Deconstructing Elvin

I was actually pretty excited when I found an Elvin Bishop CD in my local blues bin. I always liked his sense of humor and stinging blues guitar, having tracked his career with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, his gradual shift from backing Mike Bloomfield to fronting the band. His contribution to SuperSession - No More Lonely Nights - and Elvin's one actual Top Ten tune - Fooled Around and Fell in Love - were the extent of my knowledge about his musical output.The CD in question was supposed to be a compilation of his greatest hits - The Millennium Collection - identifying Elvin as a Twentieth Century Master, a title which Elvin himself would probably snicker over. It's obvious I need to expand my blues collection to keep doing the Sunday radio show without playing the same cuts over and over, so I could hardly wait to add the music,eagerly tearing through the package and slapping the disc into my mini boom box.


The first tune I listened to was "Let It Flow", which left me scratching my head. It isn't very bluesy - it's closer to mediocre hippy music, one of those Haight Ashbury anthems that sound mindless and misguided in retrospect. Next was "Groundhog", which has some built-in funk. I started feeling positive , that maybe this would be the Elvin I was waiting for - irreverent, able to rip some fiery riffs out of his guitar, characterized by those piercing, penetrating solos that seem to go on forever - until the lyrics compared his girlfriend to a groundhog's hole. A few years ago I would have found this acceptable , even humorous, but now it just seems childish and pathetic - haven't we moved beyond this dead end depiction of women ?


Chagrined, I pressed on through Bishop's greatest, still seeking that blistering single that was going to enliven the show. "Stealing Watermelons" has great rthymn, but I can't ignore the fact that songs about watermelon on a blues show featuring mostly black artists just don't fit in. I think Elvin's just poking fun, but racism is no joke. The final straw was reached during the next tune - "Travelin' Shoes". The musicianship is first class. I really figured I'd found my tune until Bishop reached the line about his woman not understanding what he said, so it was time to go get a baseball bat and "tenderize" her head. My reaction went from mild disgust to outright anger. Considering the effect that domestic violence has on society, the emotional toll it takes on both adults and children, I am simply not going to play a tune that overtly advocates beating women.


Don't get me wrong - I still like a lot of Elvin Bishop's music - I ended up playing "Juke Joint Jump" on the show. I am not going to condone lyrics that celebrate sexism and suggest prejudice - even if they masquerade as someone's idea of humor.