Blues Journey Essentials
Updated: Sep 19
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If You Only Buy Three Things
Skip the scroll. These three cover the most ground for the least money.
1. The harp. Key of C, plastic comb, won't swell in Delta humidity. Around $45.
2. The book. Cheseborough's road guide — crossroads, graves, markers, what's still standing. Keep it in the truck.
3. The chair. Delta heat in August is not a joke and you will be standing for six hours without one.
Everything else is below.
Hohner Special 20
The modern workhorse. Plastic comb, so it won't swell in Delta humidity. Start here. Usually runs $45–$60.
Hohner Marine Band 1896
The old sound. Wood comb, made since 1896. It's what's on the records. Usually runs $45–$55.
Slides
Glass for warm and smooth. Brass for loud and cutting. Most run $8–$20 — cheap enough to own all three.
Which one do I actually need?
Harp players play cross-harp, which means the harp is pitched a fourth above the song's key. Song in E, you grab an A harp. Song in G, you grab a C harp.
Starting out? Get a C. Want the Delta sound? Get an A. Those two will carry you a long way.
Between the two models: the Special 20 is easier and takes abuse. The Marine Band has a voice the plastic ones don't, but the wood needs S,looking after. Most players own both eventually.
Feel It. Live It. Know It.
Books
Eight books. If you only ever read a few about this music, read these. Every link goes to Amazon.
Deep Blues — Robert Palmer
The one people hand you first. Palmer traces the music out of the Delta and follows it north to Chicago, without making saints out of the people who made it.
Blues Traveling — Steve Cheseborough (4th Edition)
A driving guide to the sites. Crossroads, gravesites, juke joints, markers. Updated with the Mississippi Blues Trail. Keep it in the truck.
Blues from the Delta — William Ferris
Field study. Ferris sat down with Delta musicians and recorded what they actually said, and he brought a camera. Closest thing to being in the room.
Moanin' at Midnight — Segrest & Hoffman
The life and times of Howlin' Wolf. Chester Burnett out of West Point, Mississippi — the early years, the Memphis sessions, the rivalry with Muddy, all of it.
Can't Be Satisfied — Robert Gordon
The life and times of Muddy Waters. Stovall plantation to Chess Records. The man who plugged in and built the template every rock band since has copied.
Father of the Blues — W. C. Handy
Handy in his own words. Memphis, Beale Street, the first published blues. The book that put this music on paper.
The World Don't Owe Me Nothing — David "Honeyboy" Edwards
Honeyboy was there. Robert Johnson, Charlie Patton, the 1927 flood, the county farm. Out of Shaw, Mississippi, telling it straight.
Slim Harpo: Blues King Bee of Baton Rouge — Martin Hawkins
James Moore — "I'm a King Bee," "Baby Scratch My Back," "Rainin' in My Heart." The only full book on him, and it doubles as the story of swamp blues and Excello Records.
Shooting Kit
If you're documenting any of this yourself — a porch session, a festival set, a marker on a back road — a gimbal is the difference between footage you keep and footage you delete. The Osmo Mobile 8 runs about $129 and it's the best price-to-result in the field right now. Straight up: I don't own one yet. It's what I'm buying when I buy.
Festival Kit
Delta heat in April and August is not a joke. This is what makes a festival day bearable.
Folding chair with a cooler and cup holder
Four-can cooler built into the arm, mesh cup holder, side pockets, cushioned seat and back. Holds up to 325 pounds and folds into a carry bag.
Want more room? The Oversized Quad has adjustable armrests, a powder-coated steel frame, and an attached soft cooler that holds three to four cans.
Misting fan
Pull the trigger and it throws a fine mist while the fan blows it back on your face and neck. Cheapest relief you will find standing in an open field. Runs on two AA batteries, not included.
Cooler with wheels
Wheels, not a handle — you are crossing gravel and grass. The Coleman 50-Quart Xtreme holds 84 twelve-ounce cans, is rated to hold ice five days at 90 degrees, and has a retractable handle so one person can pull it.
These are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases — costs you nothing extra, and it helps keep this going.
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