|
the
WOODY MANN
interview
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This
interview first appeared in The Acoustic Guitar Workshop's
free
monthly
ezine, Acoustic Guitar Review. Details
at
www.acousticguitarworkshop.com
home of acoustic blues tuition online.
Q:
What
and/or who was your earliest musical influence?
 WOODY:
I
grew up with a lot of folk music in the house. People like
Woody
Guthrie,
Leadbelly, Paul Robeson, Peter Seeger, and the Almanac
singers.
When
I stared playing music I discovered Big Bill Broonzy,
Brownie McGee
and
Josh White and that got me hooked on guitar and blues music.
There were
contemporary
players like Dave Van Ronk, Jack Elliott, and Jim Question
who
I
loved also. By far, the most influential person in my life
at that time
was
Gary Davis.
Q:
When
did you first start playing and can you remember the
excitement
of
getting your first guitar?
WOODY:
I
started playing at about eight or nine years old. My brother
had a Guild
that
I kept borrowing to get used to the steel strings I started
on nylon).
When
I got my first guitar, a Martin D18--excitement is an
understatement.
Q:
It's
well documented that you studied with the legendary Reverend
Gary
Davis.
How did you meet him?
WOODY:
I
wonder who documented it? Makes me sound ancient . . . When
I was
looking
for a guitar teacher someone suggested I call up Davis. So I
did.
Annie,
his wife answered the phone and said come on over. I got my
mother
to
drive me there and when I heard (really for the first time)
his amazing
swinging
guitar playing there in his living-room - I said, "Can I
study
with
you?" and he said "yes." From there, I guess the rest is
documented.
Q:
What
was he like to work with? I've heard Rory Block say that he
just
sort
of fired stuff at people and expected them to pick it
up.
WOODY:
With
me, Davis was patient and giving. Perhaps because I was so
young,
I
don't know. I would come over and spend the entire day
learning his
tunes,
lick by lick and jamming with him for hours. He did fire
stuff at
you
but he made sure you got it. I was a pretty studious
student.
Q:
On
your fine album "Stairwell Serenade," we hear Gary Davis
speaking
at
one point. He says, "Just play what you know." What did he
mean exactly
by
this?
WOODY:
Yes,
that's Davis. It is from a tape of my lessons with him. I
would
tape
record each lesson so I can learn the tunes. Just play what
you
know
. . . play your own music.
Q:
You
also played with Bukka White and Son House. How did this
come about?
WOODY:
I
played with Bukka White at a few festivals in the Midwest
and I met
Son
in New York through Nick Perls, who owned Yazoo records. His
place was
the
center of blues activity in NY and any time there was a
blues musician
in
town, Nick would have them over. One one occasion, he called
and asked
me
to come over to record with Son House. Well, of course, I
ran over even
though
I was pretty nervous. I just reissued these sessions on
"Been Here
and
Gone."
Q:
You
perform a lot and teach a lot. Which do you
prefer?
WOODY:
Both.
I like performing steady. I find that the consistency of
playing
in
front of people keeps me creative and keeps the spontaneity
in my
playing.
I can be lazy without performing. Now, I feel more
comfortable
playing
music on stage than off. I enjoy teaching is doses. I
am
consolidating
my teaching by doing more workshops, about once a month
when
I
am in town. I find these weekend workshops very rewarding
and it seems to
be
creating a good music scene here in NYC. Students are
playing together
and
jamming more, creating a healthy music community. Looks like
I will
continue
these throughout the year-offering various subjects. The
workshops
give
me a chance to stretch.
Q:
You
have studied acoustic blues in enormous depth and have
produced a
stack
of tuition material. Where can we get this from?
WOODY:
All
of my books/videos are listed at me
website
www.woodymann.com
(the website has my touring info as well)
Also,
Trevor
Laurence at www.avguitar.com
sells all of my products.
Q:
How
much do you practice? At your level of playing it must be
very
hard
to make improvements. Do you think you can get any better
and how do
you
see your playing evolving in the next few years?
WOODY:
I
don't think of it as getting better - just deeper into
music. I've
discovered
after many years of playing that all I need to do is play on
a
constant
basis and things naturally evolve. Just stay in touch with
the
instrument.
If I am working on a project I am more disciplined in
my
practicing.
When I am performing steadily - I naturally play everyday.
When
I
am in-between - I try to keep in touch by playing an hour or
so everyday.
Aside
from keeping my chops loose-it keeps my head on straight.
For me
there
is no one way to practice. If music is gong to be part of
your life -
it
has to be flexible. I do have a few practice techniques that
I learned
from
Lennie Tristano that I still use. As I am now working on
some new
material
and getting back to these basics - play slowly and focus on
the
basics
of rhythm, melody and harmony. I am also improvising a lot
more and
want
to keep that idea in the tunes.
Q:
What
guitars do you use and what setup, amps, effects etc do you
favor
for
live playing?
WOODY:
I
use a Frankin guitar, a one off model make out of wenge wood
and a
Lowden.
I also just received a Kevin Ryan guitar that I will be
using. If
it
is a local gig, I take my Michael Dunn guitar for a few
tunes or my
D'Aquisto
archtop. I use Highlander pickups - the duel system
running
through
a new blender by Rane. I always use an external microphone
for
the
guitar as well. Each room is different and I
experiment.
Q:
Do
you have any advice for guitarists trying to master the
difficult
art
of fingerstyle?
WOODY:
Sure.
Listen and try to find someone to learn from who has a good
sense
of
many styles so you can develop your overall technique rather
than just
on
style. Play what you know slowly. To me the goal is to get
into your own
sound.
Q:
Which
contemporary acoustic guitarists do you admire?
WOODY:
I
really do not listen to guitar music much. But there are a
few whose
originality
and sense of adventure I admire. Peter Finger, Tim Sparks,
Duck
Baker
come to mind.. Of course there are other guitarists like
Charlie
Christian,
Wes Montogomery, Eddie Lang, Jim Hall, and Attila Zoller
(to
name
a few) who have had a great influence on me.
Q:
This
may be a daft question, but who do you rate as the
finest
guitarist
amongst the old blues guys: Blind Blake, Gary Davis or
maybe
someone
else?
WOODY:
The
beauty is in the individual. It depends on who I am
listening to at
the
moment. There are a bunch of players that are on my favorite
list -
Lonnie
Johnson, Blake, Davis, Blind Lemon, Scrapper Blakewell, and
Charlie
Patton
to name a few.
Q:
What
recording and other musical projects have you got on at
the
moment
and what's planned from the future?
WOODY:
I
just completed a duo CD with Bob Brozman "Get Together" and
a new
book
of my original material is just released called "Lisboa."
Also," Been
Here
and Gone" is a CD I put together from earlier sessions with
duets with
Joann
Kelly, and Son House as well as some recently recorded
material. I
also
recorded some videos for Stefan Grossman (Blake, Broonzy)
and will do
a
few more in the near future. I am trying to find the time to
work on new
material
- it feels good to move on. some solo and with a small
group. I
have
a lot of ideas using melodies and rhythms from various
sources but as
usual
it is coming together and I don't think about what style it
is
anymore.
I let you decide. I have been touring a lot and looks like
the
next
twelve months will be pretty busy. As far as my teaching, I
mentioned the
weekend
workshops in New York City and I'll continue these
throughout the
year
when I am in town. The one project I am most exited about
is
International
Guitar Seminars, a week long residential guitar workshop
I
started
with Bob Brozman.
Last
year was our first year and it was a great success. This
year we will
have
two sessions: in New York City at Columbia university in
June, and The
University
of California,Santa Cruz in August. This is a place
where
students
of all levels can come together for a week of
non-competitive
learning
and jamming around the clock. This year Martin Simpson,
John
Cephas,
Orville Johnson as well as additional staff will be with us
for the
week.
We are keeping it small to maximize individual attention. It
is a
very
rewarding project for me and it gives Bob and I a chance to
teach in a
program
of our own design and offer our knowledge in a relaxed and
intimate
manner.
It is a fun week to say the least and I think all who
attended came
away
with something special. I should mention our website
www.guitarseminars.com
if anyone is interested they can call
Trevor
Laurence,
our coordinator for details (212-989-7003)
Get
Together - the new CD by Woody Mann and Bob Brozman
is available from
http://www.acoustic-music.de
Been
Here and Gone - Woody Mann recorded as a teenager
with Son House and Jo Ann Kelly
www.avguitar.com/products.asp?product=809
CDs,
instruction books and videos by Woody Mann can be found for
sale at www.woodymann.com/products1.htm
For
more information about Woody Mann, please visit Woody's
website at www.woodymann.com
This
interview first appeared in the Acoustic
Guitar Workshop's
free monthly ezine, Acoustic Guitar Review.
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© 2000 Acoustic Guitar Workshop / Play It Again
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