HOW I LEARNED THE BLUES

I have been listening to this song since the NINETEEN SIXTIES and I only just now became aware that it was written & recorded by a bunch of WHITE GUYS . . .




I have only two regrets in life:

A) I never made it as a rock singer . . . and . . .

B) I could have been a placekicker in the NFL . . .


I can't sing, I couldn't carry a tune if my life depended on it but I can sing this song - I can do the gravel voice bit, I can shout the blues. Even as a kid I always imagined this was some Soul Brother outfit from the Motor City - I had no idea, in a million years, this was a pack of ENGLISHMEN cranking out this beauty . . .

Once more for the one millionth time I'd like to thank those islands off the west coast of Europe for saving the Blues, and sending them back to America. We owe you for that. Or maybe that equals it out for us bailing your asses out a couple times.

Whatever . . . you did good, Britain.


Oh. The NFL thing. Oh yeah. Well, if I had known - way back when I'd gotten off the boat and ended up in the San Francisco Bay Area, suitcase in my hand - that the NFL had a "walk-on policy" I would've shown up and tried out for the mighty, mighty Oakland Raiders and I WOULD HAVE MADE IT - because anybody who's ever played Australian Rules can kick a football with accuracy AT LEAST 50 yards - that's how you pass the ball in Aussie Rules.





I thought you had to be recruited through the college system, and college was out for me so I joined the best damn Army ever to march across a battlefield and never looked back . . .

. . . well in retrospect it was like being in the NFL without the crowds, or maybe more apropos is was like being on the Olympic team for twenty years . . .


I paid my dues - I can sing The Blues ! ! !

- STORMBRINGER SENDS