Blues Pinoy

This is certainly one for the books - a very rare and historic occasion where Pinoy Bluesmen of different generations (and regions) congregate to create a musical masterpiece. Here's the great Wally Gonzalez jamming with Cebu's pride, Cuarenta (Arnold, Lyndon, Juel) and with the dude who does the vocals and great Blues harp riffs.

Great jam from the King of Delta Blues and the British rock legends. I just couldn't get enough of this song!

A soldier stationed in the South Pacific wrote to his wife in the States to please send him a harmonica to occupy his free time and keep his mind off the local women. The wife complied and sent the best one she could find, along with several dozen lesson & music books. Rotated back home, he rushed to their home and through the front door. "Oh darling," he gushed, "Come here! Let me look at you. Let me hold you! Let’s have a fine dinner out, then make love all night. I’ve missed your lovin’ soooo much!" The wife, keeping her distance, said, "All in good time lover. First, let’s hear you play that harmonica."

It's great to see more and more of the younger generation becoming Blues aficionados, thanks to the tireless efforts of the Pinoy Blues vanguards over yonder. And another Pinoy Blues harp player has come out and been counted!

Hello folks! Been very busy these past days so I'm just going to repost a friend's article which can be found here: http://www.facebook.com/#!/tomcolvin For Blues harp fans, this will surely be a treat! BLUES ALERT: Cousin Hoagy spotlights blues harmonica tonight on his radio show The Blues Jazz Experience, from 8-10 p.m. over UR 105.9. You can also hear it via streaming audio over the internet at Hoagy's website: http://cousinhoagy.com/

A little deviation from our usual course. Found this from a blog that I'm following (http://squeezemylemon.blogspot.com), an interesting offspring resulting from the marriage of Blues and hip-hop. Overall, good music!

I'm sure a lot of you guys dig the Blues Harp (like me!). Nowadays, lots of resources can be found online, unlike before when we had, at least in my case, to scour all nooks and crannies to find that elusive harp tutorial material. The most well known YouTube video tutorials are by KudzuRunner, Jason Ricci, 12gagedan, etc. and these mostly cater the advanced-beginner to really advanced harp enthusiasts. But for all ye Blues Harp beginners, here's a video tutorial that is quite simple but informative. I'm sure you'll enjoy blowing and drawing those reeds after watching this. And for a change, a chick is doing the teaching chores :-).

Rarely do we see Pinoy Blues harp players and I was lucky enough to find this video by FilipinoBluesMan! Very nice style, good turnaround, and a pretty decent trill, this dude proves that Pinoys have the right to play Blues harp too!

I just found this great acoustic backing track in the key of G. Great for practice, especially with the Blues harp - not too fast, not too slow, just the right speed. And remember to use a "C" harp for this. Keep on wailin'!!!

Prepare to be "blown away" by this lady harmonica player from France. Only one word could describe her - magnificent! Watching her videos would either inspire you or depress you. If you're a music aficionado, seeing her effortlessly creating beautiful music, always in perfect tune, you'd be telling yourself- that's what talent is all about! but if you're a struggling harp player (ummm, like me), then you might question yourself why you took up blues harp in the first place. Seriously. But still, I'm gonna watch, listen, and enjoy her videos no matter what!

Jason Ricci is pound-for-pound one of the best in blues harp. Here he shares his secret to his fast playing, starting from the "basic" scale, to which he credits Pat Ramsey for. And then he explains his own style and proceeds with some unbelievable licks. I am always in awe whenever I see videos of Jason Ricci. To a mortal like me, he is a god!

Probably the best Pinoy Blues harmonica player today, Ronnie Badilla shows why he is called an expert of the 10-hole diatonic. The blues harmonica is a deceivingly difficult instrument to play. One needs time (and patience) to learn the intricacies - from the shape of the mouth/lips, the breathing techniques, keys to use, scales (blues, pentatonic, etc.), hand cupping, and so on and so forth. But once you master blues harp, the possibilities would be endless!

Ever wanted to learn how to play the Blues harp?  YouTube is definitely your friend when it comes to this. Search for "blues harp lesson" and the top of the list shows a video by Adam Gussow, also known as KudzuRunner, with more than 140,000 views. Adam Gussow is an American scholar, memoirist, and blues harmonica player. Gussow is currently an associate professor of English and Southern Studies at the University of Mississippi in Oxford. He spent twelve years (1986-1998) working the streets of Harlem and the international club and festival circuit with Mississippi-born bluesman Sterling Magee as a duo called Satan and Adam. As of February 22, 2007 Gussow has been running YouTube tutorials aimed at passing on his proficiency and knowledge in the harmonica to those who are interested in learning to play blues harmonica. Gussow from his first lesson says, "I'm tired of this mystification, I'm going to teach you all I know." As of November 11, 2008 the series ...

Start the day by listening to this tune. I'm sure you'll be stomping your feet the whole day through. From the "Stoned Immaculate," a tribute album dedicated to The Doors made in 2000. Dig those Blues harp riffs!

After finishing off a dozen and one terrorists led by Hans Gruber at the Nakatomi Plaza, John McClane takes his day off by doing a Blues number with his band. Deadly with his gun, even deadlier with his killer Blues harp!

Don't consider yourself a true Pinoy Blues fan if you have no idea who Tom Colvin is. Well for those who need some answers - he's the American guy who did the blues harp chores for the legendary band Lampano Alley. Visit his site at http://www.words-sounds-images.com/ I got a pleasant surprise when I checked his Multiply account (click here) , the entry on November 14, 2009 mentioned my site. Cool! Coming from someone who's a legitimate bluesman himself, this truly is an honor. Thanks, Tomcat!!!

One of the highly recommended models/brands by Blues harp players, best known for its affordable price, usability, and most importantly, good tone. Product Description: Durable plastic comb with recessed reed plates for playing comfort. The stable, airtight construction and full sound make the Special 20 one of the most popular diatonic models. This is the essence of the Classic line -- traditional value and cutting edge technology. Extremely precise tools minimize air loss and ensure a quicker response and bigger volume. As always, each Special 20 harmonica is exclusively handmade.

Here comes my favorite Blues instrument! Originally, the Blues harp wasn't designed to be used for Blues. Properly called richter-tuned harmonica and also known as 10-hole harmonica, the most widely known type of harmonica has ten holes (not eleven) which offers the player 19 notes (10 holes times a draw and a blow for each hole minus one repeated note) in a three-octave range. The standard diatonic harmonica was designed to allow a player to play chords and melody in just a single key. Over time, Blues players found a perfect use for the instrument. Employing the cross-harp technique, they totally debunked the above restriction by playing the harmonica in a key a fifth above its intended key. Playing just the unbended notes, this position gives the mixolydian scale between 2 draw and 6 blow. However, bending the 3 draw allows the player to play a minor third (or a blue third), allowing a player to use a C harmonica to play in G mixolydian or G minor. On a diatonic, starting n...