Kokomo Arnold

[Michael Messer]

I don't think the fast ones are easy! I don't think any of them are easy. I have spent the past week on one tune and I am now getting my head around it. But playing it at the correct speed is a mighty thing to achieve.

I have known Sam's Paddlin' Madeline for over thirty years and it is a lovely piece of guitar playing, but it is only based on Kokomo's recording as it is a lot slower with some changes to the melody and a couple of sections missing.

Kokomo's Arnold's speed, accuracy and musicality are flawless.

Shine On
Michael.

[blueshome]

Easier, not easy!

[Michael Messer]

Blueshome, you are right, you did say 'easier', my apologies.

Shine On
Michael.

[paddelingitfiddle]

Nice to find a peoples talk about Kokomo Arnold. Peoples been asking what kind of guitar Kokomo used, if he played lapstyle or spanish. Well Kokomo used brass body and steel body reso guitars. Laugh and Grin is a good excample of his Style O playing. Neck Bones Blues is a good excamples of his steel body reso recording. He also used a plain acoustic steelstring guitar on alot of his recordings like Busy Bootin and Dirty Dozens. I dont think he played lap style on songs where he did a lot of chord work. But when playing with Peetie Wheatstraw and some others songs in open G tuning it sounds like he plays lap style since his vibrato is a litte different. On Salty Dog he plays his style O upright in G tuning. I been studying Kokomo Arnold for nearly 24 years. He is always there. Thanks

[Michael Messer]

Hi paddelingitfiddle,

Welcome to our forum. Always happy to talk about Kokomo Arnold's music!

This thread has not been touched for a year, and since then I have done quite a lot of decoding of Kokomo's playing. We will never know for sure, but my feelings on the subject at present are that I don't think he played lap style on any of his recordings. At first I was convinced that he was playing lap steel on some recordings, but now I don't think that is the case. For example, the Honeydripper, is one that I thought was played lap style, but I am now convinced it is not.

I have also been working on his approach to touch and tone with the slide, and his picking techniques, and I now understand a lot more about his music than I did a year ago. Like you, I have been listening to and studying Kokomo's music for many decades, but it is only in the last couple of years that I have really focused in and moved forward.

I am aware of the National style 0 from the photograph, but you seem to know that he played a brass bodied guitar on some songs and a steel one on others. Where did this information come from?

I am not convinced that we can tell which National is being played from listening to the recordings, and from making records for thirty years I have a good ear for spotting these things. Even listening to some of the recordings that appear to be played on a regular acoustic, I am not convinced. It is very hard to tell on old recordings.

I look forward to more conversations about Kokomo Arnold and his incredible guitar playing.

Shine On
Michael

[frank64f]

Hi Michael,
While on the subject of Kokomo Arnold, I would be interested in your view of a guy with a similarly manic approach, Sam Butler aka Bo Weavil Jackson. His first recording being in 1926, he must have been one of the first slide players to be recorded, yet I don't think I have ever heard his music being discussed.
Frank

[profscratchy]

Great discussion and about time someone gave Kokomo's style some serious attention. The fact is, I haven't a clue about what he was doing, just that it sounds good. I've only managed to approximate his sound, playing upright and fretting as well as sliding (in both G and D tunings). I'll look forward to others posting their efforts on youtube eventually.

[Deleted]

Why haven't I listened to this before? amazing!
Thanks for (re)posting this - I have a lot of catching up to do.
TT
(just realised - it's 'cos of the smartphone I got for xmas).

[slide496]

I've heard the term before I'm not sure what is meant by the term accuracy - is that hitting the note with the slide on key or hitting the note on key with the correct timing?

[Michael Messer]

Hi Harriet,

My use of the word 'accuracy' could also be 'precision'. What I meant was that although many writers have cast him off as being very fast, but not all that precise (accurate) about hitting the notes right on the money and in tune, are in my opinion totally wrong. KA's slide playing is amazingly precise and accurate, he never misses a note. Everything is perfectly in tune and every note is clearly and precisely played. At the speed some of his runs are played at, he is more like an early virtuoso Hawaiian steel player, than a juke joint blues musician. He is an AMAZING slide guitarist.

Shine On
Michael.

[Michael Messer]

Hi Frank,

Thank you for bringing Sam Butler / Bo Weavil Jackson into the frame. He was a wonderful musician, and as a slide guitarist and singer, very influential, as 1926 predates almost everybody. I think so much so, that sometime in the next day or two I will start a new thread about him.

Shine On
Michael.

[slide496]

Thank you for the clarification, I hadn't listened to Kokomo before. Boy is he fast.

[televiking]

About 10 years ago when I heard his Salty dog for the first time I decided I am going to play that song just like him before I die.
Such a humorous and very musical and precise player.

Needless to say I have not gotten very close to that goal but at least I have something to keep my hands busy for the rest of my years ;D

[blueshome]

Just for interest I attach one of my attempts at a Kokomo number.

Attachments:

[profscratchy]

Nice one, Blueshome. Who's responsible for the great barrelhouse piano?