Canned Heat
Biography
A hard-luck blues band of the '60s, Canned Heat was founded by blues historians and record collectors Alan Wilson and Bob Hite. They seemed to be on the right track and played all the right festivals (including Monterey and Woodstock, making it very prominently into the documentaries about both) but somehow never found a lasting audience.
Certainly their hearts were in the right place. Canned Heat's debut album -- released shortly after their appearance at Monterey -- was every bit as deep into the roots of the blues as any other combo of the time mining similar turf, with the exception of the original Paul Butterfield band. Hite was nicknamed "The Bear" and stalked the stage in the time-honored tradition of Howlin' Wolf and other large-proportioned bluesmen. Wilson was an extraordinary harmonica player, with a fat tone and great vibrato. His work on guitar, especially in open tunings (he played on Son House's rediscovery recordings of the mid-'60s, incidentally) gave the band a depth and texture that most other rhythm players could only aspire to. Henry Vestine -- another dyed-in-the-wool record collector -- was the West Coast's answer to Michael Bloomfield and capable of fretboard fireworks at a moment's notice.
Selected Discography
Bland? LOL Good one. You evidently did not listen to any Heat. Hooker and heat is OUTSTANDING! ! ! Anphetamine Annie? ON The Road Again? Fried Hocky boggie? This band was on top of the game.
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Great band. Played Chicago regularly in the late 60's. Thier problem was that people did not know they liked the blues. they thought they just liked rock n roll. BB hit it on the head when he sang the Blues had and baby. Music was at its hight in the late 60's. The Heat where a big part of it.
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I get to see these guys at an outdoor festival in canal fulton, oh. 5 min from my home. 38 special is the warm up band. Its a biker party !
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I remember Canned Heat. They, as well as many other bands at the time were over shadowed by othere great artists, however that does'nt take away from their own special great playing
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one of the few american rock and roll bands of that era that really understood how to play the blues, no one came close except Butterfield.
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I've been a Canned Heat fan since 1968 (remember "My Crime" about the po-lice in Denver?). Those guys were great musicians; they just seemed to get too much of a good thing, and that was it ... so long, Canned Heat.
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These guys would come to Germany in the early 70's and just rock it. What a great band. They could do it all in the days when everyone else tended to be a one trick pony.
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Canned Heat is still the BEST boogie band in the world!!!!!
Rock on Fito!!! |
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All ways Love-em. Today's music just doesn't "REV" you up like this great old music. Keep it coming!
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they strike an intense emotional chord, "going up to the country", is almost the torch song for the whole era. it broke my heart to hear the song played for a restaurant commercial on television(m c d o n a l d ' s ) .
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A great can of heat that never needs to be closed - keep playing the heat - this music is sure global warming - dig em -this is heat that al gore is not going to put out. jpr
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