Re: [Harp-L] Re: Sonny Boy 2

[Bradford Trainham <btrainham@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I've heard similar anecdotes about SonnyBoy and Robby Robertson having
to sneak him into some hotel because the Hawks/Band wanted to play
with him. 
If the out-takes and between-song patter we hear from him are any
indication, he certainly didn't take anything off of anybody. 
Of racism in the south, I used to get spankings as late as '66 (I'm 48
now.) for listening to black music. 
But your point is not lost on me.  A white boy being spanked is
preferable to a black man being lynched. 
But on the plus side is the robust nature of the musical tradition,
that is, the Blues which has indeed survived all human failings and is
still going strong if currently through an over-the-top swaggering
phase, a little like the United States itself...
So maybe jazz isn't the only "uniquely American musical form" after
all, right?
Brad Trainham
On Tue, 08 May 2007 10:54:05 -0400 (EDT), you wrote:

>Not from that era  but my living with Sonny Terry for two years gave me great 
>insight to what  blacks had to do to be part of the "in" crowd with whites in 
>those such racially  motivated days. My fiancee who is 63 grew up in 
>Arkansas, home of SB's King  Biscuit Time radio show, and said she was not Allowed to 
>listen to the Randy's  Radio at time or the other blues show that aired around 
>the country at night. So  she snuck her little transistor radio under pillow 
>and listened to Jimmy Reed  mostly at night and all the blues. I don't think 
>SB2 did the Smile for me boy  thing, and he really wasn't high energy in his 
>inbetween songs, he just played  the hell out of them. Some evidence being when 
>he recorded I think with the  Yardbirds overseas you hear in a few of his 
>songs how he didn't want to go back  to the states, Europe absolutely loved him, 
>regardless of color. Woody Guthrie  was a great influence in getting black men 
>their due. True story Sonny told me.  Around the 40's they played a big ball 
>for all whites and they loved them, yet  when it came time to eat, the owner 
>said they could not eat with the white folks  and was going to stick them in 
>some secluded place with second hand food. Sonny  and Brownie were pissed and 
>didn't even feel like eating, but Woody said go on  outside and wait for me. 
>Sonny said he could hear Woody screaming,  These men just entertained you all 
>night and now they can't eat with you,  then proceeded to turn over tables and 
>take off. That is probably why so many  Delta bluesmen migrated up north to 
>Chicago or elsewhere if they could, down  south was just too redneck. As white 
>people all we have done since landing was  go on predudice, destroy the Indians 
>that showed us how to tend the land, go  further to witch hunts and burning at 
>the stake, and linchings of so many  innocent black people just on a white 
>person's word saying, it was him. Sonny  felt that in Missouri as late as early 
>60's when they told hims and Brownie, We  don't sell no black gas here. He told 
>me to avoid Missouri if we were driving  but I had to get through to get where 
>we were going. So I am going on  speculation, if someone was there that would 
>be great, but SB2 wasn't taking any  crap from anyone. Big as he was, look at 
>this hands, I believe he stood his  ground. It was an honor to be part of 
>history with Sonny for those 2 years from  76 - 78, he was fair, honest, and 
>ornery as can be. We'd argue, but it was done  and we moved on. I was just a 21 
>year old kid who thought he knew everything. He  said he didn't get to be 65 and 
>blind and make it by being any fool. He could  about 10% out of one eye so 
>could make out shadows, that's how he shot the guy  in the white pants who owed 
>him money and told him to get lost. Everyone hit the  floor saying, The blind 
>man's got a gun! Sonny said he would have shot the  guys wife running with him 
>if he could have seen her. Shot the guy in the  butt. There is a video called 
>Sonny Terry, Whooping the Blues, 1958 - 1974,  where he is playing with J.C. 
>Burris, his nephew, who played the bones and  handjive, Woody Guthrie and 
>Brownie are also on it. One amazing piece is  Sonny doing what they called the 
>Buck Dance, a rythmic tap dance with slaps of  his heels, BLIND, while playing 
>the high end of the harp, Shortnening Bread  stuff.  Then JC does his. Truly 
>amazing and a great video. There is another  with Sonny and Brownie in the 
>series. Sorry to be so long, but if I don't pass  this first hand information down, 
>when I am gone it will not have been heard. My  vocals are rough, so for me I 
>can play his songs, but struggle with singing.  Still working on it. Thank 
>you. Sonny Jr. 
>
>
>
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