David Johansen's blues

 David Johansen & The Harry Smiths (2000)

Shaker

 

David Johansen was founder member of the New York Dolls, who set New York alight in the early ‘70s, had a solo career as New Wave type rockers, a commercially successful turn as Buster Pointdexter and in the early years of the 21^st century, he turned to country blues and related folk songs, backed by the Harry Smiths and released these two albums.

 

This is about a weird as a career deviation as one could find. The Dolls and Johansen’ early solo stuff were about brash, insouciant and energetic rock and roll and I wouldn’t have thought that he had any interest in the blue at all, much less to the extent that he’d want to sing them, especially not the really old blues he’s recorded.  With Trouble No More (2003) John Mellencamp, a very successful ‘80’s roots rocker, did the same and released an album of blues and songs that is possibly my favourite Mellencamp album of all time, and just generally a much-loved collection.  It seems that both guys have a deep affection and sincere appreciation for this American musical art form.

 

The musicians in the Harry Smiths (named after a legendary collector of almost forgotten and lost American folk songs) Johansen do a great job of presenting a sympathetic, lightly swinging and never overbearing, mostly acoustic string band,  backing for Johansen’s gruff, gritty vocals and the mixture of blues standards and more obscure tunes he sings.

 

Aerosmith went blues on Honking with Bobo and essentially simply made blues rock versions of well-known tunes, for no apparent reason other than perhaps presenting eh record company with a contract filler when they had no new original material, and the album suffers because of that, not because the musicians aren’t proficient and can’t do justice to the material when its rocked up, but because we don’t need more blues rock.

 

Johansen possibly aims at being a proper mainstream artist, bringing us some choice examples from the Great American Songbook and the almost quiet, intimate style of song presentation would suit small halls and clubs. There are no grand gestures here, no bravura soloing and no effort to do anything but let the songs shine. I commend Johansen for this and for bringing obscurities to my attention and emphasising why country blues can be as satisfying as the Southside Chicago blues where my affection lies.