Ain't Nothin' Like the Blues

"Oooh Yeah...

Oh Yeah...

Everything gonn' be all right this moanin'..."

Thus began my initiation into the blues.  I was at a deadhead party somewhere in the suburbs of Atlanta, about the age of 18.  I was kicking back enjoying the atmosphere, when someone decided to drop the needle down on "Mannish Boy" by Muddy Waters, a tune on probably one of the most concise compilations of Chicago Blues ever: Wizards from theSouthside.  The tune hit me right between the eyes.

I had never heard anything that so completely rocked my butt than that one song.  Muddy Waters yelling into the mike, the relentless beat of the drums, the signature blues guitar picking combined with some rocking harmonica, producing the quintessential electric blues tune. 

I had always heard the blues reinterpreted by British bands from the 60s and 70s (such as Led Zeppelin, the Animals, and various Eric Clapton projects.)  Stevie Ray Vaughan and George Thorogood were also making the rounds at the time.  I had even heard of Robert Johnson, and could not fathom the steps it took to get from Robert Johnson to the rock and roll that permeated the airwaves when I was coming up.

But this tune that I was listening to bridged that gap.  Although I had heard it in rock and roll, and in the pop culture surrounding me, I had never quite heard anything like it...And I loved it.

And then the guy in charge of the stereo played a few more tunes off of that album and I was hooked...I dare anyone listening to Little Walter's "Mellow Down Easy" to keep their foot from tapping or to keep from getting up and dancing.  I found myself shuffling around like mad the first time I listened to that tune.

But then, the DJ took me a further halting step in to my blues odyssey...He changed the album and didn't tell me what it was...

It was some white guy singing a live tune with a rocking background:

"Wake up, Mama, turn your lamp down low,

Wake up, Mama, turn your lamp down low..."

"Man," I exclaimed, "What is this?! This completely rocks!"

He challenged me: "Guess."

"I don't have a clue."

"The Allman Brothers Band."

What??  I thought they were those dudes that played that country song, "Ramblin' Man."  I had always wondered why they always played that song on classic rock radio.  It belonged more to country in my mind.

But hearing them play "Statesboro Blues" on the At Filmore East album was an eye-opener.  They were actually a blues-rock band that played the odd country song!  Wow!  And some of the stuff on that album could almost count as jazz, too, what with all the extended riffing and improvisation going on!  I was so excited to discover that something I thought was naff was actually very cool.

After that night I had to go out and buy me some blues, and some Allman Brothers Band on cassette.  Which I did.  It's been about 24 years and five country-moves since then, and I have managed to always have Allman Brothers and some sort of Chicago blues tunes on my person at any given point.  The music has given a lot of joy and familiarity and continuity, as well.

And, as with other specialist genres of popular music, getting to know the blues is one of those things that can make you new friends in novel situations.  And it completely rocks butt!