Guest Ohdistortedsmile1789 Posted July 3, 2006 Share Posted July 3, 2006 (edited) The Paul Butterfield Blues band were one of the most important groups of the 1960's. Led by Paul Butterfield, the first white harmonica virtuoso to reach fame, the band honed their skills at clubs such as Big John's, on the Chicago scene where their heroes made a living. With the twin guitar attack of Mike Bloomfield and Elvin Bishop, their self-titled debut became a classic of Chicago Blues. After proving their worth as Bluesmen, they stretched out on 1966's East-West, it's title track being the first extended Blues-based workout released on LP. It's raga influences would be prevalent in the music of the late 1960's. These innovations pre-dated famous "jam" based groups such as the Grateful Dead and the Allman Bros. Later on, with the departure of Bloomfield, Butterfield would reach more deeply into Soul and Rhythm and Blues, and along with young saxophonist David Sanborn, he would record classics such as "In My Own Dream" and "Blind Leading The Blind". Paul Butterfield brought the Blues out of Chicago, almost single-handedly. As a member of his group, Mike Bloomfield became the first national "guitar hero". Although British artists such as Eric Clapton would bring the Blues even greater exposure later on, it was the Paul Butterfield Blues Band that roared out of the Windy City and showed the nation Electric Blues.I ended up writing this piece, but my main intention is just to encourage everyone to check this shit out, it's some of the best Blues you will hear, Paul is my biggest influence on harp, and "East-West" by itself is awe-inspiring. Edited July 3, 2006 by Ohdistortedsmile1789 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adnan Posted July 3, 2006 Share Posted July 3, 2006 Surprisingly, I have never heard of these people.Must buy an album, recommendations? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ohdistortedsmile1789 Posted July 3, 2006 Share Posted July 3, 2006 Well, their debut is pure Chicago Blues, sort of like stating their purpose you know? But I don't think they did anything as consistent later on. I would recommend a 2 CD set called An Anthology: The Elektra Years, it would help you see just how much ground he covered. That's how I got acquainted with Paul. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adnan Posted July 3, 2006 Share Posted July 3, 2006 That's on my list now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ohdistortedsmile1789 Posted July 3, 2006 Share Posted July 3, 2006 That's on my list now.Yay! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Revolver Paul Posted July 4, 2006 Share Posted July 4, 2006 I bought East-West after I heard Paul Butterfield on The Last Waltz, Bloomfields guitar work is fantastic.They truly are vastly underrated compared to Eric Clapton. I'm sure the history of blues music would be vastly different if it hadn't been for them. The song East-West is an epic on a grand scale, theres not many songs that can take you on such a musical journey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ohdistortedsmile1789 Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 I bought East-West after I heard Paul Butterfield on The Last Waltz, Bloomfields guitar work is fantastic.They truly are vastly underrated compared to Eric Clapton. I'm sure the history of blues music would be vastly different if it hadn't been for them. The song East-West is an epic on a grand scale, theres not many songs that can take you on such a musical journey.All true! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marina Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 I bought East-West after I heard Paul Butterfield on The Last Waltz, Bloomfields guitar work is fantastic.They truly are vastly underrated compared to Eric Clapton. I'm sure the history of blues music would be vastly different if it hadn't been for them. The song East-West is an epic on a grand scale, theres not many songs that can take you on such a musical journey.All true!they sound worthy of a day in court Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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