kudzurunner
4781 posts
Jul 13, 2014
5:38 PM
|
Alan Gross and I spent the weekend in Greenwood, South Carolina, playing a festival. The high point of the weekend for me was seeing Juke Joint Johnny, a harp player from Charleston.
I met him for the first time back in 1994 at a C-town bar called Goodfellas, I believe. I'd never seen him play with a full band. He rocked the house. One of the best down-the-middle, rock it out performances I've seen in years. He had Gary Erwin (Shrimp City Slim) on keys, a Swedish player on guitar, and John "Clam Chop" Etheridge on drums.
He's in his mid 60s and doesn't have a CD to his name. Mostly he's been working with Gary. The few videos that you can find on YouTube don't begin to do justice to the show that I saw. He and Gary play a weekly gig on a harbor cruise in Charleston, every Thursday.
I'm hoping to produce his first album. I wouldn't have made the offer to him unless I'd seen something very special that needs to get out there far more than it has.
Here are a few links. The guy had a monster tone and he sings beautifully. Imagine a slightly smaller, trimmer Watermelon Slim with all that energy, great voice, and the ultimate swinging band.
http://wae.blogs.starnewsonline.com/42837/juke-joint-johnny-the-hurricanes-perform-on-sunday/
http://www.piccolospoleto.com/?tribe_events=lowcountry-blues-cruises-juke-joint-johnny-the-hurricanes
https://www.facebook.com/events/370955279624504/
Here's a video. It's not bad, but it doesn't have the huge tone I heard yesterday:
Here's another that gets much closer:
Last Edited by kudzurunner on Jul 13, 2014 5:44 PM
|
The Iceman
1827 posts
Jul 13, 2014
6:05 PM
|
this dude needs an album out there...(like that acoustic guitar body, too).
----------
The Iceman
|
Unknowndark
1 post
Jul 13, 2014
6:32 PM
|
Whats not to love...
|
Oisin
1090 posts
Jul 14, 2014
1:18 AM
|
Does anyone know what kind of guitar that is in the second video? I never seen anything like it. Great harp playing too.
----------
Oisin
|
Komuso
353 posts
Jul 14, 2014
1:41 AM
|
Harp Guitar
Guitarist, singer/songwriter Drew Baldwin has been performing across the US and abroad for over 3 decades. His instrument of choice is his 100 year old Larson made Dyer harp guitar, which features 5 bass strings, in addition to the 6 strings of a standard guitar. Drew showcases the instrument's distinctive attributes by adeptly weaving melodies, chords, and bass lines simultaneously.
http://www.reverbnation.com/artist_1629633/bio
----------
Paul Cohen aka Komuso Tokugawa
HarpNinja - Your harmonica Mojo Dojo
Bringing the Boogie to the Bitstream
Last Edited by Komuso on Jul 14, 2014 1:43 AM
|
blueswannabe
477 posts
Jul 15, 2014
5:59 PM
|
This guy is excellent. Great tone, timing and phrasing on Sad Hours! This is all natural tone. Yes, he's using a shure pistol grip mic (likley a 545), likley some reverb settings on the PA or a reverb tank behind him, and likely the PA or a line out from a small fender amp. Nothing out of the ordinary but it is clearly the player.
Last Edited by blueswannabe on Jul 15, 2014 6:01 PM
|
Oisin
1091 posts
Jul 16, 2014
8:34 AM
|
Thanks for the info Paul. Amazing instrument.
----------
Oisin
|
Frank
4830 posts
Jul 16, 2014
9:03 AM
|
Johnny workin the river boat and sounded good...
Last Edited by Frank on Jul 16, 2014 9:04 AM
|
blueswannabe
478 posts
Jul 16, 2014
10:37 PM
|
@Frank, thanks for posting. nice groove going on there.
|
blueswannabe
479 posts
Jul 16, 2014
11:15 PM
|
nice solo work from Juke Joint Johnny. and check out Beverly Guitar Watkins
Last Edited by blueswannabe on Jul 16, 2014 11:17 PM
|
The Iceman
1832 posts
Jul 18, 2014
10:52 AM
|
tmf...don't feel too bad about that competition.
I attended two of them and found them, in regards to the set up of the competition and the back up band, to be kinda silly.
----------
The Iceman
|
tf10music
213 posts
Jul 18, 2014
2:15 PM
|
The harp guitar was popularized by Michael Hedges in the 80s and 90s, I believe:
----------
Check out my music at http://bmeyerson11.bandcamp.com/
|
