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At Newport

Muddy Waters - At Newport Audio CD

A fair review of the Muddy Waters "At Newport" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Muddy Waters reviews here, or go back to the Muddy Waters tabs.

Band: Muddy Waters
Title: At Newport
Rating:

Release Date: 2001-02-27
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: I Got My Brand on You 2: (I'm Your) Hoochie Coochie Man 3: Baby, Please Don't Go 4: Soon Forgotten 5: Tiger in Your Tank 6: I Feel So Good 7: I've Got My Mojo Working 8: I've Got My Mojo Working, Pt. 2 9: Goodbye Newport Blues 10: I Got My Brand on You

One of THE Most Important Albums.....
In the US, we were experiencing a big boom in folk music, which had obvious blues connections. This 1960 recording came at an interesting crossroads in musical history. A similar movement was taking place in England with the popularity of skiffle. Many of the older blues musicians of the thirties and forties, who had not performed much for several decades, or who had performed in obscurity, were 'rediscovered' and appeared at this concert. The young men in England who would later become famous as the Rolling Stones, the Animals, the Kinks, the Yardbirds and the Beatles, were just coming of age. They would recognize the greatness of this music, immerse themselves in it, and, ironically, bring it back to the States in a recharged version, which made it more easily accessible to the vast US record-buying public. As they say, "the blues had a baby, and they named it Rock & Roll. "

Muddy Waters, aka McKinley Morganfield, is, to many people, myself included, the greatest blues singer who ever lived. This is a good representation of what he could do at the time, what he had already been doing for ten years in Chicago, and what he continued to do for the next twenty years. Nothing fancy, just piano, drums, bass, harp, and a couple guitars, all wired up so you could hear them in the bars, over the sound of the talking, the broken glasses, the bodies in motion. And let's put to rest the notion that Muddy was one of the greatest guitarists of all time. Honestly, he only knew a few riffs, only played a couple chords. But what he knew, and what he communicated. . . . . it's beyond words.

While we're at it let's not forget the contributions of that immortal songwriter, Willie Dixon, who penned most of the material Muddy made famous. Muddy's band changed in personnel over the years, but of course, his voice--that inimitable, deep, manly, resonant, powerful blues shouting voice--just kept getting better and better. The thing that makes this one special is that it is one of the first "live" electric blues shows ever recorded. You can also get the Muddy DVD which shows footage from it, which is also a must-own. .

Let Muddy put his brand on you
There is not a weakness in it to be found, including the excellent supporting cast, which includes Cotton on harmonica and Spann on piano. This was the first Muddy Waters disc I purchased, and it remains one of my favorite blues albums by any artist. It's unfortunate that "Catfish Blues", which opened the set, was excluded from this disc for some reason. Sound is very good, which is not always a given when dealing with live performances, even today.

Brilliant live set
Muddy is confident, cocky, smooth, biting, and just downright the blues master that we love and miss. This is arguably one of the best Muddy Waters' cd's ever released. It's great to live in an age where one can listen to a clean copy of a concert from 50 years ago. .

The Immortal Muddy Waters
At that time, Muddy had already logged in over 15 years as a professional musician, working mainly in the rough-and-tumble blues joints on the South Side of Chicago. Muddy Waters was 45 years old when this recording was made in 1960.

He was well known by blues musicians and fans around the world and was considered by many to be the "father" or "king" of the electric Chicago blues style. Of course, he is now immortal.

This excellent recording features Muddy playing mostly Chicago standards with a tight group of musicians who are also well known to blues fans. Most of the songs Muddy Waters recorded during his career were slow-to midtempo blues and, with a couple of exceptions, this set is no different.

The moderate tempos allow the listener to absorb the deeply soulful singing, licks, solos, and overall arrangements. In addition, these are excellent reference recordings for emerging blues musicians.

The arrangements played by the classic Chicago blues bands were mostly "head arrangements," which tend to be raw and earthy when contrasted with Kansas City or Memphis blues bands.

As a musician Muddy Waters stayed with what he knew and loved, while watching others with far less talent scoop up lots of money playing lightweight pop-rock songs. For this, and his supreme talent, his memory deserves to be preserved and honored.

Terrific live Muddy Waters!
Seems like a match made in heaven! And, indeed, this is a fine live work, featuring some of Waters' greatest hits. Muddy Waters at the Newport Jazz Festival. One interesting feature is four extra tracks from studio recordings. Three of these are also sung at Newport, so some interesting comparisons can be made.

The band: Muddy Waters (born McKinley Morganfield), vocals and guitar; James Cotton, harmonica; Otis Spann, piano and vocals on "Goodbye Newport Blues"; Pat Hare, guitar; Andrew Stephenson, bass; Francey Clay, drums; Langston Hughes, Emcee and lyrics for "Goodbye Newport Blues. "

A few samples of the music. . . .

The lead song is "I got my brand on you. " The blues sound from the band is, for want of a better word, exquisite. Classic blues. The opening lines:

"I got my brand on you
There ain't nothin' you can do. "

The sound is wonderful.

Then, one of his all-time greats--""I'm your hoochie coochie man. " The opening lines--

"The gypsy woman told my mother
Before I was born.
You got a boy child comin'
Gonna be a son of a gun. "

Once more, great blues licks from guitar and band. Waters' voice is in fine form indeed.

Another classic, "I've got my mojo working. " This starts with the rollicking piano work of Otis Spann. Cool lyrics at the outset:

"I've got my mojo working
But it don't work on you. "

Another terrific live version of one of his classics.

"Goodbye Newport Blues. " Because of a riot, the 1960 Newport Jazz Festival shut down early and was suspended for awhile. Langston Hughes, the poet, jotted some lyrics about the unfortunate close of the event. Otis Spann sang those lyrics in this piece. A couple lines give a sense of the sentiments in the lyrics:

"Oh what a gloomy day in Newport.
Everything is sad, sad, sad. "

In the final analysis, this is a satisfying experience. The live songs are played with energy and style. And comparing the live versions with three studio versions is itself an interesting sidebar here. Want to get a sense of Muddy Waters live? This isn't a bad place to check.
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You can see a complete list of all Muddy Waters discography, or go back to the Muddy Waters tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.