Hound dog would play on the North side of Chicago, and to young, "white", college groups. We would bring whiskey or beer and packs of cigarettes for him and he would play way past curfew for us. We snuck down to the Chicago South side to hear him playing. It was about 9 p.m. We were Caucasian, underage, with gifts of alcohol for HDT. He waved us in past the ticket taker guy. Then we found out that on the South side of town music started around midnight! Hound Dog told us with a shine in his eye, "ladies, we start later here than on the North side. But we play 'til dawn or the whiskey's gone!" And they did.
Absolutely my favorite Blues performer since I first heard him on the radio program King Biscuit Flower Hour back in late seventies. Pure raw blues at its best!
Totally agree! When a Hound Dog Taylor track comes on when I play iTunes on "random", I can tell from a couple of notes who's playing: a shiver goes down my spine… 😎
Thank you for sharing your story! Seeing how music brings people together and creates lifelong fans is incredible. Hound Dog Taylor was unique and great. Cheers!
A while ago I was in Tower Records in Piccadilly Circus in the bues section when I heard what I can only describe as the filthiest slide guitar I'd ever heard being played over their stereo. It was Hound Dog Taylor. Needless to say I bought that album and rushed home, put it on my stereo and played it. Again. And Again. And many more times since.
Glad the staff at Tower Records were so clued in! I had a similar experience when I played my first track by Hound Dog Taylor way back when. I can remember what I was doing and where I was and this was over 30 years ago! Totally mindblowing!@
First time I heard him...I was hooked. Here's another "shocking bit" he shot Brewer..but they made up and buried the hatchet..just a slight misunderstanding apparently .
When I heard his first record (in the mid seventies), it was such a big smack in the face. No one amongst Chicago bluesmen was so raw and down-to-earth! It took me years to figure out what he was exactly doing, and now his piece "Sadie" is included in every gig I play. I never miss to say who wrote it, and hope his family earns some money with his well deserved royalties.
he used to play at a pub/bar called Joe's Place a few miles from where I grew up ...there's some live recordings available put out by an Austrian label called Wolf Records...probably semi legitimate,but well recorded......the band (Ted Harvey and Brewer Phillips) later hooked up with JB Hutto,,,and later, Cub Koda from the American rock band Brownsville Station....interesting fact, George Thorogood and the Delaware Destroyers were their opening act at Joe's Place
Thank you for some great information about Hound Dog Taylor. This is exactly what I want this UA-cam channel to be about: all of us sharing news and stories about the acts we love. Thanks again and please keep watching!
I love Hound Dog Taylor never heard of him till I bought a bunch of albums from a yard sale and the album Natural Boogie was in it and once I head it and that dirty guitar I was in love now I have many of his albums and get whatever I can of him because he is awesome it's too bad he started so late in the game because he would of been bigger than he is.
Yes, Hound Dog Taylor was very special. In a way, I think it's fitting that he's a cult hero rather than a mainstream star. I think he liked it better it that way… Cheers and thanks for sharing your thoughts!
I first heard Hound Dog on a radio blues show in late 1983. I was already well into slide guitar in open tunings, but his tone and technique was so raw and intense, I hadn't heard something quite like it before. I was hooked, and soon bought one of his later Alligator albums. His condition of having the extra fingers is Polydactyly.
i first started listening to houndog in the early seventies when i has still a teenager and was hooked on his style, even today i can't stop playing his records; just for the sheer joy and thrill of playing the blues, his style was never lost on me; you are the first video i have seen giving a commentary on him; i have seen him on videos playing with all the really great musicians so he was right up there with the best; i would love to learn more about him; polydactyly never occurred to me but it makes sense because his left hand was so nimble on the fretboard and may possibly have accounted for his unique style; imagine what you can do on a fretboard at that level with an extra pinky; i always surmised that his houndog tag came from his physical build being so thin and lean and lanky like houndog's tail. any way finally thanks to you that is all now a little bit clearer; if you have any interesting links to his life please post them up as i would love to dig deeper into his life and work; by the way do you know when it was that he passed;
@JimDriver I sure try ,my hands have arthritis now, I sold it 30 years ago , and found it in California, I live in pacific northwest, jimi Hendrix land
First time I heard Hound Dog Taylor, was in the beginning cutscene of a game called Driver 2. Many years later I identified the song I was hearing was known as "Sittin at home alone", when it appeared in another Driver videogame: San Francisco.
Haha, I'm glad my knowledge is shining through! Thanks for the kind words. I hope you enjoy rocking out to the Hound Dog catalogue on Spotify. I know he's on practically every playlist I make…
I wonder if their band name inspired Mike Gibb and the Homewreckers. Mike was a legendary Blues player, and I was introduced to him by another legendary Blues player, Steve Ditzell, who is probably best known as the guitarist for Junior Wells, Buddy Guy, Fenton Robinson, and many others. It was Steve who turned me on to Hound Dog Taylor! He also has a new book out, about his life in The Blues. I'm looking forward to reading it. I will come back here and update with the title of the book very soon. Thanks for the video! One doesn't get to see Hound Dog Taylor videos very often these days!
Great video, best slide Blues player l saw Live was Johnny winter one of the greatest Guitar performances ever Was Ollie harsall when he backed Kevin Ayers a incredible player l remember in a small back room pub in King's Cross l saw pete bank's Yes and Flash played a awesome Jam fusion keep up the great work Jim cheers Steve s.
HiJim, Interesting. When he toured Europe with Little Walter, Coco Tayler etc, his technique was considered limited. J,B. Hutto was great with his own band but Elmore was surely the master. My blues journey started in '63 with Lightnin Hopkins. Still one of the greatest of them all.
I too have a wide range of Blues experience. But there’s a lot of light and shade. For example, can Slim Harpo be compared to Lightnin’ Hopkins? Personally, I don’t think so… My take is that Hound Dog Taylor showed amazing raw energy, and that wasn’t really taking into account back in the 1960s, when technique was considered everything…
He couldn't play for shit but he sure made it sound good 😂😂😂 what a quote. Hes in my top 5 favourites, others include Mississippi Fred, RL Burnside, Bukka White and Elmore James.
When I watch Joe Bonamassa talk about 'Multi-Thousands of Dollars in Perfect Equipment' to get the 'Ultimate Tone' to a bunch of Blues Lawyers, I say to myself "But you could never sound like Hound Dog Taylor'....Because you'd have to buy the sh*tiest equipment, set everything to '11', be drunk all the time so the guitar is slightly out of tune, never change strings and not give a F*CK about any of it - in order to completely Rock The House.
How very true and thanks for sharing your thoughts. Did I ever tell you about my run-in with Joe in a field in Bedfordshire, UK? (Rhetorical question!) I will reveal all one day, Cheers!
A bit of self promotion is ok. You are pasted redundant here. Hound Dog was hard core. Word is he killed a man in a bar fight. There is a story about the time he hit it 'big'. Provided with good instruments and amps, he could not play!
Oh Hounddog was a real mutha...6 fingers and all! Cheap Japanese guitars...dude was certainly lively and not real laid back blues...real juke joint music
I gave the thumbs down - BUT not for the footage of Hound Dog Taylor, because he is great. I though it was shameful that you are sensationalising the fact that Hound Dog had extra digits and describing it as a "secret" that you are unveiling for the first time.. It isn't a "secret". Grow up !
![Little Walter & Hound Dog Taylor • “Blues Jam/Mean Old World” • 1967 [RITY Archive]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/V8GWEvIkzGE/mqdefault.jpg)
![Little Walter & Hound Dog Taylor • “Blues Jam/Mean Old World” • 1967 [RITY Archive]](/img/tr.png)
I was 16 years old when i heard him playing on Maxwell street in Chicago. Absolutely floored me.
Wow! You’re so lucky. He’s one of the few performers I missed I really wished I could have seen live…
Hound dog would play on the North side of Chicago, and to young, "white", college groups. We would bring whiskey or beer and packs of cigarettes for him and he would play way past curfew for us.
We snuck down to the Chicago South side to hear him playing. It was about 9 p.m. We were Caucasian, underage, with gifts of alcohol for HDT.
He waved us in past the ticket taker guy. Then we found out that on the South side of town music started around midnight! Hound Dog told us with a shine in his eye, "ladies, we start later here than on the North side. But we play 'til dawn or the whiskey's gone!" And they did.
Absolutely my favorite Blues performer since I first heard him on the radio program King Biscuit Flower Hour back in late seventies. Pure raw blues at its best!
Totally agree! When a Hound Dog Taylor track comes on when I play iTunes on "random", I can tell from a couple of notes who's playing: a shiver goes down my spine… 😎
A blues fan introduced me to them in the 80's, been a fan ever since.
Thank you for sharing your story! Seeing how music brings people together and creates lifelong fans is incredible. Hound Dog Taylor was unique and great. Cheers!
A while ago I was in Tower Records in Piccadilly Circus in the bues section when I heard what I can only describe as the filthiest slide guitar I'd ever heard being played over their stereo. It was Hound Dog Taylor. Needless to say I bought that album and rushed home, put it on my stereo and played it. Again. And Again. And many more times since.
Glad the staff at Tower Records were so clued in! I had a similar experience when I played my first track by Hound Dog Taylor way back when. I can remember what I was doing and where I was and this was over 30 years ago! Totally mindblowing!@
First time I heard him...I was hooked. Here's another "shocking bit" he shot Brewer..but they made up and buried the hatchet..just a slight misunderstanding apparently .
I knew a drummer that met him
When I heard his first record (in the mid seventies), it was such a big smack in the face. No one amongst Chicago bluesmen was so raw and down-to-earth! It took me years to figure out what he was exactly doing, and now his piece "Sadie" is included in every gig I play. I never miss to say who wrote it, and hope his family earns some money with his well deserved royalties.
Thank you for sharing your personal connection with his music. It's great to see artists like HDT appreciated and remembered like this.
he used to play at a pub/bar called Joe's Place a few miles from where I grew up ...there's some live recordings available put out by an Austrian label called Wolf Records...probably semi legitimate,but well recorded......the band (Ted Harvey and Brewer Phillips) later hooked up with JB Hutto,,,and later, Cub Koda from the American rock band Brownsville Station....interesting fact, George Thorogood and the Delaware Destroyers were their opening act at Joe's Place
Thank you for some great information about Hound Dog Taylor. This is exactly what I want this UA-cam channel to be about: all of us sharing news and stories about the acts we love. Thanks again and please keep watching!
I grew up listening to hound dog. Glad you found him. Great video.thanks.
Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for commenting!
Thanks Jim, great info
Thank you very much. You have no idea how much I like being told that. 😀😀🥸
Please keep watching and commenting. Cheers!
I love Hound Dog Taylor never heard of him till I bought a bunch of albums from a yard sale and the album Natural Boogie was in it and once I head it and that dirty guitar I was in love now I have many of his albums and get whatever I can of him because he is awesome it's too bad he started so late in the game because he would of been bigger than he is.
Yes, Hound Dog Taylor was very special. In a way, I think it's fitting that he's a cult hero rather than a mainstream star. I think he liked it better it that way…
Cheers and thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Hound dog was great. Thanks for the video.
Thank you for your kind words, I appreciate it!
I'm sure HDT would thank you too if he was still around… 🌅
I first heard Hound Dog on a radio blues show in late 1983. I was already well into slide guitar in open tunings, but his tone and technique was so raw and intense, I hadn't heard something quite like it before. I was hooked, and soon bought one of his later Alligator albums. His condition of having the extra fingers is Polydactyly.
Thank you for sharing your experience of Hound Dog's music. It's great to hear how he inspired you as well. Cheers!
i first started listening to houndog in the early seventies when i has still a teenager and was hooked on his style, even today i can't stop playing his records; just for the sheer joy and thrill of playing the blues, his style was never lost on me; you are the first video i have seen giving a commentary on him; i have seen him on videos playing with all the really great musicians so he was right up there with the best; i would love to learn more about him; polydactyly never occurred to me but it makes sense because his left hand was so nimble on the fretboard and may possibly have accounted for his unique style; imagine what you can do on a fretboard at that level with an extra pinky; i always surmised that his houndog tag came from his physical build being so thin and lean and lanky like houndog's tail. any way finally thanks to you that is all now a little bit clearer; if you have any interesting links to his life please post them up as i would love to dig deeper into his life and work; by the way do you know when it was that he passed;
Great cimment - thanks! According to www.findagrave.com/memorial/9499/theodore-roosevelt-taylor he died of lung cancert (aged 60) in December 1975.
I got a hounddog kingston guitar in 1966, and it was from a loan shop
That's a great piece of history! Do you still play it?
@JimDriver I sure try ,my hands have arthritis now, I sold it 30 years ago , and found it in California, I live in pacific northwest, jimi Hendrix land
I wonder if The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion were influenced by him to perform as a two guitarists / one drummer combo?
I think that might well be true!
As are GA 20.@@JimDriver
First time I heard Hound Dog Taylor, was in the beginning cutscene of a game called Driver 2. Many years later I identified the song I was hearing was known as "Sittin at home alone", when it appeared in another Driver videogame: San Francisco.
Who knew video games could be the gateway to discovering great music? Thanks for commenting!
Yet again your knowledge shines through. Really enjoyed this one. I enjoyed it so much I downloaded the whole Hound Dog Catralogue on Spotify.
Haha, I'm glad my knowledge is shining through! Thanks for the kind words. I hope you enjoy rocking out to the Hound Dog catalogue on Spotify. I know he's on practically every playlist I make…
I wonder if their band name inspired Mike Gibb and the Homewreckers. Mike was a legendary Blues player, and I was introduced to him by another legendary Blues player, Steve Ditzell, who is probably best known as the guitarist for Junior Wells, Buddy Guy, Fenton Robinson, and many others. It was Steve who turned me on to Hound Dog Taylor! He also has a new book out, about his life in The Blues. I'm looking forward to reading it. I will come back here and update with the title of the book very soon. Thanks for the video! One doesn't get to see Hound Dog Taylor videos very often these days!
Thanks! I intend to do videos on more obscure acts more often…
I own the original photo from his first album- the actual print from Peter Amft.
That's amazing! Owning a piece of music history is such a unique privilege. Thanks for watching and for commenting. Cheers!
Great video, best slide Blues player l saw Live was Johnny winter one of the greatest Guitar performances ever Was Ollie harsall when he backed Kevin Ayers a incredible player l remember in a small back room pub in King's Cross l saw pete bank's Yes and Flash played a awesome Jam fusion keep up the great work Jim cheers Steve s.
Thanks, Steve, it’s very much appreciated!
HiJim, Interesting. When he toured Europe with Little Walter, Coco Tayler etc, his technique was considered limited. J,B. Hutto was great with his own band but Elmore was surely the master. My blues journey started in '63 with Lightnin Hopkins. Still one of the greatest of them all.
I too have a wide range of Blues experience. But there’s a lot of light and shade. For example, can Slim Harpo be compared to Lightnin’ Hopkins? Personally, I don’t think so…
My take is that Hound Dog Taylor showed amazing raw energy, and that wasn’t really taking into account back in the 1960s, when technique was considered everything…
His technique was limited, but very intense and effective.
Gotta love the Hound... got into him after the 'Rum Diaries'... six fingers ?! fuckin 'ell
Thanks for sharing your love of Hound, Dog - he definitely was a unique bluesman!
If you look in the dictionary for the definition of the word "party", there's just a picture of Hound Dog Taylor and the Houserockers!
Haha! If there's not, there should be!! Cheers!
Two minutes in and I already know what the big secret is! ❤
Haha! Very perceptive…
And thanks for watching and commenting!
Saw him feb 72 sat juke joint till the whiskey run out..
Thanks for sharing your experience, from 1972! It sounds like an unforgettable gig!
@@JimDriver absolutely...J
Eu amo o BLUE
Yes, I like blue, too… 😀
Elmore James style slide.
Indeed!
He couldn't play for shit but he sure made it sound good 😂😂😂 what a quote. Hes in my top 5 favourites, others include Mississippi Fred, RL Burnside, Bukka White and Elmore James.
You rested some great horses there. Like you, I love the blues and Hound Dog Taylor in particular. Please keep watching and commenting!
When I watch Joe Bonamassa talk about 'Multi-Thousands of Dollars in Perfect Equipment' to get the 'Ultimate Tone' to a bunch of Blues Lawyers, I say to myself "But you could never sound like Hound Dog Taylor'....Because you'd have to buy the sh*tiest equipment, set everything to '11', be drunk all the time so the guitar is slightly out of tune, never change strings and not give a F*CK about any of it - in order to completely Rock The House.
How very true and thanks for sharing your thoughts. Did I ever tell you about my run-in with Joe in a field in Bedfordshire, UK? (Rhetorical question!) I will reveal all one day, Cheers!
hey Jim...............check out Guy Verlinde and the Houserockers. Cheers m8
Thanks for the recommendation! I'll definitely check them out. Cheers!
Love HDT!!!😎
Played a wonderful old Kawai...
...did you ever put on The Pirates after they made a come back around 77?
Thanks for commenting! Yes, I put on The Pirates several times, both at The Cricketers and at the 100 Club.
*Polydactyly
A bit of self promotion is ok. You are pasted redundant here.
Hound Dog was hard core. Word is he killed a man in a bar fight.
There is a story about the time he hit it 'big'. Provided with good instruments and amps, he could not play!
Oh Hounddog was a real mutha...6 fingers and all! Cheap Japanese guitars...dude was certainly lively and not real laid back blues...real juke joint music
Totally agree! Cheers!
Stonking stuff.
I gave the thumbs down - BUT not for the footage of Hound Dog Taylor, because he is great.
I though it was shameful that you are sensationalising the fact that Hound Dog had extra digits and describing it as a "secret" that you are unveiling for the first time..
It isn't a "secret". Grow up !
Unveiling secrets about extra digits is such a future season, right? 😀😍
Unveiling "secrets" like Hound Dog's extra digits, next up is the scoop on his favourite guitar picks (in reverse order)! 😀
@@JimDriver - Eh ?
GA 20 band tribute and Lightning Guy...
I'll take your word for it 😀
Best plus JLH and RL BURNSIDE...
Beware Of The Dog... no not that dog, but Hound Dog Taylor rippin it on slide guitar.
That dog may not bite, but Hound Dog Taylor's guitar skills definitely do!