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Lightnin' Hopkins blues


JohnnyReb

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Well as mainly a bluegrasser and traditional country player I've never ventured much into the old time blues. Yesterday evening I cracked open a cold Pabts Blue Ribbon beer on the porch and listened to some lightin Hopkins tunes. It was like a hand come out and pulled me into the music. I even went and got another beer to listen to some more and my limit is always one. The raw sound and pure heart that was there was faciinating.

 

Now I don't have much experience with playing with my fingers. Always use a flatpick. So I put some banjo picks on and start pinching around that E chord on the Advanced Jumbo and there it was. That sound! Moved around the A some and on the B7. Yep that's it. I think my AJ was born to play lightnin Hopkins music. It's strong in a lot of areas but it plays the blues like there's no tomorrow.

 

Anyway I think I got bit by the bug. It's gonna drive me nuts until I get a little better at this finger pickin stuff. I manage to thump the bass and pinch the high strings with my banjo picks and get by for now. It doesn't seem like lightnin used a very complex was of doing it either. But does he play in open E or standard???

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Youre getting me excited about my impending AJ arrival in a few weeks Johnny ! Im quite like yourself in only getting into fingerpicking, but I inparticular fell for the blues, in particular country blues like Blind Blake style.

 

I think the AJ will be a blues pickin' monster.

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"... listened to some lightin Hopkins tunes. It was like a hand come out and pulled me into the music." [Lightnin' is my idea of easy listening, in a good kind of way.

 

" I put some banjo picks on and start pinching around that E chord on the Advanced Jumbo and there it was." [LH used a thumb pick and one finger fwiw.

 

"It doesn't seem like lightnin used a very complex was of doing it either." Sounds simple enough, but the man knew the fretboard and played melodically.

 

But does he play in open E or standard???" [ Pretty much std tuning all-around for Lightnin. A lot in E, but also A, drop D. G (Blind Lemon licks). Montonic bass, mostly, so just keep thumping the low root. To really get the style, base some of your licks on partial chords up the neck.

 

"Anyway I think I got bit by the bug" [dont get well anytime soon. Strongly recommend his 50s work (Aladdin sessions) to keep the fever running.

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I believe Lightnin' played a mid-1950's J-50 for a lot of years. A Gibson slope-J makes a pretty powerful blues machine.

 

 

Yea I kinda figured that. I could tell by the thuddy bass lines. The AJ definitely has a lot more rumble than his guitar in the bass, which is fine by me [thumbup]

 

Mr Rambler.....thanks a lot very helpfull. I'll stick to standard tuning and go from there

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Good stuff JR...glad you are on this path...it is a rewarding one....and as Rambler said..LH just used thumb and one finger...so that ain't a bad thing for all us wannabe pickers!

 

And to further encourage us all, the great jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery used only his thumb.

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And to further encourage us all, the great jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery used only his thumb.

 

wow...that is interesting...usually when you see someone just using their thumb it is on some old cowboy song...i have a jazz chord book somewhere..I know it has some WM songs in it...i'll have a look at them

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I think one factor often ignored is how many early bluesmen worked to somehow emulate the piano on guitar. Not the slide players, but I'd just been thinking about Fats Waller and then, listening again to Hopkins, hearing something similar in concept.

 

m

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