December 5, 2011
"JUST THE WEIRDEST":
Bluesman Hubert Sumlin, guitarist for Howlin' Wolf, dies at 80 (DAVE HOEKSTRA, December 4, 2011, Chicago Sun-Times)Born in Greenwood, Miss., Mr. Sumlin was part of the great blues migration to Chicago. He and Burnett arrived in Chicago in 1953. Mr. Sumlin had been playing with James Cotton in West Memphis, and Burnett hired him in Chicago.
"We were playing Silvio's [at Lake and Oakley], and he said, 'You go home when you find out you've got my courage, then you can come back and play my songs,' " Mr. Sumlin told me in a 1988 interview from his South Side home. "Man, I got home and cried all night. I slept with my guitar by my head. Then about 4 o'clock in the morning something said, 'Hey man, why don't you put the [guitar] picks down. You ain't got no business using picks!' "
At that moment, Mr. Sumliln said, he discovered his own style, which evolved into an individualistic mix of African syncopation and itemized structure that forced the notes to stand alone. Clapton once called Mr. Sumlin's style "just the weirdest."
Chicago blues guitarist Dave Specter began playing with Mr. Sumlin in 1985. Wolf and Paul Butterfield drummer Sam Lay had hired Specter to join him and Mr. Sumlin on a three-week tour of Canada. Specter was 22 years old.
"Hubert was just the sweetest guy and very encouraging and supportive of younger players," Specter said on Sunday. "I wouldn't use 'tough' as an adjective for his playing. He had a totally unique sound. When you listen to his famous solos on [Wolf's] 'Hidden Charms' or '300 Pounds of Heavenly Joy' [later a hit for Chicago's Big Twist and the Mellow Fellows], there is so much style to it. A lot of it had to do with his touch and playing with his fingers. There are lot of guitar players who played with their fingers and had a more aggressive approach, like Albert Collins. Your sound and your tone is a reflection of your personality.
"And Hubert had larger-than-life charm and devilishness."
Posted by oj at December 5, 2011 4:24 PM
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