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How on earth did I start playing the harmonica at the age of 50?
I started out playing the blues harmonica in 1999, at first since I wanted to do the intro and outro of He ain't heavy. I had an old harmonica in the key of C that I got as a present in the 70’s, but it didn’t work. So I bought myself a G blues harp, a Hohner, which sounds quite good, but has a sharp metal edge that ruins your lips. Anyway I learnt the harp parts of “Heavy” after a while, which I enjoyed. Later I learnt playing the whole song, by writing down the holes to blow and inhale through. You know the order of the tones on the blues harps is a bit irregular and some tones miss at the low end. This has been done, to enable playing some chords (3 tones near each other). But before that I tried out “From Hank to Hendrix” and “Out on the weekend”, both Neil Young songs, with guitar playing friends. To do this I got myself blues harps in different keys.
How many harmonicas do you need?
After the G harp I got the tunes A and C. And I found out Lee Oscar was far more convenient. Later Tombo’s Ultimo became my favourite. Gradually I have bought myself blues harps in all 12 keys, and with both low and high F the number becomes 13. I have already worn out some of them, and got replacements. The good thing about Lee Oscar harps is that you can replace the reed when the sound goes. The blues sound, created by “bending” wears out your harp quicker, they say. Now why don’t I just get myself one chromatic harp with a push button on the side to create all tones? There are at least 2 good reasons: First, to learn playing that harp is quite different from the one-key harp. Second, the sound is quite different – and chromatic harps should not be bent.
What do I play?
“Heart of gold, “ also by Neil Young, is very tempting to play. I found the “harp notes” on the internet. But it’s not easy at all. After some years I’ve found out it is impossible to do it exactly the way Neil did, he probably cannot do that himself. You have to do it in your own style. I’ve also done songs that do not feature the harmonica originally, but still are suitable for that instrument. Examples are Clapton’s “Tears in heaven” and Elton John’s “Song for Guy.” I also enjoy doing “The times they are a-changing” along with the version by Blackmore’s Night. Graham Nash has a lot of strong tunes with harmonica. I enjoy his style immensely. Favourites are Magical child and Southbound train (Crosby-Nash). Also the last version of Lindisfarne, with Billy Mitchell on harp is a favourite of mine. Tender, but oh so effective playing. Get the DVD “Time gentlemen please.”
Who do I play with?
Of course it is best to play with other musicians. Mostly I have played with guitar playing and singing friends. But piano can also be quite effective. I did a spontaneous session in May 2006 on the Hurtigruta cruise ship Finnmarken on the way from Tromsø to Trondheim. Can I have more fun? My friend Lars and I have made some song lyrics books, that we have copied, allowing several singers to take part. That way everyone in the party can have more fun.
Other harp songs by the Hollies?
Allan used to play blues harps in the old days, listen to Nobody, for instance, which is excellent. Use D harp, 2nd position, which means the song goes in A. During later years, I believe he used a chromatic harmonica on Heavy, Carl and Peter also has done that. (Do I remember right about Allan here, by the way?)
Another Hollies harp favourite of mine is “Writing on the wall” from the “A crazy steel” album, play it with A in 1st position (no blues sound).
Hollies songs that fit well with a harmonica but do not feature the instrument on the record are for instance: Blowing in the wind and Amnesty. Unfortunately, “The air that I breathe” is impossible to play on the blues harp. At least I am unable to do it. Get a chromatic harmonica, if you must play this song. On another page I have made a list of Hollies songs featuring the harp. Comments are welcome.
Play the harmonica if you feel for it, or encourage a friend who is trying!
Blues harp playing is highly recommended! It will give you hours of joy, and you can bring it anywhere, very nice to sing and play with guitar playing friends. But one very important thing is that this little instrument as simple as it may seem, takes a lot of practise to learn properly. When I think back on how I sounded in the beginning – I am most thankful for friends who kept my spirit up. Especially I want to thank Lars, Bulle, Oddlaug, Paal and especially my wife Borgny for playing with me and bearing over with numerous mistakes during playing for the first years. Hopefully they get fewer and fewer. Anyway, we had had a lot of fun and hopefully will have more fun in the future.
Links
English:
Norwegian:
http://www.km.fauskes.net/munnspill/
http://www.musikk-elektronikk.no
