Really though!? There are not a lot of bands or solo musicians that play blues anymore. The only ones I have heard of lately are the black keys and alabama shakes and radio moscow brings it out a little sometimes. But generally, solid hard in your face blues has for the most part, gone away. For me, that is a heartbreaker because blues is it! IT'S THE MOJO! IT'S THE SOUL!!!
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Is blues a dying art?
- Thread starter zeppfan90
- Start date
I'm trying to think who's of really done it well since the 1980's version of BB King or the Nighthawks...
Hmm... nothing so far...
Hmm... nothing so far...
- Oct 18, 2012
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- Endorsing Artist: Fender, Spector, Ampeg, Curt Mangan, Nordstrand Pickups, Korg , Conquest Sound
I think blues, like jazz will always have a following but it is becoming less main stream.
I spent 6 years touring with a blues band and found that people either get it or they don't. I enjoy playing blues but I think part of the problem is that to many people most of the songs sound too similar and there really hasn't been anything new or different to come out in many years.
I spent 6 years touring with a blues band and found that people either get it or they don't. I enjoy playing blues but I think part of the problem is that to many people most of the songs sound too similar and there really hasn't been anything new or different to come out in many years.
Huh?? There's a lot of newer bands doing the blues quite well IMO. The black keys, Gary Clark Jr ( I think that's his name). I honestly don't think blues will ever die, rock and roll has been based off of it for decades. It's just not as prevalent right now. There's so much garbage out there in the pop world today and no one really focuses on good music. There's A LOT of s**t music out there right now.
Blues is a genre that doesn't seem to move forward or break any new ground. The best music in the genre was done over 50-60 years ago. SRV gave it a shot in the arm in the 80s. In the 90s, Fat Possum records was putting out some good stuff, but most of their blues artists have died in the past 10 years.
I wouldn't call bands like The Black Keys and Alabama Shakes "blues". They are bluesy and have some blues elements (or at least The Black Keys used to on their first couple of albums, not so much now).
I wouldn't call bands like The Black Keys and Alabama Shakes "blues". They are bluesy and have some blues elements (or at least The Black Keys used to on their first couple of albums, not so much now).
And that is truly a shame! Now instead of soul and talent in the mainstream we have naked people on stage and gangsters talking about cappin eachother.
Keb 'Mo adds some great modern touches to the genre. Taj Majal has been smokin some blues since the 60's and is still at it. It's funny. When HD radio first hit here and the stations had no clue what to do with their alternate channels, 2 had blues channels. One was 'jazz' blues, while the other was 'rock' blues. They sounded night and day different, but both were definitely blues.
Blues has been a continually evolving form. It's gone through significant changes since the 20's, up through the 50's. And what you hear in the 50's was a major part of what informed the blues of the 60's and 70's. And that in turn has been influential to this current generation of blues player like Gary Clark Jr. I've heard Gary Clark Jr. play live, and it was definitely the blues.
Keb Mo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8Tvj5u1SOg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiGk8ZTIM08
Taj Mahal
Invalid Link Removed
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Iv9rfnVuLk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8Tvj5u1SOg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiGk8ZTIM08
Taj Mahal
Invalid Link Removed
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Iv9rfnVuLk
Neither kidding nor sarcastic. Hendrix was hardly a blues player. Influenced by blues players, yes. Recorded a few blues tracks, yes. But not a blues player, more like psychedelic rock/pop.
Reverend peyton's big damn band do some bluesy Americana type of music. Five horse Johnson are pure blues rock goodness. Then there is always clutch. I think blues will come back around just with a new twist a lot like bluegrass has.
How about Casey James, of American Idol fame? He's a "blues guy" much more than a "country guy" like he's kind of been marketed.
Skip to about 1:35. That's after he picks up the right guitar for the song.
Skip to about 1:35. That's after he picks up the right guitar for the song.
I agree that Hendrix wasn't a blues guitarist. He incorporated some blues elements in his playing, but he wasn't a bluesman.
Clutch (one of my all-time favorite bands) is certainly not blues. Again, they've incorporated some blues elements in some of their later albums, but they are not even close to being a blues band.
Clutch (one of my all-time favorite bands) is certainly not blues. Again, they've incorporated some blues elements in some of their later albums, but they are not even close to being a blues band.
