Re: overblows, was Same Old Thing

[Gatorharp@xxxxxxx]

AV1901@xxxxxxx writes...
<<Are there lots of Harp-L posters who regularly use overblows in 
performance? >>
i wouldn't say regularly, but i use the 6 overblow a bit.  even this, i 
haven't seamlessly worked in, but it's there, and the more i do it, the closer to 
automatic it gets.

tinus writes...
<<There was a time when harps were played in first position.
Played in the key they were labelled in.
Some people started play to in second position and bend notes.
I doubt that at the time the technique was as developed as it is today.
There might even have been people who thought it was wrong to bend notes on
a diatonic harmonica, but then there still are.>>
exactly.  people praise little walter for his innovation, but they don't seem 
to want any after that.  when the first person started playing bent notes, 
i'm sure somebody thought, "what are they doing to that thing?"  and it wasn't 
just because it was bad, but because it wasn't a harp was supposed to sound 
like.

AV1901@xxxxxxx writes...
<<Can anyone steer me towards some commercially available recording of 
overblows/draws done to enhance the feel/musicality of a song? I've got 
Howard Levy's videotape. >>
someone suggested del junco's big boy, but i would actually suggest either 
the duo album blues with bill kinnear, or del junco's own live album.  these are 
straight up blues.  big boy is great, too, but is all over the place 
musically.
mother mojo by satan and adam is cool, too.
dennis gruenling uses overblows in a blues context, but i've never sat there 
and figured out when and where.

ironmancurtis@xxxxxxxxxxxx writes:
<< I've tried overblows, and likewise don't care much for them.  I find them
 "cardboardey" in sound (even the best I've heard thuis far - not counting
 the special "overblow" harmonicas like the Bahnson that require the use of
 hands and consequently of no practical use to me in a rack), and they "jump
 out" at me. >>
that's amazing, 'cause the thing about howard levy and carlos del junco to me 
is that they ~don't~ jump out at you.  and certainly not anymore than most 
people's regular bends.  and that, i think, is why i think it's funny when 
people complain about the sound of overblows.  with even the best players, you can 
tell when they are playing "normal" bent notes...excepting those like levy, 
del junco, iceman, etc who have worked at minimizing the differences in bent vs 
non-bent notes.
i'm sure mike has a better ear than the rest of us, what with his perfect 
pitch and all (that's meant to be friendly and funny, but i hate drawing little 
smiley faces)

steven j gatorman