I didn't say he wasn't a blues musician. I just said that his rock sensibility doesn't float my boat. And I hear his influences a lot when I drop into jams and hear cats playing those arpeggiated licks that push the beat.
Regarding Muddy (one of my all-time favorite blues musicians) Muddy also
said that Kim Wilson was the first harp player who was closest to Little
Walter in nailing Muddy's preferred accompaniment. Just because Muddy played
and recorded with someone doesn't prove anything. And what's to prove?
I'm just making the observation that Butterfield - IMO - gets the most props
from guys because he was the first great player many of them heard, rather
than being the best on the scene at the time. Give me his near contemporary,
James Cotton, any day of the week. History, and that TV show, might have
been different if the TV executives had been willing to put Cotton on TV.
On Sat, Dec 19, 2009 at 3:17 PM, David Brown <nonidesign@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Well, Muddy didn't agree with you. He put Butterfield in the same ranks as
Wells, Cotton, and the Walters.
I have a copy of "Fathers and Sons" which has a live version of "Same
Thing" on it with Paul doing a job on harp that pretty much quashes any
notion that he didn't qualify as a "blues musician".
On Fri, Dec 18, 2009 at 8:21 PM, Ev630 <eviltweed@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Two observations on this:
First, I could never get into Butterfield. His phrasing has too much of a
rock sensibility for my taste. Like that arpeggio descending lick he would
always do and that you hear at the intro of the TV spot. Not saying he's a
bad player, but he just doesn't float my boat as a blues musician. Lord
knows I have tried and I know he was the first cat that hipped a lot of
white Americans to the blues, and that's one reason I think why he's
adored.
But I got into the blues listening to Wells, Cotton, the Walters, etc...
so
it just doesn't do it for me.
Second, what a shame they couldn't have had Cotton or some other great black blues musician on that TV show. _______________________________________________ Harp-L is sponsored by SPAH, http://www.spah.org Harp-L@xxxxxxxxxx http://harp-l.org/mailman/listinfo/harp-l
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