With all this music emerging, it's hard to know where it comes from, Times are best when it simply appears, turning you into a conduit through which it flows. You can't be too critical, can't think about it too much. That's sure to kill the groove. Best to let it happen, taking time to sort it out later. That's how I handle it.
Sometimes a notion hits you, remembering a song from months ago, riding in a car, working out with headphones on. 'Know My Rider' was like that. There was an unreleased Byrds version that I liked, with the big jangly sound that they achieved at times. Not having a 12 string guitar - you can't really fake that sound with pedals - I had to come up with another arrangement.
This one was worked out in detail by constant playing the riffs, figuring out how they blended together, building on it. Pure evolution; given enough time, I can come up with something fresh. The drums were acoustic, even the tolling bell ringing off into infinity. Instead of solos, I threw in quotes from Beatles songs. That's a jazz trick applied to a folk rock song, somewhat in the spirit of the Byrds, who tried to combine a John Coltrane solo with folk rock, creating 'Eight Miles High'.
The first genre album I attempted was 'Jazzadelic'; with a title like that, there was a lot of wiggle room. Songs ranging from 'St. James Infirmary' to the following, 'Stiff Neck' were attempted. I was most interested in cross-pollenating genres, adding a little jazz to something interesting. 'Stiff Neck', originally done by Larry Coryell (check out my blog posting on him), posed an interesting problem.
It was a duet between electric guitar and drums played by Elvin Jones in his usual circular manner. I knew the guitar part, the main reason for giving it a try. There was no way I could do anything like Elvin Jones. Instead, by accident, I kept it very simple, adding a bass in tight sync to the most basic drum beat, keeping it going until I ready to end. Even stranger, during the recording of the bass part, another Beatles cover popped up, so I worked that into my solo later. Evolution with a dash of creationism in the middle.
'And I Love Her', also on 'Jazzadelic', was more in the spirit of most of the songs from that album, blending in this case a Beatles classic with spacey slide, electric piano, and jazzy backing. I kept this one quiet, more interested in atmosphere than showing off. There always seemed to be a soft jazz song lurking in this McCartney tune, I simply brought it to the fore. That's the 1949 Sears Silvertone soaring through the melody.
'Jazzadelic' was, overall, a success; I was ready now to tackle other genre themed albums. The next year, I planned my first Blues album. I knew that I could play the Blues; I wasn't so sure that I could effectively sing them. Instead, in the beginning I tended to mimic famous singers. 'King Bee' has a decent Slim Harpo impersonation. Compare that to 'Scratch My Back' from six years later, where I use my own voice.
Fortunately, this song came out well, a favorite of my family as well as friends. Remember, I said that there had to be minimal self-editing when recording to maintain spontaneity and creative flow. This can lead to some unfortunate choices, such as later when I attempted doing Muddy Water in 'Can't Be Satisfied'. Might as well put black face on, not what I intended at all. I've always been very sensitive about cultural appropriation. 'King Bee' doesn't go there, luckily.
'Bipolar Boogie' was an outtake from around that time. I worked very diligently on the bass and drums, changing gears constantly, keeping in total sync. It was a powerful song, perhaps too powerful since I had trouble slotting it into my Blues albums. Originally on 'Sonic Debris', my first outtakes album, I moved it to a Blues outtake one in 2016, called 'Bruise'. By then I had eleven songs that I could put on there in that genre, all refugees from other projects.
It's a good track, especially for an outtake, with more than a touch of Hendrix's out-of-control tone at times. It's more creation than evolution, unlike the previous covers. Part of that is being an original song, based on a concept, worked out in the rhythm section first, then layering a nasty lead on top. I was fascinated with building to a climax then releasing a couple of times per song during this period. This one is typical of that approach; it works great here.
'Could've Had Religion' is from a couple of years later. Notice how I'm singing in my own voice now. No more minstrel show mimicking. Muddy Water did this, but I know the Rory Gallagher version best. My approach on this song is to get nasty, let it build, not worry about virtuosity, keep it gritty.
This is also a straight-down-the-middle Blues, not chipping away at the edges of the genre, afraid of exposing emotions. It's a unique approach to the song, but still within traditional instrumentation, making it an evolution of an existing tune. It's simply my version. Both the choice of song as well as interpretation say everything.
'Doh! Piddley!' is very early, from around 2007. Originally on the deleted 'Guitarmageddon' album, it's been moved a few times. Now it sits comfortably on the 'Groove Batch' collection. It's mostly Blues, but with a strange country twang. An alternate title, 'Think Link', might have been more descriptive.
Fairly simple, it's still more creation than evolution. I'm not copying anything exactly, instead coming up with a mutant hybrid somewhere in the vicinity of Link Wray and Bo Diddley, only more sophisticated. This is the remastered version; putting a new bass line on in 2016, I was reminded how tricky the beat can be. It took an unreal amount of takes to get the vibe right even though it sounds basic.
Moving into the future, 2017 to be exact, 'Ragtime' is technically a Blues, just not how we define it today. This was what the genre originally sounded like to Jelly Roll Morton or W.C. Handy when the notion of a Blues started to percolate into American culture around the year 1900. As much jazz as anything else, it's a tricky little piece, fun to develop, requiring days of practice building the chops to handle the chord changes.
Even though there was a Blues album done during those recording sessions, that song, despite being very effective, was not chosen for it. Albums develop character or a theme as the recording sessions progress. Often it takes over half the songs being done to realize where the music is heading this time. The Blues album 'Down in the Bottom' was aggressive, hard, fast paced. This song was too playful, breezy, too much fun to fit into that sequence.
Instead, I placed it on the 'Knob Ends' album, which as the title implies, were the left overs. As with 'Bipolar Boogie', this demonstrates that just because a tune is on the leftover album doesn't mean it's a piece of shit. This was very intricate; I spent months working on the various riffs and leads. It is a fast little ditty, colorful, evocative of a time long ago.
The genesis of the song was a guitar, 3/4 length, designed for traveling. It was a gift from my daughter, very dear to me. I haven't had the opportunity to take it on a vacation. For my wife, a vacation means getting away from me strumming away every morning. I was determined to find a song perfect for it, working this up as a result. The short neck makes the fast finger work easier, the small body giving a 'ping' sound. slightly more metallic than my larger Epiphone acoustic.
Is that creation or evolution? I'd side on evolution; ragtime is not a genre that I am comfortable with, the song has a middle eight that would never appear in a true period tune, and I pulled the thing straight out of my ass. Yet it was directed at an existing format, designed to resemble it. Ultimately, it is in the eye of the beholder where each piece falls.
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