Johnny Winter: Musical Discovery of the Month

I will be the first to admit that I am nowhere close to a music "aficionado". I love music, and am a firm believer in the idea that life should be more musical, whether that entails more song-and-dance numbers or epic scores to accompany everyday life. I mean, come on... who doesn't want Clint Mansell's "Requiem for a Dream" playing every time they open a stubborn jar of pickles or bike to the 7-11? However, despite my appreciation and adoration for the art, I cannot truthfully claim that I am some encyclopedic buff with a sweeping knowledge that covers the entire scope of musical history. I have the various bands that I enjoy, and that's about it. I don't go digging under rocks for those treasures buried in the windswept sands of forgotten time. I don't hang out at local underground bars in hopes of discovering the next "indie" phenom. I do, however, have access to programs like Rhapsody and, more recently, Pandora, and they're helping to open up my world musically, allowing me to freely explore as many different artists and genres as my heart desires.

And so, I thought it might be fun to share this journey with you guys, posting a new "Musical Discovery of the Month" every, well... month. Hopefully, you might be able to find a few new favorites here, too. So, without any further adieu, I'd like to introduce my first ever DiscoMo (????).

Ladies and gentlemen...... Mr. Johnny Winter!

"Sup."

Now, don't let that picture deceive you. In most of the photographs I found of Winter, he was lucky to be wearing pants, never mind a frickin' tuxedo. But that's (mostly) beside the point. The point is that Johnny Winter up there knew he could pull off the formal-wear look despite his previous history with tuxedos probably amounting to no more than waterballooning the kids coming out of prom. Little Johnny and his brother, Edgar, were born and raised in Texas, and their parents encouraged them to pursue their musical inclinations even at an early age. So what makes Johnny Winter special? Well, for starters, skill.

In the age of auto-tune and digitally mixed beats, Winter (who still performs to this day) brings natural talent to the forefront with his wicked blues guitar, and isn't shy about highlighting his fellow musicians, either, letting bass and drum solos rock out on songs like "Sen-sa-shun" (one of my new favorites). Other notably fun songs include "Love Song To Me", which is a pretty self-explanatory indulgence that simply cannot take itself seriously (which is for the best, really), and "Pick Up On My Mojo", which adds a little funk and rhythm to the death-beaten blues formula. Even the mellower tunes, like "Stranger" or "Blue Mood" break away from some of the conventional trappings of blues music. I personally think Winter's shining moments though, like his counterpart, Stevie Ray Vaughan, are when he's blistering his fingers wailing on the guitar. The man can absolutely hold his own when it comes to abusing guitars and blowing minds. Not to mention he has a sort of "white Louis Armstrong" thing going on when he sings, all gravely and gorgeous. All this, and the dude's older than Gandalf. And Gandalf had freaking magic.

Who needs magic when you've got STAR DECALS! Wheeee!!

Also, he and his brother are both albinos, so, you know... that's pretty baller.

In any case, if you get a chance, and you're a fan of hard-rocking Texas blues, I would definitely recommend giving ol' Johnny a listen. Granted, I've still got quite a bit of listening to do myself, but so far, I'm enjoying every note.

Well, that's about it for this issue. I'll try to drum up some sort of template for these so that I'll have a better selection of topics and (hopefully) more to say next time. Tune in next month for some (maybe) fresh talent!