Hallo,

es handelt sich um folgende DVDs:

"American Folk Blues Festival 1962-1966 Vol 1" und "American Folk Blues Festival 1962-1966 Vol 2"

Dazu mal folgendes aus "Livin' blues" (etwas länger, aber der Zweck heiligt die Mittel, denn diese DVDs sind quasi Pflichtlektüre):

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The American Folk Blues Festival 1962 – 1966 (Volumes 1 & 2)
By Scott Barretta

In 1962 a plane left the United States for Europe carrying John Lee Hooker, Memphis Slim, T-Bone Walker, Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, Helen Humes, Shakey Jake, Willie Dixon, and Jump Jackson – the cast of the first of many annual American Folk Blues Festivals. They weren’t the first blues artists to visit Europe – they were preceded by Lead Belly, Josh White, Big Bill Broonzy, and Muddy Waters – but never before had blues been presented there on such a grand scale or, arguably, with such an impact.

This first grouping was organized by Dixon, who also coordinated the ’63 and ’64 shows, on behalf of German jazz promoters Horst Lippman and Fritz Rau. The former was the director of the television series "Jazz Gehort und Gesehen" (Jazz Heard And Seen) hosted by jazz scholar Joachim Berendt, who came up with the idea of bring over blues artists following a trip to Chicago. From 1962 to 1966 the annual series was filmed by German television, employing state-of-the-art technology, but the show – like similar programs filmed by other European national networks – have for the most part languished in archives.

The two DVDs at hand were produced by the California-based film archive firm Reelin’ In The Years, the largest film archive in the world, and contain, respectively, 17 and 16 songs drawn from the 1962 – 66 AFBF concerts, as well as bonus concert and candid material from 1969.

In addition to all the artists listed above from the 1962 show (save Helen Humes), Volume 1 features performances by Muddy Waters, Sonny Boy Williamson, Junior Wells, Otis Rush, Big Joe Williams, Fred McDowell, Walter Horton, Otis Spann, Lonnie Johnson, Eddie Boyd, and Sippie Wallace, with artists including Buddy Guy, Fred Below, Jack Myers, “Lonesome Jimmy Lee” (Robinsons), and Matt “Guitar” Murphy in backing roles. It’s futile to point out exemplary performances from artists who were largely still in their prime.

That said, what is most notable are the unique groupings – Junior Wells backed by Otis Rush on “Hoodoo Man”: Horton by Boyd and Guy on “Shakey’s Blues”: the backing group Murphy, Spann, Dixon and Stepney behind Williamson, Spivey, and Muddy Waters, where they’re joined by Williamson on harp and vocals on “Got My Mojo Working.” If that ain’t enough, the finale gathers what is likely the greatest array of talent ever together on one stage – on “Bye Bye Blues” Williamson, Spivey, Williams, Spann, Johnson, Waters, Memphis Slim, and Dixon all take a turn at the mike backed by Murphy and Stepney. The bonus footage, strikingly different than the 1962 – 66 concerts because of the use of a hand held camera, features Earl Hooker, who follows a brief interview with a light-hearted rendition of Ernest Tubb’s “Walking The Floor Over You” and a fiery “Off The Hook,” backed by Mack Thompson and Robert St. Julien.

Volume 2 opens with some of the most compelling footage, drawn from the 1964 show, which features a set recreating the derelict quarters of New Orleans and Chicago and the Wild West. After playing a solo version of “Bye Bye Bird” on “the street,” Sonny Boy Williamson enters through the swinging doors of the saloon cum juke joint, and is joined on “Back In My Younger Days” by Sunnyland Slim, Hubert Sumliun, Willie Dixon, and Clifton James. The same band backs Howlin’ Wolf on three numbers – Shake For Me, I’ll be Back Someday, and Love Me Darlin’ – and Sunnyalnd Slim is featured on Come On Home Baby.

Lightnin’ Hopkins, Victoria Spivey, and Roosevelt Sykes also appear, along with more by Terry & McGhee, Walker, Dixon and Memphis Slim. The finale here, the harmonica showdown Down Home Shakedown, is considerably more awkward but no less fascinating, as solos are taken in turn by Big Mama Thornton, Walter Hornton, J.B. Lenoir, Doctor Ross, and John Lee Hooker, a brave soul who is a bit out of his league.

The two bonus tracks feature rare interview and concert footage of Magic Sam, who performs “All Your Love” and the instrumental “Magic Sam’s Boogie” on Earl Hooker’s guitar, backed by Thompson and St. Julien.

Both DVDs feature songs from the 1962 and 1963 shows, in which artists presented one another, the most compelling of these is a gangly Sonny Boy Williamson speaking words of praise about Lonnie Johnson. If there is a negative side to these productions it lies in the mixing of material from different years; it would be of historical interest to see the shows in their entirety, including, presumably, introductions by jazz scholar Joachim Berendt. Likewise, there’s tantalizing informal footage of artists that appears in the index of the DVDs that doesn’t appear elsewhere. A third volume is already planned and will presumably contain artists who were overlooked in these productions, including Humes, John Henry Barbee, Sugar Pie DeSanto, Robert Pete Williams, and Big Joe Turner.

Appearing in both DVDs is a 22-page booklet featuring extended notes by Rob Bowman and beautiful photographs by Stephanie Wiesand; her work is also featured on the DVDs. Bowman’s notes address the impact the AFBF shows had on European blues enthusiasm as well as the fascinating backgrounds of the promoters – Lippman, half Jewish, successfully hid his ethnicity during the Nazi pogroms, and risked further persecution because of his advocacy of jazz, while Rau was a member of the Hitler Youth before converting over to the jazz cause.

It goes without saying that there has never been a collection quite like this, and it’s hard to imagine why such compelling footage was allowed to sit in archives for decades. This is, quite simply, the holy grail of blues video, and if you don’t have a DVD player yet there’s no better reason to run out and get one.

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Dem ist schlicht nix mehr hinzuzufügen (ausser vielleicht, dass Michael Ballhaus für die Kamerageschichten bei den Studioaufnahmen verantwortlich war und dass der Monoklang schlicht überragend gut ist).

Damit fing also alles an... Man kann sich ohne Probleme vorstellen, wie die Jungspunde Clapton, Richards, Page usw. damals mit runtergeklappter Kinnlade im Publikum sassen und z.B. T-Bone Walker lauschten. Das zieht einem noch heute die Schuhe aus.

Interessant ist auch, was Lonnie Johnson (damals 63 Jahre alt, er hatte schon in den 20er Jahren Aufnahmen gemacht...) so spielt. Da hört man, wem Duke Robillard aber ganz genau auf die Finger geschaut hat ;-).

Michael