Aug 22, 1917

[d halfnote]

John Lee Hooker was born.

Having moved from backwoods Mississipiss where electricuty was hard to come by, to his rightful home, Detroit, Mishegas, , so he could set the stage for my eventual babyfaced arrival there, he laid this number out for public consideration:

 

Boogie Chillen (cleverly titled as both a noun & a verb!)

dig that crazy rhythm section!

 

Later, not having dropped his full load, he granted us these versions of his vision:

Hobo Blues

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYrVwGxl ... playnext=1

Serve Me Right T'Suffer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BtUQbblCWo

 

Boom Boom

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EHWujXubNM

 

In The Mood

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FR4uhkreOMQ

 

For history buffs looking for context, here's a short film,

tentatively titled What's The Deal With Yer Socks

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Kq8mG-N ... PL&index=1

 

Study & discuss, papers due on Monday.

 

[desertbluesman]

John Lee Hooker, he was the real deal. No one seems to be able to copy that guys voice.

[Caevan O’Shite]

Cool, thanks for posting all that, half'!

 

I caught him a few years back at a semi-outdoor show in a big tent; while it was cool enough, it was obvious that he was being shuttled around like a museum relic and that the better days to see him perform on stage were long-gone. That's NOT to slight him at all, just how it was. Hell, I would be glad to be in the same boat when I'm that age!

 

He had one incredible band backing him- they had to keep up with his sudden decisions to halt mid-song and launch into another on the fly, or seemingly change the way the songs went as he went along. It was very entertaining to watch their reactions and cues to one another while he was at the front of the stage with his back to them all, and impressive just how very well they pulled it all off.

[d halfnote]

I imaging playing behind him was a bit of a trick, with his idiosyncratic, country blues approach to song form.

IIRC, it was Lightnin' Hopkins who once responded to a question about whether he'd done a song "the way it was supposed to go" by remarking that "Lightnin' know when to change"...but it could just as well been Hooker.

 

[Caevan O’Shite]

Yeah, it was Lightnin' Hopkins, saying something to the effect of "Lightnin' change when Lightnin' want to", IIRC.

 

When I caught John Lee Hooker, he was led out by two young model-lookin' girls, one on either side, who appeared to be steering him and assisting him in staying upright. They continuously brought him what appeared to be beer in plastic cups throughout the show; and when he signaled that it was time to go, off they went. He looked pretty lit!

 

He sang and played alright, always in key and time, but he skipped around from song to song mid-phrase without warning, with the band doing an outstanding job of keeping things going along without most of the audience ever noticing a thing! He also would somewhat randomly punctuate songs with this burst of strumming, no matter who else was playing what at the time. In a way, his keeping the band so on their toes, it looked like they were having fun- like riding a wild, unpredictable roller-coaster!