[Harp-L] Satan & Adam in Mississippi

["Evan Meagher" <meagher@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hey all, 

I had the pleasure to see the reunited Satan & Adam three times this past
weekend in Mississippi. The first was a casual affair, a 4th of July bbq at
Adam Gussow's place, the second a gig at Red's in Clarksdale, and the third
at an open air barbecue/festival type thing at the Foxfire Ranch in
Abbeville. 

Gussow never seemed to get the adulation he deserves on this list, and I've
never known why, although I suspect it's on account of his less traditional
approach to playing blues harp and the relative difficulty of finding S&A's
three albums (on Rooster and Flying Fish). In any case, I've always
considered him one of the most innovative blues harmonica players I have
ever heard. He still sounds it, too- the fact that he can sound the way he
does while devoting his professional energies to life as a professor at Ole
Miss is pretty awe-inspiring. 

The band has changed since I snuck into the a bar with a fake ID in
Portsmouth NH more than ten years ago. Dave Laycock is now anchoring the
percussion, and Satan's guitar playing is less frenzied than before, albeit
will flashes of his old "three octave sound." He's still got the great voice
though, and it did my heart good to see them cranking through Mr. Cantrell,
Ode to Billy Joe, and the highlight of the shows, Thunky Fing once again. 

On Friday night, Adam had a young kid from the area sit in with him named
Brandon Bailey. Watch out for this kid- he's just 16 and already a killer.
The next night was the CD release party for their new CD, Word on the
Street, which by the way is *incredible.* Really captures their old sound on
the streets of Harlem. (Available here:
http://www.tradebit.com/filedetail.php/3072257-Music-Jazz-Blues) 

The Red's gig was great, despite the tough turnout on a night when there
were 5 live shows in Clarksdale. There was one intoxicated player who tried
to convince Adam that the harp should be tuned flat rather than on key (or
sharp, as Adam does so as to bend down into tune), which was amusing. Also
met a player named Omaha Ryan- seemed like a nice guy. 

Finally, on Sunday afternoon, S&A played a few sets at something called
Blues in the Barn at the Foxfire Ranch off Highway 7 just north of
Abbeville. For anyone in the area, I really can't recommend the place
enough. Imagine a wall-less barn on the top of a rise in the Mississippi
hill country, overlooking nothing but trees for as far as the eye can see.
Blues cover is usually $7, full bbq plates for $7, beers for $2 (or you can
bring your own cooler), and you find just the nicest, most welcoming crowd
of old and young, black and white, just grooving and dancing and have a good
time. Seriously, even if you're as far away as Memphis, it's worth the drive
one of the these Sundays. 

Lastly, it was sort of a wakeup call to me. I went down there just looking
for a weekend of relaxation after spending my birthday in the hospital
during a recent health scare. When I got there though, people kept asking me
why I had come all the way from Chicago, and it was kind of embarrassing to
admit "uh, I guess I'm just a really big fan of the band." They'd then ask
if I played harp too, and I had to reply that I did, but, uh, it had been a
while, and I hadn't really played in a long time... A few funny looks
convinced me of how silly that sounded, so maybe it's time to get back on
the horse. It's been a long, slow erosion of skills since 2001-2002, when I
was last gigging out with any regularity, and I've got a long way to go. So
I guess you'll be seeing more of me around these parts...;) 

Cheers, 

Evan Meagher

P.S. Now go buy that Word on the Street album!