First time I had seen this clip of the classic song. How frikken awesome is James Cotton in this! check him out up and down off his stool during the solo.
I understand he is still playing, any of you guys seen him lately?
I saw James Cotton sit in a few songs with the Downchild Blues Band as a special guest (Dan Aykroyd was there too) in winter 08 or 09.
Although I found they gave him solos a bit too long for him (he doesn't have the endurance he used to), he was the best harp player in there. His tone is amazing, and the originality of his playing blew me away. When he was playing with the band, it actually really, really, really rocked!
LOL, I am going to get me some white socks then if you think it would help. The band also obviously put a lot of work into the hair-style in those days.
I’m very jealous of you blokes in the states having access to performers of this calibre.
@Blueswannabe I would love to hear what you thought of the concert after the weekend.
Last Edited by on Oct 31, 2010 10:39 PM
The left handed guitar player is Pee Wee Madison. He was completely bad ass. In those day, Muddy also had Sammy Lawhorn in the band. He was one of the most wicked guitar players that I've ever seen. ---------- The Blues Photo Gallery
Last night I had the privilege of seeing the blues legend, Mr. Cotton. First, I didn't see any white socks. I had a seat 9 rows from the center stage. Mr. Cotton is 78 years old but he plays harp like a 20 year old on steroids. Two things come to mind immediately, ferocious tone and spirit. His age is breaking down his body and his voice (as it would anyone) but his tone has been untouched. When he sounded a 2 draw bend I thought a freight train was coming. It was startling. It looked like he was using a shure sm58 mic. I couldn't tell if he was using any particualr amp. I only saw three amps on stage. His harps, from where I sat, looked like marine band cover plates. The comb looked silver or white in color.
When he spoke he had great difficulty, and so he was not singing. It was obvious that there was a young man in his old body saying "let me the heck out of here so I can tear this place down and show the people a good time." He has a spirit that won't quit. Impressive!
Aside from tone, the other thing that I noticed was his attack. He hit that harp strong and hard like sacking a quarterback. I couldn't believe it. I don't know how long his harps last but I'm sure longer than mine.
He was generous with his band, letting them each take a couple choruses.
It was a great evening, truly enjoyable. If you haven't seen him, I would definitely make a point of it.
Last Edited by on Nov 07, 2010 5:51 AM
Even though he's pushing 80, Cotton is still great! I've only missed the opportunity to see him play once in the last 20 years. Usually, he's playing through the PA and it's simply amazing. James Cotton is living history.
Don't be so sure about how long his harps last. The last time that I saw him, he had a tray of Seydel 1847's. I think there were only four keys, but there were four or five in each key. If you watch him closely, he's pretty hard on them. If he isn't satisfied with one, he picks up another and goes about his business.
When he plays, there is no nonsense going on. His band is tight. They watch and listen to him for cues. If he farts, it's a cue for someone to do something. His bands have always been that way.
The only times that I've seen him where things were really loosely run was when he would do his Christmas night gigs in Chicago with Sammy Lawhorn, Pinetop, Calvin Jones and Willie Smith. That was just old school stuff played the old school way.
