Author Archives: sixstrstories
On This Day In Music History: “Maybellene”
On May 21, 1955, Chuck Berry was in Chicago, Illinois. Having been introduced to Leonard Chess, owner of Chess Records, by Muddy Waters, the St. Louis, MO based, singer, guitarist and songwriter was recording his first single. 1954 had seen popular releases … Continue reading
How do you calculate the influence of a song in your life?
Is there a song, a single song, that you can point to and say: “That song changed my life.”? My answer would be: yes. The song? “Spirit In The Night” by Bruce Springsteen. Like several songs, I can remember the … Continue reading
The Big Bang of Country Music
The title of this post is taken from the title of a book put together by Charles K. Wolfe and Ted Olson called The Bristol Sessions: Writings About the Big Bang of Country Music, published in 2005. The information to … Continue reading
Yesterday in Music History: Maybelle Carter
“She’d hook that right thumb under that big bass string and just like magic the other fingers moved fast like a threshing machine, always on the right strings, and out came the lead notes and the accompaniment at the same … Continue reading
On This Day In Music History: Robert Johnson
The first time I heard the words and music of Robert Johnson, I was listening to a Led Zeppelin album. It was October 1969. I was in high school and the previous August, I’d seen Led Zeppelin in concert in … Continue reading
On This Day In Music History: Pete Seeger
In the room where I teach, on the wall behind where I sit, hung so that my students can see it just over my left shoulder, is a framed quote: “Practice may not make perfect but it sure as hell … Continue reading
Many Thanks
This blog came into the world on April 18, 2010. Since then, it has enjoyed hundreds of views, several thoughtful comments and much encouraging feedback. I send many thanks and my deepest gratitude to all of you who have viewed, … Continue reading
How would you describe the sound of a guitar?
The sound of a musical instrument is generally referred to as its “tone.” Among many definitions, the Merriam-Webster Dictionary says that tone is: “sound quality” and “accent or inflection expressive of an emotion.” In the recent issue of Acoustic Guitar … Continue reading
On This Day In Music History: Albert King
During the late 60’s and early 70’s (my high school and college years), my hands-down favorite radio station was WBCN-FM out of Boston. They played everything and anything, especially the artists and recordings that you were never going to hear … Continue reading
On This Day In Music History: “T-Bone Shuffle”
You’ll be seeing quite a few of these “On this day…” entries in my blog. They are my way of celebrating music and musicians that, in my humble (or not-so-humble: I do have a blog.) opinion, deserve celebration. Blues singer … Continue reading
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