Dark Was The Night

last year, 'bout this same time of year, I went to the Portland Record Fair

got some great records and made some new friends

a year later, (yesterday), I went again

saw my friends, some of whom were even lookin' out for things I might dig

(and dig I did indeed)

one thing that fascinates me about records is that they seem to have survived the digital age by transcending their initial function

sounds like a lot of blah blah blah, I know but dig -

many of the best vinyl albums are sought after and have their relative value determined by DJs who constitute a population that looks for records not only for the love of the sounds, but for the use of the sounds

they don't intend to buy the records, put them on a shelf and only pull them out to be played at swanky dinner parties where they can advertise their own hipness

no, many of the real record connoisseurs plan to use the records to make new music

I'll admit, I don't typically fall into that category, but in the past year, I have been pretty intrigued by music made from manipulating existing music

there are many, many precedents for that kind of thing, but the short list would have to include the music of John Cage, Terry Riley, Steve Reich, Brian Eno, DJ Shadow, DJ Spooky (that subliminal kid), as well as more recent proponents like Moby, Nobukazu Takemura, and Maria Chavez

this far down the line, it seems downright ignorant to errr...ignore the tremendous contributions of electronic musicians and composers

for one thing, their music definitely reflects the glut of information and technology that has become such a vital aspect of our everyday lives

me, I still love to play the blues, so after I picked up a Folkways album from their jazz collection, Volume II, which focuses on the blues, I decided to see if I could "play" the blues using Blind Willie Johnson's "Dark Was The Night"

I don't have any disclaimers

I do love LOVE the original version, and Marc Ribot's version is also a favorite

Dark Was The Night