Cookeville Blues Jam

Cookeville Blues Jam Celebrating our TENTH YEAR of connecting musicians and live music fans in the Upper Cumberland through the universal language of Blues music! NO HEADCUTTING!

Cookeville Blues Jam Guidelines / Important Info

This is a BLUES Jam so the music selections during jam rotation will be limited to standard 12 bar, I IV V songs. This is not meant to exclude but to include singers and players at all skill levels that want to get up and play the BLUES and have fun. If you want to perform solo or as a group instead of being in the rotation note that when you sign

up. No backing tracks are allowed. This is a LIVE music jam! You can accompany yourself on an instrument. Singers & all types of instrumentalists are welcome to jam. You are expected to bring your own instruments and to keep accessories to a minimum for a quick set up. Sign in sheet will be available at 6:45 pm. Rotation will begin at 8:30. The host band will open the jam at 7:00 pm and play a few songs to give everyone time to arrive and get signed in. You will be called up to play in the general order you sign up unless there are accompaniment needs that require shuffling (LOL!) the order to keep things moving. NOTE: If you are performing as a soloist, duo or group then you may not be called in the exact order in which you signed in. Basic PA is provided including microphones and monitors. Please plan to use the provided PA equipment. Backline is provided in the form of two guitar amps, a bass amp, keys amp and a drum kit. Please treat the provided backline equipment with respect. To make the best use of the time please use the backline equipment. Also remember that the venue is graciously providing us a place to jam and build our BLUES community so be respectful to them and do not change the volume of the amp you are using. Don’t worry you will be heard! Be listening as announcements are made about who is up next and who is “on deck”. Get tuned up or otherwise prepared to play while you are “on deck” and be ready before it’s your turn to keep things moving with little down time in between songs. NOTE:Be able and prepared to communicate the song key, tempo and any variations in structure (Starts on the V, etc.) to the other players on stage with you. References to other blues standards always help if you are playing a lesser known song. There is a limit of 2 or 3 songs per turn to allow everyone an opportunity to play. You may have more than one turn depending on how many sign up. If the host asks and you are willing, you may be asked to play during someone else’s turn in the spotlight. Be supportive and gracious to novices and veterans alike. It takes courage to get up in front of people and sing or play regardless of your skill level. A Blues jam is about friendship and FUN! It is not a contest!

BLUES GAUNTLET — Few Miles On: “Rollin’ and Tumblin’”Some blues songs are easy to put on a chart.And then there’s Muddy ...
08/29/2026

BLUES GAUNTLET — Few Miles On: “Rollin’ and Tumblin’”

Some blues songs are easy to put on a chart.

And then there’s Muddy Waters. 😂

“Rollin’ and Tumblin’” is one of the oldest and most enduring pieces of blues vocabulary out there, recorded and reworked by generations of artists.

The version on this month’s playlist is ours — from the second Few Miles On album.

And this one gives us a particularly fun trip through the Gauntlet because something unusual happens:

Form gets a NOT QUITE.

Standards gets a PASS.

We don’t see that combination very often.

And once again, this month’s theme explains a lot about how you actually play the thing:

LISTENING.

All right.

Into the Gauntlet.

🎼 Vocabulary — PASS

Absolutely.

The riff, vocal phrasing, repetition, instrumental responses, blue notes, tension and release are blues language from beginning to end.

You don’t need to know the history of the song to identify the musical language.

Blues listeners hear it immediately.

PASS.

🎛️ Tone — PASS

No question.

Guitar, vocal, bass and drums all live comfortably inside the sonic world blues listeners recognize.

Nothing here needs a pedigree argument to explain why it belongs.

The recording earns the point.

PASS.

🥁 Feel — PASS

This song rolls.

That sounds obvious given the title, but it matters.

The groove has to keep moving without becoming stiff or mechanical.

There’s a repetitive, almost hypnotic quality to it, and the rhythm section has to trust that engine.

You don’t manufacture excitement by pushing it.

You get inside the pulse and let the thing roll.

PASS.

📐 Form — NOT QUITE

Here’s where Muddy screws with you. 😂

At first, everything seems perfectly reasonable.

Then you discover that the I sections contain four-bar phrases where the fourth “bar” is only TWO BEATS long.

Yep.

Muddy just takes two beats away and keeps going.

If you’re standing there counting conventional four-bar phrases and waiting for the form to behave itself, you may suddenly discover that everybody else has already left without you.

Does it work?

Absolutely.

Does it sound natural?

Absolutely.

Is it conventional blues form under the deliberately narrow definition we use for this category?

Not quite.

And that gives us one of our favorite descriptions of this song:

The crooked bars aren’t a mistake in the form.

They ARE the form.

NOT QUITE.

📚 Standards — PASS

And here’s the fun part.

Even though the musical form gets crooked, the lyric construction gives us the traditional blues behavior we’re looking for in Standards.

Recognizable AAB construction is there.

So this becomes one of those unusual Gauntlet songs where Form misses the point while Standards earns it.

A song can bend the expected musical architecture while preserving traditional blues lyric structure.

PASS.

🔥 RESULT — 4 / 5

Vocabulary — PASS
Tone — PASS
Feel — PASS
Form — NOT QUITE
Standards — PASS

Another solid Gauntlet PASS.

And there’s one more thing worth mentioning about the recording on this month’s playlist.

It’s ours.

Few Miles On recorded this for our second album using a couple of modest FireStudio Project interfaces, an old Windows 7 laptop and free plugins.

All of them.

Nothing exotic. And the guitar, bass and drums were recorded live — together, in the same room, at the same time.

Years later, we're still pretty damn proud of how this record sounds.

There's a lesson in that, too.

Gear matters.

But gear can't create a groove. It can't understand a crooked bar. It can't make musicians listen to each other.

And nobody listening to a record cares what interface you used if the music coming out of the speakers communicates.

The record starts in the room.

🎸 Jammer Notes

If you’re going to play “Rollin’ and Tumblin’,” here’s the big lesson:

LISTEN.

You can learn the riff.

You can learn the chords.

You can even memorize where those missing two beats happen.

But ultimately, this song works because the entire band hears the form moving together.

When Muddy takes those two beats away, don’t stand there waiting for him to give them back. 😂

Go with him.

Listen to the riff.

Listen to the vocal.

Listen to the drummer.

Listen to the musicians around you.

Because sometimes listening isn’t about knowing where the next section starts.

It’s about hearing that the band has already gone there.

Knowing the changes gets you into the song.

Listening keeps you from getting left two beats behind.

See you at the Cookeville Blues Jam! Bring your instrument, bring your ears, and come join the conversation.

https://youtu.be/NUGwpk-I5wo?si=opO31j--7HOAIAJn

BLUES GAUNTLET — ZZ Top: “Fool for Your Stockings”Some slow blues announces itself immediately.This one just leans back ...
08/28/2026

BLUES GAUNTLET — ZZ Top: “Fool for Your Stockings”

Some slow blues announces itself immediately.

This one just leans back and waits for you to catch up.

“Fool for Your Stockings,” from ZZ Top’s 1979 album Deguello, has plenty of blues DNA in it — but like a lot of ZZ Top, they don’t feel particularly obligated to color inside the lines.

And that makes it a perfect song for this month’s theme:

LISTENING.

Because there’s an important lesson buried inside this groove:

Don’t confuse slow with empty.

All right, boys.

Into the Gauntlet.

🎼 Vocabulary — PASS

Absolutely.

Billy Gibbons’ phrasing is loaded with recognizable blues vocabulary — bends, blue notes, short conversational phrases, repetition, tension and release.

The vocal and guitar constantly speak to one another, and the rhythm section understands how to support that conversation without stepping all over it.

Blues listeners know this language immediately.

PASS.

🎛️ Tone — PASS

No problem here.

Billy’s guitar is dry, gritty and vocal without becoming enormous or overproduced.

The bass and drums are warm, round and understated.

And importantly, we’re not giving ZZ Top a point because of who they are.

The recording earns this one.

PASS.

🥁 Feel — PASS

This may be the most important point on the board.

The groove is slow, greasy and incredibly patient.

Frank Beard and Dusty Hill never seem anxious about all that space.

They don’t rush to fill it.

They don’t push the song forward just because the tempo is slow.

They simply establish the pocket and live there.

PASS.

📐 Form — PASS... BARELY

This one gets interesting.

There are enough recognizable blues landmarks that blues listeners still understand where they are.

But pay attention to the turnaround.

ZZ Top takes a decidedly more decorative route home than the classic blues turnaround we might expect.

Does it stretch the category?

Absolutely.

Does a room full of blues fans still recognize what they’re hearing as blues?

We think so.

By the slightest of margins.

PASS — BARELY.

📚 Standards — NOT QUITE

Under the intentionally narrow definition we use for Standards, we’re looking for clearly recognizable AAB lyric construction.

We don’t quite get it here.

NOT QUITE.

🔥 RESULT — 4 / 5

Vocabulary — PASS
Tone — PASS
Feel — PASS
Form — PASS... BARELY
Standards — NOT QUITE

A comfortable overall PASS, even if Form had to squeeze through the door sideways. 😂

But the score isn’t the most interesting thing about this recording.

The space is.

And with Frank Beard’s passing, it’s impossible to hear that rhythm section quite the same way.

Frank and Dusty were never about showing you how much they could play.

They were about the groove.

Deep, patient, tasty grooves that gave Billy all the room in the world to be Billy.

We lost Dusty in 2021.

Now Frank has joined him.

We’d like to think those two are somewhere laying down those same tasty grooves together again.

🎸 Jammer Notes

Here’s the trap with “Fool for Your Stockings”:

Don’t confuse slow with empty.

There is a LOT of room in this song.

And when musicians hear room, there can be an enormous temptation to fill it.

Listen to what ZZ Top does instead.

Listen to Billy play a phrase... and then stop.

Listen to the rhythm section underneath him.

Listen to the note lengths.

Listen to the placement.

Listen to how confidently Frank and Dusty hold the pocket even when very little seems to be happening.

Because nothing has actually stopped.

The pulse is still there.

The pocket is still there.

The conversation is still happening.

The empty space isn’t waiting for you.

The groove is already occupying it.

That takes confidence.

And it takes listening.

Knowing the changes gets you into the song.

Listening tells you when NOT to play them.

See you at the Cookeville Blues Jam! Bring your instrument, bring your ears, and come join the conversation.

https://youtu.be/4j7ATBspR64?si=4m0qAnugegnyFjO-

BLUES GAUNTLET — Eric Clapton: “Third Degree”Yes, we've already put this one through the Blues Gauntlet earlier this yea...
08/26/2026

BLUES GAUNTLET — Eric Clapton: “Third Degree”

Yes, we've already put this one through the Blues Gauntlet earlier this year.

We're doing it again.

Because some songs are worth another trip through.

And frankly, “Third Degree” — along with the rest of Eric Clapton's From the Cradle album — ought to be part of the working repertoire of just about anybody who plans to spend much time at a blues jam.

The song itself goes back considerably further.

“Third Degree” was written by Eddie Boyd and Willie Dixon, and Boyd recorded it for Chess Records in 1953.

Four decades later, Clapton included it on From the Cradle.

And this month's theme gives us another reason to bring it back:

LISTENING.

Because “Third Degree” is a slow blues.

And slow blues gives you enough room to get yourself into all kinds of trouble.

All right, Eric.

Back into the Gauntlet.

🎼 Vocabulary — PASS

Absolutely.

The vocal phrasing, guitar language, bends, blue notes, call-and-response, tension, release and use of space are blues vocabulary from beginning to end.

And once again, we're grading the recording — not Eric Clapton's résumé.

This performance earns the point on its own.

🎛️ Tone — PASS

No question.

Guitar, vocal, piano, harp and rhythm section all live comfortably inside the sonic world blues listeners recognize.

Nothing here requires an explanation of pedigree.

You hear it.

You know where you are.

🥁 Feel — PASS

Absolutely.

This is slow blues with enormous weight and patience.

And patience is the important word.

Nobody is trying to manufacture excitement by constantly adding something.

The band lets the groove breathe.

That restraint is part of the Feel.

📐 Form — PASS

The blues landmarks are clearly recognizable.

The listener knows where the song is going without needing a theory lesson or somebody standing beside them counting measures.

PASS.

📚 Standards — NOT QUITE

This is the one we don't give it.

Under the intentionally narrow definition we've been using for Standards, we're looking for clearly recognizable AAB lyric construction.

We don't quite get that here.

So:

NOT QUITE.

🔥 RESULT — 4 / 5

Vocabulary — PASS
Tone — PASS
Feel — PASS
Form — PASS
Standards — NOT QUITE

Another comfortable pass.

But the score isn't why we brought “Third Degree” back.

We brought it back because this song contains one of the most important lessons a jammer can learn:

Leave the damn thing alone sometimes.

🎸 Jammer Notes

Here's the trap with “Third Degree”:

It is incredibly easy to overcook.

Slow blues gives you SPACE.

And when inexperienced players hear space, there's an enormous temptation to think:

“There's nothing happening. I should play something.”

No.

Listen to this band.

Listen to how much room they leave for the vocal.

Listen to the spaces between guitar phrases.

Listen to the piano.

Listen to the harp.

Listen to how the rhythm section keeps the song moving without trying to fill every opening.

And most importantly, listen to how the musicians stay out of each other's way.

Space isn't an invitation.

It's part of the arrangement.

That's why From the Cradle should be required listening for blues-jam musicians.

Not because everybody needs to copy Eric Clapton.

Listen to how the BAND plays blues.

Learn when to answer.

Learn when to support.

Learn when to leave a hole.

And learn when the best thing you can contribute to the next four beats is absolutely nothing.

That's another perfect example of this month's theme:

Knowing what you CAN play gets you into the song.

Listening tells you what you SHOULD play.

See you at the Cookeville Blues Jam! Bring your instrument, bring your ears, and come join the conversation.

https://youtu.be/xtvZljuYSY8?si=rueXzzRI1IXCNwys

08/25/2026

Lol

08/25/2026

Lol!

BLUES GAUNTLET — Muddy Waters: “Got My Mojo Working”We’ve already had Muddy Waters in the Gauntlet this month with “Hooc...
08/22/2026

BLUES GAUNTLET — Muddy Waters: “Got My Mojo Working”

We’ve already had Muddy Waters in the Gauntlet this month with “Hoochie Coochie Man.”

That one gave us an interesting result.

It only scored 3 out of 5, yet Vocabulary, Tone and Feel were so overwhelmingly blues that nobody listening would ever mistake it for anything else.

“Got My Mojo Working” gives us a very different Muddy Waters Gauntlet.

This time, all five characteristics are sitting right there.

But there’s still a trap hiding in this song.

And if you’re playing it instead of just listening to it, that trap matters.

All right, Muddy.

Back into the Gauntlet.

🎼 Vocabulary — PASS

No question.

The vocal phrasing, instrumental responses, blues-scale language, repetition, call-and-response and use of space all speak blues immediately.

And once again, we’re not giving Muddy the point because he’s Muddy Waters.

The recording earns it.

🎛️ Tone — PASS

Another easy one.

The vocal, guitar, harp and rhythm section all live comfortably inside the sonic world of the blues.

Nothing about this recording needs historical context or an explanation of Muddy’s pedigree.

You hear it.

You know where you are.

🥁 Feel — PASS

Absolutely.

And this is where we need to listen carefully.

“Got My Mojo Working” has a driving, repetitive rhythmic engine.

That propulsion is a huge part of what makes the song work.

But it also creates a trap.

Push the groove too straight.

Make it too bouncy.

Get everybody too far on top of the beat.

And this thing can start heading toward rockabilly in a hurry.

The notes haven’t changed.

The chords haven’t changed.

The song hasn’t changed.

But the MUSIC has.

That’s how powerful Feel can be.

📐 Form — PASS

The blues landmarks are right there.

The harmonic movement is familiar and recognizable, and a blues listener can hear where the song is going.

No explanation required.

PASS.

📚 Standards — PASS

We also get the recognizable AAB lyric construction we use as our primary marker for Standards.

Statement.

Repeat the statement.

Answer it.

So this one earns the Standards point cleanly.

🔥 RESULT — 5 / 5

Vocabulary — PASS
Tone — PASS
Feel — PASS
Form — PASS
Standards — PASS

A clean sweep.

But there’s something important hiding inside that 5/5.

You can learn every note.

You can know every chord.

You can understand the Form.

You can recognize the Vocabulary.

You can sing the AAB lyric correctly.

And you can STILL play this song wrong.

Because if the Feel moves into another musical neighborhood, all of those other things can remain intact while the identity of the performance begins to change.

That’s why the Gauntlet isn’t just about counting characteristics.

It’s about learning to hear them.

🎸 Jammer Notes

Here’s the trap with “Got My Mojo Working”:

Don’t let it go rockabilly on you.

Listen to the rhythm section.

Listen to where the weight of the groove sits.

Listen to the difference between propulsion and bounce.

Because if everybody gets too straight, too bouncy or too far on top of the beat...

Muddy starts growing sideburns. 😂

And the really important part is this:

The chart probably won’t tell you that anything went wrong.

You can still be playing all the correct notes.

That’s another perfect example of this month’s theme:

Knowing the changes gets you into the song.

Listening tells you what kind of music you’re actually playing.

See you at the Cookeville Blues Jam! Bring your instrument, bring your ears, and come join the conversation.

https://youtu.be/aeJ--EIUH0Y?si=mFLbsl4hG8JlNnsW

BLUES GAUNTLET — The Allman Brothers Band: “Statesboro Blues”This month's playlist is about listening.And this time, bef...
08/21/2026

BLUES GAUNTLET — The Allman Brothers Band: “Statesboro Blues”

This month's playlist is about listening.

And this time, before we run the song through the Gauntlet, we're going to give you a little homework.

Don't worry.

It's the good kind.

Listen to three recordings of “Statesboro Blues.” (links at the bottom)

Start with Blind Willie McTell, who wrote and first recorded the song in 1928.

Then listen to Taj Mahal's version.

Then listen to the Allman Brothers Band.

Three recordings.

Three very different musical worlds.

And don't listen to decide which one is “best.”

Listen for what changes.

Listen for what gets carried forward.

And most importantly...

Listen for what survives.

By the time the song reaches the Allman Brothers, nearly half a century has passed since Blind Willie McTell recorded it.

The instrumentation has changed.

The sound has changed.

The groove has changed.

The players have changed.

But somehow...

it's still “Statesboro Blues.”

That's what we're listening for this time.

Because knowing one version can teach you the song.

Listening across generations can teach you the language.

All right, Allman Brothers.

Into the Gauntlet.

🎼 Vocabulary — PASS

Absolutely.

Duane Allman's slide may be the first thing that grabs your attention, but the blues vocabulary runs through the entire performance.

The vocal phrasing, guitar responses, bends, fills, call-and-response and use of space all speak a language a blues listener recognizes immediately.

And here's where our listening exercise gets interesting.

Go back to Blind Willie McTell.

Then Taj Mahal.

Then the Allmans.

The vocabulary doesn't remain frozen.

Each generation speaks it with a different accent.

But it's still the same language.

🎛️ Tone — PASS

No question.

The Allman Brothers don't sound anything like Blind Willie McTell's 1928 recording.

They don't sound exactly like Taj Mahal either.

They sound like the Allman Brothers.

But nobody needs a history lesson to recognize the musical world they're in.

The guitars, vocal, organ and rhythm section all reinforce the blues identity of the recording.

That's an important part of our three-version exercise:

Tone can change dramatically without the musical identity disappearing.

🥁 Feel — PASS

Absolutely.

And again, compare the three versions.

Don't just listen for the notes that survived.

Listen to what happened to the groove.

The Allmans turn the song into their own rolling, driving piece of Southern blues.

There's tremendous forward motion, but the groove still has the elasticity and conversation we associate with blues.

Same song.

Different players.

Different era.

Different Feel.

Still blues.

📐 Form — PASS

The blues landmarks are clearly recognizable.

The Allmans shape the arrangement around them and make the performance unmistakably their own, but the underlying structure remains familiar to a blues listener.

Nobody needs somebody standing beside them explaining where the song is going.

The road signs are still there.

PASS.

📚 Standards — PASS

And this one earns the point under the intentionally narrow definition we've been using for Standards.

The lyric gives us recognizable AAB construction.

Statement.

Repeat the statement.

Answer it.

That's one of the oldest structural fingerprints in blues songwriting, and it's right there.

Of course, there's another meaning of the word “standard” hanging over this entire Gauntlet.

Blind Willie McTell recorded “Statesboro Blues” in 1928.

Taj Mahal carried it forward.

The Allman Brothers carried it somewhere else again.

And musicians are still playing the song nearly a century later.

That's how musical language survives.

🔥 RESULT — 5 / 5

Vocabulary — PASS
Tone — PASS
Feel — PASS
Form — PASS
Standards — PASS

A clean sweep.

But the 5/5 isn't really the most interesting thing about “Statesboro Blues.”

The interesting thing is that you can listen to those three recordings and hear enormous differences between them.

The instrumentation changes.

The Tone changes.

The Feel changes.

The arrangement changes.

The musical vocabulary evolves with the players and the times.

And yet the identity survives.

Nobody had to preserve “Statesboro Blues” behind glass.

Each generation was allowed to touch it.

Change it.

Put themselves into it.

And then hand it to somebody else.

That's how a musical language stays alive.

🎸 Jammer Notes

Here's your assignment for this one:

Don't just learn the Allman Brothers version.

Listen to Blind Willie McTell.

Then listen to Taj Mahal.

Then listen to the Allman Brothers.

And don't listen for which player did something “better.”

Listen for lineage.

What did Taj hear in McTell's song that he wanted to keep?

What did he change?

What did the Allmans hear in Taj's version?

What did they keep?

What did they change?

Listen to the groove.

Listen to the phrasing.

Listen to the spaces.

Listen to the way each generation uses the same blues language to say something in its own voice.

Then ask yourself:

What survived?

That's the lesson.

You don't honor a musical tradition by freezing it.

You learn the language well enough that you can speak it yourself.

And that's another perfect example of this month's theme:

Knowing one version teaches you the song.

Listening to all three teaches you the language.

See you at the Cookeville Blues Jam! Bring your instrument, bring your ears, and come join the conversation.

Blind Wlillie -
https://youtu.be/fnWxZtI3ONY?si=SSGeSP8pbKAHJfE-

Taj -
https://youtu.be/Va7elbEorxA?si=x4hnkxyuPnVo-s9h

Allmans -
https://youtu.be/1xKhZrA4tho?si=uPT2Un1LFf5Wd6Tx

BLUES GAUNTLET — Robben Ford: “When I Leave Here”We’ve already sent Robben Ford through the Gauntlet once this month wit...
08/20/2026

BLUES GAUNTLET — Robben Ford: “When I Leave Here”

We’ve already sent Robben Ford through the Gauntlet once this month with “Worried Life Blues.”

That one gave us sophisticated harmony that sometimes disguised the familiar blues landmarks underneath it.

“When I Leave Here” gives us almost the opposite lesson.

The blues is much easier for the listener to recognize.

But the playing is every bit as sophisticated.

Maybe that’s the first lesson here:

Sophistication doesn’t require complexity.

So... back into the Gauntlet, Robben.

🎼 Vocabulary — PASS

Absolutely.

Robben’s phrasing is filled with recognizable blues language — bends, blue notes, call-and-response, space, tension and release.

And even when his solo language starts reaching harmonically beyond the simplest blues vocabulary, it never loses its connection to the blues.

That’s part of what makes Robben so good.

He can take the vocabulary somewhere sophisticated without making you forget what language he’s speaking.

🎛️ Tone — PASS

No question.

Robben’s guitar tone lives comfortably in the blues world, and the rest of the band reinforces it.

Nothing here requires pedigree or explanation.

A blues listener knows where they are.

🥁 Feel — PASS

This is where the recording gets ridiculous.

Tom Brechtlein’s shuffle is spectacular.

Listen closely to that snare.

Those double hits bracket the beat, with the back side sitting about as far behind it as you can possibly go without actually being late.

The center of the beat almost exists in the space between the hits.

That’s not something you learn by reading “shuffle” on a chart.

And underneath it, Roscoe Beck is doing something almost offensively simple.

Root.

Fifth.

Root.

Fifth.

But listen to the TIMING.

The notes aren’t the trick.

The relationship between Roscoe and Tom is the trick.

That’s where the groove lives.

📐 Form — PASS

The basic blues form is clearly recognizable.

But the arrangement doesn’t simply repeat it forever.

There’s a terrific bridge — and we get it twice — that opens up the harmony without losing the identity of the song.

The piano work through this recording is especially tasty.

Then, when we reach the final solo and ride-out, the band stops cycling through the blues form and simply hangs on the I.

So knowing the basic form will get you most of the way through the song.

Listening tells you when the arrangement stops following it.

PASS.

📚 Standards — NOT QUITE

We don’t get the conventional AAB lyric construction we use as our primary marker for Standards.

So under our intentionally narrow definition of this category:

NOT QUITE.

🔥 RESULT — 4 / 5

Vocabulary — PASS
Tone — PASS
Feel — PASS
Form — PASS
Standards — NOT QUITE

Another comfortable pass for Robben Ford.

But once again, the score isn’t really the interesting part.

“When I Leave Here” demonstrates how much sophisticated music great players can create from relatively simple materials.

Roscoe doesn’t need a complicated bass line.

Tom doesn’t need to fill every available space.

The bridge doesn’t need to turn into a harmony lesson.

And the piano doesn’t need to announce itself.

Everybody is listening.

Everybody is contributing.

And the result is deeper than the individual parts might suggest.

Sophistication doesn’t require complexity.

🎸 Jammer Notes

Here’s the trap with “When I Leave Here”:

Don’t confuse knowing what to play with knowing how to play it.

A chart can tell a drummer that this is a shuffle.

It can tell the bass player to play root and fifth.

It can show everybody the form and the bridge.

But it can’t show you that pocket.

Listen to Tom’s snare.

Listen to how those hits bracket the beat.

Listen to Roscoe’s timing against it.

Listen to the piano during the bridge.

And listen to what happens when the final solo arrives and the band quits cycling the form and rides the I.

This song is another perfect example of this month’s theme:

Knowing the changes gets you into the song.

Listening gets you into the band.

See you at the Cookeville Blues Jam! Bring your instrument, bring your ears, and come join the conversation.

https://youtu.be/zk68JR11UX0?si=Xkq7ea5sw_l-Vhw8

BLUES GAUNTLET — Freddie King: “Big Legged Woman”This month's playlist is about listening.And “Big Legged Woman” gives u...
08/19/2026

BLUES GAUNTLET — Freddie King: “Big Legged Woman”

This month's playlist is about listening.

And “Big Legged Woman” gives us a great example of why that matters.

Because you can listen to Freddie King play this song and hear a whole pile of great blues guitar vocabulary.

But listen a little closer.

Freddie isn't simply playing over the groove.

He's helping CREATE it.

Also...

We need to acknowledge the shirt collar.

Seriously, look at that thing.

A stiff breeze and Freddie might have ended up in the next county. 😂

All right, Freddie.

Into the Gauntlet.

🎼 Vocabulary — PASS

No question.

Bends, blue notes, call-and-response phrases, rhythmic stabs, space and those unmistakable Freddie King licks are everywhere.

But here's what makes this one interesting:

Freddie's vocabulary isn't just melodic.

It's rhythmic.

Those short phrases, attacks and spaces become part of the machinery that makes this track move.

🎛️ Tone — PASS

Again... Freddie King.

That biting, aggressive guitar sound gives every one of those phrases a percussive edge.

And this is where two of our Gauntlet categories start interacting.

The Vocabulary tells us what Freddie is saying.

The Tone helps determine how those phrases affect the groove.

Which brings us to...

🥁 Feel — PASS

This thing is FUNKY.

The rhythm section establishes the pocket, but Freddie isn't simply riding on top of it.

His attacks, phrasing and use of space reinforce what the rhythm section is doing.

Vocabulary + Tone help hold the Feel together.

That's worth remembering about the Five Characteristics.

We score them separately.

That doesn't mean we experience them separately.

Sometimes one characteristic strengthens another.

And on “Big Legged Woman,” Freddie ties these three together into one big, funky piece of music.

📐 Form — PASS

The landmarks are there.

A blues listener can follow the song without needing somebody standing beside them explaining what's happening.

That's what we're looking for with Form.

The listener recognizes the musical road they're traveling.

PASS.

📚 Standards — NOT QUITE

The lyric doesn't give us the conventional AAB construction we use as our primary marker for Standards.

So we're keeping the category narrow and not giving Freddie this one.

No AAB, no Standards point.

And Freddie certainly doesn't need the help.

🔥 RESULT — 4 / 5

Vocabulary — PASS
Tone — PASS
Feel — PASS
Form — PASS
Standards — NOT QUITE

This one passes comfortably.

But the interesting part isn't really the 4/5.

It's how those characteristics interact.

Vocabulary, Tone and Feel aren't three unrelated reasons this sounds like blues.

They're working together.

Freddie's blues vocabulary is delivered with a tone that gives the phrases rhythmic definition, and those phrases become part of the funky Feel of the entire band.

Maybe that's part of what makes Freddie sound so different from the other Kings.

B.B. might be the smoothest.

Albert might be the baddest.

But Freddie?

Freddie might just be the FUNKIEST.

And without question...

he had the biggest damn shirt collars. 😂

🎸 Jammer Notes

Here's the trap with “Big Legged Woman”:

Don't reduce Freddie's part to “lead guitar.”

Listen to how his phrases interact with the rhythm section.

Listen to the attacks.

Listen to the spaces.

Listen to how the band responds.

On something this funky, everybody can learn the correct notes and still completely miss what makes the record work.

The pocket isn't contained in any one instrument.

It's happening BETWEEN the instruments.

That's another perfect example of this month's theme:

Knowing your part gets you into the song.

Listening to everybody else's part gets you into the groove.

See you at the Cookeville Blues Jam! Bring your instrument, bring your ears, and come join the conversation.

https://youtu.be/RoUk7u40eSg?si=RhYLWKs68RsrWbPi

🎸 BLUES GAUNTLET — Few Miles On: “Just Got Back From Baby’s”Well... this should be interesting.For the first time, we're...
08/16/2026

🎸 BLUES GAUNTLET — Few Miles On: “Just Got Back From Baby’s”

Well... this should be interesting.

For the first time, we're putting one of our own recordings through the Blues Gauntlet.

So let's establish the ground rules immediately:

No hometown points.

No credit because Few Miles On is a blues band.

And no credit because ZZ Top wrote the song.

The Gauntlet identifies the music in front of us.

So we're judging the Few Miles On recording of Just Got Back From Baby’s exactly the same way we'd judge Muddy Waters, Robben Ford, the Rolling Stones, or anybody else.

And apparently we picked a dangerous one to start with.

Let's run it.

🎼 Vocabulary — PASS

It's everywhere.

The guitars, vocal phrasing, dynamics, instrumental responses and use of space all speak recognizable blues language.

But some of that vocabulary is coming directly from the rhythm section.

The bass spends much of the song playing that classic R–5 / R–6 boogie movement — the same basic rhythmic and harmonic language guitar players have been using in blues and early rock & roll forever.

Here, it becomes part of the foundation of the arrangement.

Nobody needs to know what R–5 / R–6 means.

A blues fan has heard that sound a thousand times.

That's Vocabulary doing exactly what Vocabulary is supposed to do.

🎛️ Tone — PASS

Oh, yeah.

The entire recording sounds like a blues band.

The guitars have dirt, edge and character without becoming a giant wall of distortion. The vocal sits inside the band instead of floating above it, and the production leaves enough space around everybody for the performance to breathe.

And then there's the bass.

During the verses, the King (a '59 Fender CS Pbass) is big, round and supportive while still having enough definition for the movement in the line to speak.

But when the solo sections open up?

That thing gets downright GRUNTY.

The bass doesn't suddenly get louder or turn into a different instrument. There's just enough room in the arrangement for all that midrange character, attack and growl to become more obvious.

That's exactly what good blues tone should do.

It responds to the music.

🥁 Feel — PASS

This may be the strongest category on the entire recording.

Few Miles On slowed the song down from the ZZ Top treatment, and that gives the 12/8 considerably more room to breathe.

And this recording features Randall Rittenberry on drums.

Randall played some absolutely beautiful 12/8 grooves during his time with the band, and this may be one of the best examples.

The triplet pulse is enormous without being heavy-handed. He gives every beat enough room to roll, and the groove never feels like somebody mechanically subdividing the measure.

Then the bass locks into that pulse with him.

The R–5 / R–6 movement isn't being laid over the groove.

It's living inside it.

That's what makes this rhythm section work so well on the recording. Drums provide the rolling triplet gravity while the bass supplies both the bottom and the harmonic motion.

And when the solos arrive, both players open the pocket without abandoning it.

The Pbass starts growling.

Randall keeps that huge 12/8 underneath everything.

And the guitar gets an enormous piece of road to drive on.

We aren't going to claim our version has a "better" feel than ZZ Top's. That's not what the Gauntlet measures.

But the slower Few Miles On arrangement absolutely emphasizes the 12/8 blues feel more strongly.

BTW - FMO recorded the rhythm guitar, bass and drums all together in the live room. It's the only way to get the live feel!

Feel is not merely a PASS.

It's one of the defining characteristics of the recording.

📐 Form — PASS

After Robben Ford and Muddy Waters, this one almost feels too easy.

Straight-up 12-bar blues.

No sophisticated substitutions disguising the landmarks.

No stop-time construction replacing the conventional cycle.

No missing beats waiting to throw the band into the ditch.

Just a familiar 12-bar form doing what it has done for generations.

Sometimes sophistication doesn't require complexity.

And sometimes you don't need sophistication at all.

You just need twelve good bars.

📚 Standards — PASS

Clear AAB lyric construction.

Line.

Repeat the line.

Answer it.

One of the most immediately recognizable structures in traditional blues songwriting.

Nothing to argue about here.

✅ RESULT — 5 / 5

Well, that's awkward.

The first Few Miles On recording we put through our own Blues Gauntlet scores a perfect 5/5.

We promise the judges were not bribed.

But here's why this one is worth examining.

Few Miles On didn't make the recording more recognizably blues by trying to copy ZZ Top more closely.

We changed it.

Most importantly, we slowed it down.

That changed the weight of the song and gave the 12/8 more room to breathe. Randall's drums lean deeply into that pulse. The bass brings traditional boogie vocabulary directly into the rhythm section. And the production leaves enough space for all of those characteristics to remain audible.

The arrangement changed.

The blues characteristics got stronger.

That's an important distinction.

The Gauntlet isn't measuring how faithfully somebody reproduces an original recording.

It's measuring the musical characteristics present in the recording we're actually listening to.

And this recording independently gives us all five:

Vocabulary.

Tone.

Feel.

Form.

Standards.

5 / 5.

No pedigree required.

🎧 Jammer Notes

This one is considerably easier to follow than some of the other songs on this month's playlist.

The form isn't the challenge.

The FEEL is.

You can play every correct chord in the correct place and still miss what makes this song work.

Listen to that 12/8.

Don't merely count the triplets. Listen to where the drums sit inside them. Listen to how the bass movement fits against the drums rather than simply landing on chord tones.

And when the solo section arrives, notice what the rhythm section does NOT do.

It doesn't suddenly start filling every available space.

It makes room.

That's what gives the solo somewhere to go.

Knowing the changes gets you into the song.
Listening gets you into the band.

And apparently, the first time Few Miles On walked into its own Blues Gauntlet...

We picked one that brought all five.

🎸🔥 See you at the Cookeville Blues Jam! Bring your instrument, bring your ears, and come join the conversation.

https://youtu.be/KxklF0B6YPM?si=Z7-WGYBJ1U0b-qFm

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