June 2016

Posted by sitemanager Category: Diary

Hi everyone,

Someone asked if I knew the Beatles. No I never did meet the band or any individual members. John Lennon did come and see a Savoy Brown show (I believe it was at the Academy of Music in New York City) and I was disappointed he didn’t come back stage. A friend of his did and said how much ​John had​ enjoyed the show!

It got me to thinking. “Who did I know from the 1960’s”? I was quite young when I turned professional. Probably seventeen or eighteen years old…so everyone else was three or four years older. That meant, in high school terms, I was a freshman and they were seniors. Therefore I didn’t hang with Clapton, Page or Beck although I have played many gigs with them….​and stories…​even did a gig ​with​ Page when he was in the Yardbirds, prior to his forming Led Zeppelin.

I did see Peter Green quite often and have always admired him more than anyone else….though I am a “Slowhand” fan, having watched him from his early Yardbirds days.

John Mayall I have known since I was that teenager starting out. I have jammed with John many times.​ The last time was a couple of years ago when I opened for him, solo acoustic on a tour of Hawaii. He was friendly and a lot of fun to be with. And his band were good people to be with too. A memorable experience.​

​So​, anyway,​ I am not ​”​friends​”​ with ​many​ from the early “blues boom” days but I have crossed paths with everyone from touring together. I think being young, naive and shy stopped me from bonding with my fellow musicians…though I can’t be objective, really.​ Sometimes I hung out with the “older” guys at drinking clubs (I jammed and spent an evening with Jimi Hendrix for instance….but never formed a friendship). I had heard he liked my playing. That meant a lot to me.

​Whilst not being close to anyone, ​I have met and talked with most of my contemporaries…some have been pleasant to me and some have been miserable.​ One wondered at the time “is it me?”…now I know some people are just that…miserable. And, of course like all of us, catch us one day and we can be friendly, the next… not so.

By the way, ​Jimi was very down to earth and pleasant.​

Long John Baldry was always ​great to be around​ and I was a big fan of his from the Alexis Korner days. ​The latter musician was quite cool to me maybe because he was generally that way to the school of players that came after him and had more success. But I don’t really know if even THAT’s true​. Maybe I caught him on BAD days!​

I have many stories that include the names I have mentioned and all the other 60’s participants but maybe I’ll leave those stories for the book I suppose I need to write…..I have left SO much out​ of course.​ And this long letter started because of a simple “did you meet the Beatles” question!

All the best and may music bring joy to your life and help make it sweeter,

Kim

NY, June 2016