The Blues

Anyone here like the Blues? Lord, I love it. I really didnt start listening to it seriously until earlier this year, but since then, i've become an addict. Blues and Jazz seems like the only stuff I listen to now-a-days.

So, who are your favorite Blues Artists? Some of mine, off the top of my head:

B.B King
Eric Clapton
Muddy Waters
Stevie Ray Vaughan
Buddy Guy
Robert Cray

I just love the emotion, the sheer, fire and ice of the blues. Be it clean, shrill blues, or Texas overdriven, it is all amazing. Maybe it is an acquired taste though, I know alot of people who don't like the slow-pace of it....

Opinions, comments etc?

Oh yah, Blues are probably within my top 5 favorite types of music. I love B.B. King... he's the one that got me into blues in the first place. I also Muddy Waters, as well as Clapton. I haven't listen to the others you listed enough to give an honest opinion about whether or not I like them as much as the others. I also really like John Lee Hooker, he is one of my favorites too.

But yes, Blues music has the ability to put me in a good mood every time I listen to it.... definately one of mans greatest musical creations.

Hells yes, and most of those artists you got, I love their music. It's emotion and talent and skill and sheer passion embodied into a music style. Some is an acquired taste, and most people say the whole thing is, but I love the blues, it's simply one of the best kinds of music out there.

I enjoy some aspects of Clapton's solo career, although I'm not sure that what he did in the late 70s can really be considered 'true blues'.

Da Blues is da ****.


You forgot Muddy Waters, Hubert Sumlin and Howlin' Wolf. And whoever said that Blues was slow? No way.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXTrmwQuSZQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=567qcgh8gQs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcH-jmmaY7Q
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LaZmi6uIUA

Ah, there was another video of Guy, King and Clapton playing at an awards ceremony. That was awesome

Russian,

Muddy is the 3rd guy I listed . Meh, I consider Crossroads blues-rock. I think it is cool that Buddy Guy and Clapton in the Concert for NYC open up with one of Muddy's Signature songs....

Well, in general, blues is slower paced....

Also, when you see a true blues guitarists, their skill is unparalleled....

Originally Posted by PyrrhusIV

Russian,

Muddy is the 3rd guy I listed . Meh, I consider Crossroads blues-rock. I think it is cool that Buddy Guy and Clapton in the Concert for NYC open up with one of Muddy's Signature songs....

Well, in general, blues is slower paced....

Also, when you see a true blues guitarists, their skill is unparalleled....

Oops hehe, didn't see him..........

But yeah, blues-rock is amazing too.

I had to listen blues quite alot during my youth as my father is obsessed with blues, rock'n roll, country and jazz. It was not before I turned around 18-20 when blues found it way to my heart and have been strong part of my musical interests ever since.

Time to turn speakers on and listen some old good B.B King, starting from the song; Gambler's Blues.

Stevie Ray and Calpton are some of my favorites.....

I'm seriously thinking of picking up Clapton tickets for when he comes to Dallas...

I found blues and jazz to be a style of music that you appreciate more and more as time goes by. It's a music that you can only appreciate as your mind and soul and spirit grow, you understand the beauty of its ways.

I completely agree. The more you listen to it, the better it seems to get. I just recently purchased Muddy Waters "Live Gold" CD, and it is so good, It made me love the genre more...

I wish more blues artists would explode onto the scene, but it has always been hard for blues to make it onto the popular music scene....

I am a delta person myself.
The Hook
Muddy Waters
The father of blues: Robert Johnson
Oh yes, and Pyrrhus, blues is not neccesarily slower. That is a common characterisitc of most blues styles, however: so are 12 bar progressions (I, III, I, V, III, I) but not all blues songs are 12 bar.

I listen to all kinds of music. Even spend hours listening to classic on Sirius as I'm traveling... Only think I can't get in to is rap. Not even sure that's considered a type of "music"...

Well, I didnt mean it was always slower, but it is commonly slower. It would be insane to assume all blues is slow though, I was just trying to be very broad in my statement .

I just noticed how much I love the Blues Harmonica/Harp. I'm going to see if I can buy one before the summer, when I plan on going on a bit of a spending spree... lol

Not enough mainstream blues artists around though

I really need to buy that Complete: Robert Johnson CD sometime, I don't have enough of his stuff

Yes the harp is great sounding. My cousin and I play together all the time. He can play the harp great. Most of the time we walk around down town, playing for tips. I play guitar, mostly accompaniment. Pyrrhus, from what I hear from him you want a C major harmonica first. Then get an , an A and then get all the majors. Minors will not play as much blues, but they sound great. My cousin has a habit of playin Armenian folk songs on his minor harmonicas, but they still sound good. Back to blues, however.

Ah another fellow Armenian!

Of course! We seem to be everywhere!
Bck to topic of course.
The thing that is not so good right now is that no one knows that they like Blues. Blues is such a broad genre that there is something for everyone and it happens to be one of the most simple, yet complex but still pretty primal music styles. Everyone loves blues, they just don't know it.

Yes the harp is great sounding. My cousin and I play together all the time. He can play the harp great. Most of the time we walk around down town, playing for tips. I play guitar, mostly accompaniment. Pyrrhus, from what I hear from him you want a C major harmonica first. Then get an , an A and then get all the majors. Minors will not play as much blues, but they sound great. My cousin has a habit of playin Armenian folk songs on his minor harmonicas, but they still sound good. Back to blues, however.

I'll definitely have to check this out, thanks. The harp sounds great, especially when someone skilled is using it, it goes perfect with blues.

The thing that is not so good right now is that no one knows that they like Blues. Blues is such a broad genre that there is something for everyone and it happens to be one of the most simple, yet complex but still pretty primal music styles. Everyone loves blues, they just don't know it.

Agreed. For some people it is more natural than others, but as the blues genre is so broad, anyone can find anything.

Anyone have "The Road to Escondido" by J.J Cale and Eric Clapton? It is amazing. Mostly Folk-Blues, I got it for christmas, and is 10/10 stars.

Heard some of it. Very folky, but I just don't like the sound of Clapton's voice when he sings softly. I think it is a little too refined, not primal enough, not raw enough. The Hook had a growl, Robert Johnson had a slur, Bo Diddley still has a flooring amount of bass in his voice, which makes many words of his somewhat difficult to understand. Flawed voices are the best for blues, because it makes the Blues even more of an "every-man" genre and it allows everyone to relate to Blues musicians.

Originally Posted by SickBoy13

Heard some of it. Very folky, but I just don't like the sound of Clapton's voice when he sings softly. I think it is a little too refined, not primal enough, not raw enough. The Hook had a growl, Robert Johnson had a slur, Bo Diddley still has a flooring amount of bass in his voice, which makes many words of his somewhat difficult to understand. Flawed voices are the best for blues, because it makes the Blues even more of an "every-man" genre and it allows everyone to relate to Blues musicians.

Listen to Clapton's cover of 'Cocaine', he has a real gravelly voice in that. But you're right, he can be too soft most of the time. But given that his solo career is very large, there is bound to be some proper blues singing in there.