Author Archives: sixstrstories
Hey There! Remember Me?
From the end of January, through February, up to now, things have been kind of crazy. Teaching, life, snow = crazy. So many Historic Days In Music have gone by in the past five weeks without my having commemorated them, that… well, I feel bad, but … Continue reading
Sam & Janis
“Darling, you – oo-oo-ooo send me. I know you – oo-oo-ooo send me. Darling, you – oo-oo-oo send me. Honest you do, honest you do, honest you do. Whoa – oh – oh-oh-oh-oh.” Can you hear the voice? That “sophisticated, … Continue reading
This Historic Day In Music: Elvis Presley
Elvis. Where did your mind go when you read that word? Mine went to shiny, combed-back, thick black hair. I heard a low, rumbling, twang-tinged voice saying: “Thank you. Thank you very much.” I pictured a young man (with that … Continue reading
This Historic Day In Music: Elizabeth Cotten
She’d forgotten that she could play the guitar. She hadn’t played since she was a teenager, back home in Chapel Hill, North Carolina; since she’d gotten married to Frank and given birth to Lillie, her one and only. And in all … Continue reading
Merry Christmas
This is my favorite recording/performance of Christmas music. Period. Hands down. No doubt. Head and shoulders above all the rest. Better than “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” by the Dexter Gordon Quartet. Better than John Fahey’s “Medley: Hark, The Herald … Continue reading
Dancing In The Kitchen
It was Sunday evening, a bit after seven o’clock. Late for us to be having supper. We’d had a long, mid-afternoon lunch with some old friends who now live on Cape Cod and were passing through town on their way … Continue reading
This Historic Day In Music: Another Double Header
Part 1. On December 3, 1927, Columbia Records held a recording session in Dallas, Texas. They recorded six sides by a 25-year-old gospel singer/slide guitarist/street-corner evangelist named Blind Willie Johnson. Among the six sides was a piece, not really a song, … Continue reading
This Historic Day In Music: Jimi Hendrix
When I was a teenager, I belonged to a record club. Not just any record club, mind you, but the Record Club of America. And though I’m sure that I bought a number of records from them, there’s only one that I … Continue reading
Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving, dear reader. I hope this finds you well and enjoying this day. If I may, here is a bit of music for your holiday. “Thanksgiving Eve” by Bob Franke. The story, as I know it, is that at one time … Continue reading
This Historic Day In Music: November 23, 1936, The Gunter Hotel, Rm.414, San Antonio, Texas
They had travelled from Mississippi to Texas, the young black man with a guitar and the older, white buisness man. Years later, people along their route would still remember this unusual sight. The business man was Ernie Oertle, a talent scout … Continue reading
sixstr stories 