1.2.14 "Blues Adam" and "Red House"

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Adam Lambert ‏@adamlambert 10h
NYE! instagram.com/p/ioujn4ONDh/

Adam LambertVerified account ‏@adamlambert
Cover of RED HOUSE by Hendrix from last night's NYE concert: http: //www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lvb1F6tcJMA&sns=em …
Source: Twitter 1.1.14







WATCH: Adam Lambert Rings In The New Year
With Some Jimi Hendrix
January 1st, 2014

There was no rest for Adam Lambert on New Year’s Eve.

The magical, musical man hit the stage to perform for hoards of fans at the WinStar Casino in Thackerville, Oklahoma. Those people don’t know how lucky they are.



But while they got to see him perform live, we can still enjoy a piece of his awesome performance! A fan posted this amazing video of Adam singing Jimi Hendrix‘s “Red House” and you guys, it is so good.

Thank goodness Adam Tweeted out the video link, or we might not have seen it. Also, for something they started rehearsing that morning, it sounds pretty perfect. Watch the video above and tell us what you think of his cover in the comments! Good way to start 2014 for sure.

Link: socialitelife.com/watch-adam-lambert-rings-in-the-new-year-with-some-jimi-hendrix-01-2014


@ameribluesscene
@adamlambert DUDE!!!!!! Y'all just killed it on this one!!!!
Truth!

American Blues Scene ‏@ameribluesscene 10m
@tommyjoeratliff Just watched the RED HOUSE video.....damn bro you all killed it dead!!!!!! Awesome job!!! @brianlondon @adamlambert #Blues



"Blues Adam" and “Red House”
1.2.14 by Q3

I can't stop playing Adam's performance of "Red House". It is not the first time he has performed a blues song, but it is the first time I think he has really "sung the blues". For example, WLL is based on a blues song, but Adam performed it as a rock song most of the time although Fantasy Springs WLL was very close. It is the tone and sensibility of this performance that were different.

***

While Jimi Hendrix "composed" the song "Red House", it is largely based on the songs from the Mississippi delta and follows the same blues chord structure and themes found in countless songs.

It somehow feels appropriate to me that I write this piece sitting in Mississippi -- the home of the blues  -- and just a bit down the road from Memphis, TN and Florence, AL the home of William Christopher (W. C.) Handy the "Father of the Blues". W. C. Handy traveled throughout Mississippi in 1902 and listened to the various black popular musical styles which he later transcribed as sheet music. These transcriptions along with Handy' own compositions and band performances led to the popularization of the blues throughout America and later the world. What Handy and other bluesmen did not do, Elvis Presley (from Tupelo, MS) and other early rock and roll artists pretty much finished. By the end of the 1950's, blues was global.

No reason to compare performances of "Red House"

The Adam cover of “Red House” was quite different than the Jimi Hendrix version which is, of course, guitar-centric. But I think Adam truly captured the blues spirit in his performance. And I want MORE!

I do not think it makes any sense to compare these two versions of "Red House" -- Adam is Adam, Jimi is Jimi. But since it is a very important blues song, I thought I would post some background about the song and the recordings.

Jimi Hendrix and "Red House"

In 1966, Hendrix moved to London and formed a band with bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell, The Jimi Hendrix Experience. They released their first album, "Are You Experienced?", in May 1967. This debut album included one pure blues track, "Red House”. The song, composed by Jimi Hendrix has gone on to become one of the most seminal and most covered guitar-based blues songs.

"Red House" was recorded by the Experience on December 13, 1966 at the CBS Studios in London. Producer Chas Chandler explained:


"Red House" is a slow (66 beats per minute) twelve-bar blues in the key of B♭ with lyrics that follow the common blues theme of the rambling man and his lost love. It is based on classic blues song structure and derived from older blues songs. The song opens with a diminished seventh chord frequently found in blues songs. After the four-bar intro, Redding and Experience drummer Mitch Mitchell come in while Hendrix solos up to the vocal at bar thirteen. After two twelve-bar vocal sections, Hendrix solos for twelve bars, then finishes up with another vocal section.

The 12-bar blues or blues changes is one of the most popular chord progressions in popular music and is the back bone of the blues, and the basis for many pop and country songs. The blues progression has a distinctive form in lyrics and phrase and chord structure and duration. It is, at its most basic, based on the I-IV-V chords of a key.

Many famous songs are twelve-bar blues songs – and quite a few have been on my dream “Adam Should Cover List” for years. Here are a few:

Be Bop A Lula
Bumblebee Blues
Blue Suede Shoes
Hound Dog
I Got You
In the Mood
Jailhouse Rock
Jump, Jive an' Wail
Night Train
Shake, Rattle and Roll
Tutti Frutti

Now, that Adam has covered one blues song, maybe we will get a few more!

“Red House” Releases

The mono mix of early recording (December 13, 1966 CBS Studios London) was issued on the UK version of the Jimi Hendrix Experience's debut album "Are You Experienced". When the album was released in the U.S., "Purple Haze", "Hey Joe" and "The Wind Cries Mary" (Hendrix' singles) were included on the album replacing "Red House" and two other songs. Hendrix later commented, "Everybody was scared to release 'Red House' in America because they said, 'America don't like the blues, man!'".

In 1969, the version of the song recorded in a later session at De Lane Lea/Olympic and mixed in stereo was included on the American Smash Hits compilation. This version was later released internationally on the 1984 "Kiss the Sky" compilation. The original mono take became available in the U.S. and Canada when it was released (without most of the studio talk at the end) on the 1994 "Blues" album. More current reissues of "Are You Experienced" and "Smash Hits" include one of the versions of "Red House", depending on the country of origin.

Jimi Hendrix original version

Jimi Hendrix performed this song at Woodstock and it was included in the film. Note: Although the song is in the key of B♭ Hendrix usually tuned his guitar one-half step lower, and he fingered the song in the key of B.: www.dump.com/jimihendrix/

Here is the vinyl album track - with a video of the spinning vinyl:



Happy to replay this performance many more times!

I think that "Red House" was a brilliant song for Adam to cover. I would love to hear why he decided to cover it but in the meantime, whatever the reason, I am one happy fan who plans to wear this performance out!

Thank you to all the videographers and photographers who have shared this and all the other great stuff from WinStar. An thank you to Adam for giving us one more stunning performance. <3


Upcoming Events

February 8, 2014 Adam performs at the Los Angeles Awards Dinner - Family Equality Council - Globe Theatre, Universal Studios Hollywood, Time: 7:00pm Cocktail Reception, 8:00pm Dinner &amp; Program.

www.familyequality.org/get_involved/events/annual_events/los_angeles_awards_dinner/#.Uqkst6dw-Fg.twitter

Happy Birthday
cc, col, gillybean6670, joellat,
pjd, themrainsworth
and walker60921!!