"But you can hardly hear the harp!?" Yes, that´s the point. It sits in the background, fills out and provides this slightly menacing tone to the whole soundscape. Few notes but the right ones. Supreme restraint from Walter Horton.
The band hears it. This is my favorite thing about harp, it's ability to support and connect across instruments. Solos are a nuisance. BW is all over the place on this song, like a solo the whole time underneath. This approach is what a B3 also does really well.
In the same wheelhouse: Kim Wilson's tasteful, restrained backing on Jimmie Rodgers' "Ludella" album. For my money, this is the most perfect back-up harp work anywhere on the planet.
@Stevelegh That chimes with something Mitch Kashmar said in the video Adam posted - that a lot of blues solos stray too far from the melody or don't add anything to the melody and just end up being generic blues solos (I'm paraphrasing, not quoting). It's a good point.
@blueharp1: I´m not sure if I agree with your description of KW´s efforts on the "Ludella" album: I find him more at the forefront than anything else, very active and audible; but never mind, I certainly share your high opinion of it. For that particular style -- "Muddy Waters harp backing"? -- it´s absolutely perfect. He´s playful and inventive and slightly wild. Clearly on a roll that night:
Ed. This entire album (from 1990) is on Spotify, I see now. (Don´t know how to embed from there, though.)
Last Edited by Martin on Feb 20, 2013 11:27 AM
