Are the Blues Dead/dying?

Peregrine

2007-02-27, 17:25 #1

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Subject: Are the Blues Dead/dying?

Every timew I mention any one even a little Bluesy here it's like
*crickets*....

Where are my:
Kenny Wayne, Susan Tedeshi, BB King, Joe Bonomassa, Keb Mo
fans?! I know we got SRV fans here. Is there no life after Stevie?!?
Is the Blues starting to die off?

Discuss...

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RubenNYC 2007-02-27, 18:10 #2

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Quote by Peregrine:
Every timew I mention any one even a little Bluesy here it's like
*crickets*....

Where are my:
Kenny Wayne, Susan Tedeshi, BB King, Joe Bonomassa, Keb Mo
fans?! I know we got SRV fans here. Is there no life after Stevie?!?
Is the Blues starting to die off?

Discuss...

Kinda depends on who you ask, I guess. There was a very spirited discussion of the blues on my Redskins board recently that you might get a kick out of. http://mbd.scout.com/mb.aspx?S=71&F=1348#S=71&F=13…

Chet Spartan 2007-02-27, 21:55 #3

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Sorry Peregrine, I've never really listened to Kenny Wayne and I don't like SRV personally. My old man listens to BB though and has seen him about a dozen times in half that many states, including at BB's bar on his birthday. Unfortunately I was too young when that trip took place....stupid older brother....

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crunchyfrog (Moderator) 2007-02-28, 06:52 #4

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Wow. Someone else besides me has actually heard of Keb Mo. Neat.

...because I am not a Special Snowflake.

jaw2ek 2007-02-28, 07:54 #5

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+1 Keb Mo' (although lately his blues is starting to sound poppy - another symptom, I guess)

Love Susan Tedeschi - (my friend went to HS with her although I found out after I started listening to her)

Have some Kenny Wayne

Seen BB King live 3 or 4 times.

Don't know Bonomassa.

Where's the Buddy Guy love?

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John30_06 2007-02-28, 08:20 #6

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Is Buddy Guy still alive?
Anyone ever heard of a Dutch guy named Hans Theessink? He's very good, and I really do not like Euro's who ape the blues. This guy's the exception.

Some of the cd's on one or the other of my Rio's:
R.L. Burnside- Wish I were in Heaven Sittin' Down. Well, Well, Well.( He died during Katrina) A film-maker I know who lives in Austin now- don't know if he was at that last SXSW- did an awesome documentary about R.L. after my friend Slade turned him (Bradley) on to R.L.

(R.L.'s record company didn't allow it to be released, so Bradley shows it in rental halls in Austin. http://www.bradleybeesley.com/)
Mance Lipscomb- Texas Country Blues- (He also died during Katrina in S. Texas. very weird, although they were both old. real old.)

Leadbelly- Midnight Special.
Mississippi John Hurt- a 3 cd box set.

Eva Cassidy- (I know, she was a club singer, rather than straight blues, but if anyone ever lived it, sang it, and died it, she did.) By Heart, Imagine, Songbird.

jaw2ek 2007-02-28, 11:39 #7

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Quote by John30_06:
Is Buddy Guy still alive?

Saw an interview with his a few months ago, maybe in the summer?

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flattop100 2007-02-28, 15:58 #8

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Having worked 3 blues festivals a summer for the last 5 summers, I honestly wish the blues would die. Seriously. There's nothing new to be done in this genre of music. Go write a fuckin' symphony or something.

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jaw2ek 2007-02-28, 16:00 #9

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Quote by flattop100:
Having worked 3 blues festivals a summer for the last 5 summers, I honestly wish the blues would die. Seriously. There's nothing new to be done in this genre of music. Go write a fuckin' symphony or something.

Got the blues, eh?..

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Peregrine

2007-02-28, 17:23 #10

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In reply to post #2

That post wasn't really about the blues. It was more like "how long can you continue to listen to the same stuff over and over" and I agree. I used to love 'Metal'... Priest, Sabbath, Maiden... I can't listen to that anymore either. Once in a great while one of the few Maiden tunes I have will play on RANDOM in DJ mode and I think "skip" but as I reach for the Vibez I hear those licks and let it play. Maiden did have some amazing guitarists. But the rest... gawd... I cannot listen to Sweet Leaf even one more time right now.
I go over a friends house and he's still listening to that AC/DC album from 86 and I want to scream at him "MY GOD MAN! THERE IS SOME NEW MUSIC IN THE WORLD".
My tastes have changed so much over the years. If you would have told me 15 years ago I'd be a huge blues fan, I'd laugh at you. I 'discovered' the Blues late...

All good, Chet. I've seen BB 9 times. And yea he certainly hasn't done anything really new in the 00's except the Clapton album (which is some new stuff Flatty). His show is pretty much the same every time, but the mother fucker is pushing 80, a living legend, doing 200 shows a year... and I know the next time I see him could be the last.

I'm just as surprised, Crunchy.

Jaw: Susan's voice is AMAZING... Hurt So Bad shows it best. Every bit as good live. Buddy Guy is alive and he rocks. I tried not to mention the older generation except BB because I've mentioned him in the past. Trying to highlight the younger generation. The "Sweet Tea" album released in, I believe, 2001, is awesome and a totally diffferent side of the blues. Baby, Please Don't Go is to Blues what Stranglehold was to rock. I encourage everyone to find that track.
Bonmassa is incredible, Jaw. 'New' Kid, and I think he is carriying Stevie's torch right now. He's putting down some incredible stuff and he's a gifted guitarist.

I'll look for some of that, John.

Damn, Flatty, don't hold back!?!

Wow... I have to know who was playing at these shows? Keb Mo is trying something a little different, and as was mentioned. Tedeschi is the only somewhat known female blues singer and with her amazing voice, she could just sing Amazing Grace over and over for an hour and I'd say "Good Show"! Bonmassa and KWS keeping the true blues guitar music alive right now. Joe challenging Kenny now as the better guitarist. Buddy Guy?!? He just put out a new album with Mayer/Clapton. Buddy Guy, for such an old dude, is one of the best at doing new things with the blues... at the risk of losing his fans. Amazing! He's 69! (I think). KWS too, tried to do some newer different stuff on he latest and he got blasted for it. But for all the bad press, he put out a good record. See Ain't Selling Out, he knew he was going to hear about it...
There is new and exciting stuff in the blues right now, but I fear it may get lost by this new generations love of hip-hop...

Although... I didn't like the blues when I was young. I mean... I didn't hate it, but I didn't own any except maybe some Jimi/Clapton. Now I'm a rabid fan? Maybe there is hope for the Blues yet...

Robben Ford and the Blue Line is another good blues group to check out.

I rock a lawsuit when I'm going to court, a white suit when I'm getting divorced
A black suit at the funeral home, and my birthday suit when I'm home alone

Toby 2007-02-28, 17:40 #11

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The blues aren't dead. They're stunned. They stun easily.

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flattop100 2007-02-28, 18:07 #12

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Are you guys kidding? Blues is incredibly formulaic. It's generally the same chord progression, and each song is just a framework. Verse, chorus, vamp for improv, and big ending. What kills me are the solos...every single blues "artist" I've heard stays within the blues chords, or if they vary, they end up bending the notes by the end to slip back inside the chord structure. The improv is just a bunch of notes strung together, and more important than the melody or notes played are the pacing. If you sneak a bit of another song in there, you must be one of the better ones. Don't do it too often, though.

Rules of the Blues, According to a Pedant:

1. If you sing, have a voice that knows only whiskey and/or cigarettes. No Velvet Fogs, please.
2. If you play an instrument and are a solo blues 'artist', your weapon of choice must be electric guitar, saxophone, or Hammond. All other instruments are background.
3. There are only two tempos: mournful (but lusty) ballad, and up tempo disappointment, so that the white people have something to gyrate awkwardly to.
4. Be emotional secure, even though you're blue. Extrinsic tendencies are a plus, though not required. Emo is for indie/alt rock.

jaw2ek 2007-02-28, 19:59 #13

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Quote by flattop100:
What kills me are the solos...every single blues "artist" I've heard stays within the blues chords, or if they vary, they end up bending the notes by the end to slip back inside the chord structure.

Much too often, I would have to agree with you there. That's why I tend to prefer Clapton (for example) when he is doing pop or rock, especially pop. The structure keeps the solos in check. The songs tend to be about playing a decent melody. Not that I listen to Clapton much anymore. I get tired of the endless soloing, too.

But there is a caveat, Flatty: Blues is not Jazz. This may seem a dumb statement, but that's what it sounds like you're looking for in analyzing the "formulaic" structure. Blues should have structure. Unfortunately, the vast majority of fans expect pointless soloing, so that's what they get. Buddy Guy, for example, does a lot of this live. (Although his shows are fun, actually -- a lot of energy) On record, though, he is much more cerebral, musically.

Quote by flattop100:
Rules of the Blues, According to a Pedant:
1. If you sing, have a voice that knows only whiskey and/or cigarettes. No Velvet Fogs, please.

Try listening to Susan Tedeschi. Most of the song structures are pretty basic, but the voice!

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mimiihu 2007-02-28, 20:07 #14

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In reply to post #12

5. name your instrument after a girl (names from the pinup era like betty, peggy or lucie, work better).

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MacDancer 2007-02-28, 21:55 #15

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Peregrine, I consider myself a great fan of metal, and am not particularly fond of any of those bands. I know you're probably past it, but consider checking out more underground acts, particularly those from Scandinavia. They're much more interesting, in my opinion, and there's a subgenre of metal for every mood of every person. I'm not saying that you should only listen to metal, I just want to make you aware that there's so much more to metal than the bands you listed. I often listen to some rock, folk, choral, and classical, but I find that the lesser-known metal bands can incorporate the best aspects of each of these genres into their music and at least give me a new twist on the old formulas.

Can't say I can think of anything particularly bluesy off the top of my head, though. Something doom-ish would be the closest I could think of... Einkoro?