Saturday, September 4, 2010

"Blow Wind, Blow" - Muddy Waters

It's been crazy hot in Nashville this summer, but when I took my dog out this morning I was finally greeted by the old, familiar feeling of a fall wind on my face. I'm not talking about a breeze that just shuffles the hot air around, but the actual chilled wind that lets you know fall is on the way. It's easily one of my favorite things in the world. Granted, fall is certainly not here yet. The sun is still pretty hot, the car feels like an oven when you first get in and the grass still needs to be cut a couple more times, but that breeze let me know that the seasonal transition has begun. Soon the temperature will drop, the leaves will change color and things will just get cozier. Fall lets you walk huddled together, hold hands without worrying about that sweaty feeling and generally makes you want to just get a little closer. Plus, it leads into winter, which is even better for all those kinds of feelings and festivities. A couple more breezes like today and I'll be all set to kick off my favorite half of the year.

Legendary bluesman McKinley Morganfield, better known as Muddy Waters, released "Blow Wind, Blow" as a single in 1953. If you want to hear the blues, like not someone just imitating the blues, but actually HEAR the blues, you don't have to go any further than Muddy Waters. Revered by musicians for decades, Muddy's brand of electric, Chicago blues and his instantly recognizable voice combined to make him one of the most important and influential figures in musical history. For every big name that has covered one of his songs (Dylan, Hendrix, Clapton, Led Zeppelin, The Beatles shout out in "Come Together"), every one of them would tell you that they could only muster a mere fraction of the soul and spirit of the sound that Muddy embodied. If you've ever wanted to learn about the blues, Muddy Waters will be happy to teach you.

"Blow Wind, Blow" - Muddy Waters (Blow Wind, Blow single)

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