Buddy Whittington & E-1

Get ready to rock because tonight I’m featuring a monster guitarist, none other than Buddy Whittington. Born in Fort Worth, Texas, he began playing the guitar at the age of eight. His early influences were other Texas bluesmen like Billy Gibbons, Johnny Winter, and Freddie King. But the blues really hit him between the eyes when he heard an album featuring a fiery Les-Paul-wielding Eric Clapton playing with John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers.

While playing local gigs around Texas, he was spotted by none other than Mayall himself who got his contact information, but didn’t follow up until two years later when Coco Montoya left the Bluesbreakers. He was invited to join the band in 1983 and continued with Mayall until 2008, making him the Bluesbreaker’s longest serving guitarist.

As you’ll see and hear in the videos, the man can cook. From the slow blues, one of the most difficult styles to play, to rockin funk, he’s a guitarist’s guitarist. So, this Hump Day special should keep you rollin until the weekend. Enjoy!

Shakey Ground: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtnnORty7XQ

Crosscut Saw: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9kW6Up9P1g

Just got back from Baby’s: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSy9T5XDw-M

Slow train rollin: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMmyw1bxzaM

That ain’t right: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0fR8orspNE

Help me through the day: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lj_a-eGVRgE

Romance classified: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZBf17P4z1M

Big legged woman: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSKChc2LN5U

Minor blues: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlIDoYyBnYY

Baby how blue can you get: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-y0fqMz9Ipc

I love you more and more every day: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4Xasj_peJU

Pay the band: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Amd14RrWB7w

Same old blues: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLAhG6w1p7c

Greenwood: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsYaSU1TQ0M

Grits ain’t groceries: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rpKf-yTQfE

In my last post, I reviewed F-1 from Dave Phinney and the Orin Swift Winery. Tonight, I suggest E-1 (for Espania or Spain) from his “Locations” series. E-1, is a blend of Garnacha from Priorat, Tempranillo and Garnacha from Rioja and Carignan from Ribero del Duero. The wine is deep purple-black with fragrant aromas of blackberry and boysenberry that follow on the palate. It combines the characteristics I like best about Spanish wines into one excellent bottle and again, at $17.00 a bottle, I went back for two more. This one was a bit more difficult to find in stores, but it’s worth the search. And of course, E-1 is an excellent accompaniment to the powerful guitar of Buddy Whittington.

Cheers!

Jaco Pastorius & F-1

If you know and love jazz then I don’t have to say much about Jaco Pastorius. There isn’t a modern day bassist who hasn’t been influenced by his work. Once you’ve heard him, you’ll recognize that bassists of all stripes cop his licks. From rock and roll to hip hop to jazz you hear the echoes of his unmistakable sound everywhere. In spite of his imitators, there was, is, and will only be one Jaco.

His staccato sixteenth notes were his signature, but the characteristic of his playing that always stuck out for me was his sense of groove. To this day, I’ve never heard anyone who could turn a song into something special just by his groove. Check out The Chicken, Groovin, and Black Market for examples. Try playing Teen Town’s super fast sixteenth notes at full speed to appreciate his dexterity. He was also a master of using harmonics as you can hear on Birdland.

Unfortunately, like many exceptionally creative artists, he was a deeply troubled man and died after a beating by a bar bouncer in Miami.

There’s a lot of music here. The Montreal Jazz Festival link is over an hour of Jaco and his band. He remains one of the best to ever pick up the instrument.

Birdland: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8q6sR6yZCE

The Chicken: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMdoLi5qnYo

Donna Lee: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdqje73KQwg

Groovin: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmRlRGlKqko

Third Stone from the Sun: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtHbxsdExlE

Teen Town: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I63bOi477cA

Higher: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3b64QuU1DYs

Black Market: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuAMSE_xck4

Montreal Jazz Festival: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cpwaq7CxD4

If you’re a wine lover, you may be familiar with the Orin Swift Winery known for wines like The Prisoner or Veladora, both of which are beyond my $25.00 limit for this blog. But Dave Phinney, the winery’s mastermind, has started a new venture.   While waiting for a cab at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, he noticed the country code stickers on the backs of cars. It gave him the idea to make wines combining the best grape varieties from the countries of Europe and use the country sticker as the label. Thus was born his “Locations” wine series.

Tonight’s wine, F-1 (for France), is the second release in the series. It’s a blend of Grenache from the Roussillon, Syrah from the Rhône, and assorted Bordeaux varietals. The wine is a deep ruby-garnet with aromas of dark berries and spice. The palate is rich with flavors of boysenberry, blackberry, and more spice with soft tannins. For $16.00 this is an outstanding example of a French wine. I liked it so much, I went back and bought two more bottles. A great wine with a great bassist. How can you go wrong?

Cheers!