[Harp-L] Cadillac Records, Little Walter

["Mick Zaklan" <mzaklan@xxxxxxxxx>]

   Hesitate to post on this since I haven't seen the movie and may never
bother seeing it.  Never got a chance to see Little Walter work; he passed
away a couple of years before I started playing.
   We all have a lot of affection for this guy because of his contributions
to our instrument and to the blues genre.  Given his bad habits, though; I
imagine that there were people who didn't hold very fond memories of him.
Actually, I don't have to imagine; I met some of these people.  I did a
little hanging out with Walter's back-up band, the Aces (Louis and Dave
Myers and Freddy Below), back in the 1970's.  Every time I attempted to
grill them about Walter; they either changed the subject or brought up other
harp players that they appeared to feel were superior to Walter and/or
underrated (Junior Wells and Forest City Joe).  Clearly, they were angry
about something.  At least Dave and Louis were; Freddy Below was as sweet
and positive a guy as I've ever met.
   Never found out what their beef was; could be that they felt their
contribution to Walter's music was under-appreciated by the critics and the
public.  I think they probably felt that about everybody they ever backed
up.  I do, however, recall Johnny Young telling me about Walter pulling
Louis Myers aside in between sets and slapping him across the face for a
mistake made onstage.  When I asked why Louis would take that from a smaller
man; Johnny told me that Walter packed a pistol and was not shy
about showing it during arguments.  That people were afraid of this guy.
   Of course, this doesn't excuse a movie for incorrectly portraying a man
as a murderer.  Frankly, I was surprised that the movie even contained a
Little Walter character.  Without the fabrication of a murder subplot, I
suspect that any Little Walter footage would have wound up on the cutting
room floor.  I think audiences in general would recognize the names of Muddy
Waters, Chuck Berry, and Etta James (apparently "At Last" is now a
must-know or must-have for any wedding band or deejay) way before they would
know about somebody named Little Walter.  Personally, I wasn't expecting a
Walter character in the movie and it was a real kick to hear his music in
the trailer along with an actor actually portraying the guy.  As others have
pointed out, I guess we should thankful he is in the movie.

Mick Zaklan