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Announcements 

Pencil Full Of Lead – Paolo Nutini

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Sunny Side UpI got food in my belly, a license for my telly and nothing’s gonna bring me down!

We’ve only just caught on to this track, but you should have seen the shenanigans around the breakfast table down at the Harp Surgery this morning. The Good Doctor was blowing bass on an empty scrumpy jar, Elwood was harping his little head off, Otis the postman was tapping his teaspoon on the side of his cup and the Riverboat Captain was dancing a maniacal hornpipe around the hazardous waste container. We’ve not had so much fun since last Sunday’s matinée showing of Jungle Book.

We hold our hands up and confess we know next to nothing about Paolo Nutini or his band The Vipers, except they’re from north of the border. Clearly Paolo has been a rising star for some time. For obvious reasons however, one player from amongst The Vipers caught our collective eye. He’s Fraser Speirs, the coolest Laird o’ the Moothie. This man has been a beacon for the diatonic for decades. You can see him in action here with Tam White.

Anyway, we just had to share it with you. So turn up your sound system, grab your G major diatonic (2nd position) and get with the groove! Happy Harping.

And by the way… in case you were wondering, it’s here. And yes he does the Bear Necessities too! For more information on this track and the harmonica content, see our follow up post Pencil Full Of Lead – Which Harmonica?

Announcements 

The Good Doctor’s Patent Blues Remedy

The Good Doctor 0 Comments , , , , , ,

See me, feel me, touch me, heal me.

with Gordon RussellThe Harp Surgery has been live for many months now, crammed with advice about how to do it, who else did it, when they did it, why they did it, where to hear it and what’s good about it. A lot of words for a music site. Well, we think it’s about time the Good Doctor opened his harp case and shared the medicine round. At some point you have to cut the chat and let the music do the talking. People, the Patent Blues Remedy is now live. Close all the doors, slide the phone off the hook, click here and get your fix.

You will hear edited highlights of tracks from both albums by The Blackjacks – What’s The Deal? and High Roller, samples from the Doc’s contribution to The Blue Hearts, The Elevators, Boy Cried Wolf and a secret snippet from a recent commercial music library blues CD.

We look forward to adding further tracks in the months to come and also embellishing the Surgery’s instructional pages with sound bites. Oh, and keep it strictly between yourselves, but there is rumour of the Doc making his inaugural podcast on YouTube. All coming to a PC near you. Stay tuned.

Happy harping!

Harp Tab 

Horn Concerto No.4 in Eb Major (Rondo Allegro Vivace) – W A Mozart [..with tab]

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I once had a whim and I had to obey it

Welcome to part two of our Baroque Blues Harp trilogy. The headline might look rather daunting, but don’t be put off. This is a piece we have all heard at one time or another and, once you’ve heard it again, I am sure it will bring a reassured smile to your face. Written in 1786, it is the final movement from the last of Mozart’s four horn concertos. The concertos were composed for his close friend Joseph Leutgeb a master horn player of the period. This finale is written in 6/8 time as a chasse or hunting tune. Consequently there is frequent use of triads in the melody to give a hunting horn flavour and triplet phrasing for a galop effect.

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Harp Tips 

Oopsie!

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I declare it’s a pity, and God knows it’s a crying shame

Credit to a recent contribution on Harp-L for bringing this small, but important detail to our attention. It’s a recording of the wonderful Sonny Boy Williamson II, starting Nine Below Zero with his harp the wrong way round and on camera. As you might expect from such a pro, he casually shrugs the moment off without ceremony and gets straight on with the job. And hats off to the man. That same thing could represent an insurmountable embarrassment to lesser mortals.


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Reviews - Harps 

Hohner MS Replacement Reed Plates

The Good Doctor 24 Comments , , , , , , , , , , ,

Playing harmonica with thick specs

Heap O' HarpsOtis, the Harp Surgery postman, stopped in this morning for a nice cup of tea and a sit down. He delivered a lovely letter from Mr Clive Langhorn who was the Harp Surgery’s very first student many years ago. Clive is now a great blues harp specialist who performs around the South of England. He writes..

I have recently fitted the thicker reed plates (normal .9mm / thicker 1.09mm) to a MS Blues Harp, and it sounds good. Can you tell me why anyone wouldn’t use them, and if different keys may be affected differently using the thicker plates. Best regards,
Clive

It’s wonderful to hear from you Clive. I trust you are still entertaining the masses with your masterful command of the blues. Your question is most welcome and I hope you won’t mind me publishing my analysis, both for your benefit and for the benefit of our reader. (more…)

Harp Tab How Do They Do That? 

Nobody’s Fault But Mine – Led Zeppelin […with tab]

The Good Doctor 20 Comments , , , , , , , , , ,

If I leave my love behind, nobody’s fault but mine

Led Zeppelin - PresenceAnd so to the wonderful world of heavy metal harmonica. Use of the humble harp in big time rock’n’roll should not really be a surprise. It’s no secret the likes of Led Zeppelin, Cream, Aerosmith, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath and their peers drew inspiration directly from the great blues masters. So a splash of harp is quite fitting.

On this note Otis, the Harp Surgery’s postman, delivered this lovely letter this morning. It brought a big smile to the Good Doctor’s dear old pre-breakfast visage (him being a life long dirty Leeds fan).

I was wondering if you can answer my question?? What key harp is Robert Plant playing on the Led Zeppelin track ‘Nobody’s Fault but Mine’???? I’ve been learning the harmonica for a few months now and I find your website very inspiring!

Thanks, Johnny. From Leeds.

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