The Red Devils (blues band)
Encyclopedia
The Red Devils were a Los Angeles-based blues-rock
band who were active from 1988 to 1994. With their no-frills approach and singer Lester Butler
's convincing Chicago-style blues harp, they were a popular fixture on the Los Angeles club scene and toured the U.S. and Europe. The band released a live album, a four-song EP, and recorded songs with Mick Jagger
and Johnny Cash
.
/punk
band The Blasters
in 1988. They established themselves as the Monday-night house band of a Los Angeles neighborhood club, King King. Early members included Smokey Hormel, Dave Alvin
, and Gene Taylor
, but by 1990–91, the lineup had more or less stabilized with drummer Bill Bateman, guitarist Dave Lee Bartel, bassist Jonny Ray Bartel (from The Knitters
), singer/harmonica player Lester Butler, and guitarist Paul "The Kid" Size.
Their Monday night performances at the King King became popular with area residents and also drew "interest from the likes of ZZ Top
's Billy Gibbons
, Angus
and Malcolm Young
of AC/DC
, and the then-red-hot Black Crowes. Queen
guitarist Brian May
showed up to jam one night..." Actor Bruce Willis
and members of Motorhead, Dokken
, and Red Hot Chili Peppers
also joined in the jam sessions.
and George Drakoulias
of Def American Recordings. The band hoped that Drakoulias would work with them, but it became clear that Rubin was going to produce their debut album. According to guitarist Dave Lee Bartel, "He [Rubin] had the vision of it all". One of his first orders of business was a name change: the Blue Shadows became the Red Devils (a name once used by a rockabilly band with the Bartel brothers). Rubin decided that their debut album was going to be a live album, "a one-take, no-overdubs release, titled simply King King
", and chose the songs and the cover art.
King King was recorded at the club during three or four of their regular Monday-night performances in 1991. It featured a mix of songs by blues figures such as Little Walter
, Sonny Boy Williamson II
, Howlin' Wolf
, and Willie Dixon
along with some band originals. The album was released in July 1992 and an early review called it "the year's most electrifying live album, a stunning debut".
's "Who Do You Love" and Little Walter's version of "Blues with a Feeling
". A month later, the Red Devils were invited to record some blues standards with Jagger, presumably for his upcoming solo album. During one thirteen-hour recording session at Ocean Way Recording
in Hollywood, Jagger and the Devils recorded thirteen songs, including "Mean Old World
", "Talk to Me Baby
", "Shake 'Em on Down
", and "Forty Days and Forty Nights
". According to bassist Jonny Ray Bartel, the songs were essentially unrehearsed and most were completed in three or fewer takes, with no overdubs – Jagger wanted to recreate the spontaneous, rough and tumble quality of his favorite early Chicago blues.
When Jagger's Wandering Spirit
was released in 1993, it did not include any of the songs recorded with the Red Devils. During a short tour of England in March–April 1993, Jagger joined the band for several performances and there was talk of releasing an album with the June 1992 recordings. However, only one song from the session, "Checkin' Up on My Baby
", was released, appearing on Jagger's The Very Best of Mick Jagger
album in 2007.
In September 1993, Rick Rubin brought the Red Devils back to the studio to record with music legend Johnny Cash. During their impromptu session, Cash showed the band some songs, including "T for Texas", "Bad News", "Devil's Right Hand", and "Thirteen". Their recording of "T for Texas" was later released on Cash's Unearthed 2003 album. After Cash left, Rubin announced "OK, we're gonna record your next album right now" to the band's surprise. Nine songs were recorded with guitarist Zach Zunis, who replaced Hormel. However, due to mounting problems, the album was never completed. Four songs from the session were later released on the Blackwater Roll EP.
In November 1993, the band returned to Europe for more club and festival dates. However, by 1994, the band was on its last legs. "It was getting harder and harder to get Lester to want to rehearse ... [and soon] Butler stopped showing up for gigs as well". Rubin then dropped the band and by the end of 1994 they essentially disbanded.
The members of the Red Devils then began other musical pursuits. Butler performed with various musicians before forming his final group, 13; he became popular in Europe, but died in 1998 at age 38. The remaining members have sometimes performed with different musicians as the Blue Shadows.
Blues-rock
Blues rock is a hybrid musical genre combining bluesy improvisations over the 12-bar blues and extended boogie jams with rock and roll styles. The core of the blues rock sound is created by the electric guitar, piano, bass guitar and drum kit, with the electric guitar usually amplified through a...
band who were active from 1988 to 1994. With their no-frills approach and singer Lester Butler
Lester Butler
Lester Butler was an American blues harmonica player and singer. He achieved fame as the singer and harmonica player for the Los Angeles, California, based blues roots band, The Red Devils-Biography:...
's convincing Chicago-style blues harp, they were a popular fixture on the Los Angeles club scene and toured the U.S. and Europe. The band released a live album, a four-song EP, and recorded songs with Mick Jagger
Mick Jagger
Sir Michael Philip "Mick" Jagger is an English musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist and a founding member of The Rolling Stones....
and Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
.
Background
Originally called the Blue Shadows, the band formed as an offshoot of roots rockRoots rock
Roots rock is a term now used to describe rock music that looks back to rock's origins in folk, blues and country music. It is particularly associated with the creation of hybrid sub-genres from the later 1960s including country rock and Southern rock, which have been seen as responses to the...
/punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band The Blasters
The Blasters
The Blasters are a rock and roll music group formed in 1979 in Downey, California, by brothers Phil Alvin and Dave Alvin , with bass guitarist John Bazz and drummer Bill Bateman. Phil Alvin explained the origin of the band's name: "I thought Joe Turner’s backup band on Atlantic records – I had...
in 1988. They established themselves as the Monday-night house band of a Los Angeles neighborhood club, King King. Early members included Smokey Hormel, Dave Alvin
Dave Alvin
Dave Alvin , is a guitarist, singer and songwriter. He has been one of the leading proponents of 'roots' or 'American' music, bringing together elements of rock-and-roll, blues, rural and tejano music....
, and Gene Taylor
Gene Taylor (musician)
Gene Taylor is an American blues rock and boogie-woogie pianist.-Biography:Taylor began his musical training as a drummer at age eight but two years later he had picked up both the guitar and his initial piano skills from boogie-woogie pianist-neighbours...
, but by 1990–91, the lineup had more or less stabilized with drummer Bill Bateman, guitarist Dave Lee Bartel, bassist Jonny Ray Bartel (from The Knitters
The Knitters
The Knitters are a Los Angeles-based band who play country, rockabilly and folk music. At the time of their formation they were pioneers of country punk, cowpunk or folk punk, the genre which gradually evolved into alternative country...
), singer/harmonica player Lester Butler, and guitarist Paul "The Kid" Size.
Their Monday night performances at the King King became popular with area residents and also drew "interest from the likes of ZZ Top
ZZ Top
ZZ Top is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "That Little Ol' Band from Texas". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based boogie rock, has come to incorporate elements of arena, southern, and boogie rock. The band, from Houston Texas, formed in 1969...
's Billy Gibbons
Billy Gibbons
William Frederick "Billy" Gibbons is an American musician, actor and car customizer, best known as the guitarist of the Texas blues-rock band ZZ Top. He is also the lead singer and composer for many of the band's songs. Gibbons is known for playing his Gretsch Billy Bo guitar and his famous 1959...
, Angus
Angus Young
Angus McKinnon Young is a Scottish-born Australian musician, and the lead guitarist, songwriter, and co-founder of the rock and roll band AC/DC. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame along with other members of AC/DC in 2003 and is known for his energetic performances,...
and Malcolm Young
Malcolm Young
Malcolm Young is a Scottish-born Australian guitarist, best known as a founding member, rhythm guitarist, backing vocalist and songwriter for the Australian hard rock band AC/DC. Young was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003, along with the other members of AC/DC...
of AC/DC
AC/DC
AC/DC are an Australian rock band, formed in 1973 by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Commonly classified as hard rock, they are considered pioneers of heavy metal, though they themselves have always classified their music as simply "rock and roll"...
, and the then-red-hot Black Crowes. Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...
guitarist Brian May
Brian May
Brian Harold May, CBE is an English musician and astrophysicist most widely known as the guitarist and a songwriter of the rock band Queen...
showed up to jam one night..." Actor Bruce Willis
Bruce Willis
Walter Bruce Willis , better known as Bruce Willis, is an American actor, producer, and musician. His career began in television in the 1980s and has continued both in television and film since, including comedic, dramatic, and action roles...
and members of Motorhead, Dokken
Dokken
Dokken is an American heavy metal and hard rock band formed in 1978. They split up in 1989 but reformed four years later. The group accumulated numerous charting singles and has sold more than 10 million albums worldwide...
, and Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers is an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk, hip hop and psychedelic rock...
also joined in the jam sessions.
King King
By early 1991, the Blue Shadows came to the attention of producers Rick RubinRick Rubin
Frederick Jay "Rick" Rubin is an American record producer and the co-president of Columbia Records. Along with Russell Simmons, Rubin was the co-founder of Def Jam Records and also established American Recordings...
and George Drakoulias
George Drakoulias
George Drakoulias is a Greek-American music producer and A&R executive at the American Recordings label. He is often considered a protege of Rick Rubin....
of Def American Recordings. The band hoped that Drakoulias would work with them, but it became clear that Rubin was going to produce their debut album. According to guitarist Dave Lee Bartel, "He [Rubin] had the vision of it all". One of his first orders of business was a name change: the Blue Shadows became the Red Devils (a name once used by a rockabilly band with the Bartel brothers). Rubin decided that their debut album was going to be a live album, "a one-take, no-overdubs release, titled simply King King
King King
-Personnel:*Lester Butler – vocals and harmonica*Paul "The Kid" Size – lead guitar*Dave Lee Bartel – rhythm guitar*Johnny Ray Bartel – bass*Bill Bateman – drums-External links:* *...
", and chose the songs and the cover art.
King King was recorded at the club during three or four of their regular Monday-night performances in 1991. It featured a mix of songs by blues figures such as 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...
, Sonny Boy Williamson II
Sonny Boy Williamson II
Willie "Sonny Boy" Williamson was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, from Mississippi. He is acknowledged as one of the most charismatic and influential blues musicians, with considerable prowess on the harmonica and highly creative songwriting skills...
, Howlin' Wolf
Howlin' Wolf
Chester Arthur Burnett , known as Howlin' Wolf, was an influential American blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player....
, and Willie Dixon
Willie Dixon
William James "Willie" Dixon was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. A Grammy Award winner who was proficient on both the Upright bass and the guitar, as well as his own singing voice, Dixon is arguably best known as one of the most prolific songwriters...
along with some band originals. The album was released in July 1992 and an early review called it "the year's most electrifying live album, a stunning debut".
Recording with Mick Jagger
Mick Jagger became interested in the Red Devils following a recommendation by Rick Rubin, who was producing Jagger's third solo album. After scouting the band at King King, Jagger joined them on stage in May 1992 and performed Bo DiddleyBo Diddley
Ellas Otha Bates , known by his stage name Bo Diddley, was an American rhythm and blues vocalist, guitarist, songwriter , and inventor...
's "Who Do You Love" and Little Walter's version of "Blues with a Feeling
Blues with a Feeling
"Blues with a Feeling" is a blues song first released by Rabon Tarrant with Jack McVea and His All Stars in 1947. Later, the song became an important hit for Little Walter and "has been cited by a number of his imitators as the song that inspired them to take up harmonica"...
". A month later, the Red Devils were invited to record some blues standards with Jagger, presumably for his upcoming solo album. During one thirteen-hour recording session at Ocean Way Recording
Ocean Way Recording
Ocean Way Recording is the name of a series of recording studios in Hollywood, California and Nashville, Tennessee. Ocean Way Studios is well known in the recording industry due to the award-winning albums that were produced there....
in Hollywood, Jagger and the Devils recorded thirteen songs, including "Mean Old World
Mean Old World
"Mean Old World" is a blues song recorded by T-Bone Walker in 1942. It has been described as "the first important blues recordings on the electric guitar"...
", "Talk to Me Baby
Talk to Me Baby
"Talk to Me Baby", also known as "I Can't Hold Out", is a blues song written by Willie Dixon and recorded by Elmore James in 1960. Called a classic and a "popular James standard", it has been interpreted and recorded by a variety of artists....
", "Shake 'Em on Down
Shake 'Em on Down
"Shake 'Em on Down" is a country-style blues song recorded by Bukka White in 1937. It is his best-known song and "became part of the repertoire of Chicago blues".-Background:...
", and "Forty Days and Forty Nights
Forty Days and Forty Nights
"Forty Days and Forty Nights" is a blues song recorded by Muddy Waters in 1956. Called "a big, bold record", it was a hit, spending six weeks in the Billboard R&B chart where it reached number seven...
". According to bassist Jonny Ray Bartel, the songs were essentially unrehearsed and most were completed in three or fewer takes, with no overdubs – Jagger wanted to recreate the spontaneous, rough and tumble quality of his favorite early Chicago blues.
When Jagger's Wandering Spirit
Wandering Spirit (album)
Wandering Spirit is the third solo album by Mick Jagger. Released in 1993, it was his only solo album release of the 1990s.Following the The Rolling Stones' Steel Wheels , Jagger began writing new material for what would become Wandering Spirit...
was released in 1993, it did not include any of the songs recorded with the Red Devils. During a short tour of England in March–April 1993, Jagger joined the band for several performances and there was talk of releasing an album with the June 1992 recordings. However, only one song from the session, "Checkin' Up on My Baby
Checkin' Up on My Baby
"Checkin' Up on My Baby" is a song recorded by Sonny Boy Williamson II in 1960 that has become a classic of the blues. The song was not released as a single, but was included on Williamson's The Real Folk Blues album released after his death in January 1966...
", was released, appearing on Jagger's The Very Best of Mick Jagger
The Very Best of Mick Jagger
The Very Best of Mick Jagger is a compilation album that was released worldwide on 1 October 2007 and the following day in the United States on WEA/Rhino Records...
album in 2007.
Touring and last recordings
In August 1992, the Red Devils began an extensive U.S. tour. In March 1993, the band headed to Europe and played at several high-profile festivals, including the Pinkpop Festival. By June 1993, they were back in Los Angeles to play their last gig at King King club. By then, the constant touring and singer/harmonica player Lester Butler's growing substance-abuse problems led to friction within the band and with Rubin. Guitarist Paul "The Kid" Size quit the band to return to Texas and was replaced by Smokey Hormel, who had played earlier with the band.In September 1993, Rick Rubin brought the Red Devils back to the studio to record with music legend Johnny Cash. During their impromptu session, Cash showed the band some songs, including "T for Texas", "Bad News", "Devil's Right Hand", and "Thirteen". Their recording of "T for Texas" was later released on Cash's Unearthed 2003 album. After Cash left, Rubin announced "OK, we're gonna record your next album right now" to the band's surprise. Nine songs were recorded with guitarist Zach Zunis, who replaced Hormel. However, due to mounting problems, the album was never completed. Four songs from the session were later released on the Blackwater Roll EP.
In November 1993, the band returned to Europe for more club and festival dates. However, by 1994, the band was on its last legs. "It was getting harder and harder to get Lester to want to rehearse ... [and soon] Butler stopped showing up for gigs as well". Rubin then dropped the band and by the end of 1994 they essentially disbanded.
The members of the Red Devils then began other musical pursuits. Butler performed with various musicians before forming his final group, 13; he became popular in Europe, but died in 1998 at age 38. The remaining members have sometimes performed with different musicians as the Blue Shadows.