Hard Time Killin' Floor Blues - Music

Kelly Joe Phelps Born In Sumner Washington On 5 October 1959 Died 31 May 2022 Was An American Musician And Songwriter. His Music Was Characterized As A Mixture Of Delta Blues And Jazz. Phelps Grew Up In A Blue-Collar And Farming Town. He Learned Country And Folk Songs As Well As Drums And Piano From His Father. He Began Playing Guitar At 12. Phelps Concentrated On Free Jazz And Took His Cues From Musicians Like Ornette Coleman Miles Davis And John Coltrane. He Spent 10 Years Playing Jazz Mostly As A Bass Player. He Refers To His "conversion" To A Blues Musician When He Began Listening To Acoustic Blues Masters Like Fred McDowell And Robert Pete Williams. Initially Gaining Notice For His Solo Lap-Style Slide Guitar Playing Which He Played By Laying The Instrument Flat And Fretting It With A Heavy Steel Bar He Has Incorporated More Ensemble Work In His Later Albums. Inspired By The Birth Of His Daughter Rachel In 1990 Phelps Began Writing Songs. He Began Singing And Released His Critically Praised Debut Lead Me On In 1995. This Album Showcased Phelps' Craft And As Well As His Own Songs He Tackled Traditional Numbers Such As "Motherless Children" And "Fare Thee Well." He Released His Second Album Roll Away The Stone 1997 And Followed It Up With 1999's Shine Eyed Mister Zen. His Fourth Record Sky Like A Broken Clock Appeared In 2001. This Time He Was Joined By A Bassist And A Drummer - Its Companion Piece "Beggar's Oil" EP Was A Critic's Favourite In 2002. His Sound Was Further Added To On His Fifth Album In Late 2002. In Order To Achieve A Richer Orchestrated Sound He Collected Guitarist Bill Frisell And Bassists Keith Lowe Steve Dawson Jesse Zubot And Andrew Downing For The Recording Of Slingshot Professionals 2003 . In 2005 Phelps Released A Live Album Tap The Red Cane Whirlwind Which Was Followed A Year Later By The Studio Album Tunesmith Retrofit. Discography Lead Me On 1994 Burnside Records Roll Away The Stone 1997 Rykodisc Records Shine Eyed Mister Zen 1999 Rykodisc Records Sky Like A Broken Clock 2001 Rykodisc Records Beggar's Oil EP 2002 Rykodisc Records Slingshot Professionals 2003 Rykodisc Records Tap The Red Cane Whirlwind 2005 Rykodisc / True North Records Tunesmith Retrofit August 1 2006 Rounder Western Bell Black Hen 2009 Magnetic Skyline With Corinne West Make 2010 Brother Sinner And The Whale Black Hen 2012 read less