Dancin' With the Devil

Wednesday, November 26, 2008 - Pleased To Meet You ... Won't You Guess My Name?

This past Saturday night I had the distinct privilege of sitting down with Eagles of Death Metal frontman (and boogie extraordinaire) Jesse "Boots Electric" Hughes. Now, this guy has a lot of nicknames - and a reputation that certainly precedes him ... look him up - but perhaps the most persistent one is "The Devil" (though for a guy with such an evil nickname, he sure is nice).



Mr. Hughes, whose earliest nickname in rock 'n roll was, in fact, "The Devil," offered phenomenal insight into the importance of the blues during the course of our interview. It was certainly a privilege to enjoy the company of a fellow bluesman, especially one who spreads the gospel at many a crossroads. He even went so far as to quip, when asked what he pictured himself doing in thirty years, that he intends to still be rockin' because he "hope[s] [he] made the right deal with the Devil." Rock 'n roll star or not, Jesse Hughes is either one of the genuinely nicest people I've ever met in my entire life or wears the finest dramatis personæ to which I have ever born witness. In addition, he and the boys in Eagles of Death Metal put on a tremendous, razor-sharp ninety minutes of rock 'n roll done right, stopping between songs only to laud the audience and lean down and kiss girls on the mouth, and even covering the Stones' "Brown Sugar" (which became funny during the interview, as Hughes, a self-admitted "Rolling Stones fanatic," detailed how he, when writing EoDM tunes, was "ripping off Keith Richards harder than Keith Richards"). The conversation went far beyond standard interview fare - we discussed politics, women, family, our mothers, his famous friends, the new Harvey Milk record, life on the road, Dixie, having kids, politics, and the illustrious Claremont Lounge, which he and his bandmates then went onward to frequent. He was charming, eloquent, energetic, and inviting, and I suggest you all go out and buy his new record Heart On because it rules. I'm not getting paid to say any of this, as a disclaimer - I'm a huge fan of the band and I even went so far as to get Jesse to sign my copy of their 2004 debut Peace Love Death Metal (a record from which we've played a number of tracks).

Well, in the spirit of all that electricity, and in spite of the holiday season being upon us, I decided to dedicate a whole show to perhaps the most notorious character in the history of music - the Devil. You know, that guy everyone loves to hate. Now don't get all "People v. Marilyn Manson (Circa 1997)" on me ... in no way do we condone Satanism. Don't call up the fine people at WRAS and tell them about the Satanist propaganda being blasted over the airwaves. Instead, try not being an idiot.

For those of you who actually enjoy just having a good time, here's the set:

Intro
[Jesse Hughes interview excerpt]
Dock Boggs - Sugar Baby [by request of Jesse Hughes]
Eagles of Death Metal - Kiss the Devil / Peace Love Death Metal
Skip James - Devil Got My Woman / Devil Got My Woman
Robert Johnson - Me and the Devil Blues / Robert Johnson: The Complete Recordings (Box Set)
Otis Spann - I'd Rather Be the Devil / Take Me Back Home
Charley Patton - Devil Sent the Rain Blues / Founder of the Delta Blues

First Break

Almanac Singers - Get Thee Behind Me, Satan / Which Side Are You On?
JD Duvall - Up Jumped the Devil / Bathe In the Light
John Lee Hooker and Canned Heat - Burning Hell / Hooker 'n Heat
Washboard Sam - She Belongs To the Devil / She Belongs To the Devil: An Anthology 1936-47
Sister Rosetta Tharpe - The Devil Has Thrown Him Down / The Complete Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Vol. 2 - 1942-1944
Bessie Smith - Blue Spirit Blues / Blue Spirit Blues
Junior Walker and the All-Stars - Satan's Blues / The Ultimate Collection
Fats Waller - There's Going To Be the Devil To Pay / Sugar Blues
Tom Waits - Everything Goes To Hell / Blood Money

Second Break

Buddy Guy - She Got the Devil In Her / Sweet Tea
Bo Carter - Old Devil / Bo Carter's Advice
Boo Boo Davis - We're In Hell / East St. Louis
Whitey Morgan and the Waycross Georgia Farmboys - Runnin' With the Devil / Sucking the 70's: Back In the Saddle Again (V/A)
Peetie Wheatstraw - Devil's Son-In-Law / The Devil's Son-In-Law
Sonny Boy Williamson (I) - I Have Been Dealing With the Devil / Sugar Mama
Mary James - Make the Devil Leave Me Alone / Field Recordings, Vol. 8: Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama (1934-1947) (V/A)

Third Break

Blind Willie Johnson - Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground / Dark Was the Night
Johnny Shines - Two Steps To Hell / Mr. Cover Shaker
Cactus - Evil / Restrictions
The Kansas City Six - Pagin' the Devil / Lester Young, Volume 1: 1937-1939
Powder River Jack and Kitty Lee - Tying a Knot In the Devil's Tail / Back In the Saddle Again: American Cowboy Songs (V/A)
Bo-Weavil Jackson - Devil & My Brown Blues / Bullfrog Blues (V/A)
Fleetwood Mac - Hellhound On My Trail / Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac
Maylene and the Sons of Disaster - Just Wanted To Make Mother Proud / Maylene and the Sons of Disaster

More great things coming your way in the future ... enjoy your Thanksgiving! Until next week ... stay positive.

Shoeless