues dancin' music that was food-related (with no repeats--the regular DJ had a staggering music collection). I would like to recreate this for my Thanksgiving gathering this year, but I'm out of the country and no longer in contact with the scene, and the website where occasional setlists was posted is down indefinitely. And while I would know dozens of such songs were I to hear them, I'm not encyclopedic in my knowledge of titles, artists, etc.

So, music gurus, jazz aficionados, dancers out there, help me track down as many such songs as possible. Anything from the totally obvious to the most nebulously connected is great. Artists including and beyond names like Nina Simone, Lou Rawls, Slim Gaillard, Jimmy Witherspoon, Etta James, Diana Krall, B.B. King ...
Here's a sampling of what I've found, and the direction I'm looking in:

Frim Fram Sauce
Potato Chips
I'd Rather Drink Muddy Water
One Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer
Sherry Flip
Why Don't You Eat Where You Slept Last Night
Sugar in My Bowl

... and so on. (Not all the links are the greatest versions, but they give an idea.)

where to sit in house of blues

busboy789 — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 05:56:02 -0800

Attention Dallasites: venue House of Blues. What is the best seat, and why, box or balcony? Ticketmaster's map of the seating doesn't really mean much to me. I'm looking for firsthand experience here. I'm buying tickets in a few hours and have never been in the place before. thanks!

...

Pants! — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 08:34:54 -0800

What are some blues songs with genuinely depressing, ruin your mood lyrics/vocals?

Not so deluxe. More like deFAIL.

littlerobothead — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 15:25:06 -0800

Guitar amp issues, with a long way between me and a tech. Help me know what to say when I call! I've owned a Blues Deluxe reissue since 1996. Loved this amp to death when I first got it, and still do. I never gigged with it, just used it for practice and noodling. I put it in storage when I moved to an apartment in DC years ago, and now it's out of storage and I want to play it again.

Trouble is, when I turn it on, I get no sound. Often, the channel selector light will come on and a faint pop is heard. If I let the amp sit on standby for a half hour or so, I can play. Other times I let it warm up, and the minute I load the amp with a signal, it clips out on me.

I've fiddled with the tubes a bit, trying some replacements a friend gave me. I've also changed to fuse to no avail. This is my first tube amp, and only the second amp I ever bought, so I'm sort of a tube noob. There's no bias adjustment on this amp, so an old friend via email told me swamping tubes should be like changing a lightbulb.

Is my amp dead, or am I overlooking something?

Last-minute wedding reception music - HELP!

irishkitten — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 10:34:05 -0800

We're looking for dinner music for our wedding reception in a week! More behind the cut... The wedding/reception is next Saturday. We're looking for some good suggestions for jazz/bluesy type music over the dinner hours. Our DJ has been less than helpful throughout the entire process(we're providing over half the evening's music), his dinner music 'isn't in the online database', and he has a couple 'crooner' cds that he generally uses. My hubby and I are a little more picky than the DJ seems to understand, and would like to sample songs, instead of the DJ picking random music. I'd 86 the DJ but with a hefty deposit and a week to go, it's not possible. What IS possible, is for us to provide him a CD with what WE want to hear. We just don't know where to start. Help? :)

Thanks, MeFites!

What is this blues song?

thelastpolarbear — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 07:58:47 -0800

Long shot - I'm looking for the title/artist/any information for a blues song that I had on a mix cd once. The song may have had "yodel" in the title, but there was no legitimate yodeling in the song. Aw shucks! The song is a typical blues structure... but every once in a while, it breaks, and the singer says something like

Singer: Go on and yodel for us, [name]
[Name]: I ain't doing it this time!
Singer: Aw come on and yodel.
[Sound of a trombone going wah, wah wah wah]
Singer: Aw shucks!

This happens between every verse, making for a really awesome blues song. What I posted above is not actually a quote, it's just an idea of what they said. I've tried googling fragments of lyrics that I remember, I've checked almost every song on iTunes that comes up when you search "yodel", but I'm fresh out of ideas.

I know it's a long shot, but it's a really awesome song.

Headed out on the trail - help equip our sing-a-long arsenal!

jofuu — Wed, 14 May 2008 10:52:51 -0800

My girlfriend and I are hiking the Appalachian trail for two weeks at the end of the month. We're taking along a Martin Backpacker (guitar) and a small set of bongos. What are some very excellent blues/folk/bluegrass/mountain songs that we should learn before we go? We're also bringing a hand held recorder so we can remember all this.

I'm looking for more traditional rootsy stuff as opposed to anything by contemporary artists. Obviously, I won't reject any ideas though so throw them at me.

Thanks in advance Metafilter!

key for "Born Under a Bad Sign"?

tremolo1970 — Thu, 01 May 2008 10:58:05 -0800

Beginning guitarist here. Can someone tell me what key Albert King's "Born Under a Bad Sign" is in? The album version, please. My guess is F# since that's what note the groove starts out with. But I know nothing about these things, so don't laugh at me too hard.

Please help me find a charity I heard about a few years ago.

rollbiz — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 20:49:55 -0800

I've decided to give away my economic stimulus check to a variety of charities and foundations. I'm trying to locate a particular charity which provided financial support to blues musicians in need of assistance with food, medical bills, home repairs, burial expenses, etc. I've located the Rhythm and Blues Foundation and it seems wonderful, but I do not think this is the organization I am looking for. I don't know much more except that I believe the org I am looking for was founded by one person and more recently than the R&B Foundation. I have lots of ideas for general donations but I'm looking to do something in this niche, so suggestions of any groups providing assistance to out of luck musicians would be great as well...

I Want the Blues

keith0718 — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 02:00:46 -0800

Help me discover more of the blues music I love. After exploring reggae music for the past 15 years, I find myself wanting to discover more blues artists like the ones I was into before the reggae bug bit--James Harmon, The Bel Airs, Freddie King, etc. I don't know the right adjectives to describe this kind of blues, but I would describe it as mid-tempo dance party blues, heavy on the groove and with a classic late 50s/early 60s sound--fender tube amps and guitars. (Follow the Bel Airs link for an example.) If you know what I'm describing, please recommend some artists and albums. Thanks!

Blooz I can Yooz.

unSane — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 19:44:00 -0800

I'm a good guitar player, but I can't play the blues. I mean, the real blues. Help me learn. I've been playing guitar for more than 20 years. I've played hundreds of gigs, made commercial CDs, national radio play, been reviewed in NME... but I've never really mastered the blues. Mostly because I wasn't interested in playing it, even though I listened to it.

But now I'd like to learn.

The problem is that almost everything I look at, I already know. I know the blues scale. I know mixolydian. You show me a ZZ top tab, I can play it. I can even fake a BB King solo over 'The Thrill is Gone'.

But I can't play the blues. I can't vamp a 12 bar, not really. I get lost in the turnarounds. I just sound like a white guy faking it, which I am.

So, assuming that I can read any tab you throw at me, that I have the technical chops required, that I know my scales and chords, what are the best resources for actually sounding like I know what I'm doing?

(I'm really good at playing by ear but I find that when I hear a huge flurry of blues notes I tend to vague out..)

Data point: I love Freddie King and Albert King. Lightnin' Hopkins and John Lee Hooker. Hubert Sumlin. ZZ Top.

BB King, not so much. Eric Clapton, not at all.