Stevie Ray Vaughn: Tightrope

Stevie is still the man even though he has been dead for over 20 years.  I have a DVD of Stevie's last Austin City Limits show, and I show the whole thing to my students at the end of my blues history class.  Granted, a lot of Stevie clones followed after his death, and none of them could hold the masters guitar pick, but if musicians want to see how contemporary blues should be made and play they need to watch this video.  IT IS NOT ABOUT HOW MANY NOTES HE PLAYS, BUT HOW HE PLAYS EVERY NOTE!  Listen to him play he breathes when he plays phrases.  Its those little breaths of silence that makes him better than the musical self pleasing that goes on with today's guitar players.It is good to play with passion, but Stevie played with control. Over the last 20 years I have heard a lot of great guitar players, but they all invariably make the same mistake.  They can't control themselves and go on long loud boring solo binges, with no phrasing, and little musical value.  It is really sad when a guy has controlled himself for half of the set, and then can't take it any more and goes nuts.  You wonder if it was really that important to musically please yourself, to just go crazy and blather a million notes?  The nice thing about Stevie was he knew about melody and keeping the song alive.  He also knew respect.  Watch any video with him playing with Albert King, Albert Collins, or BB, and see how Stevie sat back and comped for the old bluesmen.  Stevie didn't make it about him, it was ABOUT THE BLUES!  The sooner today's guitar players learn this the sooner we can get the blues back up and running again. 

Texas Flood: Stevie Ray Vaughn, Albert Collins, and BB King

Stevie, Albert(Collins) and BB!!! I am sure somewhere in the archive this video is lurking, but it is worth posting it again.

Bonnie Raitt: Pride And Joy

Bonnie Raitt playing at a tribute for Stevie Ray.

Albert King And Stevie Ray Vaugn: Stormy Monday

Here is a video clip of the In Session show featuring Albert And Stevie. This has also been re-released as a CD by Stax Click here to buy it.

Blues Historian Review: Albert King With Stevie Ray Vaughan, In Session

The legendary record company Stax, has a new release of Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Stax has taken an old TV recording from 1983 taken the audio track and released it as a CD called Albert King With Stevie Ray Vaughan: In Session. King and Vaughan were recorded in Hamilton Ontario. It is an interesting historical recording. Being from TV, the audio has some problems especially with the balance between the two players at the beginning at the disk. in fact, Albert tells Stevie he can't hear him during the first song and tells him to turn it up!

True audiophiles Will probably not like this disk, but I like it because you get the chance to hear a couple of guys who really liked each other trade licks and play guitar. It is really obvious from this disk just how much Stevie picked up from Albert King. At one part during the session King even kids Stevie about him stealing his licks while recording guitar for David Bowie.

The other thing that make Stevie Ray so remarkable is the way he lets Albert run the show. Stevie lets King shine. Which is directly opposite of what happened to Albert King when he appeared with Gary Moore. Anyone who had the chance to see the Moore's video which also featured Albert Collins know that Moore blew the doors off both blues legends. Although Albert did give Moore some good advice about not playing so may notes:-)

Stevie understood the blues better than most guitarists. You pay your respects to those who came before you. It is always the older blues performers show. Stevie only sings Pride And Joy but it is a treat because again he lets King add his own cool rhythm guitar to the song, and then lets Albert rip on his own solo.

This disc is a cool treat you need to grab this one to hear two of the greats from the last century.

Buy it HERE at Amazon.

Stevie Ray And Albert King Live!!!!!!

A very cool reissue is coming from the fine folks at Stax. They are reissuing the Stevie Ray Vaughn, Albert King concert from 1983. This was a great show, and we all need to pick this disc up as soon as it hit the shelves.

Here is the press release


For immediate release:

On June 30, 2009, the legendary Stax Records label will reissue the digitally remastered version of In Session – the Albert King & Stevie Ray Vaughan 1983 live album that reached #1 on Billboard’s blues album chart, selling more than 300,000 units. The reissue includes three sets of liner notes by Fantasy and Stax Records’ Bill Belmont, and journalists Lee Hildebrand and Dan Forte.

Among blues guitarists and fans of the craft, Albert King was the master. Austin, Texas’ Stevie Ray Vaughan, 31 years King’s junior, exploded onto the scene in 1983, first as guitarist on David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance” followed by his own smash hit “Pride and Joy.” When the two met onstage at Antone’s in 1973, they formed an ongoing friendship. This bond culminated with the December 1983 live recording titled In Session. This remastered version of the 1983 performance by two blues legends is the only known recording of them playing together.

http://www.concordmusicgroup.com/artists/Albert-King-with-Stevie-Ray-Vaughan/

Stevie Ray Vaughn: Life Without You

Gee kids, this is how you do it. Nice thing about Stevie is that he could breath with his guitar. It is not a thousand notes a minute. Check the phrasing, of both his singing and playing. Plenty of silence. I know it sounds easy, but it is hard! Stevie just makes it look easy. Also check out how sometimes he plays chords, some time lead lines. Its not all the same bazillion notes a second. That's also what made Hendrix great. There is a good reason that these two guitar players are compared all the time. Same school, old school, blues school.

Alex Tintinalli:

Intersting kid doing the Stevie/Jimmy thing. Probably a bit on the rockside than blues. It should be interesting to see what happens when he gets older.

Dick Dale And Stevie Ray Vaughn: Pipeline

This is a very strange video that I really, really don't remember, but it came from the soundtrack for Back to the Beach. It features not only Stevie, and Dick Dale, but also Frankie and Annette, Wally and the Beaver, and the cast form Gilligan's Island! Bizzaro land!!

Stevie Ray Vaughn: Voodo Chile

This might be the last video of the late great Stevie Ray Vaughn. Of course, anyone can say anything on the internet, but it is suppose to be of Stevie Ray playing in St. Louis one month before his death.

Stevie Ray Vaughn: The Things That I Used To Do

This is from 1984. Amazing how long Stevie has been gone. It just seems like yesterday.

Lonnie Mack And Stevie Ray Vaughn: Oreo Cookie Blues

I posted this one awhile back, but it was deleted. However, here it is again! It features the great Lonnie Mack, and the late Stevie Ray Vaughn playing an acoustic blues song. Lonnie is still around, but seems to have gone into retirement. However, according to his website (Click HERE) he occasionally gets the flying V out and plays a gig, so check out his website and maybe you will be lucky to see a living legend!!

Stevie Ray Vaughn And Johny Copeland: Tin Pan Alley

Another great example of why Stevie was so great. Here he plays with the great Johnny Copeland. Watch how Stevie shares the stage. This is no competition. Stevie shows the respect he has for Johnny by not getting into a competition to see who was the best. Unlike some white artists who seemed more interested in smoking their heroes on stage. ( I won't say who, but if you have seen a few of these videos you will figure it out pretty quickly.

J.Copeland & Stevie Ray - Tin Pan Alley
Uploaded by thegonedu69

Stevie Ray Vaughn: Little Wing

Stevie Ray doing a classic Jimi Hendrix song.

Stevie Ray Vaughan - little wing (live at rockaplast 1985)
Uploaded by -bouddha-

Its Flooding Everywhere

About A year ago I posted this video because my basement was flooding. Well once again my basement is wet. I must say that flooding sucks! No doubt every year when the waters start seeping through the basement it reminds me of the flood of 93 when my hometown Des Moines Iowa became the largest city to loose its water. We were without water for three to four weeks. If you haven't been without water for that long you really don't realize just how important it is!! No showers, no baths, using rain water to flush the toilet. ARGH!!!

However, I am luckier than most. Now I live on a hill, and I only have a inch or so of water, so compared to other people I am lucky. I just hope that the sewer system hold ons, because if that would back up it could be ugly! So I am spending a lot of time in the basement with the shopvac, and my little water pump. The pump is pretty useless because it gets too hot, and quits after about an 1/2 hour. However, my wetvac kicks a$$! I have pumped 60 gallons or so of water out of my basement today, which sounds impressive, but really that is only a wet floor. People east of me are pumping that much in minutes! I have inches of water, but they have FEET of water! Perhaps what is really scary is that Des Moines is in the cross hairs again. Saylorville reservoir is near the overflow, and the Raccoon River is getting way over its banks even up here.

Last year this video and a lot of prayers helped, so lets hope for some magic again. Here is Stevie Ray Vaughn playing Texas Flood!

Stevie Ray Vaughan - Texas Flood
Uploaded by PigLips

Stevie Ray Vaughn And Jeff Healy: Little Sister

Two of the best blues guitairist of the 1980s, and unfortunately both are now gone.

Stevie Ray Vaughan & Jeff Healey - Little Sister
Uploaded by fuzz59

Ana Popovic: Navajo Moon

Ana Popovic doing her best jazzy Stevie Ray:-)

Ana Popovic : Navajo Moon
Uploaded by ripa170

Albert King And Stevie Ray Vaungh: Texas Flood

I don't know if I posted this one before or if it is one of the 100 or so that I deleted, but it is good enough to post again:-) This is an awesome video that shows just how great Stevie and Albert were together. I think the way Stevie let the master play guitar and didn't try to show him up was what made Stevie Ray so good. I saw another blues guitarist play with Albert once, and he smoked Albert, and to be honest it made me mad. You need to respect your elders not cut their heads. I have never understood that attitude among musicians, and to be honest real bluesmen don't cut heads. That is what rock guitarist do:-)

Stevie Ray Vaughan & Albert King
Uploaded by peakers

Stevie Ray Vaughn: Leave My Little Girl Alone

Classic Stevie Ray from Austin City Limits. This is an old Buddy Guy tune, that Stevie just tears up!! Too Cool!!!

Stevie Ray Vaughan - Leave My Girl Alone
Uploaded by douds

Stevie Ray Vaughn And Johnny Copeland: Little Sister

Two great guitarist that have left us too early. Stevie Ray, and Johnny Copeland. It gives me the blues just thinking about the fact that they are gone. It is a good thing that we have such a great archive of videos that keep them alive.