Musical Ramblings

Fred Yonnet - Front & Center

Fred Yonnet is a French-born harmonica player settled in the Washington DC area for the last few years. Front & Center is his first official release, and the featured repertoire is both a showcase of his playing on diatonic harmonica and, I suspect, an attempt to show that the harmonica in the hands of Fred is not limited to one style. Ultimately, to me, this is both the album’s success and its undoing.

After just one listen, you know for a fact that Fred knows how to use his diatonic and make it shine in contexts outside of the traditional blues arena. The choice of repertoire, from pop tunes to jazz standards and a couple of covers from his French mentor Michel Herblin, gives him ample opportunity to demonstrate this. His style is fluid, his tone is nice, he overblows well and doesn’t shy from unusual phrases, although he mostly stays within the realm of commonly accepted positions. In other words, Fred is a great player.

For the serious jazz aficionado, though, the choice of repertoire, the instrumentations and Fred’s own improvisations sound way too consensual for Fred’s voice to actually shine through. And, having seen him live, I could ascertain that he definitely has a musical personality, I just don’t hear it on Front & Center. Of course, Fred’s playing is clean and pleasant here, of course there’s a touch of funk in the arrangements, of course there is a valid point to be made for covering Cindy Lauper in a jazz record as Miles demonstrated in earlier days.

But all these elements blend to result in something that is way too smooth, that lacks personality. Although I’m sure this wasn’t intended, to me Front & Center sounds too much like a demo, not in the way it’s produced or played, but in the sense that you get the impression it’s been recorded to get gigs in as wide a variety of genres and venues as possible.

Fred shows a lot of promise though, and I hope that his next project allows him to use his undeniable talent to let his voice shine through in a more personal context.

Purchase 'Front & Center' from Fred Yonnet's website

The legendary Peg Leg Sam

Long ago, when I started getting into blues and harmonica, I kept hearing about a documentary on the blues that had this footage of an old one-legged harmonica player playing with his nose. I never managed to find that film, and apart from a two-second snippet in the movie Amelie, I never even saw what it looked like. I knew by then, of course, that the performer in that movie was Peg Leg Sam, but I hadn't seen the movie itself. Until today.

I just found out that said movie is available online for free in streaming format. You can find it at http://www.folkstreams.net/, a site that proposes many movies about musical folklore. The Peg Leg Sam movie is entitled Born for Hard Luck. It features a lot more than nose-blowing, it's a window onto the  blues tradition of the rural south and a great opportunity to see what a medecine show really was like. Don't miss it, it's great !

Carlos del Junco - Big Boy

For quite a while now those who had been lucky enough to hear Just Your Fool, Carlos del Junco's first solo album had been hoping for a new release. For my part, even though I liked the above mentioned live recording, I felt a little frustrated by the choice of repertoire, too conventional in perspective with Carlos' capabilities . I was waiting for something more open musically, and with Big Boy, I wasn't disappointed.

Carlos doesn't really have much to prove technically: he has assimilated the most advanced playing techniques (overblows, bent octaves, counterpoint, etc.) under Howard Levy's tutelage and beyond. Where Levy tends to tread the roads of a somewhat 'cerebral' jazz, del Junco focuses on more popular and accessible styles of music, amongst which blues, of course, but not limited to that. The great achievement of this album in my opinion is that Carlos manages  to blend the harmonica into musical styles where it is seldom if at all represented : ska, soul, and some hybrid mixes that are more difficult to categorise.

Blues is still featured on the album, and those who have heard Carlos' style know that it is anything but conventional. The New Orleans flavoured "Junco Partner" and the jump blues classic "I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate" are nice examples of that. There is also a nod to Sugar Blue with a cover of his solo "Another Man Done Gone" that blends into a breakneck pace train imitation. Anyone wanting to develop breathing techniques need simply work on duplicating that track. Good luck!

Carlos' only foray into full jazz territory is a beautiful cover of Fats Waller's "Jitterbug Waltz", in which his acoustic sound shines. The arrangement is sober and the piece very beautiful. Beyond the theme itself, Carlos takes time to build his solo so that there's a gradual shift in mood and intensity. Towards the end of "Jitterbug Waltz", he displays a dizzying technique by quoting a piece by JS Bach with intertwined melodic lines played on each side of the mouth. I understand this used to be one of Howard Levy's showstoppers when he played with Kenny Loggins. It's really hard to believe that there's only one harmonica being played there...

Another strong point of this recording is the fun that seeps through most of it. It's obvious that Carlos and his musicians had the time of their lives and that's  very pleasant to hear. The best illustration of this is "Heddon Tadpolly Spook",  described in the liner notes as a quirky ska hybrid instrumental soundtrack for a Fellini film. It's a real fun piece, upbeat and unusual.

There are three things I can think of that would perhaps stop me from giving this record top marks, were I actually grading my reviews. One is the occasional display of a technical showmanship that doesn't serve the music. This is something I hear on many recordings of the most advanced players and although Carlos is by far not the  most guilty perpetrator, there are a couple of spots on the record where I can't help but feel that it's just too much.  On "Heaven’s where you'll dwell", for example, there's a drum and harp break during which  Carlos plays a few bars in each of the twelve keys (on one diatonic of course). Well I sure can't do it, but I still don't think it sounds that good.

Another thing is that Carlos does have a number of mannerisms that are particularly evident in his improvisations. Recurring phrases, the same was to attack the vibrato, etc. This is really a minor gripe, but I guess I just hope that Carlos doesn't rely too much on these, because although they define him as a player, they can end up making him sound a bit stale too.

Finally, but that's really a comment that's hard not to make on most records, there are a number of filler tracks here. Noy uninteresting by any means, but not that interesting either.

Despite these  minor criticisms, I really enjoy this album, and it has stood the test of time and repeated listenings.  I can only recommend it if you want to hear what one of the most innovative harp players of today is doing with a diatonic.

This review was originally posted on www.planetharmonica.com in early 2000. I have made slight amendments to this revised version, but on the whole, my opinion then matches my opinion now.

Click here to purchase Carlos del Junco's 'Big Boy' on Amazon.com

Thierry Crommen - La Nouvelle Donne

Thierry Crommen is a diatonic and chromatic player from Belgium who is well known as a sideman to famous French pop stars. He has released several albums of more personal projects, with guitarist Jacques Stotzem in particular, but La Nouvelle Donne is his first solo release. Although there are many guest musicians here, the core of the instrumentation is Chris de Pauw on acoustic guitar, Erno on keyboards and Thierry himself on harmonica.

La Nouvelle Donne (The New Deal) is an album of mostly instrumental tracks, and it veers heavily towards the romantic. The compositions are ambitious and often have a certain grandeur to them although the influences are many, from the North African feel of “Paris Tagine” to the French musette of “Un air qui passe”. Thierry Crommen is a fluent overblower, on diatonic so his choice of instrument is rarely dictated by the complexity of the themes but rather by the feel he is trying to evoke. And it works really well: his tone is masterful and sensitive on both instruments, his playing is spot on in accuracy and phrasing, and his improvisations are well led and inventive. As an added bonus, although the harmonica is undoubtedly the solo instrument here, the flair and feel of the sidemen are also outstanding, heard both in the clever support and the rare but often superb improvisations.

I do have reservations about Thierry’s new record, but I’m afraid they are entirely down to matters of taste. First of all, my tolerance for romantic melodies is limited. A good musician friend of mine who strives on such things tells me that I’ll get it when I’m older, but as things stand, my ears and brain tend to fall asleep after a quarter of an hour of such music, no matter how good the interpretation. Additionally, I have an intense dislike for overly synthetic sounds, and Erno’s keyboards are too often (for my tastes) in synth mode. This has spoiled other records for me in the past, so I know it’s an entirely personal thing.

Provided you don’t have these same reservations I have, and supposing you like both romantic jazzy music and heartfelt harmonica playing, La Nouvelle Donne is a great way to discover Thierry Crommen’s world.

Purchase La Nouvelle Donne from www.proxis.be

Destiny of the Planet

I've been doing this blog for a few months now, and I really enjoy the ease with which it can be updated and the general legibility of the templates. I'm seriously thinking of migrating most of the existing content from my website Planet Harmonica to here. There are a few articles not written by me which I might not migrate, but in the coming weeks, expect to see some articles, reviews and interviews popping up here. Since I haven't experimented with Photo Albums, I might also catch up with all the i-mic photos people have sent me over the years that I kept meaning to post on Planet Harmonica.

I still haven't figured out what to do with the French content though. I guess I need to think about it before coming to some decision or other...

Back at the Chicken Shack

I haven't been practicing much harmonica lately. In fact, ever since my second son was born, a little over a year ago, I have practically not spent more than an hour a month playing. It's an intense frustration, but there's very little opportunity for me to play in the daytime during week-ends, and evenings are out because it would wake the kids up...

Needless to say I feel like I'm slipping. It's no big deal, 'cause I know that as soon as I get more opportunities, the old mechanisms will get back in place, but it's annoying to realise that you can no longer play some tricky theme you used to be able to play or that you feel winded after improvising 24 bars of fast paced swing.

Anyway, why am I telling you this ? Simply because I'm the singer and player of the  jam band during the St Aignan Festival mentioned below, and I want to take it as an opportunity to challenge myself. Since the band will consist of a drummer, a guitarist and a Hammond B3 player, I dug into my Jimmy Smith and Jack McDuff recordings looking for some tunes. I ruled out the Captain's "Hot Barbecue", because that would require a lot more practice than I can afford right now, much as I love that piece, and settled on Smith's hit "Back at the Chicken Shack".

For you diatonic players out there, here's how it goes :

I hope the notation is straightforward enough. Anyway, it's not devilishly tricky, but there are a number of pitfalls. First there's the vibrato on the overblow 6 in the second line, which has to be faked if one does not master the art of the diaphragm vibrato (as, alas, is my case). Then there's going straight into overblow 5 and repeating it over the V chord. But strangely enough, my main difficulty working on it this morning was falling back onto the very last part of the theme. Not so much a matter of being able to play it as a matter of hitting it in stride, in rhythm, and at a reasonably fast pace.

Now I was practicing on a Golden Melody Bb, and getting nowhere. Everytime the theme closed, I stumbled. I was getting frustrated, so I dug up my gig bag, a small pouch that holds 8 harps, some of them customised. I took out my Bb T-Bone, tried the very same line, et voila. It worked. Still needs some practice, but I can play it fluidly. On the T-Bone. The reason is simply that since I need less air to make the reeds respond on the T-Bone, I gain an extra millisecond at the end of the one but last phrase, enough time to fall back on that blow 2 comfortably.

And that's as good an opportunity to hail the virtues of custom harmonicas. It often seems to the amateur player like a waste of good money, since a quality custom harp will often go for three to four times the price of a standard issue harp. However, I think that's an error in  judgement. These harps are more expensive indeed, but they make you progress a lot faster. An instrument that is more responsive is an instrument that will allow you to attempt things you're not able to play comfortably on a standard instrument, and thus analyse your shortcomings. And that's one of the great keys to progress.

So what's this T-Bone I mentioned? Well, it's a custom hybrid of Marine Band and Special 20, with the covers and reedplates of the former and the plastic body of the latter. It's assembled and tweaked by an amazing harp technician called Tim Moyer. His company, Working Man's Harps produces three basic models: the T-Bone, the Honeycomb (a customised Marine Band with a Honeywax sealed wooden body) and the Soloist (a tweaked Golden Melody). They are each sold at a pricetag of 75$.

I own four or five T-Bones, and they are the best damn harps I've played, bar none. I own several other customised harmonicas, some of them pretty good, but none of them, to my taste, play as well as Tim's T-Bones. Which goes to show, you should always strive to use the right tool for the job. Oh, and as for disclaimers, I don't own stocks in Tim's business, I don't get free products, I'm just a very satisfied customer.

Ten holes and more from the East

It's always been both an oddity and a wonder to me, but I often feel that players not native to a musical tradition sometimes have a more interesting approach to said tradition than those who have bathed in it all their lives. I don't pretend to explain it...

Anyway, case in point, Mátyás Pribojszki. Mátyás Pribojszki is a hungarian diatonic and chormatic harp player. For some years, he was the leader of one of the most lean and mean blues machines in Europe, the Blues Fools. These guys nailed the so-called West Coast tradition of blues inherited from George Harmonica Smith better than most US bands in my opinion.

Now Mátyás wants to broaden his musical horizons and I've heard from his manager that a new album is being released these days. In fact, here's the whole press release, complete with English language inaccuracies :

"Mátyás Pribojszki is definitely a brilliant instrumentalist; his tasteful play can by all means compete with the best harmonica players of the blues planet. But the most interesting fact is probably that he is clearly on his way to a very personal and expressive style of his own that will help to redefine the role of his modest instrument in the close future. Thanks Matt, for your warm music." – was a short but apposite intro about Mátyás by Jean-Jacques Milteau, the prestigous French harmonica artist, in the liner notes of Mátyás' brand new flavours CD.

In January 2004 Mátyás invited some new, mostly jazz-influenced professional musicians to form the Mátyás Pribojszki Band. His purpose with this project is to achieve progressive music goals beyond blues with a multigenre band in which each member has great experience. The musicians of MPB have participated in the production of dozens of different albums with other bands, either as members or as invited session artists, but this album is the first album they recorded together.

The original idea of this flavours recording came in 2003, when Mátyás wrote brand new music for the lyrics of Muddy Water's legendary "She's nighteen years old", and he dedicated this song (track #2) to his lovely girlfriend, Melinda on her 19th birthday. His next flavour was the song "Kenny's theme" (track #9), arranged by Mátyás and Csaba, inspired by Kenny Burell's beautiful Chitlins con Carne, from his 1967 Midnight Blue session. Another unique arrangement on this recording is track #5, which was inspirated by Junior Wells' classic "Sweet 16". The jazzy instrumental TV boogie is more powerful than a thunder, but the sensitive What You Give is a wonderful blend of elegance and conviction, musical inventiveness and thoughtful restraint.

All these original compositions testify to the varied and accomplished art of Mátyás' quartet, together with their perception and mastery of other genres.

The Mátyás Pribojszki Band consists of harmonica, keyboards, double bass and drums – without a guitar originally in the quartet. For this album Mátyás specially invited three of his guitarist friends from the new European generation: Ian Siegal (UK), Mike Sponza (Italy) and Gábor Szűcs (Hungary). Besides, he enjoys inviting great guitar players as special guests to join him for tours, as well.

Mátyás is a 30-year-old man in command of a full range of creative talents – he appreciates all the legendary blues harp masters who inspired him, but next to being faithful to traditional roots, he builds his own contemporary style which will probably open a new chapter in harmonica playing – and not only in the blues genre alone.

He started playing the harmonica at the age of 15, when he listened to a rare recording of the late Sonny Boy Williamson. In 1995 he founded his first band, the Blues Fools. The band’s reputation quickly grew, and the band became the most well-known Hungarian blues band on the European blues scene. During the 10 successful years together with his Blues Fools Mátyás recorded three albums with them.

Mátyás is out touring and performing, from one country to another and proving, festival after festival, that he is not only a true harmonica talent, but a singer, a songwriter and an amazing showman as well. He brings people to listen to his music, and to dance to his highly energetic live performances. He always manages to grabb the attention of the audience, night after night in a varied showcase of entertainment that doesn't rely on any rules and regulations. Mátyás has already toured more than 20 countries in Europe with his bands and and jammed together on the festivals' stages with such great blues icons as Paul Lamb (UK), Duke Robillard (USA), Herbie Goins (USA), Andy J. Forest (USA) and from the new European generation e.g. Enrico Crivellaro (I), B.B. & the Blues Shacks (D), Ian Siegal (UK), Mike Sponza (I) and many others.

"Mátyás Pribojszki is one of the finest young harp players to emerge from Eastern Europe. He plays both traditional and contemporary blues harmonica styles with a practised assurance which belies his years and his tone, phrasing and timing are right on the money. This is a man to watch!" – Steve Baker

A copy of the album is on its was to me, so I will undoubtedly tell you more about it once I've received it!

Charlie's New Website

Charlie Musselwhite, one of the most authentic blues harmonica players alive has a new website up. It can be found at www.charliemusselwhite.com.

I must confess that I haven't listened to his recent stuff, mostly because I'm not very keen on his voice, but his various versions of Christo Redemptor remain up there in my pantheon of harmonica instrumentals, and some of the stuff on The Harmonica according to Charlie Musselwhite still blow my mind every time I hear them. Check it out !

Scott's Haiku Ode

Heroically responding to my challenge in the earlier post relating his experience with the Dirty Dozen, Scott sent me a haiku ode relating the whole event. Here it is :

haiku-ode by a dirty dozen dream stealer - the  3 day plan

day one
standing in line to buy an overpriced ticket....
later, with tropical sun directly overhead,
DDBB cd and air/con blasting in car
whilst tooling along bayside
offsets and smooths the pain. . . . .

day two
drinking three too many jack & cokes,
waiting for the band to start...
and start, they do---
so much brass, so much brass - all over the place.
they are sweating everywhere and they have barely begun -
the horns themselves are filled with sweat:  winter in the tropics.
and the feets  --- they are moving now and they don't fail me now.

later, by happenstance, drinking yet more
jack & cokes, but now with the horns.
moving from club to club with the biggest little trumpet there ever was
eclipses the moon - and my sight.

anyone/everyone/allone
who is in earshot
falls under the trumpet's spell
and the moon is forever forgotten
for the nite.

day three
waking up nervous before coffee
coffee soothes the nerves.
it is 11:45 am.
and, the temperature is rising..  ..  ..

later is gig time, and it's more of the same.
only more so, so much more so.
7 persons who can play what they want when they want how they want
and swing at ALL times.
every ear is in bliss-state.
except mine, whose name is suddenly called to the stage
by the Masters.
the spell is broken:  where is the frickin' moon when you need it?

dutifully to the stage the amateur marches, like the doomed prisoner to the hangman.
but.....the joy is everywhere, the Masters have nothing to prove except:
it's all about the music.
their smiles lift my soul from anxiety to nothingness,
and i am in heaven for a brief moment thanks to
the Magnificent 7 and their kindness.

but there is no time for reminiscing now - the trumpet will not be quieted
and off into the tumon night we go - in search of more clubs, more instruments, more ears,
more dancing feet that were not failed now.

the sound of an Eb harp safely and neatly tucked in front left pants pocket,
as my ears wisely focus on the SOUNDS that abound.

Harmonica Festival !

For the last few years I've worked together with Christophe Minier on the organisation of a Harmonica Festival here in France. Most of the work is done by Christophe's team, my contrbution is mainly with the programming and advertising. I'm afraid you, my readers, are going to be victimes of the latter.

The next edition of the festival is set to happen on May 5th-7th in St Aignan sur Cher. St Aignan is a medieval town with   a very well preserved city centre, lots of old stones, cobbled streets, a massive   castle and several lovely churches. The area is also renowned for its wines and there are several local producers   as well as very pleasant wine bars. That's to convince you that you can come with a significant other and/or for a longer period than just the   Festival. Within 30 miles stand most of the   most significant castles in French history (Blois, Chambord, Chenonceaux, Amboise,   etc.) You can find more about tourism in the area at www.loiredeschateaux.com/   and it's in English also.

Anyway, the festival itself is in   the heart of St Aignan, and the program this year is really exceptional in the   sense that we will be lucky enough to see several artists who have rarely, if ever, been to Europe.

On Thursday night (May 5th), the program will feature :

• Balya, with Thomas Laurent   on chromatic harmonica. Balya is a French world-jazz band with several members   of Eastern European descent, and their music is a jazz tinged with influences   from their respective mother lands (Russian, Gypsy, etc.) Thomas is one of the   most promising young French jazz players. He studied with Olivier Ker-Ourio   and Laurent Maur, amongst others, and the 5-track CD that Balya released showcases   a fluidity and sensibility surprising in one so young.

• Marvellous Pig Noise, a   French blues/gospel band. MPN is one of the most original French blues band   in that they focus not on a repertoire of electric blues classics but on a basis   of "gospelised" old blues, which they make their own through vocal   harmonies and a great depth of approach. Pierre Cisterne, the lead singer,   guitarist and harmonica player is an amazing musician, with as much ease on   each of the instruments he plays and a great set of influences, from early blues   harmonica players to Son House to more modern singers and musicians. MPNs concerts   usually end with everyone dancing. More   info on www.marvellouspignoise.com

The night will end in a local pub with a harmonica DJ who will play only records featuring harmonica, a great chance to discover players you've never heard of and talk shop with other harmonica enthusiasts.

On Friday night (May 6th), the program will feature :

• Agitato, with Christian   Tezenas on harmonica. Agitato is a Chanson Française duo of guitar   and harmonica, a great opportunity to hear a classic lineup in a variety of   traditional musical styles, from latin to musette and blues to java.

• The Rhythm Junks, with Steven de Bruyn. Following a successful debut with the greatest Belgian blues band   of all times El Fish, Steven deBruyn launched his own band, the Rhythm Junks,   with an unusual line-up of rhythm section, horn section and harmonica. Their   music is groovy and dynamic, with Steven's singing and harmonica carried by   a top-notch group of musicians. On stage, Steven is dynamite, jumping up and   down and grooving along to the music, something the audience can rarely refrain from doing... More info on www.stevendebruyn.com

The night will end with a Blues Jam Session in one of the local bars, with most of the harmonica pros featured at the festival and talented amateurs sharing the groove!

On Saturday night (May 7th), the program will feature :

• Howard Levy and Anthony   Molinaro : No one needs to introduce the amazing Howard Levy, a man who   has become a legend in his own time in harmonica circles, both for his exceptional   mastery of the diatonic harmonica and for the versatility and musicality of   his playing. Although he occasionaly tours Europe, his last concert in France   dates back five years at least, and he will play along with classical/jazz pianist   Anthony Molinaro for a set of jazz and more. More info on www.levyland.com

• Bill Barrett : Jazz chromatic harmonica has been marked by the imprint of Toots, and many players adopt Toots' mellow tone and soft repertoire. Not so Bill Barrett, who has a tone and a sound   many blues players would kill for but plays a brand of energetic be-bop influenced   jazz with occasional forays into blues territory and much wild jamming. Bill   has never played in Europe and will be backed by top-notch French musicians (drums, hammond B3 and guitar) for a grand closing act where no doubt many other harmonica luminaries featured at the festival will make an appearance. A night   not to be missed. More info on www.billbarrett.net  

Of course, great music is great, but it's not all that's planned. Bill Barrett, Howard Levy and possibly others will run masterclasses on both diatonic   and chromatic playing, harp technician Tony Ramos is coming from Germany to sell his wares and run a seminar on harmonica tweaking, lessons will   be organised for beginners and experimented players, both on diatonic and chromatic,   jam sessions, instrument and photo exibitions, harmonica related movies, etc.  

The organisers are aware that the expense of coming over from afar are great, and as such have tried to set things up to minimise expenses locally. A deal with a local community center has been struck to provide sparse but clean accomodation for all those who require it, and that can even include cheap yet healthy homemade meals, wine included. Also, the ticket prices are very reasonable compared to other festivals (around 30 EUR for a three-day pass with access   to all the concerts), so we're doing all we can to make things easier for you all !

If you want any more specific information, don't hesitate to email me directly. Although I'm not officially a member of the festival organisation, I have access to most of the information.  

You know you want to come! Don't hesitate any longer!!!