The Blues: A Collection Of Artist Interviews

#1

P R AC T I C A L

P RO J E C T

2012

The Blues A Collection Of Artist Interviews

SKIING IN WHISTLER

ELSIE’S BIRTHDAY

by Tom Caswell

CAMPING IN OREGON

SKIING IN WHISTLER

ELSIE’S BIRTHDAY

© Tom Caswell

CAMPING IN OREGON

SKIING IN WHISTLER

ELSIE’S BIRTHDAY

© Tom Caswell

CAMPING IN OREGON

Contents Blues Timeline: Key Events Samantha Fish Joanne Shaw Taylor Cassie Taylor Bobby Whitlock Dani Wilde

SKIING IN WHISTLER

ELSIE’S BIRTHDAY

© Tom Caswell

CAMPING IN OREGON

Blues Timeline: Key Events 1903 - W.C. Handy hears unknown blues musician playing at a train station in Mississippi. He described it as “the weirdest music I had ever heard”.

1912 - The first time the word ‘blues’ appeared in a piece of music.

1920 - The song ‘Crazy Blues’ was recorded by Mamie Smith on Race Records.

Nov. 1936 - Robert Johnson’s first recording session in San Antonio, Texas.

Records Come On In My Kitchen, I Believe I’ll Dust My Broom and Crossroad Blues among others.

Jun. 1937 - Robert Johnson’s second and final recording session in Dallas,Texas. Records Love In Vain Blues, Hell Hound On My Trail and Stop Breakin’ Down Blues among others.

Aug. 1938 - Robert Johnson dies.

1943 - Muddy Waters leaves the Delta of Mississippi for Chicago. Birth of electric blues.

1954 - That’s Alright Mama released by Elvis Presley on Sun Records. 1950’s rock and roll begins.

1955 - Chuck Berry signs to Chess Records. Releases Johnny B. Goode three years later in 1958.

Nov. 1964 - B.B. King plays at The Regal Theatre in Chicago. Live CD released a year later, considered by many to be the pinnacle of electric blues playing.

1966 - John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton release what would come to be the most known blues album of all time.

Aug. 1990 - Stevie Ray Vaughan, the King of the 1980’s blues revival, dies.

1992 - Eric Clapton plays an unplugged blues set for MTV creating new interest in the blues. © Tom Caswell

Samantha Fish

© Tom Caswell

How influential has the blues been on your career?

The blues has been very influential to my career. As I am considered a blues musicians, and a lot of my idols are blues musicians.

What got you into the blues?

I sort of fell into it through living in Kansas City. I didn't start out playing the blues, my parents listened to lots of Rock and Roll. I found the blues down at local venues in and around my hometown of Kansas City. I fell in love with the soul in blues music, and I found that it was the best way for me to express myself.

Which blues artists have influenced you most? And how?

Bonnie Raitt was huge for me. She was the first female singer/songwriter/guitarist that I was just amazed by. Of course guys like Stevie Ray Vaughan had a huge impact. As did some from the older generations, such as Freddie King, Charlie Patton, Skip James, RL Burnside, etc.

What equipment do you use and was your decision to use it influenced by another artist or what you heard on a record?

I love Fender Telecasters. That was sort of influenced by players like Mike Zito. I just really dug the tone and how versatile they could be. Right now I've got a Semi-Hollow Delaney Tele style guitar. The amplifiers I use are Category 5's and I sort of discovered those guys through musical friends and mentors.

When you write songs is there a certain way you go about it or does it change?

It varies from song to song. Sometimes I'll come up with the melody first. Sometimes I'll have lyrics written out for forever and no song to go with it. Sometimes, it just happens all at once. I haven't quite mastered the process.

Is there a blues player you haven’t played with that you’d really like to?

Loads. I love jamming and collaborating. I mentioned some influences above that would be amazing to jam with. I would also love to have the opportunity to play with Tom Petty and Tom Waits. Two huge idols for me.

Is there a song or album that has been influential in the way you write and play?

I can't really narrow it down to one song or album. As a musician, you are always pulling inspiration and influence from those around you. So really, I'm taking in things all the time, and then I try to put my own spin on it.

© Tom Caswell

How influential do you think the blues has been on modern popular music?

Its the building block for all modern music. I really think that it has influenced most everything in one way or another.

In your eyes, how influential do you think Robert Johnson has been on the blues?

I think he was incredibly influential as one of the founding fathers to the blues. But he wasn't the first. He was taught by guys like Son House, Charlie Patton, Skip James. All of those guys, were the fore fathers of delta blues.

If you could name one blues player who has influenced both the blues and other genres the most, who would it be and why?

Its really to hard to narrow that down. Per generation there have been guys and girls who have changed the game. Either bringing the blues to the mainstream or crossing over. Back in the beginning, people will say Robert Johnson. Then when Chicago blues became huge, Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf were the inspiration to bands like the Rolling Stones. Jimmy Hendrix was heavily influenced by the blues. BB King and Stevie Ray Vaughan made great waves and brought blues to the masses. Now bands like the Black Keys, Grace Potter, and Jack White are branching into Alternative genres, and they started out being very blues oriented. Its been like that through the history of modern American music.

What guitar techniques do you associate with the blues?

Lots! Slide guitar, for one, is generally associated with the blues. That has evolved over the generations to fit several genres of music too (IE pedal steel in country music).

Some people think the blues is basic and a lazy genre people just fall into when playing music. What do you say to that?

I'd say they aren't really paying attention to the message then. Most of the people that fall into the genre of blues, do it because they love it. There is something alive and soulful about the blues. I didn't fall in love with it right away, but there was a point in my life, where I connected with it, and I started to understand. Its proven the test of time. Its definitely not a lazy genre. If anything, if you aren't feeling what you are performing, it absolutely doesn't work. There is no 'phoning in' the blues.

Š Tom Caswell

Joanne Shaw Taylor

© Tom Caswell

How influential has the blues been on your career?

Very, I started playing classical when I was 8 and then switched to electric guitar when I was 13 after I saw a Stevie Ray Vaughan video. He was my primary influence and I researched all his influences afterwards. So that was my introduction to playing guitar. Guys like Stevie, Albert Collins, B.B. King, Clapton etc.

What got you into the blues?

Well I got into S.R.V which was through my father, he is a guitar player also and had a large record collect. Mostly blues and classic rock.

Which blues artists have influenced you most? And how?

Well after S.R.V it was really Albert Collins and Gary Moore that were my other main influences. Albert for his attacking style and love of telecasters and Gary for more of the rock edge. I grew up in Birmingham/Black country area of England which is basically what Detroit is to the US. We have a large history of producing rock bands such as Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Zeppelin etc, so a lot of those rock players were big influences on me also and of course theres an argument to be made that a lot of their influences on guitar were traditional blues players.

What equipment do you use and was your decision to use it influenced by another artist or what you heard on a record?

I've always been a Telecaster girl but of late I've predominantly using Les Pauls. I find they give me a slightly harder rockier sound which is what we we're aiming for a lot on this new album.

When you write songs is there a certain way you go about it or does it change?

I kind of have a set formula. I always write the music, then the song title, then the melody and lyrics… I find having all those things in place makes me be a bit more controlled I suppose and focused when it comes to writing the lyrics.

Is there a blues player you haven’t played with that you’d really like to?

There's a few, I love Ian Siegal who's another UK guy.. I'd like to work with him as he's a very different style to myself and I'd be really interested to see what songs we could come up with with our combined styles…. obviously it would be a dream come to to work with B.B. King or Bonnie Raitt.

Is there a song or album that has been influential in the way you write and play?

I don't think theres any one album or person… it's much more of a cumulative thing… you sort of absorb and borrow from everyone you listen to over a long period of time i think.

© Tom Caswell

How influential do you think the blues has been on modern popular music?

Extremely. You only have to trace back some of the big names in popular music and their impact on music history. Whether it's Stevie Wonder, Jimi Hendrix, Little Richard, Chuck Berry, the Rolling Stones, you don't have to go far to find a ground breaking artist who was heavily blues influenced.

In your eyes, how influential do you think Robert Johnson has been on the blues?

He was a godfather of the genre, there were recorded blues artist before him i.e. Charlie Patton but his playing style and the myth surrounding his recordings/life/death have inspired countless guitar players from Clapton to Jack White. Plus he was one of the early great songwriters.

If you could name one blues player who has influenced both the blues and other genres the most, who would it be and why?

Probably Hendrix, he was a blues guitarist who developed a different approach and style to anyone before him. He was probably the most influential guitar player of his generation aswell.

What guitar techniques do you associate with the blues?

I'm not sure theres any particular techniques. More lack of… i.e. it's really a personal style of playing, much more focused on personality and soul/feel. Take Albert Collins for example. He didn't use a plectrum, he used a capo and tuned to Fm. Weird as hell but you need only hear two notes to tell who it is and nobody’s been able to reproduce that sound.

Some people think the blues is basic and a lazy genre people just fall into when playing music. What do you say to that?

I think the genre can be susceptible to laziness. I think people misunderstand it. Trust me I've seen and played with 200 "Blues guitarists" who've strapped on a black suit and black hat and played any old solo in the minor pentatonic and called it "blues" because they've approached the solo with "feel". There's ALOT of technique and practice that goes into to becoming a GREAT blues guitarist. Lord knows I'm still scratching my head after a decade plus of hard practice and trying to hone my style. It takes as much dedication and talent as jazz, metal or any other genre of guitar playing it just has a different rule book if you will. When I say Albert Collins had a weird technique, he did, but it was still well practiced and he articulated his notes to the best of his ability. I think people misjudge it sometimes and think just because you are able to put more of a personal approach to your playing that that means you can be sloppy or lazy. Look at B.B. King, he doesn't play particularly fast but every note he plays is well articulated and played for a reason.

Do you have a favourite blues period? If so, what?

Probably the UK scene in the 60's as it spawned so many of my favourite players, Beck, Hendrix, Kossoff, Clapton etc….

© Tom Caswell

Albert King, Freddie King or B.B. King? And why?

Freddie!!!! Cause he was as funky as hell… and he wore a jumpsuit onstage. Not many men can pull off a Elvis style jumpsuit!

Modern music’s evolution from the blues isn’t that widely known, how important do you think it is that people become aware of it?

I think people who are really into music know. I think anybody who know's a little about the Kings of Leon or Muse or maybe even the White Stripes will of heard to some extent of the genres importance and maybe even researched it. That's assuming their of my generation and not older in which case they probably may have been there when it had it's "boom" in the 60's.

Also a lot of blues music is very different to a lot of modern bands even if those bands may have been influenced by the blues i.e. The Black Keys. If some people get into the blues because of those bands, great but likewise if they just prefer the Black Keys thats great too. I'm just a music fan I think sometimes people can get a little too, shall we say sensitive about it. If your into one thing and not another there's nothing wrong with that.

How different do you think modern music would be today if there was never any blues to begin with?

Very. I'm not sure what it would be… maybe not as diverse. Maybe there'd be less guitar lead bands. To be honest we're still recovering from the Grunge period i.e. theres lots of guitar based bands out there but you still rarely here a guitar solo on the radio. But it's influence is large and profound. Blues has always been a genre though not always a popular one and I hope it will always be appreciated and be performed by someone.

© Tom Caswell

Cassie Taylor

© Tom Caswell

How influential has the blues been on your career?

My father is Otis Taylor. He was the reason I started playing bass and he raised me in the blues community.

Which blues artists have influenced you the most? And how?

It all goes back to my dad. Blues is passed down a lot of the time from father to son, but my dad only has girls so it was the next best thing.

What equipment do you use and was your decision to use it influenced by another artist or what you heard on a record?

I am not a gear head. I play what works. My first bass my father bought me was a Fender. I stick with Fender basses because they are road solid. But all I need in am amp is BOOM! When you write songs is there a certain way you go about doing it or does it change?

I just write what I feel. It stems from an emotion I’m feeling at the time or perhaps a chord I play on a new instrument. Sometimes the tone of a guitar just sparks a feel - kind of like a smell it’s a sensory memory.

Is there a blues player you haven’t played with that you’d really like to?

I would love to play with Bob Stroger - I think he could teach me a think or two about the bass.

Is there a song or an album that has been influential in the way you write and play?

I love Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, but I try not to let myself be influenced by other artists.

Yes I hear certain things that I might like and use it subconsciously, but my goal is not to sound like anyone else.

How influential do you think the blues has been on modern popular music?

It is where all modern music stems. But as for these days it unfortunately has little influence on pop music and culture. Sure there are odd balls like The Black Keys and Jack White, but for the most park artists don’t realise they are linked to it.

In your eyes, how influential do you think Robert Johnson has been on the blues?

He’s an icon in the blues world but he was just one guy. For every Robert Johnson there were hundreds of guys that never for their face on a door room poster that were just as good.

© Tom Caswell

If you could name one blues player who has influenced both the blues and other genres the most, who would it be and why?

The Rolling Stones. They got a lot of young white people to care about the blues.

Some people think the blues is basic and a lazy genre people just fall into when playing music. What do you say to that?

There is something to be said about that. Because there is a formula (I, IV, V) lots of people just repeat it and never stray. But there are a lot of original blues men and women out there.

Ian Seagal, Alvin Youngblood Heart, Divina and the Vagabons to name a few.

Albert King, Freddie King or B.B. King? And why?

The ear of Willie Dixon. He was a great writer for a lot of the guys at Chess Records. Without a good song you’ve got nothing. But stage presence like Muddy Waters and a melody that sticks is where the magic truly happens.

How different do you think modern music would be today if there was never any blues to begin with?

It would be boring! No Rolling Stones, no Jimi Hendrix, no Fleetwood Mac, no Blondie, no Prince, no Clash, no Nirvana. And the list goes on and on.

Š Tom Caswell

Bobby Whitlock

© Tom Caswell

How influential has the blues been on your career?

Rhythm and blues is the category I am familiar with and what I grew up listening to and performing. Not just the blues. The blues on its own is the same old song sung by different voices. R&B is what STAX, Chess, Hi and Atlantic Records were all about. I was the first white artist to be signed to STAX's HIP label. They wanted to get in on the British invasion and thought that I was their key to it. Of course they were wrong. I still draw on Sam & Dave and Otis Redding from time to time. As a matter of fact the way Eric and I sang together was a direct rip of the way Sam and Dave sang together. Eric and I sang our songs with the same call and response that Sam and Dave did. We were the white rock 'n' roll Sam and Dave.

What equipment do you use and was your decision to use it influenced by another artist or what you heard on a record?

I use a Hammond B3 organ and one Leslie cabinet. The organ that I learned to play on is sitting in my front room right now. My organ playing influences were Booker T Jones and the two Jimmys, Smith and McGriff.

When you write songs is there a certain way you go about it or does it change?

Every song that I write is always different in the way it comes forth. I try to stay out of the way and let the creative influence take over. It makes sense to me that if I am given an idea for a song that whatever gave me the idea in the first place will give the rest of the song to me if I am patient and wait for it to come to me.

Is there a blues player you haven’t played with that you’d really like to?

I have played with Eric Clapton and he is probably the finest blues player that's still alive.

Where do you go from there?

Is there a song or album that has been influential in the way you write and play?

With the exception of Sam and Dave, I never have listened to anyone or anything for the influence of it. I tend to not listen to anything or anybody because I don't want to be influenced by them or their songs.

How influential do you think the blues has been on modern popular music?

The blues is the hidden root of it all.

In your eyes, how influential do you think Robert Johnson has been on the blues?

Robert Johnson and Elmore James were two key players in the blues movement. Excuse the puns.

© Tom Caswell

If you could name one blues player who has influenced both the blues and other genres the most, who would it be and why?

Eric Clapton has been the biggest influence for the world of blues players because were it not for EC we probably would all still be in the dark about the blues. He really brought BB King and Robert Johnson to the forefront of the world's eyes and ears. So much so that in the early eighties he took a bunch of barely heard of blues players on a blues tour of the world. BB King can thank EC for what he has done for his career. Nobody really cared about the blues until Eric played it for them.

What guitar/instrument techniques do you associate with the blues?

Flat-top and Dobro slide guitar.

Some people think the blues is basic and a lazy genre people just fall into when playing music. What do you say to that?

I say that those people do not know what they are talking about. It is very difficult to emulate those simple sounding guitar licks. If you play at all I challenge anyone to sit down and play any Robert Johnson song and do it right. Eric Clapton can to be sure!

Do you have a favourite blues period? If so, what?

I have no favorite time frame of the blues that I like because there is no time involved in it. It just is what it is every moment.

Albert King, Freddie King or B.B. King? And why?

Albert King is the King of Kings. Just listen to him play "As the Years Go Passing By". He gave EC those seven famous notes.

Modern music’s evolution from the blues isn’t that widely known, how important do you think it is that people become aware of it?

People will become aware of the blues when they start living them.

How different do you think modern music would be today if there was never any blues to begin with?

There would be no root to it. It would be like having cars with no gas. They wouldn't go anywhere. Modern music without the origin of it would be sterile and stale. It is anyway.

The Blues? "You've got to live them to play and sing them."

- Bobby Whitlock

© Tom Caswell

SKIING IN WHISTLER

ELSIE’S BIRTHDAY

© Tom Caswell

CAMPING IN OREGON

Dani Wilde

© Tom Caswell

How influential has the blues been on your career?

Very. I identify as a blues and soul artist.

What got you into the blues?

My Dad brought me up on blues music and so from a young age I was grounded in delta and chicago blues.. artists like Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker and B.B. King. When I was 14 I went to Bishopstock blues festival in Exeter and saw for the first time young contemporary female blues artists... artists like Deborah Coleman, Sue Foley, Shemekia Copeland and Susan Tedeschi. I knew then that i would follow in their footsteps.

Which blues artists have influenced you most? And how?

As a guitarist I am influenced by finger style players like John Lee Hooker, Louisiana Red and Albert Collins. I love how Albert uses a capo and uses his thumb and forefinger... this is very similar a technique to how I play. Louisiana Red taught me some guitar when I was in my teens and that always stayed with me too. My favourite British blues artist is Peter Green... I love his phrasing, back in the Fleetwood Mac days his playing could just crucify you.. make you tingle till you cry. I also love Buddy Guy. He is just so full of character.. so exciting to listen too. As a vocalist I’m more inspired by soul artists and Motown.

What equipment do you use and was your decision to use it influenced by another artist or what you heard on a record?

I use a 1970's Fender Super Reverb amplifier. I love my reverb.. thats the Albert Collins influence... bridge pick up, treble up, just like Albert. I use a Love Muffin pedal that Stuart Dixon (Eddie Floyd, Marcus Malone) introduced me to and my Fender Telecaster. I some times also play a 335 with hand wound pickups in.

When you write songs is there a certain way you go about it or does it change?

I tend to write chords and lyrics together. I cant seem to chose to write a song. More so I just feel sometimes I have something to say or an emotion to express and songwriting is my natural outlet.. it just happens.

Is there a blues player you haven’t played with that you’d really like to?

Buddy Guy...that would be a dream come true...or B.B. King.

Is there a song or album that has been influential in the way you write and play?

I could not list just one song or album... my style is inspired by a mix of blues and soul artists from Sam Cooke and Otis Reading and Aretha Franklin to Buddy Guy and Peter Green.

How influential do you think the blues has been on modern popular music?

Incredibly. That is where it all began. The rolling stones and Elvis were/are some if the most successful popular artists of all time and they were just young white guys taking the blues and making it into new and exciting pop hits. © Tom Caswell

In your eyes, how influential do you think Robert Johnson has been on the blues?

Well he was there at the beginning and his songs have been passed down through generations of blues artists ever since.

If you could name one blues player who has influenced both the blues and other genres the most, who would it be and why?

Willie Dixon... Just look at the list of songwriting credits he has to his name.. what a legacy. He was the blues.

What guitar techniques do you associate with the blues?

Well the obvious ones are slide guitar, pentatonic scales and the blues scale. Blue notes / seventh chords and for my that rugged fingerstyle that came out of the delta... playing with expression and feeling to make up for lack or technique/finding your own technique and your own style and form of expression.

Some people think the blues is basic and a lazy genre people just fall into when playing music. What do you say to that?

Well yes it is basic as in it can be just chords 1, 4 and 5 which makes it very accessible... but as with all genres there is a big difference between an average bedroom or pub player and musicians who have a great gift. Not many drummers can shuffle with great feel, not many blues bassists are bang in the pocket not over or under playing but just making the song full of feeling and groove and same goes for front men and women... the Bonnie Raitt’s and Susan Tedeschi’s of this world are phenomenal talents.. They have so much soul and feeling and their own unique sounds and approaches that set them apart.

Do you have a favourite blues period? If so, what?

Well the 50’s and 60’s were incredible. Leonard Chess made the scene back then. All the Chess artists were fantastic from Muddy to Little Walter to Etta James ... so much talent... and the blues had just gone electric then... exciting times!

Albert King, Freddie King or B.B. King? And why?

Wow thats a tough choice. I chose B.B. King because I love his simple beautiful major pentatonic thing... so much feeling.. He can play just one note and you can hear it’s him. B.B. has an incredibly soulful voice too and is a great songwriter. He took lead from Motown and used strings to sweeten his sound helping him to become a huge cross over artist... He opened so many doors for all of us aspiring artists.

Modern music’s evolution from the blues isn’t that widely known, how important do you think it is that people become aware of it?

Its a shame. Most young people today don’t really know what blues is. I think its time the blues had a come back.. I guess Sea Sick Steve kind of did that.

© Tom Caswell

SKIING IN WHISTLER

ELSIE’S BIRTHDAY

© Tom Caswell

CAMPING IN OREGON

www.tomcaswellmusic.com © Tom Caswell