Re: [Harp-L] Hubert Sumlin and who is left from the Golden Era of Chicago Blues?



Saw him more times than I can count.  I love how he would leave notes
out of the middle of his famous licks and my ear would fill them in
anyway.  He always had a big smile.

Who else is left from the Golden Chicago Blues era?  Cotton,
Musselwhite, Guy, Portnoy, Oscher, Bishop, Naftalin (is he still
alive?), Margolin.  I know Piazza's first album came out around the
same year as Musselwhite's, but I do not associate him with that
group.  Who else?

On Tue, Dec 6, 2011 at 4:53 PM, Mick Zaklan <mzaklan@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>   A little surprised no one mentioned the passing of bluesman Hubert
> Sumlin a couple of days ago.  Best known for his work with Howlin' Wolf,
> Hubert probably worked with a lot of harp players throughout the country
> over the years.  Hopefully, some will write in with remembrances.
>   When I was first starting out, I was fortunate enough to play a dozen
> gigs with the great blues mandolinist Johnny Young.  I wasn't much of a
> player back then but, since I booked the gigs, I made myself the harp
> player.  We always used pick-up musicians, many of whom came out of
> Johnny's extensive address book.  I often never knew who I'd be sharing
> the bandstand with until I picked Johnny up at his house.  One night we
> were playing a high school dance and following us to the job were the great
> blues drummer S.P. Leary and the guitar genius Hubert Sumlin.  They took
> the job on short notice and informed me that they had to get up early the
> next day to drive to the East Coast with Howlin' Wolf.  They had a gig at
> "the Boston Philharmonica."
>   It was an extraordinary evening and Hubert was just reeling off
> one burning solo after another.  For a gymnasium full of sixteen
> year-olds.  On break, we had a chance to chat and I quickly realized that
> this was a extremely gentle, warm human being.  I still don't know where
> those incendiary, nasty guitar solos came from.  They didn't seem to fit
> Hubert's personality.  Just a goofy, brilliant guy with a whole different
> way of playing blues guitar.  I will miss him.
>
> Mick Zaklan




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