atty1chgo
665 posts
Jul 18, 2013
9:16 AM
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Duane C.
50 posts
Jul 18, 2013
3:28 PM
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WOW... that's ROCKIN!! Stirs up my blood.
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Martic
20 posts
Jul 18, 2013
5:38 PM
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@Lmbrjak: this is the new James Cotton's album, released on 2013 :D
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Jared_SA
94 posts
Jul 19, 2013
12:36 AM
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Best album I've bought this year so far.
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Lmbrjak
152 posts
Jul 19, 2013
10:12 AM
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Thanks Martic,that makes it even more impressive. What a great album. I'll be buying it soon. He's rockin'it good at 77!
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Seven.Oh.Three.
227 posts
Aug 24, 2013
1:46 PM
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Been addicted to this CD for a few weeks now. James Cotton seriously shows he's still got it.
Question, on the first track "Cotton Mouth Man" (especially in the opening riff) He's got a real overdriven metallic tone. Does anybody know he's getting this? It's more than just his internal tone creating this. Personally, I think it's BAD ASS sounding....
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Thievin' Heathen
241 posts
Aug 25, 2013
7:16 AM
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Sounding as good as ever. Truly a promotional coup for Seydel.
I can't wait to see what Hohner comes up with to counter this. I can't quite decide whether we are in the midst of a harmonica renaissance or a nuclear arms race, but its' a good time to be a harmonica player.
Last Edited by Thievin' Heathen on Aug 25, 2013 7:20 AM
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Hakan
347 posts
Aug 26, 2013
6:26 AM
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It sounds great! It fits with his raw style. The recording with Cotton and Muddy Waters on Mannish Boy (Hard Again) made me start to listen to blues 30 years ago.
His overdriven tone, I don't think it's from vintage stuff, mic or amp. It could be from a vocal mic, like Shure Beta 58A connected to some kind of sound processor with high gain and high brightness. But not too high!
Håkan
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Frank
2649 posts
Aug 26, 2013
6:48 AM
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Blues Harp PERFECTION on display for generations to come who will marvel at his ability to keep the listeners ears glued to his every nuance, articulation, rhythm and dynamic explosiveness...
Last Edited by Frank on Aug 26, 2013 6:49 AM
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bluegate
6 posts
Aug 26, 2013
9:46 AM
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For those of you in the Chicago area, Mr. Cotton is playing at SPACE in Evanston Il. on Sept. 7th (Saturday).
I have a table in the front row... Going to be a great show featuring Lurrie Bell on guitar.
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kudzurunner
4220 posts
Aug 26, 2013
7:22 PM
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Agree with you, Frank. Perfectly said.
Thanks, attorney, for posting this. It goes on some important page on this website. (See below.) It's the best thing I've heard Cotton do in years.
I've only made it to the 1:07 point and am willing to say that.
Last Edited by Guest on Aug 26, 2013 7:25 PM
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harpdude61
1794 posts
Aug 27, 2013
12:03 PM
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Cotton's playing always sounds loose yet in control. His power like no other. This is what I would want hear if I were at one of the jukes back in the day. Can you imagine the sweat, shine, and smoke while the ladies were dancing and hearing this. Cotton should be near the top of most peoples list! WOW!
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kudzurunner
4222 posts
Aug 27, 2013
12:29 PM
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Hakan, I agree with you about how Cotton is getting that sound. The recording engineer is a very smart guy.
703, I think that it's probably a vocal mic plugged right into the board--the recording console--then process in some crazy way that greatly heightens the sonic profile. It's an overdrive sound, in a sense, but it doesn't have the profile of the normal tube/amp compresed sound. It's possible that the engineer is putting it through a plug-in called Amp Farm, processing the signal so that it gets a computer-generated equivalent of an overdriven Fender Deluxe or Princeton. Not the ACTUAL sound of an overdriven Fender, but the digital equivlent.
http://line6.com/ampfarm/
Last Edited by kudzurunner on Aug 27, 2013 12:34 PM
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Lmbrjak
181 posts
Aug 27, 2013
1:06 PM
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I bought the album. The whole album fits Franks' description. Here's another cut:
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tf10music
174 posts
Aug 28, 2013
9:45 AM
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Kudzu: I think it could be through any amp simulator. Given the stature of both of these guys, I doubt it's using any plug-in with just the presets, though a plug-in like amp farm may well have been the starting point. I agree that it sounds like a mic going straight into the interface, though I owuldn't have noticed it if you hadn't pointed it out. I actually wouldn't be surprised if it was a condenser mic, actually -- the tone is really warm, and sounds a bit like when I mess with my own harmonica tracks home recorded straight into the interface on a kel hm1, which is a solid mid-range condenser with a fairly warm tonal range (especially compared to an sm57 or even an sm58). By contrast, I recently played through an sm57 (no cupping) straight into the interface when I was in the studio for a new set of songs, and the sound wasn't quite as expansive (which is a bad adjective, but I can't think of anything better right now). It's all guesswork, of course, and your ear is definitely better than mine.
Either way, it's great playing and a great sound.
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Check out my music at http://bmeyerson11.bandcamp.com/
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IndianaHarpKid
25 posts
Sep 04, 2013
9:33 PM
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This is by far one of my absolute favorite albums I've gotten this year. Just great stuff all around. Cotton is a God, or at the very least a demigod.
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Hakan
350 posts
Sep 05, 2013
12:28 AM
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Now I have the CD and it is very good. The harp sound in the tune above changes on other songs, so there he is probably using his old mics. it reminds a little of the Muddy Waters album with Cotton.
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arnenym
194 posts
Sep 05, 2013
1:19 AM
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I bought the album and listen to it a couple of times. It's the best album i bought this year and one of my top 5 album from now.
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Rgsccr
205 posts
Oct 08, 2013
10:28 AM
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Bought this album back when this thread first started - thanks atty1chgo for bringing it to our attention) and I have listened to it regularly. Don't know if I know enough to comment one way or the other about Mr. Cotton's current level of virtuosity (to me it sounds as good as can be), but I do know what I like and this is it. He even makes Joe B sound like an old time blues guy! I know that Cotton is well respected but I think, like Jerry Portnoy, he gets a bit overlooked in the discussion of the greatest blues harp players (not just those living). Maybe he is in the conversation more than Portnoy (and probably more deservedly with regard to the very top). I know he is in Adam's top ten, but I still sense people forget about him a bit. If I had to pick anyone's playing to copy it would be Cotton's - so much power and feeling, and plenty of technical ability for sure. For me, he is the blues. Maybe this is what I will sound like when I get to blues heaven, or, perhaps, in that other place if I can find that crossroads and make a deal with that other guy...
Last Edited by Rgsccr on Oct 08, 2013 10:33 AM
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HarpNinja
3521 posts
Oct 08, 2013
12:30 PM
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Really enjoying this album!
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Mantra Customized Harmonicas
My Website
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harpdude61
1855 posts
Oct 08, 2013
1:22 PM
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Cotton should be the first thing you see/hear when you search blues harmonica!!
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Greg Heumann
2404 posts
Oct 08, 2013
4:49 PM
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I have a really different take. I am terribly disappointed in the album. Whatever recording /re-amping technology they used screwed with Cotton's tone, or he has lost it. James Cotton has (had?) the biggest baddest hugest recognize-it-anywhere-in 3 notes acoustic tone of anyone on the planet. This record sounds like crap to me. Thin and metallic and springy. I listened once and have no desire to hear it again.
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***************************************************
/Greg
BlowsMeAway Productions
See my Customer Mics album on Facebook
BlueState - my band
Bluestate on iTunes
Last Edited by Greg Heumann on Oct 08, 2013 4:50 PM
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Joe_L
2344 posts
Oct 08, 2013
7:26 PM
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First, there is not a bigger Cotton fan on the planet than me. I saw Cotton earlier this year. He sounded great. He hasn't lost anything.
To me this album sounded like it was recorded using some cheeseball garageband amp presets. I think Giant was a way better record.
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The Blues Photo Gallery
Last Edited by Joe_L on Oct 08, 2013 7:34 PM
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geordiebluesman
768 posts
Oct 09, 2013
11:45 AM
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This has been playing at home at work at play just playing all the day, love it.
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