[Harp-L] War

[SONNYTONE@xxxxxxx]

the song by Lee Oskar and War was called Get Down. I met Lee  when he and War 
were in the studio in 1978, right after his mostly  minor harp solo CD, which 
I tried to copy note for note, and played for him. He  said after while, 
c'mon back here,  and we went in a back room and jammed  like harp players do, for 
an hour. I have a pic, he had the better fro. We did  another jam at the 2000 
David Barrett Masterclass that put goose bumps on my  arm. He is the greatest 
in my eyes for his melodic, beautiful tone. Sure I love  Chicago, but Lee was 
my very first influence, then Sonny. To meet him and become  friends for all 
these years has been a joy. Our jam was me saying, Hey Lee,  let's get up and 
do something. I just started a ST rhythm, and he blew his minor  stuff over 
it, I was in a daze, I could feel so much coming out of his soul. I  cannot 
remember a single note or phrase. To me, THAT is true harmonic genius,  Lee Oskar, 
not talked about on this list. I saw WAR live in 74, damn what a  show. 
How do you tell a true harp master? IMO, when you hear one second, one  note, 
and you know who it is. Either for them being great, or annoying. Cotton,  
Lee, Delay, Smith, you guys fill in some of your favorites you can distinguish  
with one millisecond of a note. Hey, maybe we can get back on the subject of  
what makes this instrument so great. Twenty two year old white boy in a  hotel 
room playing with Sonny Terry and Lightning Hopkins, priceless. I can tell  a 
lot of guys on this list may be a bit younger, there was a magical time in 
the  60's, 70's and 80's for harp to evolve. Many have laid the foundation for 
the  Jason Ricci's and others to continue on with. Portnoy, Tom Ball, BBQ Bob,  
Iceman, and many others know the feeling of hearing  greatness up  front and 
personal. At the time who knew just how much of an impact and  experience it 
would become. 
Humility: It's hard to fall on your face when you are on your  knees. Sonny 
Jr.