(Extract from original talk by Steve Tucker given at BGS BBQ. Many thanks Steve! )
Blues is about tradition and personal expression. At its core, the blues has remained the same since its inception.
Most blues feature simple, usually three-chord, progressions and have simple structures that are open to endless improvisations, both lyrical and musical. The blues grew out of African spirituals and worksongs. In the late 1800s, southern African-Americans passed the songs down orally, and they collided with American folk and country from the Appalachians. New hybrids appeared by each region, but all of the recorded blues from the early 1900s are distinguished by addition of acoustic guitars and pianos.
After World War II, the blues began to fragment, with some musicians holding on to acoustic traditions and others taking it to jazzier territory. However, most bluesmen followed Muddy Waters' lead and played the blues on electric instruments. From that point on, the blues continued to develop in new directions -- particularly on electric instruments -- or it has been preserved as an acoustic tradition.
There are several different blues styles; Country blues, delta blues, East Coast Blues, Electric Blues….
Unaccompanied Blues Styles
There are two main contrasting styles. The first being the Ragtime influenced style of the Piedmont Guitarists like Blind Blake , with intricate syncopated bass lines, the other being a more primitive style associated with Country or Delta blues, where instead of a clear alternating bass, with two distinct pitches, the lower strings are damped with the right hand palm. The resulting "thuds" can help make performing simpler because you can continue to accent the beat without worrying about fretting accurately. This may sound like total heresy to a Classically trained player, but give it a try – many modern classical pieces require even stranger techniques! Steve Tucker
Jeronimo is God
I was sorry to be missing the September society evening, but that was soon forgotten when the artist came on stage at Ascot Peña– and knocked us sideways with the first of many blistering flamenco pieces. Possibly the planets were in the right positions for me that night because it certainly happened for me, and judging by the reaction of the people around me it happened for them too. I honestly have never witnessed anything to come close to this incredible guitar playing wizardry – it was way beyond mere technical brilliance, it was truly phenomenal. I am holding back on the superlatives because 1 day after the performance I still cannot believe what I saw and heard. Some people were saying he was like a young Paco de Lucia and certainly I recognised the style, but never having seen Paco de Lucia I couldn’t draw parallels.
For several pieces he played with his guitar playing brother, who by any standards was quite brilliant; but no matter how good he was, Jeronimo could take the guitar playing to a much higher level: fast furious, melodic and . . . wonderful!
We are all talented in our own way but every now and then someone comes along with exceptional qualities who stands out from the best-of-the-best; for different reasons I could choose Django Reinhardt, Jacqueline du Près, Billie Holliday, Jimi Hendrix, Charlie Parker - and now, for me, Jeronimo stands out with the very best-of-the-best guitar players. The odds are that in 10 years time I will feel very foolish for what I have said here but, honestly, I was deeply moved by the talent of this guy - it was almost otherworldly.
Jeronimo was not made to play the guitar – the guitar was made to be played by Jeronimo. George