SuperBee
5509 posts
Jul 27, 2018
6:15 AM
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while i was in the US i bought an A harp from Deak Harp, mainly to see what the fuss is about.
Ive primarily used this harp while learning the song. just a way to give the harp some meaning beyond a mere souvenir of travel
last year i was speaking with a local player whom i consider a very strong player. He is focussed on playing and singing jazz on chromatic but i know he is also very good on diatonic. he told me about learning chromatic and taking lessons with Toots Thielemans, but when i asked him about diatonic he said he learned by playing Juke about 1000 times.
i think that was the final nudge i needed to start working on it
i believe I've managed to memorise the famous record reasonably well. i have modified it slightly, to fit this backing track.
i think this a fair indication of how i'm playing right now. its probably as good as i'm currently capable, acoustic into garage band on the old imac inbuilt mic, with a bit of reverb.
://www.dropbox.com/s/6cgcr591vdqdtwo/juke%20-%2027_07_2018%2C%2010.26%20PM.m4a?dl=0
Last Edited by SuperBee on Jul 27, 2018 3:31 PM
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AppalachiaBlues
206 posts
Jul 27, 2018
6:54 AM
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Now that's an interesting thought: play it 1,000 times (and keep track).
I guess I've only played it 100 times... in fact not even... since I doubt I've ever played it twice the same way :-)
SuperBee -- Your clip sounds very solid. Well done!
Last Edited by AppalachiaBlues on Jul 27, 2018 6:54 AM
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hooktool
180 posts
Jul 27, 2018
10:28 AM
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Nicely done D.
John
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SuperBee
5516 posts
Jul 27, 2018
4:39 PM
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Thanks John and Appalachia Blues,
The player I referred to above also said ‘it’s all in there, if you listen properly’
I’m trying to listen properly, but experience tells me I often hear more over time as I tune in.
I know the tempo of that BT is higher than most of my practice, and in that recording I expect I am more focused on keeping up than the quality of sound production. Maybe I’m a little breathless and harsh and cursory hitting the notes as a result.
Listening to the original there are sounds LW achieved which I don’t understand. For example in measure 4 of chorus 4, I have no idea how he achieves that quality in his 4 draw after he releases the 5 draw bend.
I’ve played it perhaps 200-300 times, or maybe not that many. I don’t know. I’ve only been able to play it end to end for the last 18 days so I’m probably overestimating at that. More than 100 but maybe not 200 times. I expect I’ve been at 85-90% tempo, or less
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Sundancer
237 posts
Jul 27, 2018
6:20 PM
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Well done Super Bb. Groovin!
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indigo
513 posts
Jul 27, 2018
10:02 PM
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Well 'Bee i know that you aiming at perfection but i'd cut a finger off to be able to play that good.
Great stuff.
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Mirco
606 posts
Jul 28, 2018
12:26 AM
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Hey, that's alright! Nice job, man. I think you got the main ideas and the bulk of it down pretty well.
Juke's one of those songs that you can keep going back to and always find something new. Actually, I'd say that's the case for most of Little Walter's instrumentals. His style was nuanced and can be really dissected.
For my money, Off the Wall is the superior instrumental, but isn't as universally recognized... if you can play Juke well, you earn the respect of most serious blues players.
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Marc Graci
YouTube Channel
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SuperBee
5517 posts
Jul 28, 2018
1:03 AM
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Hey Sundancer! Thanks for listening. i Hope all is well with you and yours.
Indigo, you know i was getting some very harsh sound from my Reverb pedal so I took it with me to Mississippi and tried it out at HCH with Randy’s test rig. I A:B’d it against a brand new pedal. They were exactly the same and I could only conclude I have an overly aggressive attack. Randy said he’d never encountered before.
So now I’m a bit self conscious about it. Thanks for your kind review, you’ve made me smile.
Mirco, thank you.
I agree, LW keeps on giving.
I’d love to learn OTW but I felt I needed to learn Juke first. I’ve been procrastinating over it for so long.
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groyster1
3216 posts
Jul 28, 2018
6:14 AM
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very strong playing aussie brother!!!!!
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SuperBee
5519 posts
Jul 28, 2018
5:41 PM
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Thank you sir! I hope you are doing well George. I’m glad i learned this song on my Deak harp. It will always bring me memories of the time i spent in US. I bought that harp from Deak in a last minute, last chance decision the day i left Clarksdale and met you at Wall Doxey. I do believe the first time i played it was in the cabin. There was a ‘no harp playing’ rule in the car on the way from Clarksdale to Wall Doxey
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indigo
515 posts
Jul 28, 2018
10:22 PM
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My wife and i were in Clarksdale about 18 months
ago.
Picked a bad time because it was like a ghost town.
We were walking down the street and i spotted Deak talking to some guys on the other side of the road so i yelled out "G'day Deak".Bit of banter and he tells me to come over and he'll show me around his shop.
Well it was like walking into an Aladdin's cave for a harp player.Nice guy but a real salesman(and good on him) but the harps were just a little to pricey for a bar room type player like me.
Anyways that night the only Blues show on was Deak playing in a backstreet bar so there we went..awesome, he even dedicated one of his tunes to that Kiwi(pronounced Kewa) couple in the audience.
Like i said Clarksdale was really quiet when we there but we found out that the next weekend there was a blues festival on.Talk about bad timing.
Hint: Any of you antipodean Blues nuts(like me) who have a visit to Clarksdale on your bucket list..check out the dates of what's happening there before you go.
Luv the States.Awesome country and people.
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SuperBee
5520 posts
Jul 29, 2018
12:34 AM
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Hi Indigo, you are right they are definitely on the higher end of the price range.
I was very fortunate to get into Clarksdale on the day of Pinetop Boogie and Crawfish boil, so I met Bob Stroger and heard him play with John Primer and Bob Corritore. Also heard Deak that day. Later I met Robert Kimbrough at the Hambone Gallery and the next night heard Deak at the Bluesberry Cafe. Also was called on to get up and play while Deak was outside smoking, so I played through his Bassman/Premier rig. I was a bit taken aback when he passed me his blows me away wooden bullet mic, because it had my initials n the grille. Then I realised Deak and I have same initials.
I was stuck without a ride out of Clarksdale, 85 miles from where I needed to be. I hung around Deak’s store while I was trying to organise a lift. I had thought I would be there a few hours but as it turned out I was only there about 20 minutes. I had to decide real quick whether to buy that harp. It definitely hurt but it’s a pretty special memento of a special time.
I’ll echo your sentiments Indigo, re the people I met in the USA. Especially Hooktool, kingobad, Groyster1 and Sundancer of this forum.
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