‹ All episodes

Happy Hour Harmonica Podcast

Steve Guyger interview

March 24, 2023 Neil Warren Season 1 Episode 82

Chapters

Steve lives near Philadelphia, in the US, in the same house he grew up in

Radio Blues album is testament to his love of listening to music on the radio when he was young, and still to do this day

First interest in music was Doo-wop singing, which got Steve into singing

Guitar was first instrument before moving on to the harmonica

Got first harmonica from sister-in-law when Steve was 17 or 18

Friend at college introduced Steve to all the great blues harmonica recordings

Before he heard Chicago blues Steve was playing mostly country style blues

Blue Midnight by Little Walter was a big favourite of Steves, and other greats he listened to

Billy Boy Arnold said:”Steve Guyger is one of the few guys who can really sing and play like Sonny Boy Williamson I”

It was a book in which Muddy Waters said you had to learn to play with John Lee Williamson that turned Steve onto SBW I

Recommended songs of John Lee

Why John Lee was so influential on the generation of harmonica players that followed him

Jazz Gillum was a contemporary of John Lee, but more a jazzy and first position player

Can hear John Lee started using amplification towards the end of his career

John Lee was murdered in 1948 at the age of 34

Knew Paul Oscher very well, releasing three albums with Paul

Paul Oscher, as well as being a great harmonica player, was also a great instrumentalist

Learned some harmonica from Paul Oscher’s guitarist

Steve worked hard at learning (Big) Walter’s Boogie

Released three albums with Paul Oscher

Paul Oscher played some bass harmonica and was a multi-instrumentalist

Paul Oscher was the first harmonica player with Muddy Waters

Steve is also friends with Jerry Portnoy

Steve’s first band was called Rock Bottom

Second band was The Blues Rockers

Steve has played with the his band The Excellos since 1980, a name taken from the blues record label

Played with Jimmy Rogers on and off for fourteen years. Jimmy Rogers played in the Muddy Waters and Little Walter Headhunters band in the late 1940s / early 1950s

Jimmy Rogers was also an excellent harmonica player (he is know as a guitarist and singer)

Jimmy Rogers played harmonica with Muddy Waters before Little Walter joined

Steve got to play with Jimmy Rogers by originally writing him a letter

Got together with Jimmy Rogers in 1980

Went touring with Jimmy Rogers to Europe

Played with Jimmy Rogers until about 1994

How it could have been Good Rockin’ Charles rather than Big Walter on the song Walkin’ By Myself

Big Walter was painting houses before he recorded Walkin’ By Myself

The time when Muddy Waters devoted a live performance of I’m Ready to Steve’s mother

Live At The Dinosaur was Steve’s first album release

Last Train To Dover was first studio album Steve released, in memory of William Clarke

Steve had a great time playing in Memphis, the home of the Blues

Recorded a version of John Henry on chromatic

Took some classical chromatic lessons when younger

Past Life Blues album and influence of George Smith on Steve

Released a duo album with Richard Farrell

Steve bought lots of 78 recordings of the blues harmonica greats, including SBW II

Radio Blues album is the last album Steve released, in 2008. There are songs in the vault Steve would like to release

Steve’s songwriting process

Past Life Blues album title comes from early songs he wrote

Released a tutorial book / DVD called Blues Harmonica through Hal Leonard publishing, and importance of having a guitar player who can play some harmonica

Places played when touring Europe and South America

10 minute question: play the harmonica upside down as well as the right way up

Tone is a little different when playing upside down

Diatonic of choice is mainly Hohner Marine Band and Old Standby, but played some of the Bends from Brazil

Plays both 12 and 16 hole chromatics

Different positions

Fifth position song by Sammy Lewis

Doesn’t play overblows, and doesn’t like to play too many notes

Call and response of SBW II (Rice Miller)

Steve is a tongue blocker

Uses Fender Princeton amp now (no reverb), used to use a Fender Concert

Also uses a small Gibson Skylark amp

Jimmy Rogers told Steve that equipment in the 1940s was the same, except the amps were smaller

Jimmy Rogers used to take over harmonica when SBW I was too drunk to play

Gets mics from Dennis Gruenling

King Biscuit Boy: Canadian harmonica players from the 1970s, gave Steve an Acstatic JT30 that was made in Canada

Mics used to be available for cheap prices

Plays on Dennis Gruenling’s Tribute To Little Walter album: I Just Keep Loving Him

Doesn’t use any effects

Echo Doo-wop song

Future plans: due to play in Switzerland soon to play a tribute to Jimmy Rogers

Musicians in Europe can play the blues well

Happy Hour Harmonica Podcast

Steve Guyger interview

Mar 24, 2023 Season 1 Episode 82

Neil Warren

Steve Guyger joins me on episode 82.

Steve is from the Philadelphia area of the US and he absorbed the blues harmonica players when he first got into playing, with John Lee Williamson a big early inspiration. Steve was also great friends with the late Paul Oscher, making three albums with him. Steve also teamed up with the legendary Jimmy Rogers, over the course of fourteen years.
Steve has released five albums under his own name, with a great mix of diatonic and chromatic blues.
Steve’s long-standing band is the Excellos, who are still performing more than forty years after their formation, and Steve is due to play in a Jimmy Rogers tribute in Switzerland with Dennis Gruenling and Nick Moss sometime soon.

Links:
https://severnrecords.com/artist/steve-guyger/

Blues Harmonica DVD on Hal Leonard:
https://www.halleonard.com/product/821042/blues-harmonica

Dennis Gruenling website:
https://badassharmonica.com/

Videos:

Steve's YouTube Music channel:
https://music.youtube.com/channel/UCkeHm0xNz2csT5fc4zP-84A

Paul Oscher playing bass harmonica on The Things I Used To Do:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIPIrMNiR3M

Live concert with Excellos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50DvEI8VUlQ&t=3576s

I Can See By Your Eyes song:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgJ9lFhEa00

Rock This House (live at Austrian Blues festival):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THqRX2PYBdQ

Sammy Lewis playing in 5th position:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyKLRO2x6uE

Snake Oil live performance (outro song):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IrQkiHJVdc

Podcast website:
https://www.harmonicahappyhour.com

Donations:
If you want to make a voluntary donation to help support the running costs of the podcast then please use this link (or visit the podcast website link above):
https://paypal.me/harmonicahappyhour?locale.x=en_GB

Spotify Playlist:
Also check out the Spotify Playlist, which contains most of the songs discussed in the podcast:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5QC6RF2VTfs4iPuasJBqwT?si=M-j3IkiISeefhR7ybm9qIQ

Podcast sponsors:
This podcast is sponsored by SEYDEL harmonicas - visit the oldest harmonica factory in the world at www.seydel1847.com or on Facebook or Instagram at SEYDEL HARMONICAS

Support the show

Share Episode

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn Download

Support Podcast

Support

Subscribe

Spotify RSS Feed More

Listen on

Spotify Amazon Music Podcast Addict Podchaser Deezer Listen Notes +

Share Episode

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn

Happy Hour Harmonica Podcast +

Become a supporter of the show!

Starting at $3/month Support

Steve Guyger joins me on episode 82.

Steve is from the Philadelphia area of the US and he absorbed the blues harmonica players when he first got into playing, with John Lee Williamson a big early inspiration. Steve was also great friends with the late Paul Oscher, making three albums with him. Steve also teamed up with the legendary Jimmy Rogers, over the course of fourteen years.
Steve has released five albums under his own name, with a great mix of diatonic and chromatic blues.
Steve’s long-standing band is the Excellos, who are still performing more than forty years after their formation, and Steve is due to play in a Jimmy Rogers tribute in Switzerland with Dennis Gruenling and Nick Moss sometime soon.

Links:
https://severnrecords.com/artist/steve-guyger/

Blues Harmonica DVD on Hal Leonard:
https://www.halleonard.com/product/821042/blues-harmonica

Dennis Gruenling website:
https://badassharmonica.com/

Videos:

Steve's YouTube Music channel:
https://music.youtube.com/channel/UCkeHm0xNz2csT5fc4zP-84A

Paul Oscher playing bass harmonica on The Things I Used To Do:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIPIrMNiR3M

Live concert with Excellos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50DvEI8VUlQ&t=3576s

I Can See By Your Eyes song:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgJ9lFhEa00

Rock This House (live at Austrian Blues festival):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THqRX2PYBdQ

Sammy Lewis playing in 5th position:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyKLRO2x6uE

Snake Oil live performance (outro song):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IrQkiHJVdc

Podcast website:
https://www.harmonicahappyhour.com

Donations:
If you want to make a voluntary donation to help support the running costs of the podcast then please use this link (or visit the podcast website link above):
https://paypal.me/harmonicahappyhour?locale.x=en_GB

Spotify Playlist:
Also check out the Spotify Playlist, which contains most of the songs discussed in the podcast:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5QC6RF2VTfs4iPuasJBqwT?si=M-j3IkiISeefhR7ybm9qIQ

Podcast sponsors:
This podcast is sponsored by SEYDEL harmonicas - visit the oldest harmonica factory in the world at www.seydel1847.com or on Facebook or Instagram at SEYDEL HARMONICAS

Support the show

Steve lives near Philadelphia, in the US, in the same house he grew up in

Radio Blues album is testament to his love of listening to music on the radio when he was young, and still to do this day

First interest in music was Doo-wop singing, which got Steve into singing

Guitar was first instrument before moving on to the harmonica

Got first harmonica from sister-in-law when Steve was 17 or 18

Friend at college introduced Steve to all the great blues harmonica recordings

Before he heard Chicago blues Steve was playing mostly country style blues

Blue Midnight by Little Walter was a big favourite of Steves, and other greats he listened to

Billy Boy Arnold said:”Steve Guyger is one of the few guys who can really sing and play like Sonny Boy Williamson I”

It was a book in which Muddy Waters said you had to learn to play with John Lee Williamson that turned Steve onto SBW I

Recommended songs of John Lee

Why John Lee was so influential on the generation of harmonica players that followed him

Jazz Gillum was a contemporary of John Lee, but more a jazzy and first position player

Can hear John Lee started using amplification towards the end of his career

John Lee was murdered in 1948 at the age of 34

Knew Paul Oscher very well, releasing three albums with Paul

Paul Oscher, as well as being a great harmonica player, was also a great instrumentalist

Learned some harmonica from Paul Oscher’s guitarist

Steve worked hard at learning (Big) Walter’s Boogie

Released three albums with Paul Oscher

Paul Oscher played some bass harmonica and was a multi-instrumentalist

Paul Oscher was the first harmonica player with Muddy Waters

Steve is also friends with Jerry Portnoy

Steve’s first band was called Rock Bottom

Second band was The Blues Rockers

Steve has played with the his band The Excellos since 1980, a name taken from the blues record label

Played with Jimmy Rogers on and off for fourteen years. Jimmy Rogers played in the Muddy Waters and Little Walter Headhunters band in the late 1940s / early 1950s

Jimmy Rogers was also an excellent harmonica player (he is know as a guitarist and singer)

Jimmy Rogers played harmonica with Muddy Waters before Little Walter joined

Steve got to play with Jimmy Rogers by originally writing him a letter

Got together with Jimmy Rogers in 1980

Went touring with Jimmy Rogers to Europe

Played with Jimmy Rogers until about 1994

How it could have been Good Rockin’ Charles rather than Big Walter on the song Walkin’ By Myself

Big Walter was painting houses before he recorded Walkin’ By Myself

The time when Muddy Waters devoted a live performance of I’m Ready to Steve’s mother

Live At The Dinosaur was Steve’s first album release

Last Train To Dover was first studio album Steve released, in memory of William Clarke

Steve had a great time playing in Memphis, the home of the Blues

Recorded a version of John Henry on chromatic

Took some classical chromatic lessons when younger

Past Life Blues album and influence of George Smith on Steve

Released a duo album with Richard Farrell

Steve bought lots of 78 recordings of the blues harmonica greats, including SBW II

Radio Blues album is the last album Steve released, in 2008. There are songs in the vault Steve would like to release

Steve’s songwriting process

Past Life Blues album title comes from early songs he wrote

Released a tutorial book / DVD called Blues Harmonica through Hal Leonard publishing, and importance of having a guitar player who can play some harmonica

Places played when touring Europe and South America

10 minute question: play the harmonica upside down as well as the right way up

Tone is a little different when playing upside down

Diatonic of choice is mainly Hohner Marine Band and Old Standby, but played some of the Bends from Brazil

Plays both 12 and 16 hole chromatics

Different positions

Fifth position song by Sammy Lewis

Doesn’t play overblows, and doesn’t like to play too many notes

Call and response of SBW II (Rice Miller)

Steve is a tongue blocker

Uses Fender Princeton amp now (no reverb), used to use a Fender Concert

Also uses a small Gibson Skylark amp

Jimmy Rogers told Steve that equipment in the 1940s was the same, except the amps were smaller

Jimmy Rogers used to take over harmonica when SBW I was too drunk to play

Gets mics from Dennis Gruenling

King Biscuit Boy: Canadian harmonica players from the 1970s, gave Steve an Acstatic JT30 that was made in Canada

Mics used to be available for cheap prices

Plays on Dennis Gruenling’s Tribute To Little Walter album: I Just Keep Loving Him

Doesn’t use any effects

Echo Doo-wop song

Future plans: due to play in Switzerland soon to play a tribute to Jimmy Rogers

Musicians in Europe can play the blues well