Willie Simpson

Tag: blues

  • Howlin' Wolf, Smokestack Lightning

    Back to rock and roll with part 81 of my youtube countdown.  Today I have the fierce Howlin’ Wolf with his immortal classic, Smokestack Lightning.  Wolf, born Chester Arthur Burnett, was a massive imposing man with a growling blues roar.  He didn’t get his name from his size, but rather his fear.  His grandfather used…

  • The Top Ten Most Played Songs on my iPod

    Did you know that when you plug your iPod into your computer, iTunes can arrange your iPod’s mp3s by plays, from most played to least? It’s pretty fascinating to see what you’ve been listening to exclusively, and how many thousands (yes thousands of times) you’ve clicked play on certain songs. Well, I’d thought it’d be…

  • Cream, Tales of Brave Ulysses

    Part 64 of my youtube countdown introduces Cream, or “the late great Cream” as John Lennon once said in 1968.  That’s right, Cream was a streaking comet of psychedelic blues perfection, blasting through the pop music charts from 1966 to 1968 selling 35 million albums in just two years!  Cream was considered the world’s first…

  • Skip James, Chris Thomas King, Hard Time Killing Floor Blues

    Hi, its part 63 of my youtube countdown is completely awesome.  Big set up I know, but I got “Hard Time Killing Floor Blues,” a legendary blues song written and performed by delta bluesman Skip James, and Chris Thomas King, who helped make the song famous for its inclusion in the “O Brother Where Art…

  • Jeff Beck and Tal Wilkenfeld, Freeway Jam + Blue Wind

    In part 41 of my youtube countdown, we take a look at some prodigies. One is an old prodigy by the name of Jeff Beck, the guitar virtuoso of the guitar virtuoso factory known as the Yardbirds (Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page.) The other is the opposite of old, a sexy 24 year old bass whiz…

  • Bob Dylan & Eric Clapton, Crossroads

    Part 36 of my youtube countdown rolls on with a performance of Robert Johnson’s ‘Crossroads Blues’ by Bob Dylan and Eric Clapton.  I’ve been in a real bluesy mood this week, and a clip like this really hits the sweet spot.  The song, a gem in Robert Johnson’s absurdly mythological repertoire, is heavily electrified by…

  • Muddy Waters and The Rolling Stones

    In part 35 of my youtube favorites countdown, we take a trip to rock school.  In our lesson we’ll look at two thunderously classic clips.  The first features the immortal Muddy Waters leading his band through his genre defining blues cut “Rollin’ Stone.”  This song, as you probably know, was the original inspiration for the…

  • The Dirty Mac, Yer Blues

    Part 27 of my youtube countdown rolls on with another act from the infamous Rock and Roll Circus.  This time, we have Dirty Mac.  Who is Dirty Mac?  Well, its John Lennon, Eric Clapton, Keith Richards (on bass, awesome), and Mitch Mitchell (on drums direct from the Jimi Hendrix Experience.)  A super group if there…

  • John Lennon, Cold Turkey

    Part 13 of my youtube favorites countdown continues with the hard-blues psyche fest, John Lennon’s Cold Turkey.  Just around the time the Beatles broke up, John Lennon set loose a blistering array of personal/emotional/political singles; Instant Karma, Give Peace a Chance, and this immortal classic, Cold Turkey.  John wrote the song about his experience in…