It is a shame that as talented as Popper is, he can't feel the blues and what the song is about on Texas Flood. I was hoping I would not hear Runaround but I did. I'm not saying don't play high end. I'm not saying don't play really fast at times. Popper plays to many major notes on his high end solo. The multi-speed,overbend, emotional style of someone like Jason sounds much cooler to me on this type of song.
I guess I may be too spoiled by often viewing the SRV Austin DVD where he just pours his emotional self into the song. I don't like this version with or without Popper.
Last Edited by on Dec 05, 2012 1:05 PM
I recognize that Popper is a very skilled player, but I have never heard him play in a context that I can enjoy. I think he is completely out of his element trying to play any form of trditional blues or roots music. It seems to me that if he were playing with a small jazz combo maybe the style of Charles Lloyd, or a Roland Kirk, his playing could be more effective and fit. Just a thought by someone who admittedly hasn't listened to him a lot or enjoyed his playing much. And I agree with Duane as to Jason's playing being a better fit as a modern player when it comes to blues.
It´s amazing how weak he is when he´s out of his context. Even soundwise, he is thin and edgy (possibly deliberatly, but why?), there´s no warmth whatsoever neither to his playing nor sound. I´m not a particularly strong BT fan but I think he has played amazing and interesting things on some of those records and a far dry from this. He is certainly much better here, playing the blues:
But I still prefer this (maybe one of the lousiest YT uploads out there, in therms of sound ...)
You realize he was playing through a vocal mic that happened to be on stage, right? His blues playing on the Very Special Christmas CD's is pretty hip.
Check out the tone on the lesson I posted above, especially when he talks about being influenced by violin and horn players. I don't think have a clean tone means thing, etc. He has great acoustic tone. If you search YT, there are any number of clips of him playing acoustically through the same mic he is signing through. ---------- Custom Harmonicas
Last Edited by on Dec 06, 2012 12:12 PM
Yes, the two Very Special Christmas has him sounding considerably better -- and I realize the shitty situation w/ just a vocal mic.
Still I honestly don´t have any stronger feelings about him, meaning he tends t leave me cold -- apart from the speed thing which is amazing, and as I said above, that he has at times played great things on the BT albums -- and this has nothing to do w/ him being an inadequate blues player. He´s not particularly bluesy, doesn´t strive to be, for all I know -- but yes, the solo on Christmas blues is a good one.
What was fascinating back in the day (e.g. on Harp-l) was the downright hatred he elicited in some people. I suppose because he played harmonica in a way few/nobody had done before, and that was very hard to follow because of the technique. This made him a sort of persona non grata in the blues world and a despicable entity for all the Kim W wannabes. I guess he could care less. (I remember it was even suggested on Harp-l that, for sure, "all" of the trad blues players could do what he did ... they just didn´t do it. Yeah yeah.)
