Clarence Brown was known as "Gatemouth" because of his deep voice. It wasn't his voice that turned me into a fan however, that happened when I heard the instrumental Okie Dokie Stomp for the first time, long ago in the fifties. With that tune, he made all would-be rock 'n roll guitarists of the fifties somewhat unnecessary. Gatemouth was not a rock 'n roller, but one of the foremost architects of modern bluesguitar, second only to T-Bone Walker in terms of influential Texans. Brown recorded with Eric Clapton, Ry Cooder, Bonnie Raitt and others, but he took a dim view of most musicians - and blues guitarists in particular. He called B.B. King one-dimensional. He dismissed his famous Texas blues contemporaries Albert Collins and Johnny Copeland as clones of T-Bone Walker, whom many consider the father of modern Texas blues. A multi-instrumentalist (he played violin, harmonica, piano, mandolin, drums and guitar), Brown embraced a host of musical genres such as cajun, country, blues and jazz. In my memories, I still see him coming up on stage after midnight, somewhere on a festival in Belgium. Smoking his pipe, he started a concert of three hours. Standing, tired as hell and with tears in my eyes from the smoke in the festivaltent, I listened untill the last note. His music was way beyond the bands who came before him. And then there are his records...

'The Original Peacock Recordings' collects Brown's 1950's work and is the best indication of how and why his playing was so influential on several generations of Texas guitarists. He returned to a big band format 40 years later with 'Gate Swings' with smashing jazzy results. 'Pressure Cooker' reissues 1973 French sessions, backed by jazz greats including Jay McShann, Arnett Cobb and Milt Buckner. Somewhat predictable this last one, but very swinging. Brown passed in 2005 but his recordings are alive and kicking, check it out folks! See ya next week.

The Original Peacock Recordings - Rounder 1990
Gate Swings - Verve 1997
Pressure Cooker - Alligator 1987

Video: Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown - Dollar Got The Blues (Live Hamburg 1983)

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