Brewer Phillips was an irreplaceable part of Hound Dog Taylor's sound, which was so old it was new. The stripped down two guitar attack was raw, loud and straight from Mississippi to the South Side Chicago taverns. Playing the bass role in a two guitar-drums band requires a consistently driving guitarist who has mastered the bass strings, and Brewer was that first and foremost. His sound is an intoxicated, amped-up, careening-off-the-road version of the classic driving boogies of Dave Meyers, Jimmy Rogers, and Memphis Minnie, who had a hand in raising him as a boy in Mississippi. His leads are raw, in your face, and similar to Magic Slim's and I think early Pat Hare; no reverb, nothing fancy, just pedal to the metal. Like Magic Slim, he gets his speed and attack from a combination of his thumpick and finger. Although he is best known for his several records with Hound Dog Taylor on Alligator (which each include several tracks of him on lead guitar), he has also made some great records for JSP, Delmark, and my personal favorite, Well Alright on Black Rose in 2008 of unreleased mostly live material.
If you enjoy these free videos on Mondays, connect at www.johnnyburgin.com, like my Facebook fan page "Johnny Burgin Live," follow Instagram at @JohnnyBurgin, and Twitter at @BurginJohnny. I also want to let you know about Chicago Blues Network-it's a great way to learn the blues from pros in the field, and I'm proud to be on the faculty for the past 4 years. You can find many of my lessons here: bit.ly/CBNVideos, as well as some Trading 4s shows I perform in. CBN hosts weekly live Zoom classes with instructors where students play in front of each other and build their confidence and ability. To join, visit ChicagoBluesNetwork.com. Stay safe and thanks!
2 мар 2021
