Blues 101 [Our First Show!]

Wednesday, May 14, 2008 - First Show!!! / "Blues 101"

For our first-ever set, we decided to keep it pretty simple. We didn't want to overextend ourselves or pretend we're ready to flex our muscles with this, so we decided to fall back on the same thing students always fall back on - the five-paragraph essay. That's right ... intro, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion (which we decided to leave alone, because this is only the beginning). For the first "paragraph," we wanted to briefly introduce ourselves with some of our personal favorites in a fairly representative sample of what we want to play. Following that, we wanted to start things right: on a front porch somewhere in the Delta or along the bayou (and, more specifically, Mooringsport, Louisiana, since we started the set with Leadbelly). The set consisted of the kind of music that Alan Lomax scoured the deep South looking to record with his Library of Congress equipment. Thank the sweet Lord he did. With the next set, we wanted to "plug in" and sit down at the front table of the dark, sweaty, smoky, one-room jook joint, next to the sweet, sultry, smoking amps of mid-twentieth-century electric blues powerhouses such as T-Bone Walker and Buddy Guy. Finally, we wanted to end our "lesson" with a nod to the worshippers at the Clarksdale throne - whiskey-bent rock-n-rollers that have knelt at the crossroads from the seventies until now, giving the blues a lean, raw, muscular shot of life in a world that's nearly forgotten where it's come from.

Without further ado, our first-ever set is as follows:

Lead-In: Robert Johnson - Cross Road Blues

SET I: AN INTRODUCTION TO THE BLUES
B.B. King – Sweet Sixteen (parts 1 & 2) / The Ultimate Collection [one of Shoeless's favorites]
Son House – Death Letter / The Original Delta Blues
The Allman Brothers Band – Statesboro Blues / At Fillmore East [for Shoeless's dad Kenny]
The White Stripes – Stop Breaking Down / The White Stripes [for Dr. John Huston]
Marva Wright - Let the Good Times Roll / Bluesiana Mama [by request, for Milo]

First Break - 12:30 AM

SET II: THE ROOTS
Leadbelly – DeKalb Blues
Elmore James – Shake Your Moneymaker
Charlie Patton – Runnin’ Wild Blues
Peetie Wheatstraw – Shake That Thing
Son House – John the Revelator
Lonnie Johnson – Stay Out of Walnut Street Alley
Roosevelt Sykes – All My Money Gone Blues
Mississippi Fred McDowell – Some Day Baby
Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup – Cool Disposition

Second Break - 1 AM

SET III: GOIN' ELECTRIC
Freddie King - Going Down / The Best of Freddie King
Muddy Waters – Got My Mojo Working / The Essential Collection
T-Bone Walker – Heartache / Blues Love Songs
Buddy Guy – Baby Please Don’t Leave Me / Sweet Tea
Jimmy Witherspoon – No Rollin’ / The Best of Jimmy Witherspoon
Shuggie Otis – Sweet Thang / Inspiration Information [from Blind Johnny, for Laine]

Third Break - 1:30 AM

SET IV: MODERN MASTERS
Mark Lanegan – I’ll Take Care of You / I'll Take Care of You
Lynyrd Skynyrd – Mississippi Kid / Pronounced Leh-Nerd Skin-Nerd
ZZ Top – Just Got Back From Baby’s / ZZ Top's First Album [for Magnolia]
The Black Keys – thickfreakness / thickfreakness
The Allman Brothers Band – Stormy Monday / At Fillmore East

Drew, The DJ who comes in after us, asked if we had any songs left over, and we answered with a resounding "YES." We ended up having to cut between fifteen and twenty songs of our own music, and didn't even get to one of the requests we had (which, by the way, if you're reading this and you ever figure out which Elvis song you wanted to hear, let me know. I spent forty-five minutes poring over every charted hit to Elvis Presley's name, to no avail). Filling requests was awesome, but one of the first lessons learned (other than "be prepared for anything") was that (a) it's better to have too much than not enough, but (b) it's good to have a specific contingency plan in face of time restrictions. We were well-prepared, but we can only do better. Enough behind-the-scenes; what I really want to say is this:

I absolutely cannot thank you guys enough for the outpouring of love last night, especially with all the phone calls. We knew going in what huge shoes we had to fill (this show was brought back by popular demand, after all ... people have high expectations). Special shout-outs are definitely due to Milo and Papa Mahan for all their support - of us, of Crossroads, and of 88 in general. Also, thanks are due to Dr. John Huston, who reignited my long-lost love of the blues with a simple, lo-fi Jack White interpretation of Robert Johnson's "Stop Breaking Down Blues." Taking Dr. Huston's Intro to Guitar class was one of the best academic decisions I have ever made ... it has forever changed my approach as a listener and lover of music. I hear and feel it differently now. Most importantly, though, thanks are due to Ten Gallon Matt. We are truly standing on the shoulder of a giant following your lead, and I can only hope that we do half the job you've done. It was such a blast getting to know you as we made our way to this point (this crossroads ... ?). Come back and visit often, and bring your beard.

Last night was one of the most intense communal and musical experiences of my life, and it let me know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I'm where I'm supposed to be right now. I was on a high for hours after leaving the studio, and didn't get a lot of sleep last night. I got to share some of my all-time favorite songs, songs I've held dear to my heart for years, with everyone for miles and miles who cared to listen. Music and people - there are hardly any greater things to me.

If you have any questions or requests or just want to say hi, leave us a comment or drop us a line at shakeandbake88@gmail.com. We want to hear from you! This show literally would not exist today were it not for its listeners, so the more feedback, the better. What did you like? What did you not like? What do you want to hear more? Less? Let us know. And most importantly, be sure to keep tuning in - we've got lots in store for you. Expect some words from Blind Johnny in the next couple of days ... I know he's as excited about this as I am.

I love you guys. Until next week ... stay positive.

Shoeless Kay Staps