Nostalgia just ai'nt what it usta be...

Nostalgia just ain't what it usta be....so often I hear Blues fans and rock fans who miss the music of the '60s and complain that nobody makes music that good anymore.

 What is true is that the music business has changed so much that sometimes it's harder to find  the good music. The late 60s and early 70s were a golden age of music for several reasons, but the bottom line is that it was a unique time in musical history that quality music was also commercially successful, and great innovative artists were also popular and wealthy. Such quality music is not high on the popularity charts anymore, but internet technology allows anyone, anywhere,  to access even the most unknown artists. Today you have to search for good music, but - "seek and ye shall find". One random example: I saw the Tedeschi -Trucks band play a few months ago and I guarantee you no artist of any other era was superior.

 In the same way , many Blues fans complain that black culture has forsaken the Blues and that there are no young African-American Blues artists. As has been the case over the past few decades, commercial interests sometimes cause record companies and festival promoters to promote white artists more than African -American artists and some great artists get overlooked and don’t get the media exposure they deserve.  I suggest you check out Grammy nominees Jontavious Willis and "Kingfish" Ingram (not to mention Grammy winner Gary Clark Jr.) and you will see a great young generation of Blues artists coming up from the roots. But great music needs an audience in order to thrive, so I urge you to continue to seek out unknown music and go see live shows!

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If you want to be updated about upcoming shows and new music, just send an email to dov@dovhammer.com and I will add you to the mailing list - you will receive 2-3 emails a month with updates (no spam !)

Want to hear my music?

Website:  http://dovhammer.com/

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/HammerBlues/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/hammerblues

Where can you see me play?

Check out my schedule and come see me live! - http://dovhammer.com/schedule

The harmonica don't get no respect....

The harmonica is a tricky little instrument. It is often regarded as nothing more than a child's toy, something you blow in and out of and make noise. Many musicians also regard it as an inferior instrument, limited in its range and possibilities. Obviously, ever since Little Walter released "Juke" in the early '50s this has been proven false. The only limitations the harmonica has are how much effort the player is willing to invest to master it. Listen to Howard Levy, Carlos Del Junco or Jason Ricci and you'll be amazed at what can be done with this tiny , 10-hole "toy".

The simplicity of the harmonica is both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, with almost no learning or experience one can make some fun , satisfying sounds with it. On the other hand, this causes many people to stop right there and be content with this basic level - and the result is a world populated with mediocre  harp players, causing serious musicians to be suspicious of harp players...

When the great Blues artist Lucky Peterson was on his first visit to Israel, my band was going to back him up on his shows in Israel, and I was thrilled to finally meet one of my favorite artists. When he arrived at our first rehearsal , I introduced myself. Lucky asked what I play in the band and I said "Harmonica". Lucky gave me a skeptical sideways look and said "I don't usually play with harmonica players". I said nothing, since I knew exactly what he was thinking: "bad enough I have to play with a local band I'm not familiar with, now I need to deal with a harmonica too???". We started the rehearsal and after a few songs Lucky smiled and said "there are a lot of bad harp players out there, but I see you know what you're doing, so we're cool..."

Join the mailing list

If you want to be updated about upcoming shows and new music, just send an email to dov@dovhammer.com and I will add you to the mailing list - you will receive 2-3 emails a month with updates (no spam !)

Want to hear my music?

Website:  http://dovhammer.com/

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/HammerBlues/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/hammerblues

Where can you see me play?

Check out my schedule and come see me live! - http://dovhammer.com/schedule

Goin' to Jerusalem

Chicago Blues diva Deitra Farr recently posted on Facebook a photo of herself at the wailing wall in Jerusalem, reminiscing of her visit there 20 years ago. That brought back some good memories for me too, since I was the one who took her there ….

I have done short sightseeing trips like that with a few visiting Blues artists, and it’s fun and rewarding for both  me and for them. Many African-American Blues artists grew up in the baptist church, and a visit to the holy Christian sites in Jerusalem has deep meaning for them. Also, many touring artists don’t get the opportunity to see much of the country,  usually limited to hotel rooms and concert venues, so they appreciate someone taking the time and showing them a bit of the country. 

The first such trip I did was with the late great King Earnest (Earnest Baker), who I had already become close friends with. King was a devout Christian, who had even spent 15 years in “retirement” from the Blues singing in his church choir. That day, I drove him up to Jerusalem along with my wife and infant daughter, he was excited and full of anticipation. He kept saying “I can’t wait to see that cross”, which confused me at first. Eventually I understood that someone back home had told him that the actual cross that Jesus had died on was still on display in Jerusalem. I had the awkward duty of disappointing my friend, telling him that no such cross existed, and if anyone tried to sell him a piece of the cross it was just a scam...he got a good laugh at that, and we had a fine day in Jerusalem - even running into a group from his church right on the Via Dolorosa - which was very moving and meaningful to King.

Being a young aspiring Blues artist in Israel, so far away from Chicago and other authentic Blues scenes in America, these trips  had a lot of meaning for me too - they were my opportunity to spend time and bond with musicians who I admire and respect, to pay back some of the debt I feel to these artists for the amazing music and Blues tradition that I love so much - and to try to mine a bit of “Blues wisdom” along the way…

Join the mailing list

If you want to be updated about upcoming shows and new music, just send an email to dov@dovhammer.com and I will add you to the mailing list - you will receive 2-3 emails a month with updates (no spam !)

Want to hear my music?

Website:  http://dovhammer.com/

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/HammerBlues/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/hammerblues

Where can you see me play?

Check out my schedule and come see me live! - http://dovhammer.com/schedule