"Live by Request" - B.B. King (2003)

If you have never seen BB King live, then this is as good as it gets!

The nickname "B.B." - which is short for "Blues Boy" - was first bestowed upon him in Memphis on Beale Street. It stuck. And the sound that he created has spawned a generation of guitarists, some equal to, and some even surpassing, this legendary musician.

This is a very personal performance, one in which B.B. seems a little nervous as he gets ready to field requests for any one of the hundreds of songs he has written and recorded over the past 60 years. And aside from the music, the stories he relates between phone calls and requests are gems; some of which appeared in his autobiography, and some that didn't.

The story of his guitar, named Lucille (he is currently on Lucille 18, though this film from 2003 has him playing Lucille 16) began in 1949 in a town called Twist, Arkansas. It was in a "juke joint", with a 55 gallon drum filled halfway with kerosene for heat. Two guys fighting over a woman knocked it over, burning the place down. BB ran back to get his guitar, (he claims to have been the first one out the door) and almost got killed. The next day he found out the 2 guys were fighting over a woman named Lucille, and so he named his guitar for her, as a reminder to never do that again!

Between each number he explores the impact that his music has had upon 3 generations, with particular emphasis on "The Thrill Is Gone" in 1969, which was on my first B.B. King album. That was the song that opened up the whole world to him, thanks in part to the "British Invasion", which had its roots in American rhythm and blues. Due to that influence, he went on his first world tour in 1970. And he hasn't stopped since.

Jeff Beck takes stage with B.B. for 2 numbers, "Rock Me Baby" and "Key to the Highway", and also helps him close the show with "The Cost to Be the Boss." With his inimitable style of playing, he is proof of the impact that B.B. King has had on so many musicians over the years, and by extension, us.

Calls for requests came from everywhere! All over America, North and South, even as far away as Argentina. One man called, relating how he met his wife 25 years ago at a B.B. King concert. In between playing and taking requests, B.B. also offered his advice on going to school, graduating, majoring in something that you like to do, while learning something you can make a living at. He also advises that young folks stay single until they're 40.

B.B. even had a story to tell about meeting Pope John Paul II, he gave him a guitar as a gift. Though you are never to directly touch the Pope, instead of handing the guitar to the Pope's aides, he offered it directly to the Pope, who took it. He was strumming it when B.B. left.

Packed with some of the best songs he has ever done, and playing with his long time band, B.B., who had a real problem playing during the '90's due to the constant pricking of his fingers to monitor his diabetes, has never sounded better.

This DVD came to me through the courtesy of George Peterson, one of the librarians at the Cornelius branch of the Mecklenburg County Public Library. We are both Buddy Guy fans and he bought this DVD in from his personal collection for me to see. That's what I love about the libraries; not only are they are a refuge for the soul, but also a place where ideas are exchanged and friendships are formed.

Reverend Dorsey - Father of Gospel Music

Tommy always loved music. Born in 1899, he displayed an early and keen interest in the songs he heard played in church, and even at home. Eventually he would make it to Chicago and study at the Chicago College of Composition and Arranging, but before that he was playing piano in a vaudeville act. After his graduation from the College, he became a fairly well known jazz pianist, playing under the name of Georgia Tom. This was prior to the 1920’s, when Tommy gave his life to Jesus. He was 22 years old at the time.

Leaving the jazz clubs behind him, he began his career as a composer, writing gospel songs. He also became a director of church music, meaning that he wielded great influence over which gospel songs were disseminated to the many churches across the country.

By the 1930’s; whether by design or co-incidence, Tommy had become the Reverend Dorsey; leading a flock of his own. It was during a service in 1932 when his life took a tragic turn. While preaching to the congregation he was approached in the pulpit by a church member who handed him a telegram informing the Reverend that his wife had died in childbirth. Within 24 hours he would also lose his newborn child. He began to doubt his faith in God and fell into a deep depression, vowing to never write another gospel song. But someone had other plans for Reverend Tommy.

Within a week of the events described above, the Reverend was seated at a friend’s piano, and realizing that he was now all alone in the world, wrote the song that would change his life, and influence gospel music in such a way that Tommy would someday become known as the “father” of modern gospel music. Finding his place on the keyboard, he began the familiar chords of an 1844 hymn by George N. Allen, titled “Maitland”. This melody would become the basis for the words of the song he was about to write.

Enveloped by what he would later term a “perfect peace”, he wrote the lyrics in a matter of minutes; with the words coming to him all at once. That song would become the iconic gospel hit “Precious Lord, Take My Hand”, which has been published in 40 languages and become a staple of the gospel music scene. It has been recorded by everyone from Mahalia Jackson, B.B. King, Little Jimmie Dickens, Al Green, Ike and Tina Turner, Merle Haggard, Elvis, and even Jimmy Durante. The song has also been featured in films such as “Cool Hand Luke.”

The song not only restored  the Reverends faith in God;  but it also prompted him to write many more gospel songs, including “Peace in the Valley”, which was recorded by the Sunshine Boys in 1951 and became the first gospel song to sell over one million copies.  

Precious Lord Take My Hand by Reverend Thomas A. Dorsey  (1932)

Precious Lord, take my hand,

Lead me on, let me stand,

I am tired, I am weak, I am worn;

Through the storm, through the night,

Lead me on to the light:

Take my hand, precious Lord,

Lead me home.

When my way grows drear,

Precious Lord, linger near,

When my life is almost gone,

Hear my cry, hear my call,

Hold my hand lest I fall:

When the darkness appears

And the night draws near,

And the day is past and gone,

At the river I stand,

Guide my feet, hold my hand.

"You Can't Always Get What You Want" by Sam Cutler

In a real close-up look at the darker side of Rock and Roll, Sam Cutler, former tour manager for the Rolling Stones 1969 tour; which ended in complete disaster at Altamont Speedway in California; asks the hard questions, and provides some of the harder answers to the "how's and why's" behind the disastrous killing of a gun wielding young black man at the hands of the Hell's Angels in December 1969. The resulting furor over the killing, coupled with the trial of Sonny Barger, heralded the end of the Woodstock Nation, which had been born only 4 months earlier in upstate New York.

Mr. Cutler examines the differences, and egos, which formed the disaster, and then simply vanished, leaving him to face the legal issues. With a keen eye for detail, and just enough sex and drugs thrown in to make it interesting, he has covered all the bases, from the security concerns to ticket scalping. The madness of touring with the Stones is apparent in the whirlwind pace of the author's writing.

Also, there is an added bonus for those who did not know, or like me, were unaware of Mr. Cutler's connection to the Grateful Dead. He became, on the strength of their connection through the Altamont Speedway concert, at which the Dead never played, tour manager for the Grateful Dead for decades to come. His accounts of Jerry Garcia, and what the man was really like, are very revealing, and will definitely be of interest to his fans. Although not a huge Dead fan myself, the business end of the Grateful Dead empire was really a fascinating thing to watch grow. It simply happened, which is, of course what that band is all about. Happening.

A great quick read for fans of either band, and illustrated just enough to make it interesting, this is one memoir which will not disappoint the reader.

A Picture Worth A Thousand Words....

A picture is sometimes worth a thousand words, and I've been waiting on this one for a very long time. You can almost hear them exclaiming, "My word, have they gone mad?"

Apparently they don't understand that the people are fed up with an outdated monarchy at a time when the aristocracy is raising the tuition at Universities across Britain. Keep your eye on the "Man Who Will Never be King." He's always good for a laugh.

And Camilla seems irked at seeing the poorer classes waste food by throwing eggs at them. I can just hear her thinking, "How dare they! No wonder they're poor!"

Great photo, one that I will cherish, not being a big fan of Monarchs.

"Blues Story" - Shout Factory Anthology

This is a compilation of blues from the early 1920's to the mid 1950's. Music underwent vast changes in these decades. And Shout! Records has caught it all in this neatly packaged 2-CD set complete with a booklet outlining those changes in the years between the Roarin '20's and post war Jim Crow America.

The recordings are arranged in the order in which they were released. This lends a nice flow to the evolution of the blues sound. You can listen to each artist as they build upon one another in an ever expanding sound that has evolved into the blues of today.

Just a quick look at this playlist will give you an idea as to the scope of music this album encompasses. Beginning with some very early Mamie Smith and Blind Lemon Jefferson, the 2 CD's take you through the entire history of the blues genre. Pinetop Perkins is represented well with his wonderful version of "How Long" and Big Joe Turner ushers in real Rock and Roll with his "Shake, Rattle and Roll", which really did shake and rattle the world of music when it was released.

The second disc begins with Muddy Waters doing "Hoochie Cootchie Man" and Little Walter doing "Rollin' and Tumblin'." It's interesting to note that Eric Clapton and Cream had mega hits with their version of these 2 recordings. The blues, it would seem, knows no lines of demarcation where race and generation are concerned.

The CD finishes out with Big Bill Broonzy and Mississippi John Hurt (someday I'm going to do a post just on him) and actually closes with Big Mama Thorton's "Hound Dog", which made Elvis Presley a star. And 15 years later Janis Joplin would transform Ms. Thorton's "Ball and Chain" into her own raucous pyschedelic version.

Like I said, the blues neither knows, nor respects, any boundaries. It is a link we all share. And that's why each generation keeps on re-doing these basic standards. They are as relevant today as they were when first released. BB King said it best -"Everyday I Have the Blues."