Bobby ‘Blue’ Bland

Listen/Download Bobby Bland – Rockin’ In the Same Old Boat

Greetings all

Welcome to the middle of the week, and brace yourselves for something heavy.

A few years back, I was tuned in to my man Kris Holmes’ radio show, and he dropped a record that I’d never heard before, that absolutely blew me away.

While I knew I was hearing the unmistakable sound of Bobby Bland’s voice, it was coming over the airwaves inside of a really weird record.

The tune, was ‘Rockin’ In the Same Old Boat’.

The record, which grazed the R&B Top 10 in 1968 (hanging just outside the Pop Top 50) is one of the freakiest (and I mean that in the best way possible) juxtapositions of a singer and a style.

Bland, one of the greatest blues/R&B vocalists of the 50s and 60s, is heard here in the midst of an arrangement that is plainly psychedelic.

Drenched in echo, and taken at a slow, almost spooky pace, ‘Rockin’ In the Same Old Boat’ sees our hero bringing his “A” game to a far out place.

The overall style of the record isn’t weird or out of place for 1968, since pretty much the entire musical landscape had gotten a little wilder and more experimental, but the thought that someone thought to take the mighty voice of Bobby ‘Blue’ Band and wrap it up in a trippy package like this, still boggles the mind.

The way the echoed saxophone winds its way in and out of the arrangement, abetted by tasteful lead guitar on a platform of thick, plodding bass and nearly non-existent drumming is a thing of beauty.

What’s spectacularly weird (to me, anyway) is the “kind” of psychedelic this song is. This is no flower power, candy coated, Technicolor dream. ‘Rockin’ In the Same Old Boat’ is two bottles of codeine cough syrup and a heavy four way hit of acid, with Bobby sounding like he’s pleading for release from some kind of psychic dungeon.

The record takes the hint of darkness present in a record like Bobbie Gentry’s ‘Ode to Billie Joe’ and dials it all the way up.

This is especially strange considering the fact that if you listen to the lyrics, the song seems to have a happy ending.

It’s just one of those records that I can listen to over and over again, if only to sample the vibe. You don’t just listen to a record like this, you feel it.

As far as I know, the mighty Mr Bland never did anything like this again.

That’s probably because he didn’t have to.

Keep the faith

Larry

 

 

 

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

Also, make sure that you check out the links below to the Be The Match Foundation and POAC (click on the logos for more info).

 

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.