Try to think of someone cooler than Bob Wills. You cain’t. That’s not him singing–that’s him shouting over the verses like a real jazz cat and dancing with his fiddle like it’s a sack of money. Then he tosses in a solo just because he wants you to know that he can. Charlie Daniels’ Johnny beat the devil with the third verse of this traditional, but nobody’s got any business messing with “Ida Red” while this footage still exists. That’s what makes Bob holler. words/ m garner
Very cool indeed. And how bold of Mr. Wills to perform a song about a ‘Red’ during the McCarthy Era. Ida Red, of course, ultimately led to Maybellene in 1955, at the birth of rock and roll. (Idared apparently is also a kind of apple.)
1 | RPS October 18th, 2012 at 1:48 amAmazing. The timing, loose arrangement, and improve style certainly give the song an overall country-jazz-big band (??) vibe. That he’s not afraid to surround himself with an incredible backing band adds to his coolness.
2 | JFK October 19th, 2012 at 8:32 amCountry-swing…that’s the term I needed.
3 | JFK October 19th, 2012 at 8:35 am