Re: [Harp-L] Re: Butter TV spot

[Robert Paparozzi <chromboy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hey Drew,

OK, if I had to pick 3, I think these cover a lot of ground: I do agree with
Tom Ellis that his later records really were overshadowed by his demons and
substance abuse, I even walked out on a show of his in the 80's in NYC.
I feel his best years were 1967 to 1973 and he produced amazing work during
that period.

1) Broke my Baby's Heart - off of the 1st Studio 'Better Days' LP @1973
It's really a work of art...how his muse centers this whole performance. He
bobs and weaves thruout the song answering Vocal & Horn lines like a painter
adding final touches to his canvas. His solo is absolutely perfect for this
song. The Song is in F and he plays Cross on a Bb.

2) Driftin' and Driftin' - off The Paul Butterfield Blues Band LIVE @1970 LP
Many here have cited this piece and I think Paul's acoustic solo speaks for
itself...more 'voice like' I have never heard with such depth. I believe it
in Bb played on an Eb harp.

3) Gene's Tune - off the The Paul Butterfield Blues Band LIVE @1970 BUT the
RHINO DOUBLE CD set which has an extra CD of Prev Unreleased stuff. I should
mention our own Tom Ellis III did superb liner notes on this release! (My
friend and great player Chris Mastakas reminded me of this tune in his post
last week..thanx Chris)

Gene's tune to me says it all, I learned how to play 'Groove' harp by
studying Butterfield in 1970 and this track to me is way ahead of it's time
for Funk/Groove/Soul style harp. I took much of this style with me when I
started playing with Funk Drummer Bernard Purdie and Bassist Chuck Rainey.
The changes here aren't straight blues it's a 12 bar form:
C7 /-4-/ Eb7 /-2-/ C7 /-2-/ D7, F7 for a measure each and 2 more bars of C7
Up to this time I really never heard a Diatonic player really play 'inside'
of these changes. He is not playing any crazy scales or anything it's how he
attacks, phrases and connects the dots that make it brilliant. I believe
this was in C using an F harp.

Again, thanx Drew, this has been a great thread, I know Butter is not
everyone's 'cup o' tea' but hopefully it'll get some players listening to
some stuff and maybe learning a few new groove & licks to bring back to
their music. If anyone needs any help finding any of this stuff, contact me
offlist. It's important for more newer generations to learn from the
Butterfield era, I'll be glad to help keep his music alive and assist in
teaching his stylings.

I too agree w/ Sam B, we do not need to put down Classic style players,
there are volumes to be learn from cats like Wilson, Primich and Estrin and
so many more.....can we please lose the ODBG phrase, I find that totally
disrespectful even in a jokin' sense these our our forefathers and deserve
way more respect on a public forum.

Also, we are all players IMO we never need to get into who is a better White
or Black Player....Music is a rainbow of many beautiful colors.

PS.....Tom did an outstanding 3 part article in Blues Access? Mag a few yrs
back on Paul Butterfield....if you can track it down it is REALLY Great &
Well Written 

Y'all have a happy holiday...
Rob Paparozzi