Blues on my hands

This the longer post on blues that I promised a few days ago. At first, I wanted to write about the origins and the brief history of blues but soon it became clear that such a thing as a 'brief history' in this case is simply non-existent. The blues is immense and its mere roots are so long and winding that they would crawl out of the thickest of books.

After all that struggle and wikipedia-browsing, I decided to write about what kind of blues songs I like and why.

So, to begin at the beginning, I like Delta blues. It's traditional and simple and deep and I wouldn't be able to resist any music with slide guitar in it, anyway.



Then I like jazz songs that do not have the typical twelve-bar pattern blues pattern but the feel is blues, definitely. The sound isn't so raw because the chords are richer and the rhythm can change too. If you watch this Louis Armstrong concert video you'll see and hear what this sort of freedom can add to the blues. The thing starts in a slow and melancholy way, forlorn as a funeral march, then the musicians shake themselves and with all that extra bounce and swing the whole thing starts to shine.



Then there is the Chicago Blues with harmonica. Check out this one. How can he get those cries out of that little box with all those holes? (Sorry, harmonica players, but I'm just so perplexed and astounded by this.)



And here is a jumpier one with the coolest call and response vocals I have ever heard. But come to that, everything and everybody is just great in this one. This is a very uplifting sort of blues music, the kind which you would actually dance to and not just nod into your beer.



In Hendrix's hands the blues got a badass psychedelic streak that I just love. This version is a mixture of traditional cool blues and mellow jazziness. Enjoy!




And finally, let's get back to the roots! This is also a Robert Johnson song (just like the first one in this post), but played by Eric Clapton, who can blend his own virtuosity with great authenticity. Malted milk, malted milk, keep rushing to my head...