Re: Goodbye Bob, Hello Woody

[Joel Fritz <jfritz666@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Steve Shaw wrote:

>
> Now I know that Woody Guthrie wasn't the world's greatest harmonica 
> player, but neither was he the greatest guitarist (to say the least) 
> or singer.  But to me he is magic - his best songs have words that 
> seem to cut right through and go straight to the heart, with a lot 
> less bitterness and polemic than a lot of other "protest" singers, and 
> more than a touch of poetry at times.  And his singing and 
> harp-playing, though modest, worked perfectly in the service of the 
> music.  He didn't record in the era when it was possible to do much 
> polishing-up of recorded performances, and he sounds rough around the 
> edges at times.  But even though he's a"hero" to many British folkies, 
> during the couple of years I've been on the lists he's had only scant 
> mention.  I wondered whether he was something of a prophet without 
> honour in his own country, or whether we simply we don't discuss him 
> because his harp-playing wasn't of the first water.
>
> Steve Shaw
>
>
>
Guthrie played harmonica and mandolin better than guitar.  There's some 
harmonica tunes on his Library of Congress recordings that are 
surprisingly good.  He also had a pretty full sound playing in a rack.  
He was Bob Dylan's harmonica inspiration.

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