BLUESPAIN REVIEW (03/16/05)
Ramón del Solo
http://audio.ya.com/bluespain Online Spanish Version
JOHN LEE HOOKER JR.
His grandfather, William Moore, born in 1894, was a well-known singer and guitar player of the Mississippi Delta area, one of the pioneers in the guitar- string fading technique to get the particular sound that proved to be great for the blues at that time; he made popular "Old Country Blues". Blind Lemon Jefferson, Charlie Patton and Blind Blake, among other big names, were his colleagues and friends.
His father, John Lee Hooker, was born in 1920 in Clarksdale, Mississippi. He moved to Detroit, electrified the Delta blues, developed a unique style that has been far too much imitated and was an icon for the British and American bands that discovered the blues in the 60s, from Cannned Heat to Eric Burdon & The Animals, or the Rolling Stones. He remained active until a short time before his death, in June, 2001, and he wrote some of the greatest Afro-American folk music songs of the last century. In 1948, he already had been five years in Detroit, when Bernie Besman helped him to record his first album, which had "Sally Mac" on one side and "Boogie Children" on the other. He also recorded for the label Modern, under the name "The Boogie Man" and up to 1951, titles as representative as "Hobo Blues" or "I´ m In The Mood". Around that time, on January, 13, 1952, John Lee Hooker Jr. was born in Detroit.
John Lee Hooker Jr. is a man who burst with vitality and energy on stage, as he has showed in his first visit to Spain. In Madrid, we saw him at the Chesterfield Café, by means of Welcome Productions and Alfonso Cito, the tour promoter. Johnny displayed his condition of remarkable vocalist and excellent conductor of a band with accomplished and efficient musicians. Off stage, we could see that he is a kindly person, with a great sense of humour and an enormous respect for his profession and for the historic legacy that he has to assume.
INTERVIEW
To be John Lee Hooker´s son means, among other things, to have enjoyed a childhood in a house full of musicians that come and go. How many of them did you meet then?
J. L. Hooker Jr.: A lot. And, of course, that has a profound impact and a lasting influence on you. I met many of the greats, from B. B. King to some of the members of the Rolling Stones, at my own home, and part of the way I understand music has something to do with those encounters. I learned a lot at my dad´ s home, and, of course, from my dad."
At the age of 8, he performed on WJBK Radio in Detroit, and at the age of 16, at the Fox Theatre in the same town. At 18, he made his first recording, "Live at Soledad Prison", a collaborative effort with his father. Later on, he toured with Jimmy Reed, and performed with recording artists such Charlie Musselwhite, Bo Diddley, Luther Tucker, Deacon Jones, Elvin Bishop and many others and, of course, his father, who he also toured with. But everything was not plain sailing in his biography, where there are a few episodes fortunately forgotten.
"Blues With A Vengeance", your album, features good original songs but also three covers of your father´ s classics. In one of them, "One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer", you have changed some of the lyrics. Why?
J. L. Hooker Jr.: "Well, you know that the lyrics in that song speak of a man who drinks, drinks, and goes on drinking…There was a time in my youth when I had serious drug problems; some of my songs are related to that time, to street life, addiction, incarceration and all the heart breaking feelings linked to that kind of life. Now I´ m clean all through (and he proudly shows his soda) and that´ s why when I sing "One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer", in the final chorus I sing "One Coke, One Sprite, One Root Beer". I want to give that song a different meaning, to speak of somebody who drinks, drinks and quits drinking."
He is not at all a clone of his father. He is trying to make his own mark in the genre´ s most contemporary trends, so that blues could move a step forward, as if John Lee Hooker Jr. felt that he is the heir of the family legacy that he himself, his sister Zakiya, his brother Robert and his cousin Archie continue. His music, filled with funk, smacks with Delta sound echoes, with the sound created by the Texan musician, T. Bone Walker, with Detroit soul.
The musicians that accompany him on this tour served as a good background to the vocalist, supplying a top quality sound, partly due to keyboardist Will "Roc" Griffin, who also produces "Blues With A Vengeance". Next to him were bassist John Aughney, drummer John Handy Jr., and 19-year-old Jeff Horan, on rhythm guitar, who attracted everybody´ s attention, showing a dexterity, both in the accompaniment and in the solos, that contradicted his youth.
Jeff Horan, your guitar player, is a promising musician one should keep in sight. Where did you find him?
J. L. Hooker Jr.: "I didn´t find him; in fact, it was he who found me. One day, right before a concert, we were missing some equipment pieces and Jeff offered to go find them, and that´ s how he made contact with the band. He is a great guitar player, I call him my "Blues son".
John is enjoying his Spanish tour and the audiences´ response to his music. We asked him about his most immediate projects.
J. L. Hooker Jr.: "As soon as the Spanish tour is over, we will travel to Australia, then take a break and rest a few days home, and we will be back in Europe for a tour in Germany. We will also be working on our next album, due to be released in July."
Tell us something about your next album. Are there any changes, or is it going to follow the line of "Blues With A Vengeance"?
J. L. Hooker Jr.: "The album will be related with what is happening around the world, including what happened here, in Madrid. But it will be wrapped up as funk, funk and more funk!!"
We will certainly listen to it. Meanwhile, you can get information on "Blues With A Vengeance" in our records section. |