[Harp-L] What Popper means to me.

["Greg Hommert" <mythacles@xxxxxxx>]

<This John Popper thing came up at SPAH last year, by the way, and nearly
totally confused and discouraged one of our newest, talented players. I
helped him clear it up and reminded him that he may actually 'get' John
Popper's playing even better than those people who were criticizing him,
especially since it was John Popper's playing that had encouraged him and
guided him to take up the harmonica in the first place. But the incident
caused me to wonder if those mouthy critics of John Popper could remember
that the 'P' in SPAH stood for "Preservation" and the 'A' for "Advancement".

Cara>

 First of all I would like to thank Cara for summarizing my first SPAH 
experience last year in St. Louis so kindly, you are a wonderful friend 
Cara, and an equally talented harmonica player.  Today is my first visit to 
Harp-L, I met Froggy at SPAH just a couple of days ago and he turned me onto 
this madness.  Anyways after searching the archives of this past month I've 
come across a great deal of mention about Jon Popper of BT.
 Here's the deal!  Popper opened up a whole new world of playing to a 
generation that just doesn't have a mass appealing or popular harmonica 
player in their midst.  I'm seventeen, so I know that if asked; about 90% of 
my peers at least (meaning other teenagers and "youngin"), could only name 
Jon Popper as the a harmonica player they've actually heard of.  During a 
time in which the harmonica was not getting a predominant amount of play 
time on the radioways, or whatever (etc..) Jon Popper more or less broke the 
large scale silence.  His style isn't totally new (for example sugar blue, 
etc..) but he was one of the first to apply that type of style to the kind 
of music his band produced.
 Now as for his affect on the advancement or preservation of the harmonica 
itself; let me put it this way, if it weren't for Jon Popper I never would 
have picked up a harmonica.  I'm seventeen now, I just attended my second 
SPAH convention, and up until I went to my first, Jon Popper was the only 
Harmonica player I knew existed, he was the only one that got enough play 
time on the radio, etc.. to notice.
 Many people might not want to admit it, especially the old blues purists 
but Popper style playing does have it's dvantages of learning.  It is 
relatively fast and appealing to a mass audience or public(who know 
relatively nothing about music or harmonica to begin with as a whole, and as 
musicainas we are also entertainers).  Also; learning all those breathing 
patterns, etc.. opens up the door to the more technical styles of playing, 
and makes them easier to learn quickly.  I can only say that because I'm 
beginning to experience that very thing myself.
 Popper style playing teaches comfortablility with the instrument, and once 
you become flexible with the instrument you play, learning the music doesn't 
seem like the impossible task it may have once been.
 Ultimately I have always had a soft spot for Popper playing, it may not be 
most loved amongst other harp players, but it's where I come from originally 
in my own playing; and it has helped me to move into other different (and 
more personally appealing) styles and ways of playing without much 
difficulty (SPAH also had a great deal to do with that .. well ok SPAH is 
why i was able to learn all the stuff I have over the past year or so, and 
now more, but you get the idea).  And either way Jon is one hell of a song 
writer... I mean how can you not just love "the mountains win again" (four) 
or "Carolina Blues" (Straight on Till Morning).

Greg Hommert