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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! >
How did you start?
How did you start?
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Philosofy
47 posts
Sep 03, 2008
6:43 PM
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Back in 1987 my roommate and I didn't have much money: we were in NJ, couldn't afford cable, and only had our bumper pool table to amuse us. He spent his Christmas bonus on a guitar, and talked me into getting a harmonica. We went to Manny's in Manhatten, and I got a Marine Band and Blackie Shackner's book on Blues Harp and Marine Band. My roommate knew a little harp, and taught me some basics. That was over twenty years ago, and I haven't stopped! I thought I was pretty good until I ran across Adam's lessons, which have shown me how much I DON'T know!
How did you start playing harp?
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oldwailer
175 posts
Sep 03, 2008
8:41 PM
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Back in the Mid 60's--(I can't pinpoint any dates from those years) I was playing guitar a little and I fell in with this group of hippies who wanted to form up a blues band. Well, the leader of the pack was this giant Samoan guy who played some blues stuff on guitar and sometimes would blow a little harp.
I got interested in harp and went out and bought a blues harp and the Tony Glover book and started to study it a little. Then I got a brace and started doing some Dylan stuff with bad straight harp--which sounded pretty authentic at the time.
I drove to Seattle from Utah once--in 1967--playing the harp all the way to stay awake--then I did the same thing going back to Utah. When I arrived back in Utah my lips were bleeding but I was the best harp player around--which wasn't saying much at all.
But I got off into jazz guitar and songwriting and quit the harp for years. About two years ago I ran across Jon Gindick--bought one of his books--and I was pawing around YT and ran into this guy Adam Gussow, who had about 6 lessons up then.
An old Chinese proverb (I think) is "when the student is ready, the guru will appear." Well--Adam appeared on YT just for me--You can all thank me for him being here! ;)
Last Edited by on Sep 03, 2008 8:43 PM
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harpmonkey
72 posts
Sep 04, 2008
12:43 AM
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>>(...You can all thank me for him being here!...)
Ya old trubble maker... LOL
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Leanground
22 posts
Sep 04, 2008
7:52 AM
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I turned 48 and realized I had to pick up the harp to catch up to the sounds that have always been running in my mind and to bring balance my life as a portrait painter/father/husband..
I walked my dog at night in the snow and ice to the walking crunchy beat.
I lucked into meeting Justin Quinn,of Roll and Tumble and he shows me skills to strive for.
I'm 51 and gigging regular.
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New_B
30 posts
Sep 04, 2008
1:18 PM
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I went through a devastating divorce, losing nearly everything I had. I was mired in despair, losing focus and control of my life. I turned to the harmonica after stumbling onto one of Adam's YT videos. Playing the harmonica has given me a purpose and has helped me put my life back on track.
I have always enjoyed listening to the blues and jazz. I have experience playing the electric bass, alto & bari sax, but never really stuck with it long enough to translate what I have in my heart and soul, through the instrument.
I am resolved to mastering the blues harp, however. Man .... I cannot wait until I finally make it onto the bandstand. That has been one of my life long fantasies.
Last Edited by on Sep 04, 2008 2:14 PM
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Aussiesucker
32 posts
Sep 04, 2008
9:00 PM
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A long long time ago. Still got a long long way to go. Mind you I had a 50 year break of not playing. As a youngster I picked it up from my father. No instruction or tabs & only straight harp on old Hohners (Echo Harp) played by ear and mostly Folk + Irish tunes. Those old harps didn't like me as I developed a nickel allergy and each time I touched one, my lips blistered. First thought it was the wooden combs so ended up giving it up! Then the internet + some time in retirement & always having an interest I discovered that modern harps have stainless steel covers and plastic combs & hence gentler on the lips so I recommenced ca 3 years ago. Lessons on the internet from HarmonicaLessons.com and attended a one day workshop in Brisbane & then discovered Adams great site. I know of no local resource to turn to as harp players seem to be pretty thin on the ground here. One thing I note is that it's like riding a bike ie after a 50 year break I picked up pretty much where I had left off ie the muscle memory was still all there & all I need now is to know a melody and I can usually find a harp that plays it. Cross harp for me has been a steep learning curve ie initially it felt like I was having to play the harp 'back to front/ upside down/ in reverse' to what I have been used to. But I am getting there. Don't get any encouragement yet from Family who still prefer I play straight harp but then they also tell me to 'turn off that squarking crap' when I'm listening to Little Walter or James Cotton. I need a wood shed.
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Miles Dewar
15 posts
Sep 04, 2008
10:26 PM
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I started February of '08. I was very bored and just looking stuff up on YouTube, when i decided to type in "Blues Harmonica" . I saw Ronnie Shellist's video. I played it and was blown away! i clicked on some more and, i got to Adam's videos, and quickly realized that they were instructional videos. The only music i have ever had before was about 15 minutes of a drum lesson in school(I was kicked out the first day of Band because of my grades).
After seeing the first Gussow video, i decided that i wwould play Blues Harmonica. I went around looking the next day for any harp i could get (even plastic toys), i looked everywhere in Kenosha Wisconsin with no luck. The next day, i did the "Sensible" thing to do. I called the "Music Center". i asked them if they had blues harps and they said, "Yes we do!", $38.oo was the first harp i ever bought. I asked teh lady at thecounter, which one i should get, and she told me to get an "F" harp. I looked at all of them, and there were a bunch to pick through. I found one that totally captured my eye. That harp was the "Hohner Blues Harp". The blues case was the only thing i could see, so i asked if i could look at it.I opened it up and gawked at the coolest looking instrument i had ever seen. Hohner letters on the back, with a nice engraving on the top "Blues Harp".
I also got a "Fast Track" harmonica book. later, i realized that the harp i got was not the "C" that i needed.
Its a funny thing, because that really threw me off for a little bit. I had no idea what pitch the holes on my harp made. It wasnt until about two months that i had finally found a chart on the internet.
I started watching Adams videos, and with notebook and pencil in hand, i took as many notes as i could, still clueless about words like swing, groove, bar, chords, had no clue what the root, 3rd or 5th was, and never seen a scale before (until i went through the Fast Track book again...Duh!). I just started taking notes on what was said and then took notes on the words i didnt know. I would spend hours on the internet looking up words that adam used to find the meanings.
The internet was pretty much the greatest source of information that i used. I also just recently started talking to a skateboard buddy of mine (steffan) who also plays good guitar, i told him that i wanted to know everything he knew about music, and he told me one thing, "Its all about Scales". He then brought me a crap load of study sheets and we went to work.
I really cant thank steffan enough, because he brought major light to things that were very hard for me to understand. I think im pretty bright, i can catch on to things easily but.... Music is Freaking confusing for a beginner. Steffan really helped me Re-Correct myself.
"Shoot Dang", a lot was said. What are some more stories out there in harp land?
------ Be Positive ------
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2draw
35 posts
Sep 05, 2008
8:39 AM
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Back in about 1966 I was 10 yrs old, and there was on older kid near my house that played harp,I asked him what it was and he showed it to me and told where he bought it
So I saved a bunch of nickels dimes & pennies. went and bought a Marine Band it cost around 2.75 gave it up after I went in the military and started playing again about 10 yrs ago. Having more fun than ever.
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DutchBones
23 posts
Sep 05, 2008
10:57 PM
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15 or so years ago, a bought a cheap Chines made blues harp in some shop here in Japan, thinking how great it would be if I could play along with my favourite cds.
I tried and I tried, but I couldn't get the same sound out if this harp, and it became a very frustrating experience...I gave up and concluded that I was too stupid to play such a cheap and simple looking instrument.....
About 4-5 years ago when I was digging around at the local 2nd hands cd shop, I stumbled on a video titled " Blues Harp, Basic Method" by Ryuichiro Senoh, yes the guy from "Spokey Dokey" and "Diggin' my Potato". ( see "Spokey Dokey" harmonica player?)
The video was only 6$ so I thought "what the heck" and I bought it.....
Frankly, I couldn' understand much of the technical parts, but I DID UNDERSTAND that there were various keys and such a thing as "Bending" was requiered to get that bluesy sound.....
But he was to guy who made me go on the internet (not available to me 15 years ago) and it was there, where I found out about Jon Gindick and his Rock 'n Blues Harmonica book & cd, from there it has been just plain fun.....even bending, which took me awhile, was fun to learn....
Our host here, Adam Gussow, also teaches from time to time at Jon Gindick's Jam Camps, and because of that, I learned about Adam..........
I'm not a great player (yet), but I'm much better than I could ever had imagined 15 years ago, thanks to people such as Jon, Adam, mr Senoh and the others who share their wealth with the likes of us... it's a great ride...and I'm enjoying every bit of it...
and to top it of... last year, at Hohner's harmonica contest in Tokyo, I finally got meet and talk with mr Senoh, who is not only an excellent harmonica player, but also a funny, down to earth guy, life doesn't get much better.....
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1i
Guest
Sep 06, 2008
9:29 AM
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Bought my first harp in Tiffany(the jewelery shop) about 8 years ago, thinking it would be nice to learn to play blues harp. Having no musical background at all I was thinking how difficult can it be, it has only 10 holes...bought a bunch of instructional CDs and videos and harmonicas, gave it all up when I couldnt do a single bend note.
Didnt pick up a harmonica till Mar. 08, having no pratice at all in 8years, suddenly, I found that I could bend some of the notes puckering, felt great and decided to learn it again. Starting buying tons of Blues harps CDs, harmonica of different brands. In April, started buying custom harps from customizers in US and Europe...my 2 cent, some of the custom harps are not much better than a good stock harp. So be very careful who you buy custom harps from.
About the same time, I met a freind on the internet, started teaching me to play everything tongue block, started praticing 5-6hours a day. I am still a long way from being an average player, but I enjoy the pratice and the love the feeling when you get the bend notes or the over blows.
1i
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thorvaldsen76
23 posts
Sep 06, 2008
9:57 AM
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Oldwailer: I think the chinese were right:) I bought a Lee Oskar and a cd/book on how to play harp for about 4-5 years ago. But I didn't get hooked at all.. I think I played it 2-3 times before I gave it away.. Then,suddenly,in January 2007 something just popped up in my mind and I bought another Lee Oskar. And this time I was really devoted and I practised like hell!! I played tunes like Red river and Oh,Suzanna etc. I didn't sound bluesy at all and I had no clue how to get there... I searched the internet for good instructional videos but most of them were just short videos of guys giving a tip or two before they played some riffs that you have to be an expert to nail.. And my motivation started to go down again..
But,one day,I stumbled over Adam Gussow:) And to make it short,the harp has taken over my life. I went out and bought me a MB,key of Bb:) I practise every day,I listen to blues with harp all the time and 90% of my websurfing is devoted to bluesharp. I think Adam said in a YT-video early on that the bluesharp would take over your life and he was absolutely right:)
Kent Erik
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Preston
45 posts
Sep 06, 2008
7:26 PM
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The story of how I got into harp spans over a decade: I was listening to my Mom's old records when I was in high school, and came across the Ozark Mountain Daredevil's record with the song "If you want to get to Heaven." I remember being blown away by the sound of the solos, and asking my mom what instrument that was. She said she thought it was a harmonica. Not much was said after that, but on my 16th birthday, she bought me a Hohner Old Standby. I tried to play along with the OMDD song, not even knowing how to make single notes. Shortly thereafter I put the harp away. However, it followed me everywhere. It moved out with me and got put in a drawer in college. It was in a storage box when I moved to my first apartment after college. It moved to my son's toybox when he was born. One long, cold winter I decided I would learn guitar. No luck at guitar. Dug thru the boy's toy box and pulled out the old harp. Two weeks and one Jon Gindick CD later, I went and bought a Marine Band. Hit a "plateu" and started searching for inspiration on the internet. Found Gussow and the rest is history (in the making).
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geordiebluesman
68 posts
Sep 07, 2008
5:30 AM
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At the age of 20 i decided life was for living so i packed in my job,stuck out my thumb and hitch hiked from Newcastle Upon Tyne to Africa.Along the way i had many many adventures,lots of drink and a little bit of girly action! One fine day i found myself sick of hitching so i sneeked onto a train,i did'nt know or care where it was going but at least it was going someplace.It was a real old train with a side corridoor with 8 seat births off it,by pure luck i found myself in with a bunch of guys in their 20's and the party started!.One of the guys got the wine out and another got his harp out,we drank and sang and partied for 2 days(with occasional breaks to hide from the ticket collectors),Afterwards the guys all disapeared but i never lost the feeling of making magic happen that i felt when the wine kicked in and that guy was blowin his harp and everyone wanted to get into our compartment.It took another 28yrs but i eventually got round to buying a How To Guide and harp from Mel Bay,and that was that! I did the Old Sussana stuff learned to bend then found Ronnie Shellist and Adam Gussow and now i can't imagine life without my little tin chum,I'll be harpin and learnin till i die
Last Edited by on Sep 07, 2008 5:35 AM
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Guest
Guest
Sep 07, 2008
5:37 AM
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I came to harmonica because of health problems as I fast approach retirement age.
About eighteen months ago, I was trying to learn the guitar style of Mississippi John Hurt. After a half hour playing, my fingers would start to seize and pain would set in. Left me feeling pretty miserable.
One day I was listening to MJH's 'Avalon Blues' CD and I got hooked on track 11, Lisa Jane(Gods Unchanging Hand). On it MJH sings and self accompanies himself on harmonica.
So, I got myself a Special 20 in C and started to learn this little tune. Found I could play harmonica for hours, there was no pain and making music became fun again.
Now when I practice, Lisa Jane is the first tune I play and a Special 20 goes with me everywhere.
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geordiebluesman
69 posts
Sep 07, 2008
11:46 AM
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Looks like you've turned the old addage "no pain no gain" on it;s head!
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Salmon
Guest
Sep 07, 2008
2:20 PM
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Back in the 60's The Rolling Stones bought out Not Fade Away. Mick Jagger said he used an Echo Super Vamper and played it in the key of G. All of us impressionable youths went out and bought Echo Super Vampers in the key of G. We didn't know then that to play in G you used a C.
Anyway we all learned a few simple riffs and had harmonica duels. Girls came along and the harp was dropped until 40 (can't believe it) years later, I had time on my hands and wanted to learn an instrument but not one that took a lifetime to master.
Saw a Chinese made Diatonic, bought it, blew my lungs out (it was very leaky) and was able to repeat some of the old riffs I used to know. Upgraded to better harps, got instructional material and 18 months later am fairly proficient but know there is a lot, lot more to learn. Got bitten by the bug and can't imagine letting a day go by without blowing the blues. I just wish I had never dropped it back in the 60's because by now I would be pretty good.
I'm now on a quest looking for the perfect sounding harp but think it's got more to do with me than the harp.
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Leanground
24 posts
Sep 07, 2008
5:24 PM
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I saw Kim Wilson last night front row center in a small venue and he used all Marine Bands (1 deluxe) and a 64 chromatic
What a great show!
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