In praise of Jimmy Vaughn

[TeeBird]

Huge fan of JV. I love all of his playing.

Where do you think my alias comes from?

Seems like he has cleaned up and become more twangy since his early TB days. Sounds like moving from tweed to blackface, neck pickup to bridge. (I realize he plays a Matchless now). I think he's trying to see how far he can strip things down, going to no pick and using a capo and relying on a few spare licks. All great stuff; "Do You Get the Blues" is a masterpiece.

The funny thing is how just a few (very few) people seem to take offense that anyone could like him! MYOB!

[scottb]

I have turned a full 180 on JV. When I first started playing, I was into blues/rock more than "authentic" blues. I thought SRV was THE ultimate blues guitarist and often would refer to JV as the worst guitarist who ever got paid to play.

Through the years my tastes have changed and now I'm an early electric blues fan, Muddy, Wolf, the Walters, T Bone, etc. Can't hardly listen to much modern stuff. Now revisting JV, I hear him totally differently. HE is the man. I owe him a huge apology.

I heard SRV say something like he plays 90% of what he can play while Jimmie plays 2% of what he can. He plays simple because he wants to and its harder to sound good simply than to use all sorts of fretboard gymnastics.

[mudbean]

My favorite SRV album is Family Style.

I used to be in a band that did "Telephone Song." Awesome tune!

mud

[StratDal]

One of best dates my wife and I went on when we first started dating was seeing Jimmie at the House Of Blues in 1994. The HOB had just opened. He was great along with his entire band. We danced to his song "Sweet Soul Vibe" when we got married. He'll always be special to us.

Thanks for starting the thread.

[mlove3]

I really liked SRV in the 80s, but as my tastes changed I found I dug Jimmie just as much if not more for his economical style and just hitting those big notes. He's a terrific player.

And more importantly, the HAIR!! YES!

[TheGoodTexan]

Originally Posted by mlove3

I really liked SRV in the 80s, but as my tastes changed I found I dug Jimmie just as much if not more for his economical style and just hitting those big notes. He's a terrific player.

And more importantly, the HAIR!! YES!

I'll tell you what's odd for me....is to see Jimmie aging....getting grey in his hair, getting wrinkles on his face. He should be aging, of couse...and he looks great.

But of course, Stevie is forever frozen at 35 years of age.

Jimmie was 39 when Stevie died...and when you see pictures of them together, they looked about the same age. But when you see Jimmie now, he's 57....almost 20 years older.

Normal, of course. Just strange to observe, for me.

[Reno Sepulveda]

Been a huge fan from


all the way to..

[chet]

Jimmy Vaughan's still lookin' good!

[drewsblues]

Originally Posted by rhomco

I met Jimmie in 1966 backstage at a battle of the bands thing that Vox and American Airlines did. This was a national contest that had regional qualifiers all over the country and culminated in a coliseum three live stage showdown at Dallas Texas. The national winner was awarded a recording contract and studio time. I was a founding member of a West Texas garage band called "The Living End" and Jimmy was a member of "The Chessmen" I believe. Just a skinny little kid that sat in the dressing room constantly playing his black Les Paul if my memory is correct. He was a highly regarded blues rocker back then that could play the Jeff Beck Yardbirds stuff like it was his own. Yes folks, he can, he has, he is...... The stuff I see from him today is pale by comparison.
Those were the days my friend........
Rob

Is this the kid you met?



Chessmen era Jimmie Vaughan -- with a Tele, no less!

[scottb]

Looks like Harry Potter!

[psychetelec]

When I first moved to Austin in 1990 I was working as a "sandwich artist" and Jimmie used to come to my shop every Wednesday in a nice old convertible, we used to talk guitars while I made his sandwich. Nice guy. He really dug my Jerry Jones Longhorn Bass VI, as did Charlie Sxton, who wanted to trade his for mine, he liked the color of mine better.

[smitty54017]

Originally Posted by Reno Sepulveda

Been a huge fan from


all the way to..

Dig Jimmies perm! LOL

Jimmie's always been a fav of mine. Simple, yet soulful.

[shades]

I've liked Jimmie for a long time, he's the real deal.

[vintage52]

I think he's just down right cool!

Dig his sound and his style.

Best news I heard several years back was that JLV had released an album.

Now, take my word for it, but things were slow to get here to good old New Zealand but I made sure that I had his album within weeks of its release....and been happy ever since!

[charlie chitlin]

I was recently thinking about these guys in the 60s and 70s who took the trouble to track down their heroes...Muddy, Wollf, Magic Sam, JB Lenoir...and I was thinking....whose doorstep would I camp out on trying to catch some vibe? Who's left?
Probably JV.

[peewee]

Jimmie is in my top 5 guitar players ever. i'm new here[ my third post] so don't understand/know of any negative stuff. the first t-birds album is one of THE great r&b albums ever....regardless of time,race or sibling rivalry.Jimmie's solo stuff is..well..cool. understated and his guitar honks like a king curtis sax. He is, to me, a natural evolution of the 'chicago meets texas meets louisiana school of guitar playing. think eddie taylor/freddie king/slim harpo and roll them into one player..ya get Jimmie.

[Del Pickup]

I think it's great that Jimmie Vaughan deliberately makes things simple and economical. I always find it refreshing when he's on one of these big gigs alongside Clapton, Buddy Guy, BB King, etc and EC and Guy do the pyrotechnic stuff and then BB hits one note that says it all and JV does the same or gets one of his huge vibrato things going.

Simple is good; JV is one of the best at it. No question.