Did you ever really think about the full effect Blues has had on Rock and the global route its taken over the last half century or so?Its pretty interesting when you think about it.First of all it began in the good ol USA.Yes,I know some may argue it goes back even further and elsewhere but for the context of this discussion modern day Blues has its roots in the Mississippi Delta country,Chicago,St.Louis and a few other places.Then it seemed after awhile we lost sight of that and its roots to Rock n Roll with only a couple notable exceptions.But it was with guys like Muddy Waters,Lead Belly,Willie Brown,Lightnin Hopkins,Bo Diddley,Buddy Guy,John Lee Hooker,Albert King,Howlin Wolf and too many countless but nonetheless important musicians each with their own trademark contributions. But as stated we seem to have lost our way back n the Psychedlic 60s-again with but a couple notable exceptions like Duane Allman and Mike Bloomfield. But it wasnt lost on the British and guys like Jimmy Page,Jeff Beck,Eric Clapton,John Mayall and His Bluesbreakers who grew up learning their licks on those old Blues greats and it took them to bring it back to us. But then after awhile even many of the British musicians lost their way. American born and bread Joe Bonamassa also grew up learning his licks from the very same guys Craig Myers did and the aforementioned British greats.It should be noted here that it was to Craigs credit that he recognized that at such and early age when everyone else was turning to the LA,San Francisco guys like The Jefferson Airplane,The Byrds,etc.That is why when FUSE burst upon the scene there was no one around who could play like Craig.One Epic exec told him at a meeting that he was Americas answer to Jeff Beck no less!No,Im not forgetting the all time great and legend Mr.Jimi Hendrix either.Im just pointing out that is why everyone was so dumfounded by Craigs style and level of playing-including myself I admit.Seems people tend to follow like blind sheep at times whatever the current fad or trend may be and sometimes again lose track of their roots.Theres nothing wrong with experimenting with new styles and such,but Craig and I agreed we should never forget or dismiss our roots. But no one it seems is immune to that as evidenced then later in England. Blues great Joe Bonamassa said in a interview that once he had learned his licks,paid his dues,etc. that when he went looking for a place where he might make his mark and he traveled to the UK that he fully expected when he arrived to see a kid with a Les Paul and a Marshall Bluesbreaker amp on every corner,but was surprised to find just the opposite.Thats when he said to himself, Hey,I could do something here-and so he did. A very wise person I always looked up to- though not in the music field-that everything eventually goes full course 360 degrees and indeed those were wise words and insight to remember. To this day I keep hearing statements like Craig Myers was the best I had seen-especially at the time-well,I think therein lies the reason. And with that I will end this evenings discourse and welcome your comments. Cheers all, FUSEMAN
Posted on: Wed, 30 Oct 2013 05:17:22 +0000
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