[Harp-L] re: Dylan

["Jim Alciere" <jim.alciere@xxxxxxxxx>]

Always been a fan of Dylan's harp playing. He does a good job with the
melody and the harp playing is usually just what the song needs. So what
would a competent harp player do with this kind of music? For Bob's acoustic
years, listen to Sonny Terry accompany Woody Guthrie. There's a guy with
tone to spare, playing the melody (in 2nd position, and adding all kinds of
cool fills). Dylan and Sonny Terry were both in New York and both part of
that folk music. Too bad they never put a record out (Bob could have used
Leadbelly's twelve string playing as well). Mel Lyman from the Kweskin Jug
Band could have added a lot ot Bob's music and he was certainly around at
the same time in the same venues. And of course, Bob's band when he first
went electric was basically the Butterfield Blues Band minus Butterfield and
Butterfield would have done a much better job with Highway 61. Heck, Bob had
Charlie McCoy playing bass for him on Nashville Skyline. Dylan could have
got any number of talented harp players. Probably figured that for his
songs, his harp playing was enough--lyrics being Bob's forte and the main
focus of his songs. Most people don't listen to Gates of Eden for the harp
solo (I'm an exception).

A lot of songs modulate up from the tonic to the subdominant during the
bridge so it's nice to know how to play in 1st ala Bob, that way you can
play 2nd position for the verse and slide into first for the bridge without
changing harp. If it's a blues tune (yes blues can have a bridge) Jimmy Reed
does a nice 1st position as well.

-- 
Rainbow Jimmy
http://www.spaceanimals.com
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