Topic: Another fun topic I am curious about

[ryan]

So I am curious if the majority of your significant others, friends, co-workers, etc. share your passion of pre-war blues?  For the most part I am (and have been throughout my short existence on this planet) the black sheep out of the majority of people I keep in regular contact with for liking the stuff I like. 
Take care,
Ryan 

[a2tom]

I am an island.  I did recently find another island in the area, however, and whenever we get together everyone laughs 'cause we talk about acoustic blues guitar and everyone else ignores us.

tom

[Richard]

I am on a pretty small island anyway.

Ergo, could I be an islet 

[frankie]

I'm lucky enough to be married to someone who likes this music as much as I do.  We play old-time music, too, so we find a lot of sympathetic ears through those channels.

Most people outside of the musicians we know (including our families) don't seem to have any interest in what we do.

[Slack]

I'm an Island here in El Paso.  I should be playing Conjunto or Old Time.  The largest guitar repairman in El Paso knowd of no other folks playing CB here.  A guitar teaching business (the only one devoted to teaching guitar here) knows of no other CB players here - even though they have pictures of Robery Johnson, Memphis Minnie and Blind Willie Johnson on the wall.  I've heard of a CB player in New Mexicao, about 4 hours north of here.

Other than a son who plays some CB, the family and friends jsut consider it another one of my eccentricities... which they seem to enjoy.

cheers,
slack

[Alexei McDonald]

Et ego insula est.

I can't remember the last time I actually met someone who liked this sort of music in real-life.   There must be other people around here who buy it, or I'd never have found any in the shops to start with, but who they are, I don't know.

[Bill Roggensack]

Another island - only mine is surrounded by ice eight months of the year! There are actually a few CB players in Edmonton and Calgary, but not many in the amateur category. The fellow who mentored me on my early attempts at bottleneck playing moved to Saltspring Island a couple of years ago (when he married Mae Moore) - http://www.lesterq.com/music/index.html - it has been difficult to find someone to take his place as an occasional teacher.

As for spousal appreciation of the CB artform - not likely at my house! She does tolerate going out to CB concerts and such (to humor me) and has actually enjoyed some of them, but she gets payback when I go with her to listen to a night of Big Band and Swing, or worse, the dreaded Showtunes! I have run into a few people who seem intersted, but they quickly demonstrate how shallow their knoweldge and appreciation of CB really is. So I typically spend the next 30 minutes going through recommendations for 'essential' CB CDs. They usually run the next time they see me.

[GhostRider]

Hi all:

Slack, eccentric? Come on!

Here in Calgary there is actually one acoustic CB player who plays in clubs (Tim Williams). I know of no other pre-war enthusiasts, but I have a couple of friends whom I'm educating (both musically and politically).

I play at a monthly open stage where I get kidded about not knowing any songs written before 1940 (not true, Nothing in Rambling (MM) is 1941) and these folks are beginning to recognize names like Little Hat Jones etc.

A point I have made before is that many wouldbe CB fans are put off initially by the scratchy old recordings. It's much easier to bring them in through modern practioners, for example Rory Block, Ernie Hawkins and Little Toby Walker, then point them back to the sources of the cover songs that they liked. I'm so devious.

Alex

[blueshome]

  Same old story - 45 years of isolation! One occasional playing buddy, no-one who I can learn from locally and wife who barely tolerates the music. At least my son likes CB a little, although he prefers Chicago 50's electric (he's a pro drummer).

If it were not for such promotions as? Pt. Townsend and our (UK) Bluesweek I don't think many of us would know that there were many other players out there. Bluesweek has extended my circle of blues friends, but even then there are not many who are wholeheartedly into the CB thing much beyond RJ and Muddy.