Bman's Blues Report

Chris Barber’s bands have almost always had a guitarist (as opposed to a banjoist) since Alexis Korner was a band member in 1949. In the 1950s American stars such as Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Muddy Waters, and Brownie McGhee (of Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee) all played guitar with the band, as did Lonnie Donegan, Johnny Duncan, and Dick Bishop in the Skiffle Group. By the early 1960s, however, Chris realised he needed a permanent blues guitarist, and set about finding one. At about the same time a young musician was starting out on his hoped-for career, first playing five-string banjo, as his brother wanted a banjo player in his own traditional jazz band. A year later John Slaughter switched to guitar, and started to learn to play in a friend’s front room. The group’s drummer knew John Mayall (of Bluesbreakers fame) and John was asked to deputise in Mayall’s band one night, when the regular guitarist was ill. John remembers that he was not very well that night, but… Chris telephoned...