The opening night of John Lee Hooker’s British tour was at London’s Flamingo Jazz Club. Outside, a long queue of people with little hope of getting in, inside a house packed to near capacity.
The opening set was played by The Cheynes, an enthusiastic if unpolished group, obviously greatly influenced by the Bo Diddley brand of R&B. The first set drew to a close with many feeling the worse for the heat – and still many more were pouring in! John Mayall’s Blues Breakers next took the stand, and proceeded to swing into a selection of earthy, beat-packed numbers which communicated well with the audience. John Mayall is a fine interpreter of the blues and plays convincing Hammond organ and harmonica. The group were well chosen to provide the backing for such a great artist as John Lee Hooker.
By now the club was full to bursting point, the atmosphere airless, but alive with anticipation. John Mayall had written a song dedicated to the visiting artist aptly titled John Lee Hooker. As he appeared the audience went wild. They drank in his every word, called to him for requests, handclapped along with his music and made the most of every second he was on stage – obviously wishing he could go on all night. But John Lee was obviously fighting a losing battle against the heat and after three fast bouncy numbers, he remarked how hot it was, shed his coat and carried on with a towel around his neck.
He slowed the tempo down to soulville, as he called it, and it was then that he displayed just what a first-class bluesman he is. Prominent was his expressive, throbbing guitar playing which acted as an echo or answer to his vocal statements. The impassioned, relentlessly inconsolable quality of his voice, which portrays the genuine deep-felt blues from his early influences of the delta, is plainly heard.
This intensity of mood lasted only for a couple of numbers, when the rhythm reverted to an uptempo boogie beat. It was only to be expected that he would feature his better known commercial successes, that reach a wider public than the blues purists, and the programme was planned to cater for all tastes. This session included such standards as Boom-Boom, Dimples, Hi-Heel Sneakers and I’m In The Mood.
Everyone has his own yardstick as to what is authentic blues and what is not, but few people will dispute that John Lee Hooker is one of the most powerful and realistic exponents of the blues alive today.
