Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Blues Moon Radio Playlist Sept. 14, 2010 6-8 p.m. ET/USA

Tonight's Playlist... *updated throughout the show - refresh your browser to see changes and additions...


B.B. King - The Thrill is Gone
Billy Boy Arnold - I Wish You Would
Louis Myers - Wiggle Tail

Albert Ammons - Bottom Blues No. 2
Lester "Joe Hill Louis" Hill - Hydramatic Woman
Joseph "Mighty Joe" Young - Mighty Man

Ray Charles Robinson - I'm Wonderin' and Wonderin'
"Little Joe Blue" Valery  - Standing On the Threshold
Fenton Robinson - You Don't Know What Love Is

Alden "Tarheel Slim" Bunn - Wildcat Tamer
Arzell "Z.Z." Hill - What Am I Gonna Tell Her?
Sammy Lewis - I Feel So Worried
Houston Stackhouse - Mercy Blues
Cora "Koko Taylor" Walton - Wang Dang Doodle

Bobby Blue Bland - Stormy Monday Blues

New music:
Albert Castiglia - Cadillac Assembly Line - Keepin' On
Marshall Lawrence - Walkin' Blues b/w - Blues Intervention

 Marshall and I did a brief interview:
Marshall Lawrence “Doctor of the Blues”
"Acid Blues and Roots"
Delta-style Blues cdl Roots with a raw edge and an acid twist
Maple Blues Award Nominee
Canadian Independent Music Award Nominee


Clair DeLune - who are your inspirations?
 Marshall Lawrence:
Robert Johnson, B.B. King, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Son House
Tommy Johnson, Muddy Waters, Taj Mahal, Johnny Winter, Jimi Hendrix

cdl - what was your first instrument and at what age?
ML:
I first heard Jimi Hendrix when I was ten years old on the steps leading up to my family's attic apartment. Something in his approach to guitar moved and inspired me. I couldn't believe it, here was a person who could express his innermost feelings through an inanimate object and convey the essence of what I felt it was all about. This just blew me away and I knew I had found my direction. There was no turning back for me. I begged my father for a guitar. My father bought me an Echo semi-acoustic guitar and I was determined to learn how to play it.

I used to play in electric blues bands, rock bands, funk bands, punk bands and bluegrass bands. The thing about playing in a band is the camaraderie among the players. I also enjoy the musical interplay between the players and the various instruments in the band. You really can create a musical landscape with the other instruments in the band and you don’t always know where the music will take you. Musically it can be very exciting.

However, I later discovered that playing solo acoustic blues and roots music is more intimate than playing in a band. When you are playing solo, it’s just you, your guitar and the audience. What the audience sees is what they get. You are up on stage naked, so to speak. You don’t have the rhythm section to move the song along or other musicians to add variety melody-wise. It is a very intimate musical experience for both you and for the audience. For me, playing solo is the “real deal”.

For me, playing acoustic guitar is more real than playing electric guitar. It is just you and the guitar. There are no amps or pedals. What you see is exactly what you get and hear. When you hold the acoustic or resonator to your body and play, you can feel the guitar and the strings resonate and vibrate. It’s as though the guitar is part of you. All the music is coming from your heart, fingers, body, and emotions. For me it is a total and direct connection to the instrument and the music.


cdl - what is one viewpoint you take on Blues that is different from other players?
 ML:
I’ve labeled my style of music “acid blues & roots” to describe the combination of all the various styles of music that I’ve played and how I infuse my fiery and adrenaline driven approach into playing my style of blues & roots. I did the rock thing, I did the punk thing, I did the funk thing and, for me it was just a progression to come back home to the blues. I use all of these musical influences in my approach to playing Blues & Roots music, whether I’m playing acoustic or electric. So for me, Acid Blues & Roots is a mixture of blues, soul, rock, punk, and funk and above all else, self-expression. Ultimately, it is important to me to respect the tradition but also make each song my own. Originality is very important to me!!
For me, blues is a healing music. It allows you to express what you feel any way you want. Some people say that the blues is a down music, you know it's sad and depressing, but it's not. The blues is actually a happy music. You may be singing about some bad patches in your life but through the singing you are working through it and passing on a lesson to whoever is listening. Through the telling you feel good and so does the audience. Everyone can identify with the blues. Blues helps us laugh at our troubles, helps us put them in perspective and helps us move on. It lets us know that we are not the only ones that have experienced bad patches in life. I owe a lot to the blues.

cdl - how do you usually write a song - set the scene for our listeners about your process (possibly pick an example from the CD and tell about how you got the idea/concept).
 ML:
So far, I have released three CDs “Where’s The Party” (2003), “The Morning After” (2008) and “Blues Intervention” (2010). I am currently recording my fourth CD. It’s also an acoustic blues CD.  My approach to writing and playing music is simply to have fun and let the music flow. When I write and record my general rule of thumb is "less is more" and keeping the sessions upbeat. It’s all about hooking up with my friends and having fun. The music just seems to take of itself.

Honestly, I don’t necessarily consider myself a song writer. Musicians like Bob Dylan, Guy Clark and Rory Block are songwriters. I don’t really write songs, I simply make them up. They sort of just come to me and I have to catch them when they do. If I hesitate they disappear. For me, it is sort of an “in the moment” type of thing.

cdl - why are you called "The Doctor of the Blues"
ML: 

Fans gave me the name "Doctor of the Blues" because of the approach I take to the blues. The blues is a healing music and I play the blues to heal myself as well as to provide the healing sounds to the audience. I was initially called the "Doctor of the Blues" by a fan in Kingston, Ontario many years ago. As I was playing at a local pub I noticed a young man staring intently at me and smiling. After the set was over I approached him and thanked him for coming to the gig. He told me that he had been seriously depressed, did not feel very good about himself, and that after hearing and seeing me play he felt better about himself. He decided things weren’t really all that bad for him, and saw that there is still passion and caring in the world. He said I healed him, called me the "Doctor of the Blues" and the name stuck. The interesting thing is that he did not know that I had a Ph.D. in Psychology.

EnD of Interview...

Playlist continues:
Peter Lang - Keep Your Hands Off Her b/w Guitar Rag - Testament
Tail Dragger - My Head is Bald
Queen Sylvia - I Know I ain't Number One
Vance Kelly - Why You Hurt Me So Bad

Robin Rogers - Yesterday's Blues b/w What We Are Worth - Back From the Fire

check out the Robin Rogers Fund raiser central site on Facebook for details on how you can help this musician defray her escalating medical bills... say a prayer if you are a mind to...  much appreciated.