Willie Simpson

Tag: Rock and Roll

  • Willie Simpson, I Threw it All Away

    This will be the last Dylan song I perform for a while.  In my experiments with recording myself for youtube this week, Bob just offered the perfect songs for me to play with.  This one, I Threw it All Away, from his Nashville Skyline record, I just couldn’t pass up.  It is one of my…

  • Bob Dylan & Eric Clapton, Crossroads

    Part 36 of my youtube countdown rolls on with a performance of Robert Johnson’s ‘Crossroads Blues’ by Bob Dylan and Eric Clapton.  I’ve been in a real bluesy mood this week, and a clip like this really hits the sweet spot.  The song, a gem in Robert Johnson’s absurdly mythological repertoire, is heavily electrified by…

  • Willie Simpson, Positively 4th Street

    My performance of Bob Dylan’s Positively 4th Street. This one has WAY better audio this time because it dawned on me to use a real mic. Expect my videos to get much better in the future when I get more confidence recording these things, though I like the little rasp I’ve got going here.  I…

  • Muddy Waters and The Rolling Stones

    In part 35 of my youtube favorites countdown, we take a trip to rock school.  In our lesson we’ll look at two thunderously classic clips.  The first features the immortal Muddy Waters leading his band through his genre defining blues cut “Rollin’ Stone.”  This song, as you probably know, was the original inspiration for the…

  • Matthew Sweet, We're The Same and Girlfriend

    Welcome to a special Two for Tuesday of my youtube countdown.  This is part 34, and today we are featuring two fantastic clips from 90s indie rocker Matthew Sweet.  The first is “We’re the Same.”  I love this video and song.  It’s such a classic tasteful 90s rock song.  A perfect 60s throwback featuring a…

  • The Police, So Lonely

    Part 33 of my youtube favorites countdown continues with The Police’s excellent music video for “So Lonely.”  Released in 1978 from their brilliant Outlandos d’Amour album, “So Lonely” is an example of their classic punk/reggae hybrid formula.  Sting went so far to say that the chorus was ripped directly off of Bob Marley’s “No Woman…

  • Willie Simpson, Buckets of Rain

    As promised, my performance of Buckets of Rain by Bob Dylan.  I played it on my Epiphone Casino because the mic picked it up better.  Also, I did it in Open E tuning, so that’s why I’m looking at my guitar so much, to make sure I’m playing the right chords.  I hope to have…

  • Neko Case, Buckets of Rain

    In part 32 of my youtube countdown, we find Neko Case covering Bob Dylan’s Buckets of Rain from Bob’s “Blood on the Tracks” album.  There are two things you need to understand.  First, Neko Case is my favorite female singer in the world.  Her voice is just a soaring laser beam of power and clarity. …

  • The Beatles, Hey Bulldog vs. Lady Madonna Video Controversy

    WELCOME to part 31 of my youtube countdown!  Today, I have a special Beatle-tastic history lesson, featuring clips of two insanely great Beatle rockers, Hey Bulldog, and Lady Madonna.  First, let present the sad story of Hey Bulldog, John Lennon’s lost masterpiece of rock.  Hey Bulldog is one of John’s most ferocious, manic rockers.  It’s…

  • The Dirty Mac, Yer Blues

    Part 27 of my youtube countdown rolls on with another act from the infamous Rock and Roll Circus.  This time, we have Dirty Mac.  Who is Dirty Mac?  Well, its John Lennon, Eric Clapton, Keith Richards (on bass, awesome), and Mitch Mitchell (on drums direct from the Jimi Hendrix Experience.)  A super group if there…