Big Joe was always one of my favorites and so ferocious with that amped guitar - I was lucky to record him in 1960 with that same sound - it became the second Arhoolie release - he was an amazing genius - illiterate but just with an amazing memory and remarkable way to find his way across the country - always finding someone to record him - read the notes to the Arhoolie LP/CD!
Hey Chris- not sure if you are going to see this 3 years later, but I used to work for Rounder Distribution in Chicago and NY and tried to get Arhoolie on as many record store shelves as I could. One of my favorite labels and really appreciated all you did.
Thanks to Chris for making so much wonderful music available for us to listen to. I have enjoyed a good number of Arhoolie recordings, but most especially Sonny Boy Williamson's King Biscuit Time. It is a miracale of ingenuity that we can enjoy the playing of artists long after their passing.
I have it and have listened to it dozens of times. I love ‘Brother James’. I can only imagine recording this giant. I’m from STL and have been a blues musician here for years. I think of Big Joe wandering around here. I know he did.
Look at the guitar Big Joe is using and people today obsess so much over what kind of guitar and specs they have instead of spending that time playing. Do you think the old bluesmen obsessed over what kind of pick-ups they had or strings? they just played the bloody thing!
I have often thought it would be fun to take an old ratty guitar and try to make a 9-string guitar like Joe’s but I never been able to see exactly how it’s strung or which strings are paired.
@@derin111 1st 2nd 4rd double, openG capoed to A, I think he used plain strings on the 4rd, may be pitched the same as 1st or octaves ? Easiest to start with a 12 string amd take off surplus strings.
Yes would be good that young people would listen to old blues , but instead they are to busy listening to junk rap. They forgot were real music came from.
I had the privilege and thrill to play a few songs (drums) with this huge legend when he stopped at "The Library" in Hattiesburg, MS on his way down to the Jazz Festival in New Orleans. Thanks to R.T. for a memory to treasure.R.I.P. Mr, Williams.
That's cool man. I was not ever really aware of Big Joe until he came and played for me. It was a time we all will never forget. It was a privilege to have him and all the musicians that showed up to have their chance at playing with a legend. He was great and unfortunately we lost him a few years later, but his legacy lives on!!
Big joe is the definition of "Only a bad carpenter complains about his tools". Since I watched this video I never once companied about my instruments. That guitar is truly special.
Před 9 lety+36
With his iconic, custom nine-string guitar, famed Delta bluesman Big Joe Williams performed “She Left Me a Mule to Ride” back in 1966. He was accompanied by none other than the legendary Willie Dixon on the stand up bass.
Thanks I was trying to figure out how many strings there were, at first I thought it was a 12 string but then I saw less than 12 tuning knobs... 9 strings eh, so just the top 3 are doubled up? The way he plays it sounds amazing.
such a gentle guy the way he requests that he do it his way, with no disrespect to the others trying to urge him to do what they want him to do. Big Joe Williams does some fierce and energetic playing, too. Top Notch Man, great to see an original do it the way he wants to do it. Pretty awesume
I've been a heavy metal bass player for 30 years and just came across this today for the first time. So good. Im gonna take up the acoustic guitar and try jam along
I’ve been playing guitar for 25 years and this year picked up bass.let our opposite powers combine🤟🤟guitar is invaluable to sing writing in my opinion.good luck dude😎
I was fortunate enough 😂to own a club in South Mississippi in the late 70's.and had Big Joe play for me two times. It was only a couple of years before he passed. He was awesome. Didn't get many photos. I wish I had more.
Awesome! I met Big Joe down in the basement of the Jazz Record Mart in 1967 (when it was located at 7 W. Grand in Chicago). I got to tote his laundry to the ... yes,the laundromat! ... we both went down to Mexico for a concert gig. I always admired his 9-string guitar / sort of a mandolin tuning.
This is so great it makes my heart ache. Big Joe does what John Lee and Lightnin' and Muddy did after him, which is he plays great guitar and SINGS the blues. That is what it's really about IMHO - that is why Hendrix was so amazing and true to the blues history - because he didn't just play them, he sang them from the depths of his soul.
Lots of good folks have done this but there is no better version of this. So much power and emotion in his voice and playing. Ground zero master blues!!!!
That guitar came from the bottom of the Mississippi. Crazy good music it's not the guitar but what you do with it. It sounds like a mandolin with bailing wire strings great sound.
She Left Me A Mule To Ride Big Joe Williams Well, my baby, she left me, she left me a mule to ride Well, my baby, she left me, she left me a mule to ride Well, the train left the station, mam', the mule laid down and died If I can't come in, just let me set down in front of your door If I can't come in, just let me set down in front of your door I'll leave so early, 'til your good man won't never know Lake Michigan ain't no river, Chicago ain't no hilly town Lake Michigan ain't no river, Chicago ain't no hilly town If I don't feel no better in tomorrow, I'll be Melbury bound What make Grandpa Henry love Grandma Julie so? What make Grandpa Henry love Grandma Julie so? She cook the same jellyroll that she cooked forty years ago (Hey! Hit it, boy!) If I can't come in, set down in front of your door If I can't come in, let me set down in front of your door Leave so early in the mornin' your good man won't never know Compositor: Joe Williams
I think the energy he’s pumping into that guitar has a lot to do with that sound he’s producing, he had a good voice too. Great song, great performance.
My first blues record I bought in high school in the 80s was Blues Bash w Williams, Lightning Hopkins and Brownie & Sonny. Four very distinct blues voices making some beauty together
Wherever it is hopefully 8:00 still exist would be Priceless today I'd like to think it was left to a family member in a will and whoever it was bequeathed to appreciate what they have ❤ ....
If not a direct inspiration... maybe “left me a mule to ride” was a common saying? But yes, “She Caught The Katy” was the first thing that popped to mind when I saw the video title.
CBC - the Canada's national broadcaster - brought Muddy Waters and Otis Spann withthe very young James Cotton, along with legendary writer/producer/bassist Willie Dixon, pianist/singer Sunnyland Slim, Big Joe Williams, Sonny Terry and Brownie McGee, Booker(Bukka)T. White and a host of others to Toronto in January of 1966 in order to record performances for broadcast. It all took place in the old Studio 4, on Yonge just below Shaftesbury - and was shot over 3 days in January of 1966. After recording 27 hours of performances, the original broadcast was then edited into the 60-minute "Special" entitled, rather starkly, "The Blues," consisting of some utterly brilliant performances by almost all of those noted above. (Most of the rest of those who hadn't made the first edit, made it into the second, which was expanded to 90 minutes) The programme was such a hit that it was re-broadcast, in it's expanded form a third time, during the summer season of repeats in 1967. After that however, those reels of 2" videotape were cataloged and archived. And there they remained untouched until, 29 years later, they were given to a producer, Chris Paton, in 1995. Chris remembered my mentioning a life long passion for the blues, jazz and "roots" music of all kinds and asked me a simple question: "Was there anything worth salvaging among those old 2" tapes?" Chris knew the performances were good but were these songs in which their fans would be interested? In order to prevent this story from getting any longer - and because there is no short way to tell it all - let me say only two things: (1) In the first place, I'm always happy when I see another of these performances appear. These should be a real find for the fans, the folks who love the sound. You aren't likely to run into anyone like the man you'll hear as Bukka White( born Booker T. Washington White). (2) I am mystified as to how this made it out of the vault. It appears in the form that resulted from the initial transfer from the 2" Ampex to the 1" digital Chris and I sat in on. Our show was eventually sold for distribution to Rhino Records under the title "The Bluesmasters" ( the re-mixed, re-broadcast selections from 1996 as hosted by guitarist Colin James, each song I re-mastered on a Dyaxis DAW) What we have here is something from the tunes that didn't make the cut - if you can believe it. But I don't know how you got your hands on it - but |I'm glad you did. Cheers for the posting.
The Beast of early rock n roll. Could you imagine that sound with a tube reverb bouncing off the walls?! JD Short, Big Joe's cousin, of St Louis born in 1902 you should check out. Harmonica rack player and guitar player. JD Short: The Sonnet Years. Every song has a short story like a woman crossing him up 😂
Great performance! My late friend Lou Curtiss asked Joe how he could occasionally pass himself for Blind Lemon (Joe's claim) being so totally different. The answer was " Some folks back then were not too bright!". Joe also said he recorded as King Solomon Hill changing his voice. He said that when in London he often stayed with John Beatle and that was confirmed in a famous Lennon interview while mentioning unique Guitar Styles.As a footnote Joe said: "Me and John Beatle get along Just fine, but his Chinee woman Is too damn bossy". Unique in many ways!
Thank the lord that Europe recorded these performances
I believe this was recorded in Canada. Muddy, Otis Spann, Willie Dixon, Terry & McGhee, Sunnyland Slim, and James Cotton were there as well.
Big Joe was always one of my favorites and so ferocious with that amped guitar - I was lucky to record him in 1960 with that same sound - it became the second Arhoolie release - he was an amazing genius - illiterate but just with an amazing memory and remarkable way to find his way across the country - always finding someone to record him - read the notes to the Arhoolie LP/CD!
Thank you for your contributions to the music we love
Hey Chris- not sure if you are going to see this 3 years later, but I used to work for Rounder Distribution in Chicago and NY and tried to get Arhoolie on as many record store shelves as I could. One of my favorite labels and really appreciated all you did.
Thanks to Chris for making so much wonderful music available for us to listen to. I have enjoyed a good number of Arhoolie recordings, but most especially Sonny Boy Williamson's King Biscuit Time. It is a miracale of ingenuity that we can enjoy the playing of artists long after their passing.
I have it and have listened to it dozens of times. I love ‘Brother James’. I can only imagine recording this giant. I’m from STL and have been a blues musician here for years. I think of Big Joe wandering around here. I know he did.
Dude, that is AMAZING!
Joe and Willie Dixon together. More talent than any one person can stand.
I like how Big Joe said "the real Sonny Boy".
Look at the guitar Big Joe is using and people today obsess so much over what kind of guitar and specs they have instead of spending that time playing. Do you think the old bluesmen obsessed over what kind of pick-ups they had or strings? they just played the bloody thing!
STRATMAN firdaus: It's not the wand, it's the magician.
that is was and is a badass guitar. I think it's a silvertone made by Kay
I have often thought it would be fun to take an old ratty guitar and try to make a 9-string guitar like Joe’s but I never been able to see exactly how it’s strung or which strings are paired.
@@derin111 1st 2nd 4rd double, openG capoed to A, I think he used plain strings on the 4rd, may be pitched the same as 1st or octaves ? Easiest to start with a 12 string amd take off surplus strings.
@@shine41144 thanks so much! I'll try it on my 12 string guitar. 🙂
Joe just got better with age like a fine wine! Let's hope young people are listening to this. He's an original who inspired soooooo many.
Yes would be good that young people would listen to old blues , but instead they are to busy listening to junk rap. They forgot were real music came from.
Im a 19 year old blues player and im here! I hope that helps to restores your faith in the youth for a little bit.
@@mathieuschuler366 Yes it does my friend! You are sipping music from the well. He was the original and you can feel it in his music.
I’m 61. I consider myself young.😂 Great stuff!!
young people are fake
I had the privilege and thrill to play a few songs (drums) with this huge legend when he stopped at "The Library" in Hattiesburg, MS on his way down to the Jazz Festival in New Orleans. Thanks to R.T. for a memory to treasure.R.I.P. Mr, Williams.
You have to be great also. I learn a lot from you pros......The real and greatest musician of all times.
Me too. I was 6 days old at the time
That's cool man. I was not ever really aware of Big Joe until he came and played for me. It was a time we all will never forget. It was a privilege to have him and all the musicians that showed up to have their chance at playing with a legend. He was great and unfortunately we lost him a few years later, but his legacy lives on!!
Willie Dixon presiding....a magisterial countenance in so many recording sessions.
is that Willie on the bass?
@@johnmcmenamin1639 Yep.
About the best thing I've heard in about 55 years.
Big joe is the definition of "Only a bad carpenter complains about his tools". Since I watched this video I never once companied about my instruments. That guitar is truly special.
With his iconic, custom nine-string guitar, famed Delta bluesman Big Joe Williams performed “She Left Me a Mule to Ride” back in 1966. He was accompanied by none other than the legendary Willie Dixon on the stand up bass.
That's the real deal. If you didn't listen to Stax 78s you don't know the Delta Blues. Am I right?
EXCELLENT Blues guitar playing and singing, and on a NINE string to boot!!
Thanks I was trying to figure out how many strings there were, at first I thought it was a 12 string but then I saw less than 12 tuning knobs... 9 strings eh, so just the top 3 are doubled up? The way he plays it sounds amazing.
That guitar picking is amazing!!!!
that just rocks like nothing else. he is the business and then some!
such a gentle guy the way he requests that he do it his way, with no disrespect to the others trying to urge him to do what they want him to do. Big Joe Williams does some fierce and energetic playing, too. Top Notch Man, great to see an original do it the way he wants to do it. Pretty awesume
Please give this man Telecaster and a Princeton Reverb. He is tearing it up! Does he realize how cool he is!
I've been a heavy metal bass player for 30 years and just came across this today for the first time. So good. Im gonna take up the acoustic guitar and try jam along
I’ve been playing guitar for 25 years and this year picked up bass.let our opposite powers combine🤟🤟guitar is invaluable to sing writing in my opinion.good luck dude😎
If I was asked to chose, this must be one of the top 10 recordings that I like. Takes some beating. I've appreciated Big Joe for some 50+ years.
Also like Highway 49 with Ransom Knowling on bass.
czcams.com/video/A-qSfOZtkS4/video.html
I was fortunate enough 😂to own a club in South Mississippi in the late 70's.and had Big Joe play for me two times. It was only a couple of years before he passed. He was awesome. Didn't get many photos. I wish I had more.
Big Joe's guitar was unique. Just count the strings. Very unusual but it certainly worked well for him. RIP.
Looks like he has two strings close so he can bar them at once...
He left us a world full of treasures that was the legendary Big Joe Williams🎙️🎶🎶🎶
Two comments, one, this cut kicks. Two, shame on anyone that can't recognize Willie Dixon.
"King of the 9 String Guitar"
The Blues Brothers doing this song may be why I literally own and ride a mule! No, I’m not lying or kidding. 😂
The upright bass and drums just fills everything perfectly
👍😊
This is where one of the direct lines of development which led to Rock and Roll came from. Amazing, brilliant musicianship.
Awesome! I met Big Joe down in the basement of the Jazz Record Mart in 1967 (when it was located at 7 W. Grand in Chicago). I got to tote his laundry to the ... yes,the laundromat! ... we both went down to Mexico for a concert gig. I always admired his 9-string guitar / sort of a mandolin tuning.
That's pretty Damn awesome!!!
Great story!
His unique guitar style and tone are amazing!
This is so great it makes my heart ache. Big Joe does what John Lee and Lightnin' and Muddy did after him, which is he plays great guitar and SINGS the blues. That is what it's really about IMHO - that is why Hendrix was so amazing and true to the blues history - because he didn't just play them, he sang them from the depths of his soul.
Mercy mercy. This is balm to the soul.
Lots of good folks have done this but there is no better version of this. So much power and emotion in his voice and playing. Ground zero master blues!!!!
This IS the man who created so many blues classics. Let's learn and enjoy!
That guitar came from the bottom of the Mississippi. Crazy good music it's not the guitar but what you do with it. It sounds like a mandolin with bailing wire strings great sound.
Man... i was going to ask exactly the same question. Big joe is awesome in this performance.
Incredible genius-Big Joe Williams, you can hear it all in his music!!!
That country back beat in Joe's music is groovin
So beautiful. Real music.
Very outstanding I've learned from these Blues greats
Big Joe Williams and his band are genuine fantastic musicians !
I love how Joe refers to John Lee as the real Sonny Boy!
Saw The Willie Dixon Band Live In Edmonton At The Ambassador Hotel In 1985! Best One Legged Stand Up Bass Player Ever!
You can’t tell me Blues isn’t the father of rock and roll .
Great!Thank You!!Never did I think all those years ago that I would SEE BJW playing his 9-string..WOW!Thanx again.All the best
Legend says that 3 of the 4 strings he played that night, came from the bass mans best pair of Sunday socks.
Brilliant i do love this for ever and ever.
Love the Music 💙🎸Great Blues 💙🎸💙🌟💙🌟💙💙🌟💙🌟💙🌟💙🌟💙
people sleep on this, but this is "what up" for real no lie.
Beatrice Farmer real stuff. A friend of mine, Libby Rae Watson, got to know and played some with him in Mississippi in the 1970s.
That's right.
That's right.
She Left Me A Mule To Ride
Big Joe Williams
Well, my baby, she left me, she left me a mule to ride
Well, my baby, she left me, she left me a mule to ride
Well, the train left the station, mam', the mule laid down and died
If I can't come in, just let me set down in front of your door
If I can't come in, just let me set down in front of your door
I'll leave so early, 'til your good man won't never know
Lake Michigan ain't no river, Chicago ain't no hilly town
Lake Michigan ain't no river, Chicago ain't no hilly town
If I don't feel no better in tomorrow, I'll be Melbury bound
What make Grandpa Henry love Grandma Julie so?
What make Grandpa Henry love Grandma Julie so?
She cook the same jellyroll that she cooked forty years ago
(Hey! Hit it, boy!)
If I can't come in, set down in front of your door
If I can't come in, let me set down in front of your door
Leave so early in the mornin' your good man won't never know
Compositor: Joe Williams
Thank you so much for these fine lyrics ! 🌸
Big Joe was the real deal!
Big Joe! Amazing player, amazing singer, amazing guitar! A teenage Muddy Waters was his surrogate son!
This gentleman is awesome! Now I know where Eddie Van Halen learned to play and customize his guitars, from legends like this.
I think the energy he’s pumping into that guitar has a lot to do with that sound he’s producing, he had a good voice too. Great song, great performance.
This is where it all comes from. These men never got the glory or the money but they started the revolution and then it was gone.
Love, love love this... Another classic !!!
what a line
gonna send my baby a green back twenty dollar bill
if that don't bring her back home
I'm sure my shotgun will ,,,,,, Brilliant
Love it and is the root of it all. Dixon and Big Joe kicking it...take that Taj Mahal! Another woman song wow...love you St Clair...
This is amazing brilliant fantastic played love it with my whole soul.
This is the blessed blues.
I've only known Big Joe as a singer. This is great guitar playing on a nine string guitar!
My first blues record I bought in high school in the 80s was Blues Bash w Williams, Lightning Hopkins and Brownie & Sonny. Four very distinct blues voices making some beauty together
I've got that record!
@@davisworth5114so good
Wonder where that guitar ended up after he passed ,probably one of the most iconic guitars of all time
Wherever it is hopefully 8:00 still exist would be Priceless today I'd like to think it was left to a family member in a will and whoever it was bequeathed to appreciate what they have ❤ ....
This reminds me of my first marriage.
uauuuuu o ano que nasci 1966 que honra ver este vídeo
A 57 anos atrás ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ uhuuuuiiiu 🇧🇷
.....
Thanks for this. Big Joe gave a great live performance here .Bet he never played a song the same way twice.
Wee Willie Diixon on bass - awesome
Oh my goodness, this is so great. Thank you
Amazing! Buddy Guy and Junior Wells do a great rendition of this tune too.
'can i relax n have a lil bit of a smoke or somethin?' :))))
Love the Music 💙Great Blues 💙🎸💙🎸💙🎸💙🎸💙🎸💙🎸💙🎸💙🎸
omg this is so awesome!
This is great music!
just freakin perfect
Sounds like this could have been inspiration for She Caught The Katy and Left Me A Mule To Ride. Great stuff.
I got to dance with Yank Rachel once when he was in his 80's - he wrote She Caught the Katy.
If not a direct inspiration... maybe “left me a mule to ride” was a common saying? But yes, “She Caught The Katy” was the first thing that popped to mind when I saw the video title.
Grande Big Joe !!!!!!!!!
....hear the voice....one hundred cigarettes a day !
CBC - the Canada's national broadcaster - brought Muddy Waters and Otis Spann withthe very young James Cotton, along with legendary writer/producer/bassist Willie Dixon, pianist/singer Sunnyland Slim, Big Joe Williams, Sonny Terry and Brownie McGee, Booker(Bukka)T. White and a host of others to Toronto in January of 1966 in order to record performances for broadcast. It all took place in the old Studio 4, on Yonge just below Shaftesbury - and was shot over 3 days in January of 1966.
After recording 27 hours of performances, the original broadcast was then edited into the 60-minute "Special" entitled, rather starkly, "The Blues," consisting of some utterly brilliant performances by almost all of those noted above. (Most of the rest of those who hadn't made the first edit, made it into the second, which was expanded to 90 minutes) The programme was such a hit that it was re-broadcast, in it's expanded form a third time, during the summer season of repeats in 1967. After that however, those reels of 2" videotape were cataloged and archived. And there they remained untouched until, 29 years later, they were given to a producer, Chris Paton, in 1995. Chris remembered my mentioning a life long passion for the blues, jazz and "roots" music of all kinds and asked me a simple question: "Was there anything worth salvaging among those old 2" tapes?" Chris knew the performances were good but were these songs in which their fans would be interested?
In order to prevent this story from getting any longer - and because there is no short way to tell it all - let me say only two things:
(1) In the first place, I'm always happy when I see another of these performances appear. These should be a real find for the fans, the folks who love the sound. You aren't likely to run into anyone like the man you'll hear as Bukka White( born Booker T. Washington White). (2) I am mystified as to how this made it out of the vault. It appears in the form that resulted from the initial transfer from the 2" Ampex to the 1" digital Chris and I sat in on. Our show was eventually sold for distribution to Rhino Records under the title "The Bluesmasters" ( the re-mixed, re-broadcast selections from 1996 as hosted by guitarist Colin James, each song I re-mastered on a Dyaxis DAW) What we have here is something from the tunes that didn't make the cut - if you can believe it. But I don't know how you got your hands on it - but |I'm glad you did. Cheers for the posting.
Wow. Is there, then, hours and hours still on 2" sitting somewhere?
Thank you for the history love the blues!
Blues legítimo swou de bola nota 10 🇧🇷🎸🎤🥁🤘👏
Boy, Alvin Lee must have been listening to this guy from the gitgo o. A lot of early rocknroll in there for sure.
Bao demais esse Big Joe . ja pirei quando comprei um DVD Amercan Folk e Blues.que ele canta Baby please dont go
Delta Blues best music ever!!!!!!!
this is one of my favorite
BOOYAH!! anybody notice that this is rock'n'roll?
It all started here didn't it?
I've never heard of Big Joe but I can see he's the sort of guy you want to be around with.
Absolutely contagious energy!
Just found this following youtube around, as you do. This is great!
Electrifying and nobody's plugged in. I'm a Willie fan but now a Big Joe as well. Really fine stuff.
Acoustic blues and/or country blues is fantastic.
The Beast of early rock n roll. Could you imagine that sound with a tube reverb bouncing off the walls?! JD Short, Big Joe's cousin, of St Louis born in 1902 you should check out. Harmonica rack player and guitar player. JD Short: The Sonnet Years. Every song has a short story like a woman crossing him up 😂
Love Big Joe !!
These songs remind me of my grandfather 's and uncle's generation
Great performance! My late friend Lou Curtiss asked Joe how he could occasionally pass himself for Blind Lemon (Joe's claim) being so totally different. The answer was " Some folks back then were not too bright!".
Joe also said he recorded as King Solomon Hill changing his voice. He said that when in London he often stayed with John Beatle and that was confirmed in a famous Lennon interview while mentioning unique Guitar Styles.As a footnote Joe said: "Me and John Beatle get along Just fine, but his Chinee woman Is too damn bossy". Unique in many ways!
what a perfomance from an old timer, top notch
Old timer and inventor ; )
I love this. "This is what up"
Willie Dixon played all over the place! Best Blues bass player ever!
And maybe the best songwriter the Blues and Rock ever had
Big Joe used to play a nine string electric guitar!
Espectacular...la mejor musica del mundo el blues
Júnior Twunai. De Minas Gerais Brasil é Atlético Mineiro E Cantor é muito bom
Love it.
Just pure raw talent
so rockin'!
Thank God somebody filmed this
Genial. Das ist Blues. Das ist Gitarrenspiel.