Paul Butterfield
Encyclopedia
Paul Butterfield was an American
blues
vocalist and harmonica
player, who founded the Paul Butterfield Blues Band in the early 1960s and performed at the original Woodstock Festival
. He died of drug-related heart failure.
neighborhood, where he attended the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools
, a private school associated with the University of Chicago. After studying classical
flute
with Walfrid Kujala of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra
as a teenager, he developed a love for the blues harmonica, and hooked up with white, blues-loving, University of Chicago
physics
student Elvin Bishop
. The pair started hanging around black blues
musicians such as Muddy Waters
, Howlin' Wolf
, Little Walter
and Otis Rush
. Butterfield and Bishop soon formed a band with Jerome Arnold
and Sam Lay
, both hired away from the touring band of Howlin' Wolf
. In 1963, the racially mixed quartet was made the house band at Big John's, a folk
club in the Old Town district on Chicago's north side. Butterfield was still underage (as was guitarist Mike Bloomfield
.)
after adding Bloomfield as lead guitar
ist. Their original debut sessions were scrapped, to appear in 1995 as The Original Lost Elektra Sessions. A second attempt was recorded live at the Cafe Au Go Go
, but these too were rejected by producer Paul Rothchild. Some of the discarded tracks appeared on the What's Shakin LP
shared with the Lovin' Spoonful.
At the Newport Folk Festival
in July 1965, Bob Dylan
went electric
in a move considered controversial at the time by much of the folk music establishment, backed by members of Butterfield's band — Bloomfield, Arnold, and Lay — but not Butterfield himself. In October, the self-titled debut recorded a third time after the addition of organist
Mark Naftalin
on some tracks, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band
, containing Nick Gravenites
' "Born in Chicago," was released. Shortly thereafter, Lay became ill with pneumonia and pleurisy and Billy Davenport
took over on drums. The Butterfield Band's second album was East-West
, released in 1966, after which Bloomfield, Arnold, and Davenport left the band.
Bloomfield formed The Electric Flag with Nick Gravenites, and Bishop began playing lead guitar on The Resurrection of Pigboy Crabshaw
(1967). The band now included saxophonists David Sanborn
and Gene Dinwiddie, bassist Bugsy Maugh, and drummer Phillip Wilson
. In 1967, The Butterfield Blues Band played the seminal Monterey International Pop Festival along with the Electric Flag, Jimi Hendrix
, Ravi Shankar
, The Who
, Otis Redding
, the counterculture
bands of San Francisco, and many others.
After the release of In My Own Dream, both Bishop and Naftalin left by the end of 1968. Nineteen-year-old guitarist Buzzy Feiten, joined the band for its 1969 release, Keep On Moving, produced by Jerry Ragavoy, and Rod Hicks replaced Maugh on bass. The Butterfield band played at the Woodstock Festival
, although their performance wasn't included in the resulting Woodstock
film
. In 1969, Butterfield also took part in a concert at Chicago's Auditorium Theater and a subsequent recording session organized by record producer Norman Dayron, featuring Muddy Waters
and backed by pianist Otis Spann
, Michael Bloomfield
, Sam Lay
, Donald "Duck" Dunn, and Buddy Miles
, which was recorded
and portions released on Fathers And Sons on Chess Records
.
and Dinwiddie, and returned to Woodstock
, New York
. He formed a new group including Chris Parker on drums, guitarist
Amos Garrett
, Geoff Muldaur
, pianist
Ronnie Barron
and bassist
Billy Rich, naming the ensemble "Better Days." The group released Paul Butterfield's Better Days and It All Comes Back in 1972 and 1973, respectively.
In 1976, Butterfield performed at The Band
's final concert, The Last Waltz
. Together with The Band
, he performed the song "Mystery Train
" and backed Muddy Waters
on "Mannish Boy
".
, doing occasional television appearances and releasing a couple of albums. He also toured as a duo with Rick Danko
, formerly of The Band
, with whom he performed for the last time in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
.
He also toured with another member of The Band, Levon Helm
, as a member of Helm's "RCO All Stars", which also included most of the members of Booker T and the MGs, in 1977. In the 1970s, Butterfield dated fellow musician Elizabeth Barraclough
.
In 1986 Butterfield released his final studio
album, The Legendary Paul Butterfield Rides Again.
harmonica
s, in particular the diatonic ten-hole 'Marine Band' model. He played using an unconventional technique, holding the harmonica upside-down (with the low notes to the righthand side). His primary playing style was in the second position, also known as cross-harp, but he also was adept in the third position, notably on the track East-West from the album of the same name, and the track 'Highway 28' from the "Better Days" album.
Seldom venturing higher than the sixth hole on the harmonica, Butterfield nevertheless managed to create a variety of original sounds and melodic runs. His live tonal stylings were accomplished using a Shure 545 Unidyne III hand-held microphone connected to one or more Fender amplifiers, often then additionally boosted through the venue's public address (PA) system. This allowed Butterfield to achieve the same extremes of volume as the various notable sidemen in his band.
Butterfield also at times played a mixture of acoustic and amplified style by playing into a microphone mounted on a stand, allowing him to perform on the harmonica using both hands to get a muted, Wah-wah effect, as well as various vibrato
s. This was usually done on a quieter, slower tune.
due to drug use and heavy drinking on May 4, 1987 Los Angeles,California. Before then, Butterfield tenor sax player Ruben Riera had taken him to Bellevue Hospital in New York City for emergency surgery for perforated intestine. He died at his home in North Hollywood, California. A month earlier, he was featured on B.B. King & Friends, a filmed concert that also included Albert King
, Stevie Ray Vaughan
, Etta James
, Gladys Knight
, Chaka Khan
and Eric Clapton
. Its subsequent release was dedicated to Butterfield in memoriam.
In 2005, the Paul Butterfield Fund and Society was founded. It petitions for Butterfield's inclusion in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
.
Butterfield also played harmonica for:
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
vocalist and harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
player, who founded the Paul Butterfield Blues Band in the early 1960s and performed at the original Woodstock Festival
Woodstock Festival
Woodstock Music & Art Fair was a music festival, billed as "An Aquarian Exposition: 3 Days of Peace & Music". It was held at Max Yasgur's 600-acre dairy farm in the Catskills near the hamlet of White Lake in the town of Bethel, New York, from August 15 to August 18, 1969...
. He died of drug-related heart failure.
Career
The son of a lawyer, Paul Butterfield was born in Chicago, Illinois and raised in the city's Hyde ParkHyde Park, Chicago
Hyde Park, located on the South Side of the City of Chicago, in Cook County, Illinois, United States and seven miles south of the Chicago Loop, is a Chicago neighborhood and one of 77 Chicago community areas. It is home to the University of Chicago, the Hyde Park Art Center, the Museum of Science...
neighborhood, where he attended the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools
University of Chicago Laboratory Schools
The University of Chicago Laboratory Schools is a private, co-educational day school in Chicago, Illinois. It is affiliated with the University of Chicago...
, a private school associated with the University of Chicago. After studying classical
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
with Walfrid Kujala of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1891, the Symphony makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival...
as a teenager, he developed a love for the blues harmonica, and hooked up with white, blues-loving, University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
student Elvin Bishop
Elvin Bishop
Elvin Bishop is an American blues and rock and roll musician and guitarist.-Career:Bishop was born in Glendale, California, and grew up on a farm near Elliott, Iowa. His family moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, when he was ten years old...
. The pair started hanging around black blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
musicians such as Muddy Waters
Muddy Waters
McKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...
, Howlin' Wolf
Howlin' Wolf
Chester Arthur Burnett , known as Howlin' Wolf, was an influential American blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player....
, Little Walter
Little Walter
Little Walter, born Marion Walter Jacobs , was an American blues harmonica player, whose revolutionary approach to his instrument has earned him comparisons to Charlie Parker and Jimi Hendrix, for innovation and impact on succeeding generations...
and Otis Rush
Otis Rush
Otis Rush is a blues musician, singer and guitarist. His distinctive guitar style features a slow burning sound and long bent notes...
. Butterfield and Bishop soon formed a band with Jerome Arnold
Jerome Arnold
Jerome Arnold is an American bassist, known for his work with Howlin' Wolf and The Paul Butterfield Blues Band in the 1960s. His playing appears on the albums The Paul Butterfield Blues Band and East-West. He was a member of the Butterfield Band at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965, and was...
and Sam Lay
Sam Lay
Sam Lay is an American drummer and vocalist, who has been performing since the late 1950s.-Life and career:...
, both hired away from the touring band of Howlin' Wolf
Howlin' Wolf
Chester Arthur Burnett , known as Howlin' Wolf, was an influential American blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player....
. In 1963, the racially mixed quartet was made the house band at Big John's, a folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
club in the Old Town district on Chicago's north side. Butterfield was still underage (as was guitarist Mike Bloomfield
Mike Bloomfield
Michael Bernard "Mike" Bloomfield was an American musician, guitarist, and composer, born in Chicago, Illinois, who became one of the first popular music superstars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his instrumental prowess, since he rarely sang before 1969–70...
.)
Butterfield Blues Band
The Paul Butterfield Blues Band was signed to Elektra RecordsElektra Records
Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....
after adding Bloomfield as lead guitar
Lead guitar
Lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
ist. Their original debut sessions were scrapped, to appear in 1995 as The Original Lost Elektra Sessions. A second attempt was recorded live at the Cafe Au Go Go
Cafe Au Go Go
The Cafe au Go Go was a Greenwich Village night club located in the basement of 152 Bleecker Street. The club featured many well known musical groups, folksingers and comedy acts between the opening in February 1964 until closing in October 1969. Originally owned by Howard Solomon who sold the club...
, but these too were rejected by producer Paul Rothchild. Some of the discarded tracks appeared on the What's Shakin LP
LP album
The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
shared with the Lovin' Spoonful.
At the Newport Folk Festival
Newport Folk Festival
The Newport Folk Festival is an American annual folk-oriented music festival in Newport, Rhode Island, which began in 1959 as a counterpart to the previously established Newport Jazz Festival...
in July 1965, Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
went electric
Electric Dylan controversy
By 1965, Bob Dylan had achieved the status of leading songwriter of the American folk music revival.Paul Simon suggested that Dylan's early compositions virtually took over the folk genre: "[Dylan's] early songs were very rich ... with strong melodies. 'Blowin' in the Wind' has a really strong...
in a move considered controversial at the time by much of the folk music establishment, backed by members of Butterfield's band — Bloomfield, Arnold, and Lay — but not Butterfield himself. In October, the self-titled debut recorded a third time after the addition of organist
Organist
An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists...
Mark Naftalin
Mark Naftalin
Mark Naftalin is an American blues keyboardist, composer, and record producer.-Life:Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, Naftalin is the son of former Minneapolis mayor Arthur Naftalin; he is married to third wife Ellen Naftalin...
on some tracks, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band
The Paul Butterfield Blues Band (album)
-Side two:-Personnel:* Paul Butterfield — vocals, harmonica* Mike Bloomfield — electric guitar* Elvin Bishop — electric guitar* Mark Naftalin — organ on "Blues with A Feeling," "Thank You Mr. Poobah," "Screamin'," "Our Love Is Drifting," "Mystery Train," and "Last Night"* Jerome Arnold — bass* Sam...
, containing Nick Gravenites
Nick Gravenites
Nicholas George Gravenites , with stage names like Nick "The Greek" Gravenites and Gravy, is a blues, rock and folk singer–songwriter, and is best known for his work with Janis Joplin, Mike Bloomfield and several influential bands and names of the generation springing from the 1960s and 1970s...
' "Born in Chicago," was released. Shortly thereafter, Lay became ill with pneumonia and pleurisy and Billy Davenport
Billy Davenport
Billy Davenport was an American drummer known for his work with blues musicians such as Willie Dixon, Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Otis Rush, and Paul Butterfield. He appears on the celebrated Butterfield album East-West, and retired from music briefly until 1972, and then again from 1974 to...
took over on drums. The Butterfield Band's second album was East-West
East-West
-Side two:-Personnel:* Paul Butterfield — vocals, harmonica* Mike Bloomfield — electric guitar* Elvin Bishop — electric guitar, lead vocal on "Never Say No"* Mark Naftalin — piano, organ* Jerome Arnold — bass...
, released in 1966, after which Bloomfield, Arnold, and Davenport left the band.
Bloomfield formed The Electric Flag with Nick Gravenites, and Bishop began playing lead guitar on The Resurrection of Pigboy Crabshaw
The Resurrection of Pigboy Crabshaw
The Resurrection of Pigboy Crabshaw is a 1967 album by The Paul Butterfield Blues Band. Its name refers to Elvin Bishop, whose role shifted to lead guitarist after Mike Bloomfield departed to form Electric Flag...
(1967). The band now included saxophonists David Sanborn
David Sanborn
David Sanborn is an American alto saxophonist. Though Sanborn has worked in many genres, his solo recordings typically blend jazz with instrumental pop and R&B. He released his first solo album Taking Off in 1975, but has been playing the saxophone since before he was in high school...
and Gene Dinwiddie, bassist Bugsy Maugh, and drummer Phillip Wilson
Phillip Wilson (drummer)
Phillip Wilson was an American jazz percussionist, known as a founding member of the Art Ensemble of Chicago, and as a member of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band.-Biography:...
. In 1967, The Butterfield Blues Band played the seminal Monterey International Pop Festival along with the Electric Flag, Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
, Ravi Shankar
Ravi Shankar
Ravi Shankar , often referred to by the title Pandit, is an Indian musician and composer who plays the plucked string instrument sitar. He has been described as the best known contemporary Indian musician by Hans Neuhoff in Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart.Shankar was born in Varanasi and spent...
, The Who
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...
, Otis Redding
Otis Redding
Otis Ray Redding, Jr. was an American soul singer-songwriter, record producer, arranger and talent scout. He is considered one of the major figures in soul and R&B...
, the counterculture
Counterculture
Counterculture is a sociological term used to describe the values and norms of behavior of a cultural group, or subculture, that run counter to those of the social mainstream of the day, the cultural equivalent of political opposition. Counterculture can also be described as a group whose behavior...
bands of San Francisco, and many others.
After the release of In My Own Dream, both Bishop and Naftalin left by the end of 1968. Nineteen-year-old guitarist Buzzy Feiten, joined the band for its 1969 release, Keep On Moving, produced by Jerry Ragavoy, and Rod Hicks replaced Maugh on bass. The Butterfield band played at the Woodstock Festival
Woodstock Festival
Woodstock Music & Art Fair was a music festival, billed as "An Aquarian Exposition: 3 Days of Peace & Music". It was held at Max Yasgur's 600-acre dairy farm in the Catskills near the hamlet of White Lake in the town of Bethel, New York, from August 15 to August 18, 1969...
, although their performance wasn't included in the resulting Woodstock
Woodstock (film)
Woodstock is a 1970 American documentary on the Woodstock Festival that took place in August 1969 at Bethel in New York. Entertainment Weekly called this film the benchmark of concert movies and one of the most entertaining documentaries ever made...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
. In 1969, Butterfield also took part in a concert at Chicago's Auditorium Theater and a subsequent recording session organized by record producer Norman Dayron, featuring Muddy Waters
Muddy Waters
McKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...
and backed by pianist Otis Spann
Otis Spann
Otis Spann was an American blues musician, who many consider the leading postwar Chicago blues pianist.-Career:Born in Jackson, Mississippi, United States, Spann became known for his distinct piano style....
, Michael Bloomfield
Mike Bloomfield
Michael Bernard "Mike" Bloomfield was an American musician, guitarist, and composer, born in Chicago, Illinois, who became one of the first popular music superstars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his instrumental prowess, since he rarely sang before 1969–70...
, Sam Lay
Sam Lay
Sam Lay is an American drummer and vocalist, who has been performing since the late 1950s.-Life and career:...
, Donald "Duck" Dunn, and Buddy Miles
Buddy Miles
George Allen Miles, Jr. , known as Buddy Miles, was an American rock and funk drummer, most known as a founding member of The Electric Flag in 1967, then as a member of Jimi Hendrix's Band of Gypsys from 1969 through to January 1970.-Early life:George Allen Miles was born in Omaha, Nebraska on...
, which was recorded
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
and portions released on Fathers And Sons on Chess Records
Chess Records
Chess Records was an American record label based in Chicago, Illinois. It specialized in blues, R&B, soul, gospel music, early rock and roll, and occasional jazz releases....
.
Better Days
Following the releases of Live in 1970 and Sometimes I Just Feel Like Smiling in 1971, Butterfield broke up the horn band with David SanbornDavid Sanborn
David Sanborn is an American alto saxophonist. Though Sanborn has worked in many genres, his solo recordings typically blend jazz with instrumental pop and R&B. He released his first solo album Taking Off in 1975, but has been playing the saxophone since before he was in high school...
and Dinwiddie, and returned to Woodstock
Woodstock, New York
Woodstock is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 5,884 at the 2010 census, down from 6,241 at the 2000 census.The Town of Woodstock is in the northern part of the county...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. He formed a new group including Chris Parker on drums, guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
Amos Garrett
Amos Garrett
Amos Garrett is a Juno Award-winning American-Canadian musician, performer, and author. He holds dual citizenship and was raised in Toronto and Montreal...
, Geoff Muldaur
Geoff Muldaur
Geoff Muldaur is an American founding member of the Jim Kweskin Jug Band of Cambridge, Massachusetts; a member of Paul Butterfield's Better Days; and an accomplished solo guitarist, singer, and songwriter....
, pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
Ronnie Barron
Ronnie Barron
Ronnie Barron was an American actor, keyboardist, organist, and white soul singer during the 1970s. He was known for his work as a session musician for several artists, as well as his collaborations with Dr...
and bassist
Bassist
A bass player, or bassist is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass, bass guitar, keyboard bass or a low brass instrument such as a tuba or sousaphone. Different musical genres tend to be associated with one or more of these instruments...
Billy Rich, naming the ensemble "Better Days." The group released Paul Butterfield's Better Days and It All Comes Back in 1972 and 1973, respectively.
In 1976, Butterfield performed at The Band
The Band
The Band was an acclaimed and influential roots rock group. The original group consisted of Rick Danko , Garth Hudson , Richard Manuel , and Robbie Robertson , and Levon Helm...
's final concert, The Last Waltz
The Last Waltz
The Last Waltz was a concert by the rock group The Band, held on American Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976, at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco...
. Together with The Band
The Band
The Band was an acclaimed and influential roots rock group. The original group consisted of Rick Danko , Garth Hudson , Richard Manuel , and Robbie Robertson , and Levon Helm...
, he performed the song "Mystery Train
Mystery Train
"Mystery Train" is a song written by Junior Parker and Sam Phillips. It was first recorded in Phillip's Memphis Recording Service and Sun Records at 706 Union Avenue, Memphis, Tennessee in 1953. Raymond Hill plays tenor sax and Matt Murphy plays lead guitar with Bill Johnson on piano, Pat Hare on...
" and backed Muddy Waters
Muddy Waters
McKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...
on "Mannish Boy
Mannish Boy
"Mannish Boy" is a blues standard first recorded by Muddy Waters in 1955. It is an arrangement of Bo Diddley's "I'm a Man"...
".
Solo
The late 1970s and early 1980s saw Butterfield as a solo act and a session musicianSession musician
Session musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
, doing occasional television appearances and releasing a couple of albums. He also toured as a duo with Rick Danko
Rick Danko
Richard Clare "Rick" Danko was a Canadian musician and singer, best known as a member of The Band.-Early years :...
, formerly of The Band
The Band
The Band was an acclaimed and influential roots rock group. The original group consisted of Rick Danko , Garth Hudson , Richard Manuel , and Robbie Robertson , and Levon Helm...
, with whom he performed for the last time in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
.
He also toured with another member of The Band, Levon Helm
Levon Helm
Mark Lavon "Levon" Helm , is an American rock multi-instrumentalist and actor who achieved fame as the drummer and frequent lead and backing vocalist for The Band....
, as a member of Helm's "RCO All Stars", which also included most of the members of Booker T and the MGs, in 1977. In the 1970s, Butterfield dated fellow musician Elizabeth Barraclough
Elizabeth Barraclough
Elizabeth Barraclough is an American musician whose songs span the genres of folk, country, rock and pop. She is best known for having played both live and on record with Paul Butterfield, Charlie McCoy, Kenny Buttrey, and Todd Rundgren. She was managed by Bob Dylan's manager Albert Grossman...
.
In 1986 Butterfield released his final studio
Recording studio
A recording studio is a facility for sound recording and mixing. Ideally both the recording and monitoring spaces are specially designed by an acoustician to achieve optimum acoustic properties...
album, The Legendary Paul Butterfield Rides Again.
Harmonica style
Butterfield played and endorsed (as noted in the liner notes for his first album) HohnerHohner
Hohner Musikinstrumente GmbH & Co. KG is a company specialising in the manufacture of musical instruments. Founded in 1857 by Matthias Hohner , Hohner is identified especially with harmonicas and accordions. The Hohner company has invented and produced many different styles, and most of the...
harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
s, in particular the diatonic ten-hole 'Marine Band' model. He played using an unconventional technique, holding the harmonica upside-down (with the low notes to the righthand side). His primary playing style was in the second position, also known as cross-harp, but he also was adept in the third position, notably on the track East-West from the album of the same name, and the track 'Highway 28' from the "Better Days" album.
Seldom venturing higher than the sixth hole on the harmonica, Butterfield nevertheless managed to create a variety of original sounds and melodic runs. His live tonal stylings were accomplished using a Shure 545 Unidyne III hand-held microphone connected to one or more Fender amplifiers, often then additionally boosted through the venue's public address (PA) system. This allowed Butterfield to achieve the same extremes of volume as the various notable sidemen in his band.
Butterfield also at times played a mixture of acoustic and amplified style by playing into a microphone mounted on a stand, allowing him to perform on the harmonica using both hands to get a muted, Wah-wah effect, as well as various vibrato
Vibrato
Vibrato is a musical effect consisting of a regular, pulsating change of pitch. It is used to add expression to vocal and instrumental music. Vibrato is typically characterised in terms of two factors: the amount of pitch variation and the speed with which the pitch is varied .-Vibrato and...
s. This was usually done on a quieter, slower tune.
Death
Paul Butterfield died of peritonitisPeritonitis
Peritonitis is an inflammation of the peritoneum, the serous membrane that lines part of the abdominal cavity and viscera. Peritonitis may be localised or generalised, and may result from infection or from a non-infectious process.-Abdominal pain and tenderness:The main manifestations of...
due to drug use and heavy drinking on May 4, 1987 Los Angeles,California. Before then, Butterfield tenor sax player Ruben Riera had taken him to Bellevue Hospital in New York City for emergency surgery for perforated intestine. He died at his home in North Hollywood, California. A month earlier, he was featured on B.B. King & Friends, a filmed concert that also included Albert King
Albert King
Albert King was an American blues guitarist and singer, and a major influence in the world of blues guitar playing.-Career:...
, Stevie Ray Vaughan
Stevie Ray Vaughan
Stephen Ray "Stevie Ray" Vaughan was an American electric blues guitarist and singer. He was the younger brother of Jimmie Vaughan and frontman for Double Trouble, a band that included bassist Tommy Shannon and drummer Chris Layton. Born in Dallas, Vaughan moved to Austin at the age of 17 and...
, Etta James
Etta James
Etta James is an American blues, soul, rhythm and blues , rock and roll, gospel and jazz singer. In the 1950s and 1960s, she had her biggest success as a blues and R&B singer...
, Gladys Knight
Gladys Knight
Gladys Maria Knight , known as the "Empress of Soul", is an American singer-songwriter, actress, businesswoman, humanitarian, and author...
, Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career...
and Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
. Its subsequent release was dedicated to Butterfield in memoriam.
In 2005, the Paul Butterfield Fund and Society was founded. It petitions for Butterfield's inclusion in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
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Discography
- 1965 – The Paul Butterfield Blues Band - The Paul Butterfield Blues BandThe Paul Butterfield Blues Band (album)-Side two:-Personnel:* Paul Butterfield — vocals, harmonica* Mike Bloomfield — electric guitar* Elvin Bishop — electric guitar* Mark Naftalin — organ on "Blues with A Feeling," "Thank You Mr. Poobah," "Screamin'," "Our Love Is Drifting," "Mystery Train," and "Last Night"* Jerome Arnold — bass* Sam...
- 1966 – The Butterfield Blues Band - East-WestEast-West-Side two:-Personnel:* Paul Butterfield — vocals, harmonica* Mike Bloomfield — electric guitar* Elvin Bishop — electric guitar, lead vocal on "Never Say No"* Mark Naftalin — piano, organ* Jerome Arnold — bass...
- 1966 – The Butterfield Blues Band - Live at Unicorn Coffee House
- 1966 - The Butterfield Blues Band - What's Shakin'What's Shakin'-Side One:# "Good Time Music" – The Lovin' Spoonful# "Almost Grown" – The Lovin' Spoonful# "Spoonful" – The Paul Butterfield Blues Band# "Off the Wall" – The Paul Butterfield Blues Band...
- Elektra compilation album - 1967 – The Butterfield Blues Band - The Resurrection of Pigboy CrabshawThe Resurrection of Pigboy CrabshawThe Resurrection of Pigboy Crabshaw is a 1967 album by The Paul Butterfield Blues Band. Its name refers to Elvin Bishop, whose role shifted to lead guitarist after Mike Bloomfield departed to form Electric Flag...
- 1967 - John Mayall & the BluesbreakersJohn Mayall & the BluesbreakersJohn Mayall & the Bluesbreakers are a pioneering English blues band, led by singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist John Mayall, OBE. Mayall used the band name between 1963 and 1967, but then dropped it for some fifteen years. However, in 1982 a 'Return of the Bluesbreakers' was announced and...
and Paul Butterfield - John Mayall's Bluesbreakers with Paul Butterfield, EPExtended playAn EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact... - 1968 – The Butterfield Blues Band - In My Own Dream
- 1969 – The Butterfield Blues Band - Keep on MovingKeep on Moving (The Butterfield Blues Band album)Keep on Moving is a 1969 album by The Butterfield Blues Band. It was the fifth Elektra release by the Butterfield Blues Band. During a four-year span the group's namesake and leader was the only original member left from their first album in 1965...
- 1970 - The Butterfield Blues Band - Live
- 1971 – The Butterfield Blues Band - Sometimes I Just Feel Like Smilin'
- 1972 - The Butterfield Blues Band - An Offer You Can't Refuse (recorded 1963)
- 1972 - Paul Butterfield Blues Band - Golden Butter/The Best of the Butterfield Blues Band
- 1973 – Paul Butterfield's Better Days - Better Days
- 1973 – Paul Butterfield's Better Days - It All Comes Back
- 1976 - Paul Butterfield - Put It In Your Ear
- 1981 - Paul Butterfield - North-South
- 1986 - Paul Butterfield - The Legendary Paul Butterfield Rides Again
- 1995 - The Paul Butterfield Blues Band - The Original Lost Elektra Sessions (recorded 1964)
- 1996 - The Butterfield Blues Band - Strawberry Jam
- 1996 – The Butterfield Blues Band - East-West Live (recorded between 1966–1967)
- 1997 - The Paul Butterfield Blues Band - An Anthology: The Elektra Years (2 CDs)
- 2005 - The Butterfield Blues Band - Live - (Limited EditionSpecial editionThe terms special edition, limited edition and variants such as deluxe edition, collector's edition and others, are used as a marketing incentive for various kinds of products, originally published products related to the arts, such as books, prints or recorded music and films, but now including...
with additional tracksSongIn music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
)
Butterfield also played harmonica for:
- 1968 - Jimi HendrixJimi HendrixJames Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
- Blues at Midnight - 1969 - Muddy WatersMuddy WatersMcKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...
- Fathers and sons - 1972 - Bonnie RaittBonnie RaittBonnie Lynn Raitt is an American blues singer-songwriter and a renowned slide guitar player. During the 1970s, Raitt released a series of acclaimed roots-influenced albums which incorporated elements of blues, rock, folk and country, but she is perhaps best known for her more commercially...
- Give It Up - 1975 - Muddy WatersMuddy WatersMcKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...
- Woodstock Album - 1976 - The BandThe BandThe Band was an acclaimed and influential roots rock group. The original group consisted of Rick Danko , Garth Hudson , Richard Manuel , and Robbie Robertson , and Levon Helm...
- The Last Waltz
Sources
- Michael Bloomfield - If You Love These Blues: An Oral History Backbeat Books, 1st edition September 2000 - ISBN 978-0879306175 (with CD of uniussed music)
- Ken Brooks - The Adventures of Mike BloomfieldMike BloomfieldMichael Bernard "Mike" Bloomfield was an American musician, guitarist, and composer, born in Chicago, Illinois, who became one of the first popular music superstars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his instrumental prowess, since he rarely sang before 1969–70...
and Al KooperAl KooperAl Kooper is an American songwriter, record producer and musician, known for organizing Blood, Sweat & Tears , providing studio support for Bob Dylan when he went electric in 1965, and also bringing together guitarists Mike Bloomfield and Stephen Stills to...
with Paul Butterfield and David Clayton Thomas Agenda Ltd, February 1999, ISBN 1899882901 ISBN 978-1899882908 - Al Kooper - Backstage Passes: Rock 'N' Roll Life in the Sixties - Stein & Day Pub (1st edition February 1977) ISBN 0812821718 - ISBN 978-0812821710
- Al Kooper - Backstage Passes and Backstabbing Bastards: Memoirs of a Rock 'N' Roll Survivor Billboard Books (Updated Edition - September 1998) ISBN 0823082571 ISBN 978-0823082575
- Al Kooper - Backstage Passes and Backstabbing Bastards - Hal Leonard Corporation, new edition February 2008, ISBN 0879309229 ISBN 978-0879309220
- Ed Ward - Michael BloomfieldMike BloomfieldMichael Bernard "Mike" Bloomfield was an American musician, guitarist, and composer, born in Chicago, Illinois, who became one of the first popular music superstars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his instrumental prowess, since he rarely sang before 1969–70...
, The rise and fall of an American guitar hero, Cherry Lane Books (1983), ISBN 0895241579 ISBN 978-0895241573