The
music that I love... the music that I
write, re-create and perform takes it's inspiration from the
musical traditions that arose out of the south of the United States during the first half of the twentieth
century. From the back porches of small farm cabins to the rough & tumble road houses just outside
the city limits to the sweaty, smokey dance clubs of the big cities, these traditions offer so much in the
way of personal expression and a visceral experience of life.
musical traditions that arose out of the south of the United States during the first half of the twentieth
century. From the back porches of small farm cabins to the rough & tumble road houses just outside
the city limits to the sweaty, smokey dance clubs of the big cities, these traditions offer so much in the
way of personal expression and a visceral experience of life.
The number of musicians that have influenced
and inspired me over these many years is much too great
to outline here; from the least sophisticated of guitar players to those who have come to be known as masters
and icons of the instrument and the music. In my own small way, I hope to build on these traditions and,
in that way, inspire others to an interest in and appreciation for the beauty and richness that is this truly
unique American music.
to outline here; from the least sophisticated of guitar players to those who have come to be known as masters
and icons of the instrument and the music. In my own small way, I hope to build on these traditions and,
in that way, inspire others to an interest in and appreciation for the beauty and richness that is this truly
unique American music.
' Trouble
In Mind ' ... .wavThe Dubliner Phoenix 2004
'a video with my young friend Sturgis Waters'
__________________________________________________
'Morning Music'
Tucson, Az. 2008
Catalina River Blues
For reasons unknown to me this little tune seemed to
pop right out of my guitar one Saturday afternoon....
Rosie
I think most folks never forget their first love.
In my case her name was Elisabeth Rose...
My Delta Bride
Ahhh.... life down on the farm. It doesn't get any better...
For Anselma
Written on the occasion of the birth of my first niece,
Malva Anselma... She's seven years old now and lives
in Stockholm with her mommy and daddy...
Starlight, Starbright
Written on the occasion of the birth of my second niece, Vera.
She's nearly three years old now... she is amazing and wonderful !
2008
Jack O'RosesBig thanks to Brian James - recording engineer extraordinaire !
________________________________________
A few covers recorded from 2002 - 2008
' On A Railroad Line 'It's a fact... I do like a train song
' Hesitation Blues
' with Rhonda Freeman
' Goodbye Carolina '
with Rhonda Freeman
' Rolling Log Bluesa tune from way back in the day
' Mississippi Delta Blues
'a tip o' the hat to Willie Brown
HOMEThe Blues Explained
The Blues -
1. Most blues begin with: "Woke up this mornin'...."
2. "I got a good woman" is a bad way to begin the blues, unless you
stick something nasty in the next line like, "I got a good woman
with the meanest face in town."
3. The blues is simple. After you get the first line right, repeat it.
Then find something that rhymes...sort of... "Got a good woman
with the meanest face in town. Yes, I got a good woman with
the meanest face in town. Got teeth like Margaret Thatcher, and
she weigh 500 pound."
4. The blues is not about choice. You stuck in a ditch, you stuck in
a ditch -- ain't no way out.
5. Blues cars: Chevys, Fords, Cadillacs and broken-down trucks. Blues
don't travel in Volvos, BMWs, or Sport Utility Vehicles. Most blues
transportation is a Greyhound bus or a southbound train. Jet aircraft
and state-sponsored motor pools ain't even in the running. Walkin'
plays a major part in the blues lifestyle. So does fixin' to die.
6. Teenagers can't sing the blues. They ain't fixin' to die yet. Adults
sing the blues. In blues, "adulthood" means being old enough to
get the electric chair if you shoot a man in Memphis.
7. Blues can take place in New York City but not in Hawaii or any
place in Canada. Hard times in Minneapolis or Seattle is probably
just a clinical depression. Chicago, St. Louis and Kansas City are
still the best places to have the blues. You cannot have the blues
in any place that don't get rain.
8. A man with male pattern baldness ain't the blues. A woman with male
pattern baldness is. Breaking your leg 'cause you were skiing is not
the blues. Breaking your leg 'cause a alligator be chomping on it, is.
9. You can't have no blues in a office or a shopping mall. The lighting
is all wrong. Go outside to the parking lot or sit by the dumpster.
10. Good places for the blues:
a. highway
b. jailhouse
c. empty bed
d. bottom of a whiskey glass
11. Bad places for the blues:
a. Nordstrom's
b. gallery openings
c. Ivy League institutions
d. golf courses
12. No one will believe it's the blues if you wear a suit -- 'less you be
an old ethnic person, and you slept in it.
13. Do you have the right to sing the blues?
Yes, if :
a. you older than dirt
b. you blind
c. you shot a man in Memphis.
No, if:
a. You have all your teeth
b. You were once blind but now you can see
c. The man in Memphis lived
d. You have a 401(k) or a trust fund
14. Blues is not a matter of color. It's a matter of bad luck. Tiger
Woods cannot sing the blues. Sonny Liston could. Ugly white
people also have a leg up on the blues.
15. If you ask for water and your darlin' give you gasoline, it's the
blues. Other acceptable blues beverages are:
a. cheap wine
b. whiskey or bourbon
c. muddy water
d. nasty black coffee
The following are NOT blues beverages:
a. Perrier
b. Chardonnay
c. Red Bull
d. SlimFast
16. If death occurs in a cheap hotel or a shotgun shack, it's a blues
death. Stabbed in the back by a jealous lover is another blues way
to die. So are the electric chair, substance abuse, and dying lonely
on a broken-down cot. You can't have a blues death if you die during
a tennis match or while getting liposuction.
17. Some blues names for women:
a. Sadie
b. Big Mama
c. Bessie
d. Fat River Dumpling
18. Some blues names for men:
a. Joe
b. Willie
c. Little Willie
d. Big Willie
19. Persons with names like Amber, Jennifer, Courtney, and Heather can't
sing the blues no matter how many men they shoot in Memphis.
20. Make your own blues starter kit:
a. Name of a physical infirmity (Blind, Cripple, Lame, etc.)
b. First name (see above) plus the name of a fruit (Lemon, Lime,
Kiwi, etc.)
c. Last name of a president (Jefferson, Johnson, Fillmore, etc.)
For example: Blind Lime Jefferson, Jakeleg Lemon Johnson, or Cripple Kiwi
Fillmore. (Well, maybe not kiwi...)
21. And I don't care how tragic your life -- if you own a computer, you
cannot sing the blues.
author unknown
If you are laughing on the outside but crying on the inside, you get it.
If you don't get it, I hope you never do.
Jack
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