Buddy Guy, 2008. Photo by Tom Beetz
Before getting into the song, I need to thank Cincinnati Babyhead for recommending Buddy Guy to me. I borrowed two albums from the library and have listened to one of them so far, “Born to Play Guitar.” The whole album is full of great tunes, but this one, written by Buddy Guy and Tom Hambridge, struck me just right. The story and the way Buddy plays and sings it is juuuuuuust right. Looking at the breakdown of the musicians on this album I see Doyle Bramhall II plays on it also (along with a bunch of other great musicians.)
“Crying out of One Eye,” is an idiom I hadn’t heard before but oh is there anyone who doesn’t get what is meant by it? As another old gold song sings, “Everybody plays the fool sometimes.” I feel sorry for the guy but I’m glad he has the savvy to see what’s going on.
Now about a musician I didn’t know even a few short days ago, but one who I am totally bowled over by, Mr. Buddy Guy!
From wikipedia:
George “Buddy” Guy (born July 30, 1936) is an American blues guitarist and singer. He is an exponent of Chicago blues who has influenced generations of guitarists including Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jeff Beck, Gary Clark Jr. and John Mayer. In the 1960s, Guy played with Muddy Waters as a session guitarist at Chess Records and began a musical partnership with blues harp virtuoso Junior Wells. His popularity did not go mainstream until his promotion by major rock stars finally took hold in the late 1980s.
Guy was ranked 23rd in Rolling Stone magazine’s “100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.” His song “Stone Crazy” was ranked 78th in the Rolling Stone list of the “100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time.” Clapton once described him as “the best guitar player alive.” In 1999, Guy wrote the book Damn Right I’ve Got the Blues, with Donald Wilcock. His autobiography, When I Left Home: My Story, was published in 2012.
Tao Talk 
i saw Buddy Guy at a Blues Festival 30 years ago– a number of artists there including BB King- and the highlight was Buddy Guy. Made me a fan for life.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That man can play! I can see where Eric Clapton was influenced by him. So amazing that you saw him live. He’s getting up there in age. One song on this album has a tribute to BB King. Another really good one is about Muddy Waters and their friendship. At the end he says, “you made me promise to keep on playing.”
LikeLike
Nice song! ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes it is ❤ Ain't nothin like the blues, and ain't nothin like Buddy Guy singin the blues.
LikeLike
How cool You are. Loved this. I had to look for myself. The first one that popped out was Damn Right I got the blues. Wow.
Listen to this:
(At least this is how I made it out to say)
You damn right I got the blues
From my hat down to my shoes.
You know I can win
Cause I got not a golf ball to lose.
You damn right
I’ll keep the blues.
And the guitar! Jeez!¡! Incredible.
Loved watching the video.
Haha. Buddy Guy is amazin. Never heard of him before. I’m introducing my sons to this great Guy. Wow. Thanks.
Crying out of one Eye. Sweetness!!
This Guy loves up that guitar. Thanks for sharing. You So Cool, Sista!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Selma, you’ve made my morning with your comment. Happy you are introducing your kids to Buddy’s music.
LikeLiked by 1 person
So cool! 👏
LikeLiked by 1 person
Sharing the link: YouTube
LikeLiked by 1 person
❤ The man can play!
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re spreading the good word. How it works. Did you see the doc I mentioned or did we establish that already?
LikeLiked by 1 person
The library doesn’t have it, so no.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Be prepared when you do. You will love Buddy even more.
LikeLiked by 1 person
When I saw the name Buddy Guy, I knew this had to be good. This artist is really something. I’ve seen him twice – he blew me away twice. So powerful!
The second time I saw him was in 2018 when he played one of the last shows at BB King Blues Club & Grill before they sadly had to shut down the place. It was unbelievable.
Here’s my favorite from “Born to Play Guitar” 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
So very awesome, Christian you have seen Buddy live twice. So very sad the blues club shut down. Oh yeah, that’s a good’n 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Buddy Guy is a force of nature. When I saw him the second in that blues club in Manhattan, he was 82 years old. He looked great and surely played great. If I make it to 82, I’m happy if I can still hold a guitar. 🙂
When you see Guy, you really get a sense he’s on a misson to keep the blues alive. It’s just fascinating! In July, he turned 85 and he’s still playing. In fact, I just checked his website, and he evidently is scheduled to start going on the road on Oct 7 – and it’s a quite busy looking schedule!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh I would love to see him playing in a small club. He has strong qi.
LikeLiked by 1 person
BB King Blues Club & Grill wasn’t exactly a small club, but it was still amazing. In addition to being an incredible guitar player, Guy is also a showman. He likes to walk off stage and through the crowd while playing guitar. He also did that at BB King, walking by about 50 feet or so from my table.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Christian, I just went out to google to see some pics of the place. It looks like one of those old fashioned theaters that can seat around 2,000. Is that accurate? I do see that Buddy is a showman and I bet he’s had a lot of groupies over the years.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It was more like a big restaurant with a stage. Not sure what capacity the place had.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love Buddy Guy…He is on the film Festival Express…he is totally outstanding as a guitar player plus a great showman.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Max, I will try to find that one. As old as he is, I’ve missed out on a lot of his music and need to remedy that. So much music so little time!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It is very interesting. A bunch of artists toured by a train in Canada. The Band, Janis Joplin, the Grateful Dead, Buddy Guy, and many more.
It happened in 1969… A lot of drinking to say the least!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Was this the one that traveled through Canada? Yes I want to see that one!
LikeLike
Wouldn’t that be a blast, to fill a train with musicians and party through Canada?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes it would be…and it was! They emptied a liquor store on the way. The DVD is very interesting.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s free on youtube now.
LikeLiked by 1 person
!!!!! ❤ Thanks for the heads-up.
LikeLiked by 1 person