Re: [Harp-L] Harmonica Blow-Off

[Ben Bouman <fitgo@xxxxxxxxxx>]

During his last tour in Holland We had Carlos as our guest and we talked about amps/mic's and did some tests.

At them moment he's using his Electro Voice RE10 + impedance transformer,  a handmade digital delay with tapfunction ( the long delay is almost like a loop) and a Marble amp.
He's very precise when it comes down to his sound so I guess he used this set-up and maybe another amp.

In the past he used a Roland Space echo 501 that gave him the sound he favoured at that time...!


Ben Bouman
www.customharmonicashop.nl
www.harmonicainstituut.nl
www.marble-amps.com

Op 16 jan 2011, om 16:28 heeft The Iceman het volgende geschreven:

> The only electronic that Carlos uses is a vintage analog roland echo unit, which is part of his original sound dating back to when he first started recording. It adds a touch of distortion as well as a nice slap back effect - really not too much different than someone using a digital delay. The Avenger is Mark's performance amp these days and really does sound great. I would surmise that Rod was the only one using Harp King, but can't say for sure as I wasn't there.
> 
> 
> Carlos appeared to be relying on a collection of electronics for some of his 
> sound.  Unfortunately from where I was sitting I couldn't get a close enough 
> look to identify what he was using, but I heard some kind of loop station in the 
> mix during Carlos's version of 'Got My Mojo Working'.  There were a number of 
> specialty harp amps on the stage, including an Avenger and two Harp Kings.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Stachnik, George C (ESS Competitive Podcasts) (ESS Competitive Podcasts) <george.stachnik@xxxxxx>
> To: harp-l <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Sat, Jan 15, 2011 1:39 pm
> Subject: [Harp-L] Harmonica Blow-Off
> 
> 
> I caught the late set of Mark Hummel's Blues Harmonica Blowout at Yoshi's in 
> Oakland last night, with Billy Branch, Sugar Blue, Carlos Del Junco, and Rod 
> Piazza.  I'm submitting this review to the list, in hopes of stimulating some 
> discussion about these great players, and getting other list members who may 
> have seen this tour to share their thoughts.  
> 
> Personally, I was looking forward to hearing Sugar Blue.  He doesn't spend a lot 
> of time on the west coast, and seeing him on a bill with four other harmonica 
> legends was a treat.  In addition, the band featured Oakland's great Rusty Zinn 
> on guitar (of whom I would have liked to have heard considerably more).  
> 
> The show got off to an awesome start with Carlos Del Junco's solo version of 
> 'Amazing Grace'.  Carlos acknowledged that his approach was inspired by Howard 
> Levy.  There's a video on youtube of Howard playing a similar arrangement of the 
> 230 year old hymn:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecZz9uJcG-U.  
> 
> Carlos appeared to be relying on a collection of electronics for some of his 
> sound.  Unfortunately from where I was sitting I couldn't get a close enough 
> look to identify what he was using, but I heard some kind of loop station in the 
> mix during Carlos's version of 'Got My Mojo Working'.  There were a number of 
> specialty harp amps on the stage, including an Avenger and two Harp Kings.  
> Surprisingly, it looked like everybody (except Piazza) was playing through the 
> same amp (it might have been the avenger - but it was hard to be sure).  Hummel 
> had to switch out various sets of pedals and other apparatus between each set, 
> an arrangement that (IMHO) didn't allow some the players (particularly Branch) 
> to really show off their signature sounds.  
> 
> One of the problems with the all-star lineup was that each artist was allotted  
> just two songs before having to give up the stage to the next performer.  I'd 
> have liked to hear more of Carlos's innovative approach to the harmonica.  
> Although Billy Branch's stage presence was completely infectious, and he played 
> well, the band was clearly under-rehearsed.  At the end of Branch's set, I 
> overheard Hummel joking 'Well, I guess they'll have that song down by tomorrow 
> night.'   
> 
> But for me, the biggest contrast of the night was between Sugar Blue and Rod 
> Piazza.  Sugar, predictably, set the place on fire.  His hurricane of notes has 
> always reminded me of John Coltrane, and tonight was no exception.  It was clear 
> that many in the crowd had not heard him before.  As I looked around the room I 
> saw plenty of faces with mouths hanging open in obvious astonishment at what 
> they were hearing.  Some people on this list have complained about Sugar's 
> emphasis on speed, but even his critics have to admit that seconds into a Sugar 
> Blue solo, you know exactly who you're listening to.  His playing is unique, and 
> his tone is instantly recognizable.  
> 
> Rod Piazza on the other hand takes a much more derivative approach to the blues.  
> When he played chromatic on James Cotton's "Black Night", you could close your 
> eyes, forget you were listening to Piazza and imagine that it was Cotton himself 
> on stage.  Similarly, his cover of Little Walter's "That's It" sounded so much 
> like Walter that you could almost hear the scratches being carved into the 
> vinyl.  Rod's use of the pair of harp-kings with no pedals or electronics served 
> this approach well.  It's a legitimate approach to the blues, although 
> personally I'm finding that it's not 'my cup of tea', at last not as much as it 
> used to be.  What Piazza and Branch do is neither better nor worse than what 
> Carlos or Sugar do - it's just different.  
> 
> It may have been my imagination, but I got the impression that there may have 
> been some clash of egos back stage.  For example, when Piazza took the stage 
> after Sugar Blue's set, he appeared to forget Sugar's name, ("I want to thank 
> the wonderful... Um, the other people in tonight's show"). So overall, it was a 
> night of contrasts - with Carlos and Sugar providing the innovative sparks, 
> while Branch and Piazza settled into more traditional grooves.  Whichever 
> apprach is your preference, there's a lot recommend this tour.  The Blow-Out 
> will be in California for the next week or so.  Hummel's web site has them in 
> Chico on Jan 17, Santa Cruz on the 18th, and Redondo Beach on Jan 20.  
> 
> -LittleGeorge
> 
> 
>