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A Journey through the Blues: The Son Seals Story (review)

2010; University of Illinois Press; Volume: 123; Issue: 489 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1353/jaf.0.0146

1535-1882

Brett R. Zuver,

Music History and Culture

Reviewed by: A Journey through the Blues: The Son Seals Story Brett R. Zuver A Journey through the Blues: The Son Seals Story. 2007. By Peter Carlson. 60 min. DVD format, color. (Sagebrush Productions, Hot Springs, Arkansas; VizzTone Label Group, West Des Moines, Iowa.) Frank Seals grew up as one of thirteen children in a rural Arkansas family. Although he was the youngest of the children, he had such a strong relationship with his father that he was nicknamed "Son"—a name that would stay with him for his entire life. Son's father raised his family in the back of the Dipsy Doodle, a country "juke joint" that he owned, and the drinking, gambling, dancing, and music that took place there left an indelible influence on the young Son's life. Many of the top blues musicians of his childhood were consistent visitors there. Son got to know Albert King and Robert Nighthawk at a young age, and when he grew up, he joined these performers on the road. One story that is referenced in Peter Carlson's A Journey through the Blues: The Son Seals Story encapsulates what Son's formative years in the Arkansas juke joint entailed. Son's first experience playing cards was not with one of his many siblings but with adults at his father's club. It is said that, at the time, he was so young and small that he had to stand on a dead body that was lying on the floor in order to reach the table where the grown-ups were dealing the cards. A Journey through the Blues is an extremely effective snapshot of the life of a man who was discovered almost by accident. Even though he never attained the celebrity that the more prominent names in post-World War II electric blues did, he made a name for himself among legions of followers and, more importantly, among his musical peers. The film is divided into two parts, each approximately thirty minutes in length. The documentary segment comes first, and although it is brief, it is very well done. The predominant voice of the piece is Bruce Iglauer, founder and president of Alligator Records in Chicago, arguably the most influential blues record label of the past twenty-five years. Iglauer is the man who launched Seals's national and international career, after he saw him perform in a small Chicago nightclub with Hound Dog Taylor, who, at the time, was the only other recording artist signed to Alligator Records. In the documentary, Seals describes his initial meeting with Iglauer. Smiling and saying, "I'd heard all that stuff before," he explains how Iglauer told him that he wanted to sign him to Alligator Records and that he would be his personal promoter and record producer. Iglauer made good on his promises to Seals and not only produced his first full-length album, The Son Seals Blues Band, but was able to book him on national tours, which helped bring his original style of singing and guitar playing to a much broader audience. The interview segments with Seals are the true gems of the film. He seems very relaxed and candid about many of the situations he faced while living the life of a bluesman, both at home and on the road. One story he relates is of the time that one of his ex-wives ambushed him in the middle of the night with a pistol and shot him in the face. Seals survived, and according to both him and his son, who makes several appearances in the documentary, his biggest concern was whether or not the shooting would have an effect on his singing voice. As it turns out, the bullet did not cause any lasting damage to his voice and remained lodged deep in the back of his jaw until his death due to complications from diabetes in 2004. Many of Seals's musical contemporaries make appearances in the film, such as Dr. John, a New Orleans piano and guitar wizard who had played with Son multiple times, and Koko Taylor, who is often referred to as "Queen of the Chicago Blues." Several times in the...