waltertore
2433 posts
Jul 26, 2012
7:07 PM
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I was a very mixed up teenager when Red invited me to move in his house. It was a godsend. He taught me much about playing music, or I should say becoming music. His playing never ceased to amaze me as we sat in the living room of his house. Publicly Red tended to get caught up in the Muddy Waters, Lightning thing but alone at home he played a whole different thing. I regret I never recorded any of that but back then making a decent recording was a full blown professional affair.
Red died a while back and tonight my 1940 national steel and 1938 kalamazoo acoustic guitars called me. On the steel songs Red was with me. It isn't the same stuff we played together but it has the feel. I am eternally thankful I has such great teachers like Red, Lightning, Sonny Terry, and many other of the blues greats. Hopefully todays generation will hear some of them in me. Here are some of the songs from this session. It was recorded with only 2 mics. One on the guitar and one on the vocal/harp. Old school simple. Walter
1940 national steel style O with vocals harp:
moonshine crazed blues been worrying on death many days
1938 kalamzoo acoustic guitar, vocals, harp:
Make a change do something for the human race how can we be so cold and mean to each other
---------- walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year. " life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller 4,000+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
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waltertore
2434 posts
Jul 26, 2012
8:26 PM
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here are some more with the national steel. Walter
the blues I miss blues with Red Louisiana Red gave me hope ---------- walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year. " life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller 4,000+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
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Joe_L
1954 posts
Jul 26, 2012
8:40 PM
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Louisiana Red was great! Too Poor To Die is one of my favorite tunes. Ever.
---------- The Blues Photo Gallery
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Hobostubs Ashlock
1901 posts
Jul 26, 2012
9:24 PM
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That Song about Louisana red and hope was cool,has that raw delta sound thats so cool,I really enjoy that style of blues,keep it simple is what a old musical friend told me years ago.I really like that song. ---------- Hobostubs
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barbequebob
1993 posts
Jul 27, 2012
7:38 AM
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Red was an awesome guy> I had so much fun playing some real down home blues with him on a tour that I did with him where I had temporarily replaced the great Carey Bell on. Nobody had that Muddy Waters slide sound better than he did of anyone I ever gigged with, hands down.
He always carried with him 4 different slides, the long metal tube for doing Elmore James, a slightly shorter metal tube for doing Earl Hooker, a glass slide for doing Robert Nighthawk, and finally the really short one for doing Muddy.
The man was the real deal! ---------- Sincerely, Barbeque Bob Maglinte Boston, MA http://www.barbequebob.com CD available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bbmaglinte
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waltertore
2435 posts
Jul 27, 2012
9:09 AM
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Red sure was the real deal. His playing confirmed to me that playing raw, from the soul, with no filters, was a good thing. I never could figure why he never hit it very big in the USA.
Joe_L: I have a 45 of that song that Red gave me back when I lived with him. I think sugar hips is on the other side-an instrumental.
Hobostubs: Thanks! For me, seeing live, imersing onself in the lives via living, touring, visiting with, the artists that inspire us is the ultimate way to learn an art. Books, records, videos, and such can inspire, but that soul to soul passing of the gift can only happen once you get close to an artist. At least that is the way it works for me.
Bob: Red probably had millions of slides :) He was on a continual search, like trying to find the end of a rainbow, with slides and guitars. He borrowed one of mine, a solid brass one (which is my only slide) in the mid 80's. Then in 95 when we were hanging out on the west coast during a break in his US tour, he reached in his slide bag and gave it back to me. He had an incredible memory for remembering peoples names and their gear, if it interested him.
The stuff he played in his house was unlike most anything he recorded. I would go to sleep on the couch as he played in the chair next to it. I still hear those sounds in my dreams...... I was holding a fantasy that he would be touring through the states and probably play the chicago blues festival. I would get him to swing by my studio and capture that stuff. Just him alone. That was when he was at his best. He was with me on this session. Today I was all excited to continue with it but he was gone...... ---------- walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year. " life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller 4,000+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
Last Edited by on Jul 27, 2012 9:25 AM
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Frank
931 posts
Jul 28, 2012
6:52 AM
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Walter, that dream to have Red come to your studio - might be his way of telling you have other artists like him come by and get recorded?
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waltertore
2437 posts
Jul 28, 2012
10:37 AM
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Hi Frank: Thanks for that thought! I have had several friends by here to record. I am not in this for the money so I get to pick who I want here. If I like the music, the volume they play at, don't wnat to spend much time on mastering, I am always open. The Tunnel of Dreams Studio is an extension of Spontobeat. Red would do everything 1 take and mixing would not take very long. That is the way I operate. Most musicians want to spend way more time recording each song (multiple takes) and in the mastering process than I do. Martin Scorcesses and Robbie Robertson contacted me about playing harp on the movie The Color of Money with Paul Newman and Tom Cruise. Clapton was amoung those I would be playing with for the soundtrack. Once I found out I would have to do the same songs over a 1-2 week period of multiple takes, different mics/amps, etc, I said thanks but I wasn't interested. They asked me how much I made in a year. I said for the 200-250 gigs I was doing per year I probably made 10k in my pocket. They offered me 10k for this project and assured me it would open more doors. IT was heartfelt and I really appreaceiated their offer but pointed out when I mentioned I could do the soundtrack in on sitting/1 take the doors closed. I had and still have no interest in doing music the normanl way of multiple takes, rehearsals, etc. I view my stuff as snapshots or field recordings. I had a label out a while back called 21st century field recordings. I lost interest in it. I printed a few hundred cds of a live gig with my trio but after a few weeks with them in my hand I found the stuff I was doing at the present moment more exciting and most of those cds were given away or tossed. I am the same with my studio- 1 take, and what was done today is the most exciting. Spending time mixing, rehearsing and such takes too much time because I have millions of songs wanting to come out of me all the time. Walter ---------- walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year. " life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller 4,000+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
Last Edited by on Jul 28, 2012 10:43 AM
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Frank
936 posts
Jul 28, 2012
11:16 AM
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They should of trusted you and see what you came up with, thier lose!
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waltertore
2438 posts
Jul 28, 2012
11:31 AM
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Hi Frank: I wish they did too! Unfortunately the music world is so entrenched in the write, rehearse, repeat, retake, play the same songs everynight, that what I do is so far out of there comfort zone that it scares them. Think about it. The most rank beginner to the most highly respected players take this approach. We ecxpect to hear the same songs on the radio, at concerts, etc. Recording is just as deep in this approach. Engineers will spend endless hours tweaking mixes to get them perfect. I am sort of a assembly line production. I spend no more than a few minutes mixing/mastering each song.
I take no kinship to my songs. They just pass through. Conversely just about everyone doing music takes very close kinship to their songs and dreads one getting out that is not perfect, especially on a cd or soundtrack. I am fine with it all. My life is great. I have everything I need to be musically complete and satified. To be honest, if there is a hell, and I am sent there, the best punishment they could dole out on me would be to do music the normal way :-) Walter ---------- walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year. " life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller 4,000+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
Last Edited by on Jul 28, 2012 11:33 AM
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Frank
937 posts
Jul 28, 2012
12:46 PM
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What is a pity >is they "contacted" YOU...and I suspect knew what your strenghts were,did'nt they? I would of figured they'd of taken advantage of that and let you do YOUR thing!
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waltertore
2440 posts
Jul 28, 2012
2:36 PM
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Frank: Believe it or not this has happened to me many times. Part of the musical process once one gets into the pro ranks is the need to control and change the artist. I don't think this is intentional but subconcious. I have been courted by major labels and such. The first thing they said was- We love what you do and really want to capture it! Then it went on to my band was no good, my guitar no good, my songs needed to be polished by ghost writers in Nashville, and the list went on. By the time they were done I thought- where did I go in this equation?? There isn't an artist out there, on a major label or one that was finacied by one of the smaller ones that hasn't had to compromise on things like band members, song selection, tempos of songs, etc. I think these people are so entrenched in this process that they assume I will go with the flow. It is like compromise is a given. I have no problem with people that do that but I would rather bag groceries at Walmart. It would be more spontaneous than that process of making music. To each their own. I happen to be an each that is alone :-) Walter ---------- walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year. " life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller 4,000+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
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opendoor_harps
62 posts
Jul 29, 2012
1:42 AM
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I like this Batch of songs Walter. The old steel guitar tone and acoustic are a great compliment for your voice, harp playing, and the songs about Red.
It was great to finally get a chance to hear you play in person up in your old stomping grounds in Northern CA. I now have a deeper respect for a song like "Moonshine Crazed Blues" :)
I recently made a Louisiana Red, Spotify playlist that I've really enjoyed listening to.
Best- BT
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Frank
941 posts
Jul 29, 2012
6:00 AM
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So when you told Martin Scorcesses and Robbie Robertson that you would do it for free if they let you have total artistic freedom, what did they say - what did they have to lose?
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waltertore
2442 posts
Jul 29, 2012
6:24 AM
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BT: I too am glad we got to hook up. Thanks on the acoustic stuff. I need to remember to do more with those guitars. I wish you could have met Red. You would have dug him.
Frank: I never offered to do it for free. I thanked them for the offer and the pay but said if I couldn't do it spotobeat I would have to decline. Walter ---------- walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year. " life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller 4,000+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
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Chickenthief
260 posts
Jul 29, 2012
9:42 AM
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Hi Walter, just wanted to thank you and let you know that i have really been enjoying your music this morning.
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waltertore
2445 posts
Jul 29, 2012
2:09 PM
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I am glad you enjoyed the tunes chickenthief! Walter ---------- walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year. " life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller 4,000+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
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