Tuesday Bluesday

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John Lee Hooker would have you believe he's the baddest man alive. But he's not, because he died in 2001 at the age of 83; however, he could still probably slither his way out of that tomb like a crawlin' kingsnake and punch you in the ears with the powerful, primitive lamentations and warnings he slurred for almost the entirety of the 20th century.

Hook weren't no slouch on the guit neither - he had a strange, driving, droning style that was different from what Delta players of his generation were doing. What really makes him special, though, is the feel. You know, that indescribable moment when you first hear something and realize it fits perfectly in your soul like the puzzle piece you didn't know you were missing? Yeah, the feel. He does that.

A classic example of that is his seminal 1948 track "Boogie Chillen'." He recorded it stone alone in a Detroit studio, handling the vocals, guitar, and foot-stompin' - which, weirdly, was miked and run to a speaker in a toilet bowl which was in turn miked and played out of a speaker near Hooker. Seriously. Check it out:

Anyhow, if you liked that little number, check this one out - some awesomely thoughtful individual cobbled together a collection of rare performances on YouTube that should help you slack off for another mind-numbing hour at work.

Tuesday Bluesday appears in the Erie Reader every Tuesday and is about the Blues, which is lucky, because if it didn't and/or it wasn't, the title would be all wrong. But it does and it is, so check in each week for words, moving pictures, and sounds intended to remind you of the rich legacy of this unique, ubiquitous, American, African, ancient, contemporary musical art form that has somehow managed to influence, well, every musician for the past 100 years. Slip your thoughts into the suggestion box by emailing cVaillancourt@ErieReader.com, or find Cory Vaillancourt on Twitter @VLNCRT.