Blind Owl and Canned Heat in the "Blogosphere"

In this blog post, one listener reflects on Alan Wilson's career with Canned Heat, and his legacy as the band continued into future decades up to the present day. He also shares some live videos that will be of interest to fans. Please be sure to check the comment section for Blind Owl Blues author Rebecca Davis Winters' clarification regarding Alan's death, and the blogger's gracious response.

Chuck Stetson remembers his Blind Owl Wilson encounter

Thanks to the constant researching of Kyle Fosburgh, a Senior Alanologist and blog contributor, we are pleased to find this story on the "Open Salon" website. A blogger named Chuck Stetson recalls a brief encounter with Our Hero in which Alan preaches the gospel of Henry Thoreau.

R. I. P. Norton Buffalo, Harmonica Master

The Blind Owl Blues Blog pays tribute to Norton Buffalo, harmonica master, who passed away on October 30. Norton was a longtime member of the blues-based Steve Miller Band, as well as a solo artist and frequent duo performer with slide guitarist Roy Rogers. He can also be heard on recordings by a wide variety of blues, rock, and pop artists including Bonnie Raitt, the Doobie Brothers, and Commander Cody.

Although Norton's music was not directly related to that of Alan "Blind Owl" Wilson other than being based partly in blues harmonica tradition, his fine musicianship and brilliant performances call for us to honor his memory in this forum. Musicologist and author Rebecca Davis Winters says, "Norton's incredible talent and energy has inspired me for many years. He was one of the most dynamic and exciting players I have ever witnessed in live performance. On three occasions, I was fortunate enough to see him play with the Steve Miller Band, and will always remember his friendliness and graciousness when I met him in person. His great spirit came through in his music, and will continue to bring joy into the lives of fans for decades to come."

Rest in peace, Norton, and may the Blind Owl welcome you into that big jam session on the other side.

September 3rd, 1970: It's Been 39 Years Since Alan Wilson's Death

The thirty-ninth anniversary of Alan Wilson's death was yesterday. His death is one of rock and roll's most heavily shrouded mysteries, with various factors over the years pointing to suicidal inclinations, yet evidence suggesting that these did not actually meet fruition, but rather that his death was caused by other means largely accidental. The full story - or, perhaps we should say, stories - of Alan Wilson's demise can be read in Blind Owl Blues by Rebecca Davis Winters.

As for the Author of that biography, she tried to stay off the blasted Internet during yesterday's actual anniversary, having been buried beneath a mountain of projects, clients, books, class work, and folks seeking coffee and various espresso drinks. At a local coffee house here in the Rocky Mountains, we were pleased to honor Alan's life and observe the anniversary of his ascension to the celestial realms.

Fortieth Anniversary of Poor Moon Landing

Yesterday, July 20, was the fortieth anniversary of the United States manned moon landing. This month, Alanologists all over the solar system also observe the fortieth anniversary of his song, "Poor Moon", which was released as a single shortly after the moon landing. This piece is his response to the ego-driven exploration and defacing of the Moon, which is still burdened with rubbish and discarded equipment from NASA's meddling about.

The Moon is typically regarded as a satellite. However, you should note that according to one well accepted scientific definition, the Moon and Earth qualify as a double planet system. (Pluto, however, has never been a proper planet at all, blind sentiment and other such griping aside.)

In "Poor Moon", a recording done under Canned Heat's auspices and name but clearly composed, structured and directed by the genius of Alan "Blind Owl" Wilson, the Moon is addressed directly, almost as a lover. Alan fears that "your face" will be polluted and destroyed by the carelessness of humankind, as he had already seen happen to his beloved Earth.

Most people nowadays blindly swallow the concept of space "exploration" because they think it should be done for its own sake, for patriotism or human pride, or because they foolishly believe that humankind could (or should) attempt colonization of another planet. The space program has become a "sacred cow", so to speak, in our culture, even for those who should know better.

To all of this, the author of Blind Owl Blues echoes Alan's sentiment of the inverted flag seen on the cover of Future Blues later in 1970. It's a distressing situation indeed. Instead of such foolishness, let us get back to the Earth that nourishes us, ground ourselves in Her fertile soils and in gardens of our own making, and remember that gravity pulls us back to that Sacred Ground for a reason! We're not going to the Moon, we are simply admiring her as we take that road Up The Country. Baby, do you want to go?

Alan, of course, had a special connection with the Moon, it being the ruler of his astrological sign Cancer (July 4, 1943). This helps us understand his intuition and extreme emotional sensitivity.

Know of any other lunar-oriented protest songs? Have thoughts on Alan's relationship with the Moon? Leave a comment and join the Alanological community.

Happy Birthday Alan Wilson!

It's July 4, and for Alanologists everywhere it's more than the day of our nation's founding. It's also the appearance day of Alan "Blind Owl" Wilson! He was born approximately 8 a.m. on this day in 1943, in Arlington, Massachusetts.

Here at the Blind Owl Blues Blog we are pleased and excited to celebrate the day of his appearance. If Alan was living today, he would be 66 years old. We wonder what he would look like, but since we'll never know, we are content to pay tribute to his all-too-short earthly life of 27 years.

Alanologist and artist Cat has created a wonderful portrait, infused with the essence of Alan's gentle spirit and his love of nature. We thank her for this beautiful birthday tribute to the Blind Owl, and are proud to present its debut on the Blind Owl Blues Blog!


While you are celebrating Alan's birthday today, take some time to check out Cat's other artwork - including many Alan-inspired pieces - on her website here!

Stay tuned to this blog for more Alan birthday specials, coming up....

Blind Owl Bio website under construction!

Exciting news!! The Blind Owl Bio website, blindowlbio.com, is being rebuilt. (You can still buy your copy of BLIND OWL BLUES, the book, there safely and securely through Google Checkout.)

Check back for updates to the website... and stay tuned to this blog for all things Alanological!

A Brief Review of the Alan "Blind Owl" Wilson Biography - By Dan Todd

For the discerning blues listener, no post-war figure has remained more shrouded in mystery and intrigue than Alan C. Wilson, inspiration and founding member of Canned Heat. The “Blind Owl’s” untimely death in 1970 left this seminal group without its signature voice, the voice of a lonely and powerful mind, heart, and soul. His introspective, absolutely original and creative modern blues drive and contributions have inspired musicians, young and old, blues and non-blues, for the 35 years since his passing. “Legendary” is not too strong a word, and the truth behind the legend can now be known. At last.

Rebecca Davis Winters cannot be congratulated enough for her ten-years-in-the-making research and documentation project, uncovering the full story of Al’s childhood, contributions to blues music and scholarship, and personal struggle to create true art in modern America. Her exhaustive research and clear and calm narrative voice can be experienced fully in her most recent book, Blind Owl Blues, (2007) now available through her website at http://blindowlbio.com.

Anyone interested in blues, unique musical expression, and the hardships necessarily endured by original creative artistic hearts and minds will find this book an indispensable addition to his or her collection. Blues is the true story told truthfully – do yourself a favor. Go out of your way to get this book!

- Dan Todd

Blind Owl Wilson FanFiction and Art

New ground is still being broken in the Alanological field of study! We at the official Blind Owl Blues Blog are astonished - and touched - by the many ways Alan Wilson, founder of Canned Heat, inspiration to blues legends like Son House and John Lee Hooker, continues to inspire artists today. Even those removed from him by both time and space are touched by his brilliant spirit, and he continues to urge us on to new levels of creativity.

Senior Alanologist Rebecca Davis Winters was delighted to receive first a book order, then a personal email from one young Alanologist, "Cat". Here's what she has to say about herself:

I'm a junior Alanologist and I specialize in drawing comics and playing classical piano. My website is http://newdivision-00.deviantart.com/.

Cat kindly shared some of her work with us at the Blind Owl Blues Blog.

• Here's a portrait of Alan paying tribute to his love of nature.
• Another portrait recalls Alan's poetry-as-song.
• This one, apparently done in some stylized form, is strange but interesting nonetheless.
• And here's a drawing in a more traditional medium.

Of even greater interest, owing to its unique nature, is Cat's Blind Owl Wilson FanFiction. While we at the Blind Owl Blues Blog are not very familiar with this genre, it is easy to spot a heartfelt tribute to Alan when we see it. In the Owl and Dove series, Part 1 and Part 2, the author imagines Our Hero being given a second chance at life... and at love!

Read Owl and Dove Part 1 here, and then read Part 2 here. Though the subject matter will likely strike traditional Alanologists as a bit odd, the author's feeling for his sensitivity and love of nature really comes through. Thanks to Cat for her continuing Alanological work. We hope she will be making further contributions to this blog in the future.

Alan Wilson/Canned Heat blog entries

New Blind Owl Wilson-related blog entries we found on the Internet include:

• "Cameron K's Blog: Canned Heat" , a general review of the band's history.
  
• A blog post about record collecting, featuring recollections of Canned Heat singer Bob Hite and his friend Claude McKee, can be found here.

If you have found a new Blind Owl Wilson-related blog entry, or a web page of note, send the url to wordworkshop@gmail.com and Alanological Priestess Rebecca Davis Winters will review it for listing here!

Blind Owl Blues author on Facebook

Rebecca Davis Winters, biographer of Alan "Blind Owl" Wilson, has established a presence on Facebook.

Visit her there:
http://www.facebook.com/blindowlblues

Sarod Master Ali Akbar Khan , Favorite of Blind Owl Wilson, Dies at 87.

It is a sad day for Alanologists and fans of sarod music everywhere. Ali Akbar Khan, master of the sarod, has died of kidney failure.

Click here for the San Fransisco Chronicle story.

Here's one of the Ali Akbar Khan LPs from Blind Owl Wilson's collection:

And another from Alan's collection, this one a collaboration with Ravi Shankar:

Alan "Blind Owl " Wilson astrology charts

This chart depicts the astrological calculations for Alan Wilson's birth time and location.


The next chart shows calculations for an approximation of his death time. It is, however, difficult to calculate the exact hour of his death.

Links of Interest to Blind Owl Wilson Fans

Here are a few links that might be of interest to fans of Alan "Blind Owl" Wilson. Some of these web pages are more focused on his famous band, pioneering blues-rock outfit Canned Heat. Others may provide differing or complementary perspectives to the Blind Owl Blues book, which is the only existing book-length biography of Alan Wilson and offers the most in-depth, balanced look at his life and music. Some are pages created by friends and fellow Alanfolk.

All of these will contain something of interest to Alanologists and seekers alike.

See some of the LP records from Alan Wilson's own collection! This museum is curated by Alanological musician and scholar Kyle Fosburgh.
http://www.rootsmusicrevival.com/Online-Music-Museum.html

Here's a coherent and accurate discussion of Alan Wilson's harmonica playing, and the retuning of certain harmonicas:
http://www.harpsurgery.com/?p=22

Listen to Ali Akbar Khan, one of Alan Wilson's favorite musicians:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hobK_8bIDvk

Old Californio is a contemporary band featuring the work of at least two Alanologically inclined musicians. Please check out their fine work.
http://www.myspace.com/oldcalifornio

Kyle Fosburgh, senior Alanologist and record collector, is also a musician. Check out his music web site here.
http://www.blindowlsmusic.com/

Alan lip-syncs "Going Up the Country", and Bob Hite flute-syncs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=audxGqo5AkQ&feature=related

Contemporary chicks sing "Going Up the Country". A pretty good cover!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxW3Ed7GrhQ

More lip-syncing; this time it's "On the Road Again".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiZXjHxgMaQ&feature=related

For a bunch of music videos in one place, here is Alanologist Kyle Fosburgh's YouTube channel... he has great taste.
http://www.youtube.com/user/BlindOwlsGuitarist

This site is mostly about movies, but contains some music commentary and a full essay on Canned Heat.
http://www.cinefear.com/cannedheatll.html

Canned Heat Live Discography Analysis

The following essay is contributed courtesy of music scholar Kyle Fosburgh. Please visit his website at rootsmusicrevival.com.

Fortunately for those like myself, who have never been able to see the original Canned Heat group with the “Blind Owl,” there is an assortment of good quality live recordings that we can always listen to at our leisure. Here we will review some of these items, starting with the first released, and more to be posted later.

Live at Topanga Corral/Live at Kaleidoscope

This release was Canned Heat’s first attempt at a live record and it proved to be a musical success. They hold nothing back at this show. The album starts off with a bang as the group performs one of their live classics, “Bullfrog Blues.” This song is guitarist Henry Vestine’s time to shine. He flies on the guitar, grinding out the notes out and improvising at will in between verses and the vocal phrases. His guitar is loud and in your face, yet manages to stay out of the business of the rest of the band. Alan Wilson also performs an amazing, and rather fast guitar solo compared to the majority of his work. The ferocious Delta guitar finger picking displayed in this solo is perhaps similar to what had been last heard only by those who stood on the street corners of Greenwood, MS as Robert Johnson played his heart out way back when. “Bullfrog Blues” really exemplifies how the two drastically different styles of Alan Wilson and Henry Vestine could play off of each other so naturally. “Bullfrog Blues” is one of the many examples where Henry takes control of the lead guitar work while Alan backs him playing a classic Delta style rhythm guitar. It is a combination that was essential to the Canned Heat sound.

Another song from this album where Alan furthermore displays his incomparable Delta style, is on the groups version of “Dust My Broom.” For this song, Alan uses his slide and creates a certain aura which I like to call harsh smoothness. His guitar is loud and grinding, but at the same time, very melodic and not in your face. Canned Heat performed this song much slower in this performance than they had on the studio track and the version which they performed at the famous Monterey Pop Festival in 1967. This rendition has a deeper more bluesy sound, while their earlier versions produced more of a boogie sound. The Live at Topanga Corral version is a truly virtuosic performance and is perhaps one of the all time greatest live tracks from Canned Heat.

The last track on this release is a true gem called “When Things Go Wrong.” The studio cut of this song can be heard under the title “Sandy’s Blues” on the Living the Blues album from 1969. With a throwback horn arrangement, the studio track really takes you back, but if you know early blues, the live track just might take you back even further. Alan’s slide is piercing in this live performance, and the instruments create an amazing reverb throughout the Kaleidoscope club.

An interesting fact about this recorded show is that the classic boogie that Canned Heat used to end many of their shows, was in fact performed and recorded this night, but it wasn’t used on this album. It was actually used on the Living the Blues album from 1969 under the title “Refried Boogie.” The song is rather long, clocking in at around 40 minutes and taking up both sides of the original vinyl. You can read my analysis for “Refried Boogie” on the Canned Heat discography page.

Essay copyright 2008 Kyle Fosburgh, all rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited by law.

Canned Heat Discography

The following is a musicological and artistic analysis of Canned Heat's records with Alan Wilson. It is provided courtesy of Kyle Fosburgh, music historian and visual artist. Please visit his website at rootsmusicrevival.com.

This writing just covers a few of the many aspects of Alan Wilson and his work with Canned Heat. This is simply an overview of specific parts of these albums that serve as examples of Alan’s true genius. I did not cover everything, but I did cover many of the key aspects.

Canned Heat (1967) -

Canned Heat was first introduced to the modern music world at the Monterey Pop Festival, during the “summer of love” in 1967. They were promoting their new album and were ready to enter into the blues rock scene in an attempt to rekindle what seemed to be an extinguished flame with popular blues music. Unlike most of the already-small number of blues bands at the time, Canned Heat’s music was true to the blues roots. Alan Wilson was the main man behind the roots sound that Canned Heat was presenting. Although lead singer and front man Bob Hite took most of his lyrical repertoire from pre-war blues records, Alan reincarnated the sound of the 1920’s and 30’s blues into Canned Heat.

The solo opening guitar to “Catfish Blues” was the world’s first taste of Alan’s unique solo guitar style. His intro displayed a consistent rhythm, yet it still had rhythmic freeness with intricate timing variations. Aside from the Tommy Johnson inspired “Bullfrog Blues” and “Big Road Blues,” the opening guitar for “Catfish Blues” may be the most authentic example of pre-war blues on the album. Songs like “Rollin’ and Tumblin’” and “Dust My Broom” are better examples of post-war blues. Although the later was written by Robert Johnson, Canned Heat’s version was inspired by the famous Elmore James version.

Boogie with Canned Heat (1968) -

In late 1967, Canned Heat was in the studio recording their second album titled Boogie with Canned Heat. Guitarist Henry Vestine’s playing style was the same from the first album, but his guitar tone had changed from a more clean tone, to a heavier, more distorted tone. Everything had been pumped up a notch. Even the group’s confidence seemed higher.

The two big tracks that arose from this album were “One the Road Again” and “Fried Hockey Boogie.” The former became what is arguably Canned Heat’s biggest hit song. Alan Wilson deserves just about all the musical and creative credit for this song. He can be credited with playing just about everything on the cut accept for bass and drums. Wilson is credited as a co-writer of the track and he also arranged it for the record. His harmonica fills and solos displayed in the song are still considered to be some of the best of all time.

“Fried Hockey Boogie” started with an idea brought forth by bassist Larry Taylor, where he suggested the band do a song where every member had a solo. “Fried Hockey Boogie,” often referred to as just “The Boogie,” was inspired from the John Lee Hooker recording called “Boogie Chillin.’” Alan Wilson plays the main rhythm throughout Canned Heat’s rendition and his solo in the song strongly emulates a mixture of country blues and Indian music. In this recording of the boogie, Alan’s guitar actually sounds somewhat like a sitar, which is used frequently in Indian music.

Living the Blues (1969) –

In the early summer of 1969 nobody could foresee the historic turnout the now famous Woodstock festival was going to receive, and certainly nobody in Canned Heat knew that the new single written by Alan Wilson would become the anthem for the festival. Well, it just so happened that the timing on the release for the song “Going Up the Country” couldn’t have been much better. It was released as a single just before the big festival and the message of the song pretty much summed up the whole mentality and mind set of the youth at that time. It projected the sort of anti-war, peace message that we think of today when we imagine hippies frolicking in the mud at Yasgur‘s farm.

“Going Up the Country” is based on an old blues tune from Henry Thomas called “Bulldoze Blues.” Alan re-wrote the lyrics to the original version as well as arranged Canned Heat’s version of the song. “Going Up the Country” turned out to be one of the most-remembered songs from Canned Heat and from the 1960’s. It’s even the opening song for the classic Woodstock film. While the mentality of “Going Up the Country” relates to the revolution of the time, it also expressed Alan’s personal deep sadness with the world and how he just wanted to get away from it all. The idea of an upbeat sounding song with a deeper and/or more serious and possibly depressing meaning was a common style Alan used with his song writing.

This style was also used in Alan’s composition, “Human Condition.” Recorded in 1970, “Human Condition” had an upbeat happy sound musically, but lyrically was about a very serious situation in Alan’s life. In the song, Alan sings about his troubles with depression and the therapist that was treating him. “Change My Ways” and “Get Off My Back,” both from the Hallelujah album, are other examples of compositions by Alan where this idea was used. Perhaps the care free rhythms and licks which Alan used in these songs were his way of portraying how people had laughed or made light of his problems.

An interesting twist to this album was a song made up of several different songs/pieces called Parthenogenesis. This is a truly great musical arrangement by Alan. The song features several sections of music that display each members own personal musical arrangement. One section of Parthenogenesis features several recordings of Alan playing harp overdubbed or layered on top of one another. Henry recorded his section of Parthenogenesis the same way as Alan, by overdubbing multiple tracks of the same instrument. Bob Hite didn’t go that route with his section in this song, but rather got fellow friend and blues musician John Mayall to play piano along side him while he sang. Bassist Larry Taylor and drummer Fito de la Parra did an instrumental together with Taylor on congas. Alan’s good friend John Fahey actually played the opening chords to Parthenogenesis.

Another remarkable cut from the Living the Blues album is the famous Canned Heat concert closer, “The Boogie.” The song is actually titled “Refried Boogie” on this album since it was the Heat’s second version. “Refried Boogie” is actually a live track that was recorded at the Kaleidoscope club in California in 1968. This performance of the song really features Alan’s open tuning guitar style, much like his opening for “Catfish Blues.” During most, if not all live performances of the boogie, Alan would open the song with a guitar solo/introduction. This particular version of the song could be the single best display or example of Alan Wilson’s unique playing technique with the guitar. For several minutes as an opening for the song Alan plays alone until he starts the classic boogie riff and the whole band kicks in.

Hallelujah (1969) –

Since Boogie with Canned Heat, Henry has toned his playing down but his sound still features that raw distorted tone at certain times. One of the times this sound is displayed is on the track appropriately titled “Canned Heat.” It is somewhat of a re-make of a song called “Canned Heat Blues” by Tommy Johnson, and that same song is where the band got their name. Canned Heat’s version doesn’t sound much like Johnson’s, but it does hold down the heavy rhythm and beat that Canned Heat is known so well for. Alan’s guitar rings like chimes in this song playing a smooth Delta rhythm against Henry’s overdriven distorted guitar. Bob Hite sings his typical “deep from the gut” vocals which plays off Henry’s raw guitar tone real nicely. Henry also takes a solo in the song, which is loose and free, yet contained and flowing. Alan holds down the rhythm while Henry flies and Larry chugs away on the bass. This song, along with the single released for this album, “Time Was,” could be two of the best bass lines Larry Taylor ever wrote. They are both straight forward, but interesting and complex at the same time. One of the great moments in the track “Canned Heat” comes on the song’s turnaround, where Larry Taylor and Alan Wilson climb down to B while Henry Vestine stays on E. Mixing the sound of two different chords is done seldom it any form of music, but Canned Heat not only gets away with it here, they revolutionize the idea.

Hallelujah really displayed Alan’s tremendous ability to play the harmonica. Harmonica was mostly featured as somewhat of a secondary instrument for Alan up until this album was released. Songs like “On the Road Again,” from Boogie with Canned Heat and “Walking By Myself,” from Living the Blues, featured his harp playing well, but it wasn’t until Hallelujah that his technique and authenticity with the instrument really came to the forefront for the listening audience.

Future Blues (1970) –

Future Blues was the first Canned Heat album to not feature Henry Vestine. In his place is Harvey Mandel, who joined the band after Henry and Larry Taylor had a falling out in mid 1969. Harvey Mandel was a fantastic guitarist and fit the down home raw sound of Canned Heat quite well. Although Alan was always a bigger fan of Henry’s playing, Harvey’s psychedelic blues sound eventually began to grown on him.

The Future Blues album is truly a piece of musical genius and aside from Boogie with Canned Heat, could be Canned Heat’s best album. The band seems to have really hit the groove with this release. Everything just flows like butter. One of the songs on this album where Alan really displays immense talent for song arranging is Canned Heat’s version of Charley Patton’s “Shake It and Break It.” Much like their version of “Canned Heat,” “Shake It and Break It” doesn’t sound much like the original. Canned Heat’s version is somewhat of an upbeat boogie rather than a deep south blues song. The song transitions from happy, more upbeat boogie type riffs, to driving more rock and roll beats. “Shake it and Break it” could be another one of Alan’s arrangements/compositions that seem joyful on the surface but actually has a more serious meaning underneath. See Rebecca Winters’ blog for a musicological analysis of “Shake It and Break It.”

Analysis of Alan Wilson

This analysis of Alan Wilson's music is contributed courtesy of musician and scholar Kyle Fosburgh. Please visit his website at rootsmusicrevival.com.

For those who have never heard of Alan “Blind Owl” Wilson, he was the primary song writer and arranger for the famous 1960s blues boogie band Canned Heat. Canned Heat played one of the biggest roles in the blues revival of the 1960s and early 1970s. B.B. King once said that there wouldn’t be blues music today if it wasn’t for bands like Canned Heat. I believe that statement is very true. Even blues music in the 60s, at its peak in popularity, appealed mostly to a certain crowed. Because of this, there were few bands that were solely dedicated to the blues. However, Canned Heat created an authentic blend of pre-war blues and modern rock that seemed to catch on with main stream audiences yet appeal to, and inspire the purist of blues fans. Alan Wilson is the only musician in history that could accurately interpret the style of the early bluesmen yet electrify it and blend it with the sound of a full band in a way that didn’t corrupt the purity of the music. The full Canned Heat group deserves a lot of credit for this as well, but Alan was the brain child behind this revolutionary innovation.

Alan Wilson is the utmost pure, creative and real musician I have ever heard in my entire life. Although he had various musical interests, there was a certain quality about the country blues of the 1920s and 30s that grabbed him. Alan began collecting blues albums at a young age and while most record buyers would just listen to the music, Alan would dissect and learn each part while attempting to understand the meanings both lyrically and musically behind what was being presented. Wilson was not just another musician, he became almost spiritually attached to the songs he played. His understanding of blues music would gain him the respect of the elitist of bluesmen. One of these great bluesmen was none other than the legendary Son House.

In 1965 Son House was getting ready to make his way back into the blues scene with a new album, however, he was not fully ready for this endeavor. As a result of alcoholism and a 28 year musical absence his memory suffered greatly as he could not even remember his own guitar style. Alan Wilson was so knowledgeable with the musical style of Son House that producer John Hammond Sr. asked Alan to teach Son House “how to play like Son House.” Wilson agreed, so at the age of only 22 Alan joined the great bluesman of the Delta blues in the studio for these historic sessions. Wilson also accompanied him on the record with harmonica and a second guitar for the various songs that they felt needed the accompaniment. These legendary recordings were documented on the “Father of the Delta Blues: The Complete 1965 Sessions.” Alan also performed live with Son House on occasion. They can be heard performing together for a few tracks on the album titled, “John the Revelator: The 1970 London Sessions”.

Another great bluesman that Alan had the opportunity of recording with was the boogie man himself, John Lee Hooker. The famous album with Canned Heat and John Lee Hooker was recorded in 1970 under the title “Hooker and Heat” as a 2 record set. The record features songs with just Hooker, Hooker and Alan together and Hooker with the accompaniment of the full Canned Heat group. The album is a truly amazing work of musical art. It is a form of power and purity that cannot be heard on any other progressive blues album. John was more than just impressed with Alan’s playing on this album, in fact, he called Alan the best harmonica player ever. Hooker would also go on to say later in his life that nobody played his music better than Canned Heat. The Hooker and Heat sessions brought out what was arguably some of Alan’s best work, but unfortunately, these sessions were to be his last.

On September 3, 1970, at the height of Canned Heat’s fame, Wilson passed away from an apparent overdose of powerful sleeping pills on a hill behind the house of his band mate Bob Hite. The spot where Alan was found is where he often slept as he loved to be part of nature. Although the cause of death was officially ruled an accident, Alan’s close friends believe it was a suicide because Alan had attempted to kill himself before. No one knows for sure why Alan died, but there is no question that he was looking for a less polluted, more peaceful world where he could put his troubled mind at ease.

Alan “Blind Owl” Wilson was an amazing human being and there will never be another person like him. The music just flowed out of him in the most natural way. He was an innovative yet accurate interpreter of the early blues music and his songs will live on forever and continue to inspire musicians like myself.

- Kyle Fosburgh

Essay copyright 2008 Kyle Fosburgh, all rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited by law.