Now very topically, this blog is a second taster of the upcoming double interview feature with Mud Morganfield and John Lee Hooker Junior in November’s issue of Blues Matters magazine following our recent “Arise sons of giants” blog www.bluesmatters.com/blog/arise-sons-of-giants
Here we focus on something novel to the Blues that John Lee Hooker Jr is particularly proud of. For John Lee Jr has an animated alter ego. He is “Bluesman”, the world’s first virtual or animated Blues character, which takes the Blues close to the innovative territory explored by Blur’s Damon Albarn with Gorillaz.
We asked John Lee Jr about the latest Bluesman video, which is included on DVD with his new album, “All Hooked Up”. He was happy to tell us about him. “The animation runs to my song, ‘Dear John’. It was co-produced by Laurent Mercier in Paris, France. Mercier’s father was a jazz musician. He and my Dad were fans of each other. He said he wanted to collaborate with Junior and we got together. Since we first did the Bluesman we’ve been upgrading it, just like people do their iPhone’s and cars. “Dear John” shows the most upgraded animation in the Blues, it was the first ever Blues cartoon created. I’m very proud of it. Some of the song “Dear John” is true. It mentions about being in a Cadillac and OD’d [drugs overdose] and waking only to go to jail. I did that. I am an artist and I had to create that character.”
You can view an earlier Bluesman video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEXbkGcXF-E
The idea of appearing alongside “Bluesman” in an animation appealed to Mud Morganfield, when we asked him about it, so Bluesman might become “Bluesmen”. Watch this space.
You can read more about John Lee Jr and his time with drugs and prison and his new lifestyle and new music, as well as Mud Morganfield’s similarly arduous journey through life until he claimed his musical birthright, in November’s Blues Matters magazine. Together with our double interview feature, we also review both artists’ latest albums.
To read the feature, subscribe to our magazine. Blues Matters magazine is available in printed and electronic editions, and available around the world.
Subscribe here http://www.bluesmatters.comsubscriptions
N.B., photo of Jools Holland as Patron of Music at the Boisdale Canary Wharf. Mud Morganfield plays the Boisdale on Saturday 24th November, details here http://tickets.boisdale.co.uk/pages/events/mud-morganfield/24-11-2012
