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From: t~umancode.com (Tim Moyer)
Date: Wed, 14 Jan 1998 10:46:46 -0600
Subject: RE: Intensity and Devotion

At 06:27 AM 1/14/98 -0600, Benoit Felten wrote:
>I'm sidetracking a bit here, but I actually think that Bob Dylan, Neil
>Young and Alanis Morissette (especially Alanis Morissette) aren't
>actually doing the harmonica any good, much as their music is fine. The
>use they make of the instrument is in direct line with the 'campfire'
>image and that's what harmonica players are hoping will change...

I'd like to take a moment to try to cleave Neil Young' name away from the
rest of this list. I agree that there are a lot of examples of Neil Young
playing that "cat strangling" style (harp in rack while strumming the
guitar), but some of the stuff I listened to when I was learning was GREAT
Neil Young harmonica. Not complicated, but tasteful and CLEAN. I refer
you to the mid-70's album Harvest, that has harmonica on "Old Man", "Out On
The Weekend", as well as many others. I learned those parts note-for-note
when I was a teenager, and can still play them today. They formed the
basis for an alternative to my J. Geils Band and paul Butterfield
influences learning to play. And as I have mentioned before on this list,
one of the greatest harmonica tracks I've ever heard recorded is on Joni
Mitchell's album "Hiejera", on a song called "Furry Sings the Blues". Look
at the credits: Neil Young.

I think in the case of Neil Young, he plays in that cat strangling way
because he WANTS to, not because, like others, that's all he's capable of.
In my opinion, Neil Young did the harmonica a lot of good.



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