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Happy Hour Harmonica Podcast

William Clarke retrospective, part 2, with Paul Barry

February 29, 2024 Neil Warren Season 1 Episode 105

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This is a second interview with Paul, after the first one about William (Bill) Clarke was released in June 2022

Paul has now released his biography about Bill Clarke

I’ve read the book recently and it’s a great achievement and has received lots of good reviews and comments from people

Where people can obtain the book

Was working on a harmonica instruction book before Bill died. Paul decided to write a biography instead, as lots of instructional material already available

Bill died in 1996, before the internet became widely used, and he probably isn’t as well known as he deserves to be

Looking into Bill’s life story when writing the book, saw the humble beginnings that he came from, to become the great bluesman he became

How Paul approached writing the biography, and what research did he conduct

Bill’s wife Jeanette was a great help in providing material for the book, as were his children and many of the musicians he performed with

The pressure Paul felt in making sure the biography did justice to Bill

Wife Jeanette maintains the Facebook page: William Clarke Remembered

Paul wrote the book in his spare time, on top of his job and being a part-time musician

What Paul learnt about Bill, and playing the harmonica, from writing the biography, including how hard he worked

Torn between being a family man and being the best musician he could be

Bill would practice back in the hotel room after the gig

Learned from the blues harmonica greats early on in his development, but then was keen to forge his own sound

Bill also liked to listen to organ players, saxophonists and swing jazz and learn licks from those

Bill played chromatic in the middle of third position blues and the jazz approach on chromatic from the Toots Thielemans school of playing

George Smith showed Bill how to play chromatic initially, especially the octaves

Bill learnt by ear, didn’t work on music theory

Bill’s later albums became more sophisticated as he developed his playing skills

Was determined to forge his own sound

Was also a great diatonic player, which he started out on when he took up harmonica

Played a lot of octaves on diatonic, so approached it in a similar way to his chromatic playing at times

Proportion of how much third position he played on diatonic versus second position (and others)

Most of his chromatic playing is third position

Was always keen to entertain the audience with stage antics and to give 100% to entertain the crowd, things he learnt from George Smith

Live video of Bill playing Lollipop Man is a great example of Bill’s showmanship

Every performance from Bill was different, nothing was scripted, he played and did what he felt like at the time

Kept the band on his toes by not telling them which song was coming next, or taking extended solos, etc.

Didn’t use a set-list, and the lesson that can teach us to be more spontaneous during live performance

Touring and playing every night no doubt helps tighten up the band for such spontaneity

Bill’s band didn’t practise, because they had gigs every night and also Bill wanted that freshen when recording in the studio

I committed on the podcast to lie down during a solo on my next gig as per Bill and George antics, and Paul wants photographic evidence

Bill also picked up a lot of the stagecraft in the LA blues clubs

People often remember the visual antics over your wonderful harmonica playing

Worked hard mixing the songs in the studio, to the extent that Bruce Iglauer gave him free reign to mix his own Alligator albums

How Bill approached recording in the studio

Wrote lots of his own songs, to bring a modern take on blues

Sang from the beginning, but worked hard at it and it improved as his career developed

Bill’s struggle with alcohol, and how he eventually overcame it

May have started drinking to overcome his shyness for when performing music

Performed better than ever when he quit drinking

Wife Jeanette provided fantastic support to Bill during his struggle with alcohol

Felt lonely when on the road

Was planning to tour less, spend more time at home and give harmonica lessons before he died

Did his first tour alongside George Smith in 1983, but George died later that year

Bill played with George around LA from 1977-1983

Bill quit his day job in 1986 to go full-time as a musician and toured extensively through the US and Europe, which was often hard going on the road

Signed with Alligator records in 1989, with the Blowin’ Like Hell album recorded before he signed with Alligator, but released on that label

Blowin’ Like Hell song is Bill’s anthem, and he would often perform 20 minute versions live, and the biography partly uses the song name

Other great songs from the Blowin’ Like Hell album

Blues Blast magazine said Blowin’ Like Hell album was the best harmonica album of the last twenty years

Won three WC Handy awards for the Blowin’ Like Hell album, including best instrumentalist for harmonica

Recorded three more albums on Alligator, with Paul thinking the four albums with Alligator are his best work, although there are other great earlier albums

Groove Time album is a favourite of mine

Had 18 top LA musicians with him on Groove Time album, and the great LA blues scene

LA Blues scene had more of a jazz and swing influence than the Chicago scene

Final album was The Hard Way, released in 1996

Bill’s funeral was well attended by his fans, who played his music

Paul was a pallbearer for Bill

Had an open casket where he was wearing sunglasses and had a Hering harmonica in his top pocket out of respect to the people of Brazil, who he admired

George Smith’s widow sang in the choir at the funeral

Bruce Iglauer read a eulogy at the funeral

Last section of the biography contains comments from various harmonica players and others, about Bill’s legacy to blues music and harmonica, and Paul’s view on this

Paul’s favourite songs of Bills

Wife Jeanette released some albums after he died, from some early recordings

Live In Germany is a great live album to listen to, and an extended version being released this year (2024)

Does Paul have any plans to write any more books?

Info

Happy Hour Harmonica Podcast

William Clarke retrospective, part 2, with Paul Barry

Feb 29, 2024 Season 1 Episode 105

Neil Warren

Paul Barry joins me again on episode 105, for another look at the life and career of the great William Clarke.

Paul has now released his biography: Blowin’ Like Hell: The William Clarke Story, writing it from insights he gained from Bill’s wife Jeanette, and Bill's children, and the musicians who played with him, as well as many others.

Bill dedicated his life from the age of sixteen to become the bluesman he dreamed he could be, and he worked extremely hard at it. He honed his craft from woodshedding at home, attending the blues clubs of LA, becoming the protege of George Smith, and pushing himself hard to create his unique voice both vocally and especially on the diatonic and chromatic harmonica. All this despite his personal demons, to become one of the leading players of his generation.

Links:
Paul’s website:
https://www.paulbarryblues.com/

Where to buy the biography:
https://www.paulbarryblues.com/william-clarke.html

Blues Blast magazine review of the William Clarke book:
https://www.bluesblastmagazine.com/issue-18-7-february-15-2024/?fbclid=IwAR3lctX2K7JrotYoAczEp_JE_rIktqg6QejnVrSMR52OYIvKiEM-GeyJS9Q

William Clarke Remembered Facebook Group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/171827912850208/

The first William Clarke retrospective with Paul:
https://www.harmonicahappyhour.com/william-clarke-retrospective-with-paul-barry/

Videos:
Bill playing Lollipop Mama at the San Fran Blues Festival in 1991:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrXrsmUWAGM

Interview with Bill, and concert footage from Byron Bay festival in Australia:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfgWsyKvC3o

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
AND
The Harmonica Company. Use promo code: 'happyhour7'.
Email Jonathan at: sales@theharmonicacompany.com

Support the Show.

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Paul Barry joins me again on episode 105, for another look at the life and career of the great William Clarke.

Paul has now released his biography: Blowin’ Like Hell: The William Clarke Story, writing it from insights he gained from Bill’s wife Jeanette, and Bill's children, and the musicians who played with him, as well as many others.

Bill dedicated his life from the age of sixteen to become the bluesman he dreamed he could be, and he worked extremely hard at it. He honed his craft from woodshedding at home, attending the blues clubs of LA, becoming the protege of George Smith, and pushing himself hard to create his unique voice both vocally and especially on the diatonic and chromatic harmonica. All this despite his personal demons, to become one of the leading players of his generation.

Links:
Paul’s website:
https://www.paulbarryblues.com/

Where to buy the biography:
https://www.paulbarryblues.com/william-clarke.html

Blues Blast magazine review of the William Clarke book:
https://www.bluesblastmagazine.com/issue-18-7-february-15-2024/?fbclid=IwAR3lctX2K7JrotYoAczEp_JE_rIktqg6QejnVrSMR52OYIvKiEM-GeyJS9Q

William Clarke Remembered Facebook Group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/171827912850208/

The first William Clarke retrospective with Paul:
https://www.harmonicahappyhour.com/william-clarke-retrospective-with-paul-barry/

Videos:
Bill playing Lollipop Mama at the San Fran Blues Festival in 1991:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrXrsmUWAGM

Interview with Bill, and concert footage from Byron Bay festival in Australia:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfgWsyKvC3o

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
AND
The Harmonica Company. Use promo code: 'happyhour7'.
Email Jonathan at: sales@theharmonicacompany.com

Support the Show.

This is a second interview with Paul, after the first one about William (Bill) Clarke was released in June 2022

Paul has now released his biography about Bill Clarke

I’ve read the book recently and it’s a great achievement and has received lots of good reviews and comments from people

Where people can obtain the book

Was working on a harmonica instruction book before Bill died. Paul decided to write a biography instead, as lots of instructional material already available

Bill died in 1996, before the internet became widely used, and he probably isn’t as well known as he deserves to be

Looking into Bill’s life story when writing the book, saw the humble beginnings that he came from, to become the great bluesman he became

How Paul approached writing the biography, and what research did he conduct

Bill’s wife Jeanette was a great help in providing material for the book, as were his children and many of the musicians he performed with

The pressure Paul felt in making sure the biography did justice to Bill

Wife Jeanette maintains the Facebook page: William Clarke Remembered

Paul wrote the book in his spare time, on top of his job and being a part-time musician

What Paul learnt about Bill, and playing the harmonica, from writing the biography, including how hard he worked

Torn between being a family man and being the best musician he could be

Bill would practice back in the hotel room after the gig

Learned from the blues harmonica greats early on in his development, but then was keen to forge his own sound

Bill also liked to listen to organ players, saxophonists and swing jazz and learn licks from those

Bill played chromatic in the middle of third position blues and the jazz approach on chromatic from the Toots Thielemans school of playing

George Smith showed Bill how to play chromatic initially, especially the octaves

Bill learnt by ear, didn’t work on music theory

Bill’s later albums became more sophisticated as he developed his playing skills

Was determined to forge his own sound

Was also a great diatonic player, which he started out on when he took up harmonica

Played a lot of octaves on diatonic, so approached it in a similar way to his chromatic playing at times

Proportion of how much third position he played on diatonic versus second position (and others)

Most of his chromatic playing is third position

Was always keen to entertain the audience with stage antics and to give 100% to entertain the crowd, things he learnt from George Smith

Live video of Bill playing Lollipop Man is a great example of Bill’s showmanship

Every performance from Bill was different, nothing was scripted, he played and did what he felt like at the time

Kept the band on his toes by not telling them which song was coming next, or taking extended solos, etc.

Didn’t use a set-list, and the lesson that can teach us to be more spontaneous during live performance

Touring and playing every night no doubt helps tighten up the band for such spontaneity

Bill’s band didn’t practise, because they had gigs every night and also Bill wanted that freshen when recording in the studio

I committed on the podcast to lie down during a solo on my next gig as per Bill and George antics, and Paul wants photographic evidence

Bill also picked up a lot of the stagecraft in the LA blues clubs

People often remember the visual antics over your wonderful harmonica playing

Worked hard mixing the songs in the studio, to the extent that Bruce Iglauer gave him free reign to mix his own Alligator albums

How Bill approached recording in the studio

Wrote lots of his own songs, to bring a modern take on blues

Sang from the beginning, but worked hard at it and it improved as his career developed

Bill’s struggle with alcohol, and how he eventually overcame it

May have started drinking to overcome his shyness for when performing music

Performed better than ever when he quit drinking

Wife Jeanette provided fantastic support to Bill during his struggle with alcohol

Felt lonely when on the road

Was planning to tour less, spend more time at home and give harmonica lessons before he died

Did his first tour alongside George Smith in 1983, but George died later that year

Bill played with George around LA from 1977-1983

Bill quit his day job in 1986 to go full-time as a musician and toured extensively through the US and Europe, which was often hard going on the road

Signed with Alligator records in 1989, with the Blowin’ Like Hell album recorded before he signed with Alligator, but released on that label

Blowin’ Like Hell song is Bill’s anthem, and he would often perform 20 minute versions live, and the biography partly uses the song name

Other great songs from the Blowin’ Like Hell album

Blues Blast magazine said Blowin’ Like Hell album was the best harmonica album of the last twenty years

Won three WC Handy awards for the Blowin’ Like Hell album, including best instrumentalist for harmonica

Recorded three more albums on Alligator, with Paul thinking the four albums with Alligator are his best work, although there are other great earlier albums

Groove Time album is a favourite of mine

Had 18 top LA musicians with him on Groove Time album, and the great LA blues scene

LA Blues scene had more of a jazz and swing influence than the Chicago scene

Final album was The Hard Way, released in 1996

Bill’s funeral was well attended by his fans, who played his music

Paul was a pallbearer for Bill

Had an open casket where he was wearing sunglasses and had a Hering harmonica in his top pocket out of respect to the people of Brazil, who he admired

George Smith’s widow sang in the choir at the funeral

Bruce Iglauer read a eulogy at the funeral

Last section of the biography contains comments from various harmonica players and others, about Bill’s legacy to blues music and harmonica, and Paul’s view on this

Paul’s favourite songs of Bills

Wife Jeanette released some albums after he died, from some early recordings

Live In Germany is a great live album to listen to, and an extended version being released this year (2024)

Does Paul have any plans to write any more books?