There are a lot of dogs going around barking, but one of the truly big dogs was Theodore Roosevelt Taylor aka Hound Dog Taylor. And yes he was named after the president! As often seen in blues history the real bluesmen not only play the blues but they live the blues. And if anybody lived the blues, the Hound Dog did.
Here is also an example of a bluesman who was truly a joyous soul. You know he was having fun as he played. And some of his lyrics can make you laugh out loud or at least chuckle. Just listen to "Give Me Back My Wig" if you want to laugh.
He was a member of Sonny Boy William's II (Rice Miller) Biscuit Time radio broadcasts out of Helena, AR, before coming to Chicago in 1942. He learned to play a guitar at the age of 20, so I guess there is some hope for us late bloomers.
Not the best guitar player or smoothest vocalist, he is reported to have said, "When I die, they'll say, 'He couldn't play s***, but he sure made it sound good!'"
You can read all about him here; Wikipedia article on Hound Dog Taylor.
Interesting bit of Hound Dog Taylor trivia. He was born with a small sixth finger on each hand (he was a polydactyly), but amputated the extra digit from his right hand with a razor blade. Click here to see and image
Alligator Records biography
Gonna Send You Back to Georgia mp3 (3:35) from Download.com.
Hound Dog Taylor and The House Rockers
Hound Dog Taylor Video @ YouTube.com. The video is not of the best quality, but it does allow you to see the charm and humor of one of Blues' Big Dogs!
file under;
music, blues, video, mp3
3 comments:
Thanks Fitz, that's an awesome video, despite poor technical quality. He WAS an original. My 5th grade son was so taken by Hound Dog when I played some for him that he chose him for a music class report!
Greg,
Glad you enjoyed it. I liked it too. I love finding the videos of these guys that I have been listening to for years. Seeing them helps you understand their styles better. Hound Dog was a happy player. And you are getting your son started early. Reminds me of the time I was driving with my daughter and she was singing a Memphis Minnie song. That made me chuckle.
Great find! I love HDT. I posted a concert of his - well, half of one, anyway - at my podcast this week:
http://www.upthedownstair.net/2006/04/show-62-hound-dog-taylor-and.html
And now I've posted the video too.
Post a Comment