Battle of the Bands Results: Jazz Me Blues

 Great news this time around I picked up a new voter Nashvillecats2! Six votes with three going to Les Paul and three going to the Original Dixieland Jazz Band. I like both so I don't mind the tie. You all know I don't vote on mine. 

I don't want to tip my hat, so no Les Paul or Original Dixieland Jazz  Band to celebrate a musical tie. 

Maybe the 2015 All State Illinois Jazz Ensemble instead...

Tune in on the 15th for another exciting Battle!

Battle of the Bands: Jazz Me Blues

 Back to my regular scheduled programing. In case you missed my Battles in April I did 50's rock and then rock covers of Lady Gaga. I think maybe I should take a time out from the Battle of the Bands in April if I am doing the A to Z Challenge. I don't know. The Battle of the Bands is past it's peak. 

Don't get me wrong it is still fun! I didn't think the second Battle in April would be a big one so I chose something I thought would be fun for me. On April's first battle I don't think I voted on anyone's Battles. To those who had Battles I apologize. I'm still finding Battles, I am still doing them mostly in the traditional format and it is still fun! I get to mix up the genres. Obvious I have some favorites. However, I get to explore deeper. Maybe I get to explore a genre I don't know well, or an era, or I know so and so did this song but where did it come from. So, to all of you who have stuck around thank you! To any newcomers thank you I hope you come back. Also this a bloghop feel free to jump in! 

Well there is a reason this blog is called Mike's Ramblings just look at the first two paragraphs as example one. Anyone I started the year with Stairway, some Skynyrd, and a Jackson Browne  tune. Then I jumped through a guitar heavy, jazz standard funk. The jazz I found was received as well as the others. So today I am going back to jazz.

The way it works I choose a song. I play an original version or a well known version. Then I have two more contenders. The covers if you will. My readers tell me in the comments which ones they liked best. I count them up and announce a winner usually a week later or so. Songs are shorter than my ramblings this time!

Today's song "Jazz Me Blues" by first recorded by Lucille Hegamin composed by Tom Delaney She is described as a blues singer. 

Bonus question: Is this blues or jazz?  It is considered a jazz standard but it was sung by someone considered a blues singer. Is it both? Is it a blurred line kind of thing? 

Contender One: Original Dixieland Jazz Band

(I believe the first instrumental version of the tune)

Contender Two: Les Paul

Two very different covers. 30 years difference in time 1921 to 1951. Both very good at what they do. Time to vote!

Remembering Les Paul

Six years ago the legendary musician and guitar innovator Les Paul passed away. I became a fan of his due to his legendary guitar he designed for Gibson the Les Paul. Since my guitar hero in my formidable years was Jimmy Page and Slash was the guitarist of the popular rock band Guns N Roses.



Les Paul's music was different and beautiful in it's own right. However, it was far from the hard rock sounds I had associated the guitar with.

"Waiting for the Sunrise" here is a clip from the Les Paul and Mary Ford Show...

Yes in this tribute I am going to share a bit of music so I hope you enjoy.

Les Paul performing "Sleepwalk"

Les Paul and Stanley Jordan jamming out on a version of "Georgia"

Do you have a favorite Les Paul song or memory? Thoughts on the guitar? Feel free to share in the comments. Thanks for visiting and I will be back with a new post soon!

Happy Birthday Slash!

Today Slash of Guns N Roses fame turns 50 years old! He was responsible for the many guitar riffs that filled my ears in my later years of high school and early college years.

Starting the celebration with "Sweet Child O Mine"

As my ears had gone from Eddie Van Halen to the older generations of Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck and Ritchie Blackmore well Slash was a modern guitar hero who in my eyes had that old guitar hero swagger.

Here he is with "Anastasia"  a solo song....

Here is Slash with a band called Velvet Revolver performing "Slither"

Here is a selection of someone's top ten list of Slash unforgettable moments...

Do you have any Slash moments or memories? Feel free to share in the comments...

I'll wrap this birthday celebration up with another Guns N Roses song..

"Welcome to the Jungle:

I hope you enjoyed your stay!

Happy Birthday Gibson

Yesterday marked Gibson Guitars turning 211 years old. I was turned onto Gibson Guitars by being a fan of Jimmy Page. However, a lot of my guitar heroes played Gibson at some point in their careers including Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, B.B. King, Angus Young, Duane Allman, Slash and the list could go on.

Eric Clapton discusses a famous Les Paul...

A tour of the Gibson Factory

Here is another video for you guitar geeks like me...

Well I hope Gibson continues to make guitars for years to come. I've been a bit slow on the blogs lately but I will have some new ones coming soon so stay tuned!

Les Paul

My mind wanders off to the gulf after each horrible headline I read, or it could wander to my unknown economic gloom. Instead, I will write about something else. No shameless self promotion either, I haven't done that in a while.

Yes, I wanted to see Jeff Beck in concert last Monday. Money is tight and I went to the Blues Fest for fre the weekend before. However, the concert I wanted to see was Tuesday and Wednesday at the  Iridium Jazz Club in New York. Jeff Beck and friends played a couple of shows as a tribute to the late great Les Paul, who I blogged about his passing last year. I did enter a contest to win tickets but I didn't win.

However, the shows were outstanding here is a link to one review.

On occasion I do plug other writers work. Disclaimer I don't know this writer, I just wish I was at t he show.

Les Paul has passed away

No one lives forever, and 94 is a nice long life. I am sad Les Paul has passed away today. His music will live on. People will event more things. However, there won't ever be another Les Paul. The innovator of muti track recordings and amplification. Not to mention the beautiful Les Paul line of guitars made by Gibson.

One of my favorite bands is Led Zeppelin. I know musically we would be comparing apple and oranges with Led Zeppelin and Les Paul. Not that Jimmy Page and Les Paul could find musical common ground, they did and they have played together. However, without Les Paul's inventions on multi track recording and effects Led Zeppelin would not have been the same. Zeppelin is just a good example that comes to mind but the same could be said about any band from the birth of rock and roll to now.

I am thankful to his contribution to the music I like. I am thankful for the music he created. I am thankful for Les Paul guitars. I am sorry for his families loss. As a fan I hope their will be tributes for him so we will be able to appreciate his life and music some more. As a fan of his life, I offer this bit of appreciation and I am grateful for his contributions to the world.