Quote of the week

[ericcoleman]

"Other people my age go and join blues groups...they say they're 'getting back to their roots'.  But I can't see how five geography teachers trying to play like old black guys can be getting back to their roots." - Martin Newell

Comments

Roots

[markiv1111.livejournal.com]

I've speculated on this somewhat, too. It seems obvious to me that "roots" vary from musician to musician. My own experiences (playing for about two years in South America, and eventually while back in the States, playing "The Girl from Ipanema" for a year and a half before ever learning "Johnny B. Goode" or "Stormy Monday") may be a bit different. But how about all the musicians who learned stuff by the Kingston Trio or Peter, Paul and Mary (or James Taylor, or Carole King or Carly Simon) before they even tried rock'n'roll? Or other people who had serious classical music training before realizing that ad-libbing and playing in a band was more fun? I think that for these musicians to equate "roots" and "blues" is just one of those things that everybody learns to say, that isn't really true. (Like the "fact" that piano is "the basic instrument" -- absolute balderdash, but piano teachers have been saying this for decades.) I'd be pleased to join a group doing stuff by Los Fronterizos and Los Chalchaleros, and I would have no hesitation calling this "my roots" -- but for me to join a blues band and say it was "my roots" would be just another big city musician committing fraud.

Nate

Re: Roots

[ericcoleman]

I play at a lot of open mikes. A whole lot of the time I will have someone walk up and ask me if I play the blues. My usual reply is "I am a fat, middle aged, middle class, white guy. It is my job to GIVE people the blues".

I have also seen too many folks unloading a Fender Bassman that they bought on Ebay for an absurd amount of cash from their SUV, that was also bought with an absurd amount of cash, to go "play the blues"