BRISTOL YEARS
So what got you interested in the blues?
I'm pretty sure that I made the connection through listening to Bob Dylan's early LP's. I made the leap from Dylan to Woody Guthrie and then on to Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee and Leadbelly all of whom had recorded together at some time. It then all seemed to fall into place.
How were you able to find blues recordings living in England?
I had found a jazz magazine called Jazz Journal and was able to read the record reviews that always included a few blues LP's.
Do you remember the first blues LP you bought?
Oh yes, it was Robert Johnson's King of the Delta Blues Singers on UK CBS. It still has the shrink wrap and the record store's sticker - Pete Russell's Hot Record Store.
This was about the time that the blues tours made it to the UK and across Germany. Did you see those shows?
Yes and I have to pinch myself to think that I actually saw Skip James, Son House and Bukka White all on the same night in one show. I also saw Little Walter, Magic Sam, Jimmy Reed, T Bone Walker: the list is endless.
Wasn't there something special going on in Bristol at that time?
That's right. I had met Ian Anderson (Ian A Anderson not to be confused with the Jethro Tull man). In fact we had met at a day release course and independently we were both reading our copies of Blues Unlimited under the desk at an obviously boring lecture. We soon teamed up as I had already been teaching myself how to play blues harmonica (from listening to records). So there we were, trying to be 65 year old sharecroppers living in England! There was a vibrant folk scene going on in Bristol and after much persuasion we infiltrated this scene with our blues music.
Who were some of the musicians around at the time?
From the folk world there was John Renbourn, Bert Jansch, Al Stewart, the Watersons and many great local singers such as Fred Wedlock and Keith Christmas. We also introduced British blues singers, Dave and Jo Ann Kelly, Mike Cooper, Simon and Steve and the jug bands such as the Panama's and Brett Marvin and the Thunderbolts
And the visiting blues musicians from the US?
Fred McDowell is the first one that comes to mind. Also Champion Jack Dupree who lived in England and Curtis Jones also living in Europe and then later we had John Lee Hooker, Lowell Fulsom and many more
Did you guys record?
Yes there was the Anderson, Jones and Jackson EP that included our hit (!) Beedle um Bum, and tracks recorded for Blues Like Showers of Rain (check out our version of Garfield Akers "Cottonfield Blues"). All recorded in a hall at a Quaker Meeting House in Bristol. Later on I recorded a version of the UK No 2 hit "Groovin with Mr Bloe" with a studio band called Humbug (I think our version sold about 12 copies) - you can hear this on YouTube.
And then what?
Well not a lot (as they say). I never lost interest in the music, kept buying records and seeing whoever I could and occasionally sitting in with a few friends.
I'm pretty sure that I made the connection through listening to Bob Dylan's early LP's. I made the leap from Dylan to Woody Guthrie and then on to Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee and Leadbelly all of whom had recorded together at some time. It then all seemed to fall into place.
How were you able to find blues recordings living in England?
I had found a jazz magazine called Jazz Journal and was able to read the record reviews that always included a few blues LP's.
Do you remember the first blues LP you bought?
Oh yes, it was Robert Johnson's King of the Delta Blues Singers on UK CBS. It still has the shrink wrap and the record store's sticker - Pete Russell's Hot Record Store.
This was about the time that the blues tours made it to the UK and across Germany. Did you see those shows?
Yes and I have to pinch myself to think that I actually saw Skip James, Son House and Bukka White all on the same night in one show. I also saw Little Walter, Magic Sam, Jimmy Reed, T Bone Walker: the list is endless.
Wasn't there something special going on in Bristol at that time?
That's right. I had met Ian Anderson (Ian A Anderson not to be confused with the Jethro Tull man). In fact we had met at a day release course and independently we were both reading our copies of Blues Unlimited under the desk at an obviously boring lecture. We soon teamed up as I had already been teaching myself how to play blues harmonica (from listening to records). So there we were, trying to be 65 year old sharecroppers living in England! There was a vibrant folk scene going on in Bristol and after much persuasion we infiltrated this scene with our blues music.
Who were some of the musicians around at the time?
From the folk world there was John Renbourn, Bert Jansch, Al Stewart, the Watersons and many great local singers such as Fred Wedlock and Keith Christmas. We also introduced British blues singers, Dave and Jo Ann Kelly, Mike Cooper, Simon and Steve and the jug bands such as the Panama's and Brett Marvin and the Thunderbolts
And the visiting blues musicians from the US?
Fred McDowell is the first one that comes to mind. Also Champion Jack Dupree who lived in England and Curtis Jones also living in Europe and then later we had John Lee Hooker, Lowell Fulsom and many more
Did you guys record?
Yes there was the Anderson, Jones and Jackson EP that included our hit (!) Beedle um Bum, and tracks recorded for Blues Like Showers of Rain (check out our version of Garfield Akers "Cottonfield Blues"). All recorded in a hall at a Quaker Meeting House in Bristol. Later on I recorded a version of the UK No 2 hit "Groovin with Mr Bloe" with a studio band called Humbug (I think our version sold about 12 copies) - you can hear this on YouTube.
And then what?
Well not a lot (as they say). I never lost interest in the music, kept buying records and seeing whoever I could and occasionally sitting in with a few friends.
