Eddy Clearwater’s blues; Free music at Cyberian Cafe
(WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass., Sept. 21, 2000) –
Eddie Clearwater has no reservations about the blues
Fifty years ago, the 15-year-old Eddie Harrington, son of sharecroppers,
left his hometown of Macon, Miss., for the bright lights and big-time of
Chicago. Harrington had been playing guitar for a few years, mostly backing
up various gospel groups, including such well known groups as the Five Blind
Boys of Alabama.
But when he arrived in Chicago in 1950, Harrington was drawn to the sound
of the electric blues being played in West Side clubs by performers like
Magic Sam, Otis Rush and Luther Allison. In a short time, the gospel-playing
Harrington became Guitar Eddy, working the local blues clubs and taverns on
the South and West sides of Chicago.
A few years later, a fresh wind named Chuck Berry blew through the blues
joints, and the excitement of Berry’s seminal rock ‘n’ roll wasn’t lost on
Guitar Eddy. One more name change and stylistic transformation later, Eddy
became Eddy “The Chief” Clearwater, a play on the popular bluesman Muddy
Waters and an allusion to Clearwater’s native American ancestry.
Clearwater’s latest album, released just last week, is “Reservation Blues”
(Bullseye), and to celebrate the singer/guitarist will be performing at Club
Helsinki in Great Barrington on Friday night (528-3394).
The album, co-produced by famed swing-blues guitarist Duke Robillard, is a
diverse blend of Clearwater’s wide-ranging styles, ranging from the Chuck
Berry-style “I Wouldn’t Lay My Guitar Down” to the blues-rock of “Suzie Q”
to the dark, impassioned, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins-style blues of “Running
Along” and the title track.
“I had some ideas that I wanted to express that I hadn’t expressed before,”
said Clearwater about his new album in a recent phone interview. “Different
variations in different styles of music, like the way we did ‘Walls of Hate’
with the country/rockabilly sound was something I wanted to try. And on
‘Running Along,’ the slow minor blues gave me more of a chance to stretch
myself and express myself.”
Clearwater says as much as he has stuck with the blues throughout the
years, the blues have stuck with him.
“It sticks to your soul,” said Clearwater of the blues. “It’s more than just
the music -- it’s the spirit, and it really sticks to you and carries you
where you want to go. It’s like having your soul fed, and no matter how old
you get it’s always new.”
Clearwater is known for his clear, single-line approach to guitar, his
blues-and-rock ‘n’ roll-bridging approach, and his showmanship. The
left-handed guitarist often performs in full Indian headdress and, at least
when he was younger, was known to do his share of Chuck Berry-derived duck
walking and other entertaining stage moves.
“I don’t think of it as different because I’m so used to doing it,” said
Clearwater about playing guitar left-handed. “If I think about it once in a
while that I’m doing it backwards, then it kind of seems a little funny, but
other than that it doesn’t phase me. Lefthanded is just a part of who I am.”
“Reservation Blues” is Clearwater’s second album with Robillard. “He brings
such a solid foundation,” said Clearwater of the collaboration. “His band is
so well organized. He gives you a platform to build upon, lays it out for
you, such great musical concepts in so many different styles.”
At Helsinki, Clearwater’s band will include a second guitarist, bassist and
drummer.
Free music series at Cyberian Café
A new, free performance series sponsored by the indie music label
Slugrecords kicks off tonight at the Cyberian Café at 132 Fenn St.,
Pittsfield, with an acoustic show by the Adams-based, old-school punk band
The Damaged. The series continues on Monday night, Sept. 25, with Irish
alterna-pop band The Keds, whose blend of punk and ska has brought them some
renown on the Dublin club scene, where they made it to the finals of the
Bacardi/Hot Press Best Unplugged Band competition.
Timversion, a punk/ska group from Tampa, will be at the Cyberian Café on
Friday, Sept. 29, followed by Dalton country-blues guitarist Charlie Mead on
Friday, Oct. 13. Springfield’s Cappucino Jellybeans brings its unique blend
of funk and ska to the cybercafe on Friday, Oct. 20.
All shows are free and scheduled from 7 to 9 p.m. Also, all shows will be
broadcast live over the Internet. On a related note, Slugrecords presents an
all-ages showcase this Sunday at the PNA, 13 Victory St., in Adams, from 2
to 9 p.m. The all-day event will include performances by the Keds, the
Damaged, Arkham, 357 Justice, Closer than Kin, Five Minute Major, True
Blood, Object of Hatred and others.
For more information on all these shows, send Email to
slugrecords@hotmail.com.
A lollapalooza of a festival
The annual Lollapalooza festivals of the early-to-mid ‘90s may be but a
distant, vague memory, but this weekend’s Riverfest in Northampton could
well be the closest thing to Lollapalooza that has come this way since,
well, since Lollapalooza came to Pownal, Vt., a few years back.
On Sunday, the Three County Fairgrounds in Northampton will play host to an
eclectic cornucopia of top alternative and rootsy performers, including
slide guitarist Ben Harper, reggae pioneers Toots and the Maytals, New
Orleans funksters Galactic, post-punkers Sleater-Kinney, new folkie Martin
Sexton, alt-popper Juliana Hatfield, hip-hopper Rahzel, Groove Collective,
and those godfathers of grunge, Sonic Youth.
The festival will also feature a second stage for developing artists, as
well as food vendors, arts and crafts, and information tables manned by
progressive political groups. Tickets are $30 in advance, $35 at the gate.
For more info call 1-800-477-6849.
[This column originally appeared in the Berkshire Eagle on Sept. 21, 2000.
Copyright Seth Rogovoy 2000. All rights reserved.]
Seth Rogovoy rogovoy@berkshire.net music news, interviews, reviews, et al.
Next Article || Previous Article || Back
      |
