Saturday Matinee – The South Memphis String Band, Bascom Lamar Lundsford & The Allman Bros. Band

The South Memphis String Band is a bit traditional and a bit unorthodox in their approach to country bluegrass and blues. Here’s their version of “Jesse James.”

“Jesse James” was first recorded by Bascom Lamar Lundsford in 1924. He played and promoted traditional Appalachian folk music and styles from the previous century.

The Allman Brothers‘ version of “One Way Out,” recorded live on 2 November 1972 in Hempstead, New York:

“Ain’t but one way out baby,
Lord I just can’t go out the door;
Ain’t but one way out baby, and
Lord I just can’t go out the door;
‘Cause there’s a man down there,
might be your man I don’t know.”

Here’s a brief history of the song with links to earlier recordings.

Have a great weekend, folks. More fun is on the way.

Saturday Matinee – Ice Stacking, Room Full Of Blues, Magic Slim & Buddy Guy

Lake Superior pwns the ice [via].

13 February 2016
“Lake Superior put on a dramatic show with her recent ice in Duluth, Minnesota.
[…]
The seemingly endless ice sheets broke into large plates and stacked on shore, sounding much like breaking glass. The ice thickness ranged from about 1/4″ to about 3″ thick.”

Room Full Of Blues (AKA The Institute of Awesome). They’ve been around for decades and don’t get half the respect they deserve. I heard them live in the ’80s and my ears are still ringing.

How ’bout some Magic Slim? Nice bad boy groove, that.

Buddy Guy coached a young prodigy on stage, and displayed no condescension whatsoever. What a class act.

Have a great weekend, folks. Be back here to tomorrow, because I said so.

 

Saturday Matinee – Big Boy Crudup, Pee Wee King, The Duprees & The Tedeschi Trucks Band

Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup (1905-1974) recorded “That’s All Right” in 1946, and was dubbed “The Father of Rock and Roll.” Crudup spent his life as a farmer and a moonshiner, and although a talented bluesman from Mississippi, he received few if any royalties for his songs that were covered by many, including Elvis Presley, Elton John and Rod Stewart. Crudup got chumped by the recording industry, and eventually went Galt – he decided that if he couldn’t get a piece of the action, why record at all.

https://youtu.be/XJoVtzikrAk

1946 was the same year Pee Wee King recorded the classic “Tennessee Waltz.” (I wasn’t anywhere near being born then. The first version I remember was by Spike Jones and His City Slickers, and I wasn’t born then either, but I got a 45rpm copy, and here’s the flip side.)

Here’s The Duprees‘ version of “You Belong To Me,” and the song is not about slavery.

Nice blues rock jam from husband & wife team known as The Tedeschi Trucks Band.

That’s a wrap for this edition of the Saturday Matinee. Have a great weekend folks.

The Saturday Matinee – Mississippi Fred McDowell, Roscoe Holcomb & The Dixie Hummingbirds

Mississippi Fred McDowell‘s version of Bukka White‘s “Shake ‘Em On Down.” (This version is hot, too.)

https://youtu.be/6CD5yMpYjtM

Roscoe Holcomb plays “Graveyard Blues.” Pure Appalachian finger style guitar. So where can we go from here? Oh wait. I know.

The Dixie Hummingbirds are one of the greatest soul Gospel groups ever, with a track record dating to 1928. We’re all on God’s Radar whether you accept it or not, and that’s a wrap for this edition of the Saturday Matinee.

Saturday Matinee – Tanya and Dorise, Robert Cray & Samantha Fish

Pink Floyd. In the rain. Wish you were here.

Tanya – Violin & Skates
Dorise – Guitar
Nathan – Tenor Banjo
Syd Barrett – Muse

https://youtu.be/MW51nryJmLk

Sometimes the Utoobage is great, sometimes it fails, but it still amazes me. I was looking for a live video of Robert Cray‘s “I Wonder,” but no dice. I’ll post this one anyway because it’s so sad and purty.

Lookout. The Prom Queen’s got a gun, and ya’ll better not call her a Prom Queen because Samantha Fish is gonna jam it down your throat, and here’s proof.

Have a great weekend, folks, see you tomorrow for more stuff.

 

Saturday Matinee – Rowan Atkinson, The All Night Long Blues Band, Samantha Fish & Satchmo

Rowan Atkinson plays air drums with brilliance.

The All Night Long Blues Band at The Cat Head Store in Clarksville Mississippi, 2013. There’s something both absurd and awesome going on there, and I like it.

This one’s a jawdropper. Samantha Fish kills it on a 4-string cigar box guitar. From Wiki:

During the summer of 2013, Fish was called up on stage to play with a skeptical Buddy Guy who was so impressed with her playing on the guitar, he declared with a beaming smile to his audience, “When this kind of shit happens, I’ll play all night!”

Let’s wrap it up with some Satchmo. This 1933 version of “Dinah” was some great jump blues.

Have a great weekend and we’ll roll again tomorrow.

Saturday Matinee – Okudart, TV Ad Extended Cut & The Alabama Blacksnakes

Okuda San Miguel transforms abandoned church into Kaos Temple. [Related post herevia].

https://youtu.be/pvcj9xptNOQ

GEICO extended cut.

How bout some rough cajun booze-rock blues? Give a listen to “Interstate Love” by the Alabama Black Snakes… then read this.

Saturday Matinee – Justin Johnson, Luna Lee, Kim Wilson & Patrick Sweany

Roots music performer Justin Johnson plays an electrified custom cigar box diddley bow.

Luna Lee plays Elmore James on the gayageum [found via].

The Kim Wilson Blues All-Stars. Jump to 08:20 for an impromptu jam.

Here’s some heavy duty swamp rock. Although Patrick Sweany is from Ohio, he stomps it with “Every Gun.Zach Setchfield on guitar, Ron Eoff (?!) on bass and Dillon Napier on drums.

That should make the nut for this edition of The Saturday Matinee. Have a great weekend, folks. See you tomorrow.

Saturday Matinee – Sam Chatmon, Rory Gallagher & Night Music

Sam Chatmon (1897 – 1983) was a classic Mississippi Delta bluesman with a great voice and pure country pickin’.

Roots blues rocker Rory Gallagher jams William Harris’s 1928 song “Bullfrog Blues” in 1980.

From 1989’s “Night Music,” (produced by Lorne Michaels of SNL fame) this line up is pretty awesome. It’s a long vid, but I think I got the numbers right if you want to skip the intros.
Was (Not Was) – 04:22, 21:16
Sonny Rollins – 08:30, 30:16
Leonard Cohen – 13:45, 34:30
Ken Nordine – 26:07.

That should hold you for a while. Be back here tomorrow for more amazing and astounding inanity.

Blues Legends Illustrated

Blues Legends

Every one of those images were derived from B&W photos, and if I’m not mistaken, they were created by Robert Crumb. You’ve heard their songs covered by others (like this one by Memphis Minnie & Kansas City Joe McCoy).

[Image found here.]