33: Lists2

Before I get started back on the blues list, I’d like to give a brief health update. This morning, I had an intravenous injection of mesenchymal stem cell-derived exosomes. This is an alternative (non-fda approved) treatment that is showing great promise in many areas of medical research. Read the highlighted section of the link. I probably won’t see any effect for weeks, but I have hopes for some further delay in the advance of this disease. That’s all I’m shooting for these days! Delay for a cure could be my motto! Additionally, I’ll be getting NAD+ injections (home based, self administered). I’m super excited to note that transgender mice were used during the testing of this treatment. They must have looked so cute in their little crossdresser outfits while simultaneously forgetting that they liked cheese! <sigh>. Thank you CPOTUS for allowing me that all too brief moment of humor. Brief because he actually said that, and he (and his cultees) actually thought it was real, and he’s actually President of the United States, and that’s not even remotely funny. (There are loads of posts explaining it away as there are studies of gender and sexuality that use mice, but none to “turn a mouse trans” because, you know, that’s not possible. You can’t turn anything or body trans. Here is a fairly nuanced blog post that attempts to shed some light on this boondoggle.) Any which way you choose to look at it, this is a prime example of the toxicity in our current government. It’s all about creating a fear and stigma around trans people. Because one way, it's really legitimate medical research (let’s not get into animal cruelty for the moment), using gene mapping to simulate disease in mice to find a cure for many ailments (including, in my case, Alzheimer’s), or the other way it is mean spirited digging at a marginalized community who are already the target of so much vitriol just because they’re trying to live their own best lives (or maybe - just maybe if they’re really lucky, they’ll catch a glimpse of Nancy Mace’s (R-SC) withered lady-parts in a house restroom)..

Also, I saw a pretty good rockin 'blues band this weekend called GA-20. They are well worth checking out if they swing through your neck of the woods. Bring ear protection, because they were loud as heck!

Anyway, I’ll post some medical updates as I realize them.

Back to the music. We left off the last post midway through this list - after listening to young Johnny Lang tear it up (you can also listen to the exact track I heard by using this Spotify link). We’ll pick it up with:

30: I’m Going Home. I first heard this song on the Woodstock soundtrack album back when I was seven or eight years old and was blown away by the speed and energy of the playing. Today, as a grizzled old man, it does very little for me. I recognize its place in musical history, but that’s about it.

31: Out Of My Mind. Nicely soulful playing and vocals over a slow walking blues. This is a good track. I’m not too familiar with John Mayer’s work outside the pop music realm. It’s decent stuff. Worth a deeper perusal.

32: Still Got The Blues. OK. All I could think of while listening to this track was the band Journey. I know Gary Moore has some deep cuts, but this one is much more power pop than blues. Didn’t do it for me.

33: Steroids. Oz Noy approaches the blues from a jazz mindset. No standard pentatonic riffing here - this is a master of the fretboard at work. A little funk, a little jazz, a little blues, all off kilter and masterfully done. A lesson in music theory combined with innovative musicality.

34: Three Time Loser. Bonnie Raitt, before she became a pop icon, was a hard drinking, badass blues slide player and vocalist. (She’s still a badass slide player and vocalist - but her music has strayed towards the more commercial end of things.) It’s a pity it’s taken me so long to listen to her in this light. Wendy is a huge fan of her newer stuff - and we saw her live a few years back. It was a great show, and she owns her place in musical history, no matter the format.

35: It’s My Own Fault. Otis Rush is a seasoned master of the blues, and the solos are great - as is the singing. This is a pretty set standard for blues work, and isn’t breaking any new ground - but that’s not necessarily a bad thing in this case.

36: Blues For Salvador. Carlos Santana is another of those guitar players that you can recognize as soon as he plays. Just like David Gilmour from the last post, the playing, as always, is exemplary - but the track itself is kind of lackluster. It’s a blazing solo, over a pretty monochromatic bit of keyboard wash. No percussion or anything else. Just because it’s got the name blues in the title doesn’t make it so, Guitar Player Magazine…

My light use was frequently interrupted by a visitor who was in desperate need of some attention (or food).

This morning’s listen ends the list! It’s a bittersweet ending, because several of the items listened to today were not so great. But there were a couple of massively good ones too. So, here goes.

37: Blue On Black. Is it wrong of me to mistrust anyone named Kenny Wayne? After all, Wayne is a common middle name for serial killers. But this guy is no serial killer. In fact, the track is almost too nice. It’s got lovely melodies, but - to these ears - is barely the blues. It’s a nice pop tune with a decent solo.

38: Three Hundred Pounds Of Joy. A novelty track, with some decent playing.

39: Wild About You Baby. Good fuzzed out blues guitar riff, based on a standard boogie. The solo is essentially an extension of the main vamp. A perfect example of how the blues can be both good and boring all at the same time!

40: Slow Blues. Mick Taylor lives in the upper pantheon of the rock gods for his contributions to the very few essential Rolling Stones records (To my mind, the reason they’re essential is because Mick was a member of the band.) This is a (as the title suggests) slow blues number which is a showcase for Taylor’s melodic solo.

41: Jesus Is Everywhere. God bless Sister Rosetta Tharpe. While I’m not sure this is her best track, It surely does rock, and her impact on music and women in general is not to be denied.

42: I Know. And God bless Derek Trucks. I love the way he incorporates, not the Hawaiian slide techniques as so many slide players do, but the sounds of India. This is his pre-Tedeschi Truck Band band, and they rock pretty hard. Another unmistakable sounding player.

43: Miracles & Demons Part 2. OK. Where the hell has Eddie Turner been all my life? First I’ve ever heard of him, and this is right up my alley. Dark as hell, and festooned with blazing fretwork. I’m digging deeper into this guy’s catalog for certain. I hope this track isn’t an anomaly.

44: Tough Enough. To be followed by this piece of contemporary radio dreck. Sorry. No heart, no soul, and pure 80’s production. I’m not a fan of the negative nepo baby concept - I mean, who among us wouldn’t give a family member a chance if they could? - but some nepos are not deserving. The Jims (Belushi and Vaughn) are prime examples.

45: Stormy Monday The original. One of the most covered tunes in the canon, the track was first released in 1947 by T-Bone Walker. Perhaps others (The Allman Brothers, perhaps) have helped this basic song scale to greater heights - but the blues guitar would not exist without Mr. Walker and his playing on this track.

46: Ball And Biscuit. I never gave the White Stripes enough credit. Their quirky duo concept and public personas never floated my boat - but this slide driven romp is a great one to end the list on. Punk blues at its finest. (Although while listening, I thought it was a George Thorogood track - so perhaps not so novel.)

Medical news: I had an endoscopy scheduled for tomorrow to evaluate me for a Sleep Apnea implant.. Early last week I called them and asked if there was any prep work I needed to do (or not do). They told me that the anesthesia department would call, and not to worry. So last night the Anesthesia folks called and told me I was supposed to have stopped my GLP-1 drug last week and could not have the endoscopy as scheduled. They obviously had my chart, and knew I was on the drug. And yet no one thought to inform me when it could have made a difference. Sleep Apnea is one of the things that is slowly destroying my brain. I’m doing so much to fix this, but the medical industry is so messed up right now (and looks to only get worse), I have to do ALL the work. It’s an untenable situation. My PCP is pregnant (yay for her!) and going on leave. The practice did not just hire a travel nurse to cover her - they’re trying to fit all her appointments into existing schedules. They tried to reschedule me for months out. MONTHS!!!! Until I complained - and then they managed to find an opening in the same week. But the instinct is towards unhelpfulness. And they’re the best practice in the area. But sure, let’s gut the Department of Health (and Medicare/Medicaid/Social Security, et al). That’ll fix it right up!