One of the most important parts of listening, understanding, enjoying and playing the blues is respecting the past. The blues is a living and breathing evolution in the human condition as reflected through the instruments and voices of blues music through the years.

To really understand and be able to play blues guitar, you’ve got to have a deep emotianal tie to both your instrument and the music…it just HAS to be that way to be real.

There’s no better way to really GET this than to look at some of the real blues guitar greats…

This first video “Death Letter Blues” should hit you right in the GUT, it sure did me as I watched it over and over again…I literally could not take my eyes of Son House as he tells the story about learning of a love lost but only then to recount the feeling he has that love was lost long before his girl ever died (because she never really loved him like he loved her).

Watch this and tell me you aren’t moved!

Just as we learn from the past, one of the reasons I love blues music is that the masters continually pass the torch onto willing disciples – that’s what’s happening in this video “My Black Mama”where a young Buddy Guy sits in with Son House…amazing stuff!

Talkl to me people – leave me a comment.