Subject: [Harp-L] re: Today?s lesson

[EGS1217@xxxxxxx]

Not quite, Frank, although those boots on the Bass(?) player come  close, <G> 
Those are purely hippy-dippy Sonny Bono-style  clothes...of the late 60's 
early 70's style.. wouldn't qualify anywhere as  'Pimp' clothes.
 
What Martin's referring to, pointedly suggesting that  musicians such as 
Junior Wells and Buddy Guy were dressing in  pimp's style .... misses the boat 
completely. (and yes, it WAS cool  back then, Martin.) 
 
The reality is that the R&B groups of the earlier eras (50's  -60's) dressed 
'up', wearing coordinated outfits to stand out on stage (a la the  
Temptations, Four Tops, etc), each having different colours and changes of  costume for 
each stage show...and those outfits cost a fortune as well. The  point was to 
make a good presentation on stage and stand out from the other  similar groups 
going up on stage both before and after one's own. The  clothes were as much a 
part of the act as the coordinated dance moves.
 
Individual musicians felt the need to 'step it up' wearing even more  
flamboyant gear, including matching hats and more glittery costumes. That's all  they 
ever were: costumes to add to the stage presentation, to give the audience  a 
visual as well as aural treat.  
 
Pimps simply copied the style of the musicians because they were envious of  
them  and liked the (mostly female) attention it drew.
 
If one pays attention and follows the time-line, most of the musicians who  
dressed that way let go of the more flamboyant outfits once Pimps took over  
their style of dress, not wishing remotely to be associated with them.
 
The Disco era of the jumpsuits and spangles was something else entirely,  and 
quickly ran its course, except for some groups like EW&F who made  their 
multi-faceted outfits part of their entire huge stage schtick. 
 
Martin, perhaps being from Sweden, simply has it backwards. Junior Wells  & 
Buddy Guy weren't copying Pimps, it was the other way around.
 
And as far as 'originality' is concerned,  Jr. Wells last album before  his 
death was nominated for a Grammy, and he won the WC Handy award in 1996.  From 
this review from the 1970's it seems Martin's quite in the minority with  his 
opinion of JW's playing during that era, although anyone can have  an off 
night, n'est-ce-pas?:
 
"Robert Palmer, a music critic of The New York Times, saw a 1978  performance 
at the Bottom Line in Greenwich Village and wrote that their set  included a 
''breathtaking country blues, done as a duet, some gritty slow blues  in a 
more urban vein, and some chunky, convincing funk.'' ''Mr. Guy tended to be  
subdued and delicate on guitar and passionate vocally,'' he added, ''while Mr.  
Wells proves once again that he was the only performer who convincingly bridges  
the gap between old-fashioned Delta blues and the soul stylings of James 
Brown,  without slighting either.'' 
 
Elizabeth
 
Message: 11
Date: Thu, 29 Jan 2009 08:27:47 -0500
From: "Frank  Franze" <Franze52@xxxxxxx>
Subject: [Harp-L] Chucks Caucasian  Pimps
To: "harp-l" <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>

Check out Chucks  caucasian pimps...
_http://tinyurl.com/awemyl_ (http://tinyurl.com/awemyl) 
 
<http://tinyurl.com/awemyl>

------------------------------
"Message:  15
Date: Wed, 28 Jan 2009 05:16:48 -0800 (PST)
From: martin oldsberg  <martinoldsberg@xxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [Harp-L] re: Today?s lesson
To:  harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx

Hmm, I´m not so sure ... The groove is great, but the  harmonica playing here 
is not particularly impressive, to my mind. (And, less  importantly, about 
dressing well: the fashion sense here is that of  pimps. Is that cool?) 
There´s much to be said for economy in playing,  but there´s also something 
to be said for originality.
Jr Wells could  play great at times, but seemed to get so caught up in 
mannerisms -- vocal  and instrumental -- that this became more or less a rarity. I 
saw him and  Buddy Guy here in Sweden a couple of times  in the 70s, behaving 
and  playing so abominably, that in Chicago they´d probably been taken out and 
shot.  Here the docile audience just tried to clap in time, thinking "this is 
probably  how it´s supposed to sound".
Pity, ´cause they were both  talented.

/Martin"

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