Wednesday, October 15, 1997
Blues legend still keeping it true
MUSIC Musselwhite to appear with Dr. John, Keb’ Mo’ at
Wadsworth
By Sam Toussi
Daily Bruin Contributor
"Keep it true, keep it real and keep learning."
So goes the mantra of Charlie Musselwhite, the blues legend who
revolutionized the way the harmonica is played. He has lived all
over the United States, from New Orleans to Chicago, Memphis to Los
Angeles. And through it all, Musselwhite has continued to grow as
an artist and as a person.
On Thursday, Musselwhite will appear at the Veteran’s Wadsworth
Theater along with blues stars Dr. John and Keb’ Mo’.
"It’s great playing with these guys. (Keb’ Mo’) gives me faith
that the music is going on and that it doesn’t matter how old you
are – you can still play the blues."
It is an evening that has been billed as a celebration of
cultural diversity and great blues.
But it is his relaxed, let-it-ride, always growing aura that
makes his music what it is.
Musselwhite’s music is usually described as a unique blend of
Delta and Chicago-style blues, but he has learned and borrowed from
everything he has experienced during his lifetime.
"Life just keeps unfolding and you can’t shut yourself off. I
just try to keep up my end and be the best I can be."
His newest album, "Rough News," is a culmination of all that
learning. The mood of each song seems to shift with the city it was
recorded in, from the laid back, swampy mood in New Orleans to the
rock sensibility of the Los Angeles recordings to the tough urban
groove of the Chicago sessions.
Musselwhite even experiments with the Brazilian flavored "Feel
it in your Heart."
"The music is not something memorized or prettied up by some
strict music. I try to play straight from the heart. It’s
improvised, rough news straight from you," Musselwhite says.
"Sometimes I reach a place when I’m playing where I’m just
improving and I’m watching, like I’m not really doing it, like it’s
just flowing through me."
That free flowing attitude comes from Musselwhite’s journey from
country kid to blues star. Born in a small Mississippi town in
1944, Musselwhite’s father moved to Memphis when Musselwhite was 3
years old. There Musselwhite immersed himself in a bluegrass
environment that would influence his musical style.
"I grew up in a neighborhood full of musicians such as Johnny
Burnette, Slim Rhodes and Jimmy Griffin. Blues was just part of the
environment," Musselwhite says. "I can’t nail down the first time I
fell in love with the blues because it was always all around me. It
was on the radio, in the streets, people singing work songs in the
fields."
When Musselwhite was 18, he moved to Chicago. As he worked as a
driver for an exterminator, he discovered the local blues scene.
But he soon discovered it wasn’t much of a departure from the
Memphis he knew.
"All those guys were from Memphis," Musselwhite laughs.
But the sound of the music had changed. Chicago’s style had
altered the way the Memphis boys were playing their music. The
explanation for that mutation is not too complicated.
"When you’re in the country all you know is your neighbors but
in the big city, there are all sorts of influences around you –
radio and television, you know, different ethnic groups, everybody
living so close to each other," Musselwhite recalls.
Soon, Vanguard Records found Musselwhite and produced his first
album, "Stand Back," released when he was 21.
Thirty-two years and 17 albums later, Musselwhite is doing what
he has been doing most of his life: touring. He has toured all over
the world, including Europe, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, Brazil,
Canada and Mexico.
Musselwhite will play with anybody. If you play an instrument,
give him a call. He might just take you up on the offer.
He’s played with the likes of John Lee Hooker, Bonnie Raitt and
INXS, and he’s appeared on 22 anthologies. He even played at the
Fillmore Auditorium on a bill with blues and rock musicians Cream
and Paul Butterfield.
"I love to play with everybody. The new chemistry makes you
think a little differently and it can spark something new in you,"
Musselwhite says.
It’s all part of the philosophy of learning and growing.
"I like to think that I learn and grow every day," Musselwhite
asserts. "It keeps the music interesting to me and, after all these
years, if it’s still interesting to me it must be interesting for
my listeners."
MUSIC: Tickets for Dr. John and His Band, Charlie Musselwhite
and Keb’ Mo’ are $30, $27 and $11 with UCLA ID. For more
information, call (310) 825-2101.
Pointblank
Charlie Musselwhite