Song of the Week – The Things That I Used to Do, Guitar Slim

Ignored           Obscured            Restored

Guitar Slim cut a record for the Specialty label in 1953 that would play a significant role in the history of rock & roll – not only for the singular performance but also for the impact it would have on future artists.  The track was produced by a then 23-year-old Ray Charles!

Slim applied his trademark distortion on “The Things That I Used to Do,” an effect that influenced guitarist legends.  You can connect his sound to guitarists from bluesmen Buddy Guy and Albert Collins to iconoclast Frank Zappa.  Hendrix, Johnny Winter, and Stevie Ray Vaughn recorded versions of Slim’s standard as did Elvin Bishop, Ike & Tina Turner, and countless others.

This Hendrix recording was released on the 2018 album Both Sides of the Sky.  It was cut at a session that featured Winter joining Hendrix on a second guitar, Billy Cox on bass and Dallas Taylor (who was playing with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young at the time) on drums.

“The Things That I Used to Do” was voted as one of the 500 that shaped the rock genre by former Rock & Roll Hall of Fame curator, James Henke.

Enjoy… until next week.

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