This is a live version on youtube. Do you think he is tongue blocking or puckering this. I think it's pucker. This just blows me away.
Last Edited by Django on May 21, 2017 3:32 PM
There's a whole lotta TB going on, where do you think he's puckering and why would he want to? ---------- www.spiersharmonicas.com High Performance Harmonicas
Right off the top for starters where he plays the similar motif at the end too. It sounds to me like he's doing a lot of ta's as opposed to tongue slaps. There are a lot of spots where I hear the same kind of sound. As to why he would want to well I guess if that's the sound he was after then that would be a pretty good reason to do it.
He could've been but it can easily be done tongueblocked too, it's not just for slaps and octaves. ---------- www.spiersharmonicas.com High Performance Harmonicas
Fair guess lip purse but TB for sure, I say. I think there's a recurring misunderstanding about TB in it's use on single notes as opposed to slaps and octaves. Single notes are a glorious thing TB. The beginning of this song, for example, works both ways but I think much better TBing. TB, I think, is one of those 10,000 hours things. Ain't no surprise that the top ten harp players are greatly dominated by those that TB a whole (whole) lot.
Okay guys. I hear every 2nd note off the top(the 5th) as being a touch brighter too but I guess he could be doing that with how he is cupping too. I read somewhere that he mostly puckered on the lower notes but I suppose that might not be accurate or maybe outdated. Just love his tone, attack and phrasing. Sounds like a muted trumpet playing guitar licks at times.
Though not as well versed as many of you guys here, I've listened to a lot of harp players. And if the devil came to me and said he could make me play like anyone, I would choose Gary Primich.
Dave Barretts site has an interview with Gary, he puckered the low end too but it depended on the context. Making the jump between non-adjacent holes would be a context where TB might work better but it could be either one. ---------- www.spiersharmonicas.com High Performance Harmonicas
I have studied Gary's style and this tune extensively over the years and still don't have a definitive answer.
One passable way to do this intro is to pucker on the hole #2 notes but TB hole 4 and 3 (or alternatively, pucker hole 3 also). This is how I did it 15 years ago, but after I started playing everything with TB except blow bends, I discovered I could do a convincing job on the intro with 100% TB, so there are several ways to do it.
Having seen Gary lots of times and paid attention to what he was doing, I believe he did mix in pucker for more than just blow bends, e.g., when he would vary his tone to get a really shrill sound on the 2, 3, or 4 hole draws.