Jim Kweskin and the Jug Band
All'inizio del secolo, durante l'epoca del ragtime, si formano tra la gente di colore nel Sud degli Stati Uniti dei gruppi musicali che vengono denominati jug bands. Oltre a strumenti tradizionali, come chitarra, banjo, kazoo, armonica, fiddle e washboard, queste bands utilizzano, , più che altro come elemento di richiamo, una grossa brocca dal collo stretto (jug) che viene "suonata" soffiandovi dentro o attraverso l'imboccatura. il periodo d'oro di questa musica si situa negli anni '20, fino alla Depressione, e numerose sono le testimonianze discografiche di complessi quali i Dixieland Jug Blowers, la Memphis Jug Band e la Old Southern Jug Band. Nel corso dei '50 questa forma musicale omincia ad essere rispolverata e nei primi '60, nell'ambito del fiorente del folk revival, assurge a nuova popolarità, Jim Kweskin (n.1940, USA) forma la sua Jug Band verso il 1963 raccogliendo intorno a sé musicisti che bazzicano il Club 47 di Cambridge: Geoff Muldaur, Bill Keith,Maria D'Amato (poi Muldaur) e Fritz Richmond. Questi gli elementi stabili ma la band, nei suoi pochi anni di vita, subisce numerose vaziazioni; particolarmente interessante la partecipazione del violinista Richard Greene, che poi passerà ai Blues Project e ai Sea Train. In breve tempo la Jim Kweskin and the Jug Band diventa la più importante di queste tipiche formazioni grazie al successo dei suoi spettacoli e alla varietà del repertorio che, per lo più, riporta alla luce e modernizza vecchie canzoni folk, blues e jazz. Verso il 1967 la fine della band, oltre che da un normale evolversi dei gusti del pubblico, viene affrettata anche dall'intervento dell'armonicista Mel Lyman, strana figura di profeta e predicatore, ispiratore di una setta di Boston denominata "The Family". Kweskin diventa collaboratore di Lyman e nei '70 fà ancora parlare di sé con alcuni album, tra cui l'interessante JIM KWESKIN'S AMERICA (Reprise 1971 USA). Fra gli altri, Geoff e Maria Muldaur proseguono ad incidere, da soli e in coppia, con alterno successo.
1963 Newport Folk Festival
Die Jim Kweskin Jug Band beim Newport Folk Festival 1963 (aus Wikipedia)
In the late 1960s, Kweskin joined the Fort Hill Community, which was founded by former Kweskin Jug Band harmonicist Mel Lyman in Boston. In the 1970s, Kweskin recorded some vocals for some Sesame Street inserts, most notably, "Ladybugs' Picnic". In the 1980s, he stopped recording and performing regularly in order to devote himself to building houses. The Fort Hill Community evolved into the Los Angeles–based Fort Hill Construction, of which Kweskin was a founding partner and where he works as vice president.
Further reading
- Eric Von Schmidt and Jim Rooney, Baby, Let Me Follow You Down: The Illustrated Story of the Cambridge Folk Years, 1979, ISBN 978-0870239250 (out of print)
Jim Kweskin Jug Band members
- Jim Kweskin – guitar, vocals, comb
- Mel Lyman – harmonica, banjo
- Bill Keith – banjo, pedal steel guitar
- Fritz Richmond – jug, washtub bass
- Richard Greene – fiddle
- Maria Muldaur – vocals, percussion, fiddle
- Geoff Muldaur – guitar, vocals, mandolin, washboard, kazoo
- Bruno Wolfe – vocals
- Bob Siggins – vocals, banjo
Discography
Jim Kweskin and the Jug Band: Albums
- Unblushing Brassiness (1963)
- Jug Band Music (1965)
- Relax Your Mind (1966)
- Jim Kweskin and the Jug Band (1966)
- See Reverse Side for Title (1966)
- Garden of Joy (1967), later reissued as a double album with America, below
- The Best of Jim Kweskin and the Jug Band (1968)
- Whatever Happened to Those Good Old Days (1968)
- Greatest Hits (1988)
- Acoustic Swing & Jug (2006)
- Vanguard Visionaries (2007)
Jim Kweskin and the Jug Band: Singles
- "Minglewood" / "Sheik of Araby" (1967)
- "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight" / "Circus Song"
Jim Kweskin: Albums (incomplete list)
- Relax Your Mind (1966)
- Jump for Joy (1967)
- Jim Kweskin's America (1971), later reissued as a double album with Garden of Joy, above
- Lives Again (1977)
- Side by Side (1979)
- Swing on a Star with Jim Kweskin and the Kids (1979)
- Now & Again (2003), with Samoa Wilson
- Live The Life (2004)
- Enjoy Yourself (2009)
- Jug Band Extravaganza (2010), by Jim Kweskin, Geoff Muldaur, John Sebastian, David Grisman, Maria Muldaur, the Barbeque Orchestra
- Jim Kweskin in the 21st Century (2015)
- Come On In (2016), by Jim Kweskin and Meredith Axelrod
JimKweskinJugBandwithMariaMuldaur-"JugBandMusic...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXkzAsJBGak
Nov 15, 2014 - Uploaded by rhythmandrootsfest
"Jug Band Music" Portion of an amazing set of Jim Kweskin's Jug Band 50th Reunion that took place at ...Jug Band Music - Jim Kweskin and The Jug Band - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFqBD-FTPt0
Jan 24, 2013 - Uploaded by Eric Cajundelyon
Jim Kweskin (born July 18, 1940, Stamford, Connecticut) is the founder of the Jim Kweskin Jug Band, with ...Rag Mama by Jim Kweskin at Folk Festival on the Canal - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnFG7ssfeoU
Jun 24, 2012 - Uploaded by Robbie Purdon
Jim Kweskin performs Rag Mama at the Folk Fest on the Canal in Montreal. ... Jim Kweskin Jug Band with ..."Richland Woman Blues" - Jim Kweskin Jug Band w/Maria Muldaur ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHXRSnONcVQ
Jul 23, 2015 - Uploaded by captzee
Jim Kweskin Jug Band with Maria Muldaur and John Sebastian - July 22, 2015 at The Egg in Albany, NY ...Maria Muldaur & The Jim Kweskin Jug Band - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFDgwW2C3m0
Jul 17, 2006 - Uploaded by smile67
Maria Muldaur & The Jim Kweskin Jug Band. smile67 .... The book is "Baby Let Me Follow You Down" by Eric ...Chevrolet - Jim Kweskin & The Jug Band (with Maria ... - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rw0CEN9iTPc
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