It kills me that you guys over in Europe have a better grasp on the sound and groove of this Chicago style than do so many yanks here in the US! ---------- The Iceman
It's okay, but it doesn't work for me nearly as well as the original.
I bought the album in the mid-1980s and played it a lot. Carey Bell has a uniquely raw sort of edge. He's not an easy guy to cover. He's got a heavy slurred Mississippi accent and although he's not "technical" as a harp player, he's got a kind of wildness in his playing that is very hard to capture. Since I know that sound, your version sounds a little too taut and controlled to my ears, with all the rhythmic accents put in predictable places.
I'm a fan of your playing, as you know, but I think that you need to drink as much as Bell drank for at least a few days and then play. He drank a lot.
"It's okay, but it doesn't work for me nearly as well as the original."
Isn't that a pretty common conclusion for most original tunes when covered by another band, unless that band changes things enough to "remake the tune in their own original voice"?
IMO, bands that cover these tunes are not trying to "outdo" the original - just giving a nod of respect towards the original and get people's toes a'tappin' as well... ---------- The Iceman
Grey Owl, thank you so much! You are always very kind to me :)
Iceman, thank you! It's a big compliment for us. We are all grew up with this music, even if our environment was not so much into it. BTW we are all Ukrainians, but Daniel (guitar and vocals) is from Argentina. I heard my first blues record at the age of 12 ("Live at Regal" by BB King). And you are right we were not trying to outplay the record just show our respect to the original masters.
Pickn5, thank you!
Adam, thank you! Probably you are right. Carey is a very hard to emulate for me. He is very scratchy and his percussive style is not my typical way of playing. I love to listen his music, but I've never tried to study him. IMO he was the predecesor of Paul Delay in terms of inventiveness and mixes of genres. It was my session work. Probably I'd never decided to play this song by myself. And most important - I've never been drunk and I've never tried drink stronger then beer (I'm 36 yo):) ---------- Konstantin Kolesnichenko(Ukraine) http://kolesnichenko-harmonica.com/
Last Edited by wheel on Aug 11, 2019 2:37 PM
Pretty good Wheel! You are much more technical than I am. Not a bad thing at all!
Some 15 years ago I saw and bought Tough Luck, and it was a kind of game changer for how I played. For one thing- how to describe this- I could just feel the love from Carey in his lyrics and nuance. Some intangible quality to how he sang and played conveyed a relaxed sort of affection and ease in how he addressed a mic. Tough luck is still one of my top 10 albums.
I can't play like Carey, even if I drank for days, which will not happen. I am sober half my life now and I don't plan to go back. But as I said, somehow I got a message from his work that I can relax and be a little looser as long as I hit my mark at that moment.
I'm a kind of seat-of-the-pants player most times. It's not a calm ride on the train but more a roller coaster!
The way I play Mellow Down Easy was changed forever by Carey's example of that song. One evening in Helena, Arkansas, at the end of a King Biscuit Blues fest, I was over the levee on the observation deck with my girl, looking at the moon. We heard the last song of the last act end about 200 yards away. Other folks came onto the deck. Somehow inspired, I pulled out a D harp and began a solo acoustic version of Mellow Down Easy. It caught on and people were clapping and stomping in time, adding fuel to a deep red fire. It went on for seeming hours but could not have been minutes. It had to end, and it did. When it was done everybody on the deck was a bit closer to each other somehow. I give Carey Bell credit here. His version was the initial inspiration.
No, I don't or can't play just like Carey, but he has informed my attitude about live performance like few have. Relaxed, loose, daring, and in control. Take an extra turnaround, throw in a hoot or shout, talk to the people in between. Give the love. It comes back.
Ummmm, just a choice of two I'd say one man's meat is anther's poison. How do you rate better. It just cannot be an objective decision, it will always be subjective and the one thing that really annoyed me about sports such as ice skating and others reliant on a judges opinion rather than a non arguable definitive time, length, distance, height, weight or accuracy criteria. Which of these is THE BEST? : : : ; : : ; ; ;
