[Harp-L] Re: would Little Walter OB



rainbowjimmy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:
>No. Had Little Walter not died from injuries sustained in a 
>drunken brawl...
<...>
>Walter would lead a life of semi retiremnt in the new millenium, 
>doing an occassional cameo appearance on Law and Order, playing 
>the occassional blues festival and doing remixs with the Chemical 
>Brothers.

:)  Or maybe a stint on Sopranos... or as the shocking "post-mortum" love 
interest of Mom on "Six Feet Under", eh?  I gotta stop reading your stuff, 
Jimmy!  Too def!!

icemanle@xxxxxxx wrote:
>Perhaps the question "would LW OB?" is really asking why "the 
>blues" on harmonica seems to be a snapshot of a bygone era 
>recreated digitally in the 21st Century and has no place for 
>updating or evolving.
<...>
>The answer is a hypothetical one, for sure, but the implication 
>is to think outside the box when considering it.

Umm... who's not thinking out of the box with these "assumptions"?  
Harmonica a mere "bygone snapshot"?  Blues "unevolving"?  Blues is music 
and thereby a part of the evolution of "MUSIC" whatever form it takes over 
time.  We tend to think of blues as influenced by African rhythms and 
melodic choices incited by a life of poverty and slavery, manifest through 
the availability of certain inexpensive instruments as the guitar and 
harmonica; but, of course, roots are often deeper than obvious.  Deeper 
than we probably can ever access, but should no less respect.

>What do you want on your gravestone? "Here lies one who played 
>harmonica and sounded JUST LIKE this other ODBG", or "Here lies 
>one who played harmonica inspired and unique".

Actually, I'd rather leave my mark somewhere else than on just a remote, 
rock of granite in some disregarded cemetery.  Really... who cares [or 
knows?] that Marion Walter Jacobs has a pebble in the grass at St. Mary's 
Cemetery engraved with "Blues Harp Master" on it??  That's not the legacy 
he's left behind... otherwise, why would his name come up so often on the 
Internet lists?

If he can, I must only imagine he's grinning like a cheshire cat these days 
at what he has wrought.  Not bad for a poor, rotten-tempered lad rising up 
in a scornful, bigoted world.

If I were to imagine myself as him, I wouldn't be surprised if he, or any 
others expressing their art as they were driven to, would go right on doing 
exactly as they felt exemplified what they held in their heart.  It's not 
only pointless to speculate what they'd do if alive today... to my mind, 
it's also arrogant and insulting to them and their memory.

Sorry... just another 2 cents perhaps better pocketed.

Bobbie




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