Perhaps the best of the bunch was a monumental version of John Lee Hooker’s Serves You Right To Suffer, a song that folded everything vital about the J.
The result was the kinetic Full House, which featured strutting takes of First I Look At The Purse, Looking For A Love and Otis Rush’s Homework, alongside two-fisted originals Whammer Jammer and Hard Drivin’ Man. In April ’72 the band headed for Detroit, a favoured stronghold, and pitched up for two nights at The Cinderella Ballroom. Why don’t you just do a live record? Just capture what you’re doin’ on stage.’” “He came to see us play,” said singer Peter Wolf, "and said: ‘You’re a great live band, but I listened to your albums and I’m just not getting it. Here he is performing his first big hit.Enter manager Dee Anthony, then overseeing rock heavyweights Humble Pie, Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Joe Cocker. Wonder has continued to play the harmonica but this early slab proves that he already had a gift in childhood. Stevland Morris was all of 12 when he recorded it in 1963 and it became not only his first single to chart but his first #1. Speaking of starting things, this is where it all began for the genius-and it’s one of the first pop/rock hits with a prominent role for the harmonica. We all know that Alvin started this whole thing. No need to include The Chipmunks’ 1959 #3 hit “Alvin’s Harmonica” though. We know we’ve left out a ton of other cool harmonica-infused songs and we’re sure you’ll let us know which ones in the comment section. Some of these songs are by artists whose primary instrument is the harmonica most are lead singers who double on harp.
We got to thinking about the role of the instrument in classic rock, and we came up with dozens of great tunes featuring harmonica, which we’ve narrowed down to 20. Throughout the course of rock history, many songs have featured harmonica parts that are indelible-you can’t even imagine that song without the familiar harmonica lead-in or break. Still, that doesn’t mean that many don’t at least try, and in rock, especially, the harmonica has long been used-particularly by lead singers-to inject a bit of bluesy, earthy authenticity into a song. Some players work at it their entire lives, but relatively few get really good at it. Sure, anyone can blow into the holes and get sound out of the instrument, but relatively few-as is the case with any instrument-can master the harmonica (alternately called the mouth harp, or just the harp, not to be confused with the other kind of harp that’s really large and has lots of strings on it). It works every time.īut first, one thing a performer should know is that it’s not as easy as it looks.
You can request a sing-along or a handclap-along or feign a sexual act on one of your bandmates. You can drop a reference to drugs or alcohol in one of your songs (Neil Young: “And I felt like getting high.” Audience: “Yaaaayyy!”). You can mention the name of the city you’re performing in (“How ya doin’ tonight, Cleveland?!”). If you’re the frontperson in a band and you want to get a rise out of your audience, there are several tried-and-true tricks you can pull out that are guaranteed to get a reaction. ‘Anthems We Love’ Book Digs Deep Into 29 Classic Songs.Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concerts Add Stars London Show Will Be Streamed Live.Jefferson Airplane Recall Woodstock: A New Dawn.Jann Wenner Memoir, ‘Like a Rolling Stone,’ Shares Stories of Dylan, Mick, Bruce.Joni Mitchell ‘Asylum Albums (1972-1975)’ Box Set Due.The Making of Al Green and the Hi Records Sound.Leonard Cohen Tribute Album, ‘Here It Is,’ Due.Cream: Rock’s Short-Lived First Supergroup.Remembering ‘The Midnight Special’: Rock Edition.Rick Astley Reenacts ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ 35 Years Later.10 Essential Rolling Stones Blues Songs.John Final Album, ‘Things Happen That Way,’ Due Before They Were Stars: Rockers’ Early Days.Radio Hits in August 1967: Summer of Love.Thin Lizzy’s ‘The Boys Are Back in Town’: Still Think Them Cats Are Crazy.The Laughing Beatles: Innocence, ‘If I Fell,’ and a 1964 Night in Vancouver.