Re: [Harp-L] Angie's deduction



At 02:37 PM 3/2/2007, Winslow Yerxa wrote:
>I grew up in Vancouver and many of my early gigs were in strip
>clubs, either on the Granville Mall or East Hastings.
>
>And yeah, there were some strippers who really liked the harmonica.

First, I apologize to all for the limited value of my usual input, since I don't play out musically, neither harp-wise nor vocally, the latter of which I'm more at comfort with anyway. Also, apologies for my repeated references to my former partnership with Doug Tate, but that is without doubt the most ingrained part of my harmonica experience. And Winslow is a grand old friend of us both, but I never realized one connection he and Douglas had in common till now.

Doug also played in similar... um... 'venues'. The "Windmill" was one I often heard tales about; except that these weren't strip joints, because the performers were stripped already! ;-) I can't even imagine the scene as he described playing harmonica among the nude dancers, who would also sometimes tease upcoming performers by flinging out peas onto the floor as they, or he, came onstage, obviously in hopes of a great laugh seeing him stumble and fall! I'm certain that's where he learned that 'slipper shuffle' which he seemed to carry through all his days from then on!!!

I've heard similar stories of people coming up to Little Walter
at gigs and trying to pry his hands open to see how he was making
that amazing sound - they had no idea there was a harmonica in
there.

And I was right there the time Douglas had an incredulous listener come up to him and demand to show where the microphone was that he had hidden as he played his Renaissance. Even after Doug demonstrated his well known resonance technique for amplifying notes with hand position, the guy STILL went away scoffing... swearing that he MUST have had a hidden microphone to attain that enormous volume of sound! Such it goes...


I wouldn't be too hard on poor Angie - she she was curious and wasn't
hesitant about sincerely expressing her appreciation for Wolf's
playing. As I recall, the strippers were usually pretty nice. It was
the singers you had to watch out for.

Hey, hey, hey!!! Watch it, brother, from one who sings more than harps!


They would lose time, then get mad at the band when the music got out of sync. A drummer I knew ran afoul of a singer in a situation like that - she sliced his face with a smashed beer glass.

Well, anyway, thanks for the suggestion! ;-)


Glass Armonically yours,
=[Bobbie]=





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