Mud Morganfield, Portsmouth 23/4/14

[bod]

Bit of a last minute heads up, just noticed this morning that Mud Morganfield is playing the Eastney Cellars tonight - really should have noticed before now!

[pete1951]

I`m guessing the same publicist did the London Bluesfest for Mr Morganfield (no sign of Mud M. on poster)

PT
Missed `The Paul Jones` radio show this week, there may have been a plug on it?

[mitchfit]

guessing the name is intended to be an inference to the late, great...

son, grandson, any relation?

mitchfit

[bod]

Yeah, Pete, I literally had the same thought (same publicist?). I really think it is shameful that he's at Bluesfest and not featuring on posters etc, when he's the clearest (only?) candidate they have for a blues artist... I was even going to email and tell 'em, but they seem to have avoided that by not giving any useful contact details for the event.

Hi Mitchfit, yes, eldest son, apparently - looks the part and while he ain't his dad, he makes a fair fist of singing (IMO)

[garrysmith]

Apr 23, 2014 21:12:01 GMT bod said:

Yeah, Pete, I literally had the same thought (same publicist?). I really think it is shameful that he's at Bluesfest and not featuring on posters etc, when he's the clearest (only?) candidate they have for a blues artist... I was even going to email and tell 'em, but they seem to have avoided that by not giving any useful contact details for the event.

Hi Mitchfit, yes, eldest son, apparently - looks the part and while he ain't his dad, he makes a fair fist of singing (IMO)

Sublime. He really has inherited his Pa's voice!

gsgarrymsmith.wix.com/theslideguy

[Michael Messer]

I played at last year's Bluesfest and for obvious reasons the only names playing actually in the RAH auditorium, were the big music biz names; Ronnie Wood, Mavis Staples, Van Morrison...etc. All the other artists listed and not listed on the bill, which last year included Ray Gelato, Matt Schofield, Jo Harman, Ian Seigal, Marcus Bonfanti, me and quite a few others, played in two smaller venues (the RAH's restaurants) that were turned into small venues for daytime performances (between 12 and 6), which were sold on a different ticket to the main performances. The daytime tickets sold quite well, but it wasn't full. I went to the Friday night 'Ronnie Wood does Jimmy Reed' show and it was full, so I guess what they are doing is pushing the big shows and letting the daytime do its own thing. As for the programming, it fits exactly into what I was talking about in a recent interview with blues.gr about what is now pigeon-holed into the Blues genre. What they mean is Adult Oriented guitar-based music, but instead of Dad-Rock it is becoming known as Blues ....What would Son House have to say about that!

Shine On
Michael

[mitchfit]

bod,

thanks for info, and link. sound card challenged here, but have seen him on TV quite a while back, in a tribute to his father program.

don't think he had the "Mud" nick-name at that time.

yeah, a huge voice just like his daddy's.

mithcfit

[snakehips]

Hi there !

Last year, I played in a blues band that did the support slot for Mud Morganfield - (end of July) at the Edinburgh International Jazz&Blues Festival, at the Festival Theatre.
(I was playing piano and Hammond organ in a 5-piece blues band called the Jensen Intercepters).

Mud Morganfield's band for his UK tour were great.
I took great pleasure in telling the double bass player (who's name escapes me at the moment) that he (the bass player) was a legend.
I saw him play in Mike Sanchez's band a few times, about 15yrs back - what an amazing bass player !
The guitarist was really good.
Wes Weston on harp was great, and got full approval from our own great harp player and lead singer, Gary Martin.
The piano player, a youngish Italian guy, was also great.

Problem is, I am and have been a huge Muddy Waters fan for about 28 yrs now (since I was 15) and was thoroughly expecting to be hugely disappointed when finally getting to see Mud Morganfield play/sing. I'm a huge Little Walter and Otis Spann fan too. This gig was never going to be a good one in my mind.

The guy just didn't stand a chance !!! (to impress me).

I'm getting really difficult these days to let loose and enjoy blues music, as everything always gets compared in my mind, to classic Chess recordings.

So, come Mud Morganfield's set, watching from the side of the stage, after our set, I was, as I had expected I would, becoming un-impressed.
Sure, the band sounded pretty good, was quite impressed really, but couldn't find it in me to admit it.
Decided I'd had enough of being negative after a number of songs. Went to our box of beer (rider) and had a nice cold bottle of beer.
Then, I went round to the back of the theatre, to watch the rest of the gig, from the back row of seats, much further away from the stage.

Stood watching the end of the song that I'd missed the start of, not really feeling any different to my attitude to the gig.

Then .....

Mud Morganfield started the next song.

He moved up to the microphone and shouted into it - "Forty Days !"
(Intro to Muddy Water's classic Chess recording "Forty Days (and Forty Nights)" ).

And, oh my God ! A massive shiver went right down through me.
It sounded so much like Muddy Waters. He sounded so much like his father when he sang/shouted out those words - and, for the rest of the song too, really.

So, that changed my mind quite a bit about him .... and the band.

Some of his vocal phrasing is a bit, well, white, at times - a bit honky. OK, perhaps that's a bit harsh.
A bit square sounding at times perhaps, instead of bending into the notes. And I don't mean just like Muddy Waters, I mean any blues singer.
Just not fully steeped in the music I think - although I'd think he is doing his best to catch up fast I'm sure.
He has the voice much more than Big Bill Morganfield, in my opinion BUT Big Bill can do a pretty good approximation of Muddy Water's guitar style, unlike Mud Morganfield.

Check out Mud Morganfield. Like me, you will likely go expecting to be disappointed that he is not Muddy Waters re-incarnated.
However, on his own merits, you will find times when it is a good enough substitute - and the band are worth hearing anyway !
On balance, I think you will be happy that you went.

I think perhaps he uses the "Eldest son of Muddy Waters" phrase too much in his advertising though.