‘Work your hands from day to day, The winds will blow the profit.’ Louis MacNiece Introduction It all boils down to what you do with your hands. When playing acoustically, there are two principal hand positions – open and closed. Harp players also call the closed position ‘cupped’. The term ‘cupped’ probably derives from the [...]
Read more..The blues keep following me around Ever since buying a copy of the 1990 W.C.Handy award winning album Harp Attack, Billy Branch has had me intrigued. He’s pictured on the cover as the new kid on the block, alongside three legends – Junior Wells, James Cotton and Carey Bell. Billy provides fresh reinforcement for the [...]
Read more..…he, whose heart was that of a little child, had answered to his name, and stood in the presence of The Master. William Makepeace Thackeray Prologue For anybody looking to master the art of Chicago and blues harmonica, look no further than Jerry Portnoy’s front porch. Study his Grammy Award winning work with the Muddy [...]
Read more..
