"[Pinetop Perkins] - High Heel Sneakers"

(5.5 MB)

"Shake 'em on Down"

(5.7 MB)

"[Son Seals] - Bad Blood"

(5.5 MB)

"Rod Piazza and the Might Flyers - Dont Make Your Daddy D"

(4.6 MB)

"Babys Arms"

(2.7 MB)

"Fool Me Good"

(3.2 MB)

Editor: Stephen

At one of the local clubs in Austin, Texas, there reads on the bathroom stall an admonition to the effect of "The best blues are on records," implying that the great blues performers have all passed on. Its tempting to think that's the case, as blues music has lost its hold on the popular imagination for some time now. Personally, I can say that it was not until recently that I've become the fan of blues music I am now, and even so, I try to limit my cd purchases to old "prewar" reissues, so as to learn about that era as best as I can.

Have all the great bluesmen died off? Is the genre dead? I believe the answer is a resounding "no." And if I could point to any evidence, I'd like to recall my experience watching Fat Possum blues man T-Model Ford play at my college radio station. When I arrived at the station, T-Model Ford was already there and warming up, and I meekly tried to introduce myself. T-Model Ford, wearing a black cap with his namesake printed in yellow letters, just smiled and played away. By the time of the actual performance, T-Model Ford had my complete attention.

In books I've read by Robert Palmer, Leroi Jones, Charles Keil, and Alan Lomax, all writers talk about the elusive subtleties that guide the playing of the earliest of bluesmen. Tiny pitch quaverings, a fluid blend of chords and single-notes, and a rhythmic density all come together in the recordings of performers like Charlie Patton and Muddy Waters. T-Model Ford managed to capture the essence of these pioneering blues players, playing in the style that befuddles many wannabe blues persons, of all colors, who try to imitate the Mississippi sound. Standing about 15 feet in front of me, singing unamplified and hearing his guitar there in the room, I was affected like no live musical performance I had ever seen.

The best comparison I can think of would be the experience of being completely enraptured by a masterful painting in an art museum, where all the rest of the world blurs away and a tiny rectangle stands out before me, enrapturing all my senses.

Of course, there are many other living blues performers that keep the genre alive and continue to inspire. While the forty dollar admission irked me, Buddy Guy put on one of the most fabulous and energetic shows I have ever seen, and openers James Mathus and his Knockdown Society played a set of North Mississippi style blues that broke the tradition of young white bands playing the well-worn "guitar hero" blues and Stevie Ray rip-offs. Also of note was the performance put on by the Black Eyed Snakes (featuring Alan Sparhawk of the indie-rock band Low) to an all too small crowd at the Continental Club in Austin.

So in conclusion, I ask you to forget the notions that blues music is dead and is merely a "historical" genre, and to get out to your local clubs and to support the musicians that not only keep the traditions alive, but that continue to evolve the tradition and push the musical envelope. Sure, many of these musicians you will not hear on the radio, and probably do not sell all that many albums, but they are out there, and they would gladly use your encouragement and support.

Previous Editorials: Texas Blues: Not Just Stevie Ray!, Tone-Cool and Audiogalaxy