Michael Adams interview with Charlie Sayles, Eddie Mathes, Robert Johnson, Eugene Watson, and anonymous (part two)

The John Burrison Georgia Folklore Archive recordings contains unedited versions of all interviews. Some material may contain descriptions of violence, offensive language, or negative stereotypes reflecting the culture or language of a particular period or place. There are instances of racist language and description, particularly in regards to African Americans. These items are presented as part of the historical record. This project is a repository for the stories, accounts, and memories of those who chose to share their experiences for educational purposes. The viewpoints expressed in this project do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of the Atlanta History Center or any of its officers, agents, employees, or volunteers. The Atlanta History Center makes no warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of any information contained in the interviews and expressly disclaims any liability therefore. If you believe you are the copyright holder of any of the content published in this collection and do not want it publicly available, please contact the Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center at 404-814-4040 or reference@atlantahistorycenter.com. This is the second of a three-part recording. This part begins with Charlie Sayles singing and Eddie Mathes playing guitar, which Sayles explains is one of his first originals. At 6:36, Mathes says that Frank Simmonss music has influenced him and that most musicians think they are creating something original. Sayles responds that songs are original because they are inspired by personal experience and that average people can be good musicians. At 11:55 until the end of this part of the recording, the interview is difficult to understand over the guitar, but based on the transcript, Sayles discusses his desire to be the best harmonica player and references Muddy Waters (1915-1983), Ted Nugent (1948- ), Ray Wylie (1946- ), and Sonny Boy Williamson (?-1965) as inspirations. This part ends with Mathes debating if he will produce a record. Charlie Sayles (1948- ) was born in Medford, Massachusetts, to Warner and Roseleen Sayles. He served two years in the army, and then moved to Atlanta, Georgia, in approximately 1972. He is a harmonicist who has released four studio albums. Eddie Mathes (1940-2003) was born in West Point, Georgia, to Ennis Mathes and Louise Philpotts. Additional biographical information has not been determined. INTERVIEW WITH CHARLIE SAILES INTERVIEW WITH EDDIE MATHIS COLLECTED BY HICHAEL ADAMS CONTE:NTS: 1- Introduction 2- Map 3-4- Photographes 5-9- Side One- Interview 10-13- Side Tvro- Interview 14-1 9- Side Three- Interview Two tapes included* A BLUES HilRMONICA PLAYER A BLUES GUITAR PLAYER AND SINGER I 1m not sure just when I first rnet Charlie Sailes. It seems that I would just see him from. time to tj_me on the street or in the part.: .. Before I got in touch with hj.111 about this interview we had not talked with each other, only to say 11 howt s it going11 or something like thato1 He viras usually busy playing his harmonica and more often than not there would be people standing around listening to him .. Charlie j_s a harmonica player in the old time blues tradition. He was born in Massachusetts on January 4,1948. After growing up he traveled around a bit, spenttwo years in the army and ended up in Atlanta Georgia about 1972, VJhen I got to Gharlie1 s house to do the interviev1 he had a friend there with him.. Iits name v1as Eddie Mathis,. Eddie was doing some singing a..nd playing the guitar so I asked him if he would be in on the interview~ Eddie is about 36 years old and was born at Westpoint Georgia. He says that he I s been coming a.nd going though Atlanta for several years now" He does mostly odd jobs to keep him going~ -~ .q. AZ~~...:.ll~ll'e-_r . 6 Michael Adams: I'm l1ichael Adams and I'm talking with Charlie Sailes, Charlie is a harmonica player in the old blues tradition. Charlie, how long have you been playing harmonica? Gharli.e Sail es: Aboll.t three years. M.A.: And how vias it that you got into playing harmonica? c.s.: Well I'll tell you the truth, let me see, my cousin three years ago--we used to live toge:vher. He had a 1,iano, you know, and he brought in a harmonica so I brought one too and thats about it. He stopped and I kept on going, ::\.nd thats the story. M.A.: And it is strictly blues that you're playing? c.s.: Yeah basicially strictly blues. Well I v1ouldn:t say strictly. I play other music, but put it this way, my :ioots are blues. Thats ec the best type of music that I like M,A: I wonder if you could giYe an example of just exactly what you do on the mic, C.S,: Yeah, ok, 1 111 just play a lettle blues. M,A.: Ok, M,,,A: What exactly would you say is the blues? C ,S,: Vlell first of all 1 1 d say the blues is Boogie Woogie slowed down, Ok, just let me give you a little example here. Boogie, I knovv everybody's heard it but, C, S, ~ Ok, that I s the Boogie. Now almost all the Rock and Roll--tha t I s the basis of Rock and Roll, night? Ck, then you slow it down. You slm11 it down, that's the blues .. I'll just give you a little example . c .. s.: Ok, thats part of it .. But so, blues is, if you go to the macanical part it I s a slov1 Boogie Woogie.. But the feeling part--i t I s an& :\~ype 5 of music that in a since grabs you up high. You know what I mean? Its just like to me Beethoven is playing the Blues, Some of the stuff I 1ve heard. him-::- play. You know v1hat I mean? N.A.: That 1s interesting. C,S,: Yeah, that's the wa:y I look at it, Anything that moves me, Like I don't actually have to try but if it hones deep--you know? It's just like a deep spiritual type music, Like almost in the overtones of like Africa, You hear the drums, That spiritual thing, And that's the Blues, It 1s almost like going to church. Yeah that's it, you know? M.A: How exactly does tha blues harmonica playing differ from playing , a regula~ harmonica? G.s.: On:.. Well first of all playing a regular harmonica, you can take the harmonica, and you can probably play it from ear, if you play regular, Because you don't do anything to abuse the harmonica. You don't do things that shouldn I t be done. But v1hen you I re playing the blues you're actually making the harmonica play certain tones that are actually bad for the harmonica. You're almost :putting stress on it. So when you're playing blues, I 1fl have to say, you're almost ma..l.;;:ing the harmonica do what it's not suppossed to do. That's haw it came about. These dudes back in the twenties, they took the harmonica and instead o:f just playing what the harmonica would let them play, they'd say, 'Well I'm goi:fu.[ to try this thing .. ' Let me see how it would sound if I dj_d this. Trying to change something from the way harmonica players played, So maybe that's it. Use the instrument differantly., M.A.: So you would say it would be mostly in mechanics then--the -(.lifferance? C,S.: Right. Ok, That's it. 6 I'1.A.: Well would you mind &i ving a couple more examples of differant pieces that you do play, C,,S,: Ok, Let me see, I'll play tM.s little thing, BYE, BYE, BIRDIE, This is J.h, I' 11 just play it, UMl1 BYE, BYE BIRDIE UJIIM BYE, BYE BIRDIE Ul11~ BYEE , BYE, BYE UMl1 BYE, BYE BIRD:::E UMH BYE, BYE BIRDIE BIRD I'M GONE H.A.: Is there anything elee that you can thiri.. k that might be of interest about playing the blues harmonica? c.s.: Um, yeah.. One other thing. Wben you're playing blues, I thin1,: the most important thing, when you 1re playing the harmonica is how the tone comes out. You don't have to play a lot of fast notes. You can play one single note, but it has to like wail. People have got to feel it, It's almost like when you play that tone to the , l people you are trying to get _right into their souls, I'll see if I can explain. I'll play one tone tha.t has no feeling. A..nd then I'll play another that has feeling, The same tone, To me this tone has no feeling. OK .. Now I 911 play the same tone and I'll :put a little feeling into it. Like that. It1s almost .something like when o. baby cries. VJhen a baby's crying it I a pure emotion. Ok., Vlhen an adult cries, a lot of the time, even though he's c:rying it's still he's trying to hold back some emotion. You might not even hear him. Tears may come out of his eyes but he's not going to boohoo. But a baby's going to let it all out. And when you I re pJ.ayj.ng the blues you don'}t ~ust say, boohoo and try to hold it back, You try to let it all out, So, I say- the main thing is tone, The best harmonica player that I ever heard is Sonny Boy 'i/illiamson, And that s just what he goes by.,, Tone. He's not like no Eric Clapton with notes and all that. 7 It comes down to just hitting that sound, Then it just hits you man. You S.nov:r. B.,B.King .. Yeah, that's it. l--I,.A. ! How about telling me about some of your experiences _playing before audiences and the people that you normally play for. C. S .. : Oh sure.. The first eA'}Jerience was bad. And I think :probably everybody experiences that. You first start playing, it ts lrind of sha.kie. 01-r., one thing you're nerv:lous. Usually the first time you 11lay for people you1re not really that good. I rem.ember, in six months I was playing for a few people. But ti:10 reason that you're not that: good is because you'Ve :.,nly been playing a li tt1e while.. And you' re always wondering, 11.fJil I playing anything that somebody would likei1 And so when you get up there and try to play, you' re l-:;:nowing in your heart that it a.in 1t to good. You 1re kind of nervious and all these questions are running through your mind. Maybe somebody might throw a boot out there. So in the beginning it's pretty tough, And I thinl: in the beginning that I s why a lot of people never keep it Ul) Ca.use some people may have a r-eal bad experience to get over. Haybe I shouldn't say wierd. But oh::. As you go along once you get a little bit better, get a little more confidence, it gets better, But I'll say another thing though a.1:lout playing in front of people. If you don 1 t do it cons-t;antly ~ I don't co.re if yuuve been doing it ten years._ Say you stOJ) for two months .. When you go back youire going to ge:b the sarne nervious feeling .. It seems lil~e it puts you on the spot, It I s just YOU and all those people out in the aud:i_ence, I don't ca.re if it's on the street, anybldy in a room"' They're looking at you. And I thinli: 8 that people norr-1ally expect the best. I don't care if theJ-'re hearing Joe Blovr off the st:reet.. They still in their mind v1ant to hear something a little better then something they've heard on the radio. So if you don't keep it up it's pretty tough. It ta1';:es I' cl say about a week if you do it every day playing in front of :people to get the feel .. Get used to it. And I'm still' not. I've been playing for over three years and Im 3till not used to playing in fromt of people. I never loot: at people when I'm :playing. Sometimes I close my eyes because right nov1 I don't feel I 1r:1 a master of the harmonica. I have to put all my concentration on playing. I don't even think about the audience. You might have noticed when I was playing rj_ght here I closed my eyes to get what I want.. I ca.n 1 t be playing and digging the lJeople too .. I know I'd be messing up. So for me I have to forget the audience and that truces a while, but I can do it now. That I s about it for playing for people. H.A,,: Ok. Tha.nk you very much .. c.s.: Alright, 9 SIDE TWO H,..A,: I 1m talking now v1ith Eddie Mathis. Eddie is a blues singer and guitar player,. Eddie,how long you been playing the blues? Eddie Mathis; About three years .. M,A.: About three years? Just how 1d you manage to get into it? E.H.: Naw really, really I've been lJlaying about nine years .. M,A.: And how was it that you got into playing the blues? E.1>1,.: Ive been trying to learn how to play blues right like it's supposed to be played, M.A .. : What exactly do you feel is the blues? E.1'1,: Well let me tell you it I s something to tell people how y' a feeling, in other words it 1s a voice for you. You can never explain in v,ords ya see I couldn't tell you how I'm feeling. Now I can use this as an example to tell you. When you actually feelin bad y'a see, sometj_mes y 1a really feeling good, y's know what I mean? M.A.: Are you say:i.ng that blues can be an expression of good feelings also? EltM.: Yeah, right. Though sometimes it's bad to feel to/ good, then sometimes it1s good to feel bad. Now I'll tell y 1a for instance when I 1m playing I can actually feel it. I'm trying to be ha.lJPY ys see but I'm not really all that happy, It starts out that I think I'm happy,, Then I realize I 1m not as happy a.s I thought I Has. Then that's when my sadness come dmim on me and I vmnt to tell somebody about it. I keep it to myself and I don't know what I might do. Y1a see you know Ylhat it is. LA.WB I ei~T LIVE HAPPY NO JJJATTER WHAT I DO LAWD I CAN1T LIVE HAPPY NO MA.TTER WHAT I DO LAWD IF S Ol{E'lHING DOJif! T CHANGE OL LIGHTNIN 1i/H.AT GONWA HAPPEN TO YOU 10 \'JOKE UP EARLY THIS MOR1TING WOKE UP EARLY THI.3 HORNING BLUES HANGING ROUND MY BED BLUES HANGING ROUND NY BED I SAT DOWN AT i1Y TABLE BLUES JUNP UP IN HY BREAD YA KI'!0\11 I GRY LAWD !M VE !1l!;RCY YA KNOW I CRY LAWD HAVE MERCY Yi~S I BEEN TRYING TO FIND MY BABY LAWD !Lil.VE M.ERGY ON HE LAVJD HAVE M}~RCY ON HE WON"T SOMEBODY PLEASE SEND HER HOME ~'0 M.E E,M"': Yeah,well anyway, what I was saying, I want to express v,rha.t I'm trying to tell people. Now I don't know who I want to tell this to. Now some people ain't gonna listen anyway., Now blues--ya start out feeling happy then there's a let-down somewhere, When you think something is wrong with you whatever it might be. It might be liJre you have a woman'" She's treating you nice a..i.1d ?,ind and then something else--some other forces in the world starts working and pulls her avray from what you had in miti.d. Uh., then see when somebody done stole your woman an you're doing everything in you pov1er to love her, then I mean it makes you feel sad anyway. You don't know Vihat you gonna do about it\> What you gonna do, go out and bloVI something up? Alright it might not just be a woman, It might be anything. Take for instance you might be organizing a group or something. It might not be ju.st one person it might be .several people" Something happens to turn it around- It1s feeling ya see and thats why blues is played with feeling. Blues is not played from no ldnd of--well like when I started playing. :;: didn't Y"illOVi the first thing about reading notes. I didn't know anything what a .Bf,1 was or anything like that.. Now I picked the.Se terms -p just by being arov11d other musicians. But v.rhat it \Vas, I think, Oh:, somebody shov.red me how to tune a guitar. I 1d say, 'Well I 1m going to buy me one of them things. 11 And that's what I did, Yeah, I bought one about nine years ago. And because you see, I was singing .. Alrtght. I felt that ever.y time that I started singing--now s0111ebody wanted to play jazz or what they called soul music, which is .sometimes.what they call soul music really dontt have that much singing., Cause soul is deeper then what they call soul music today .. Now some people use the guitar like something that they ple.y along 1Hith any other instrument.. I use it like a drum., Get a sound .. Something to beat upon. You can feel your emotions rising.. You let it out somev1here and you hit on something.. Sarne peo]?le they'll walk in a room and tear up a chair or something.. I thin.. k. they1re feeling dov:rn, iCDu see. You we1.lk in a room and tear u_p something - or maybe you feel lj_ke tearing up something .. !.' 'You're frustrated.. You see, blues is the sound of fructrat:ion ... ,I.A .. : Cho.rlie made the Btatement the.t some other types of music liJs.e something perhaps that Beethoven ha.s '\:7ri tten could be considered blues .. Do you agree with that? E.H.: Yeah! Yeahi Yes I clo! Because you see soBe of his sounds sounded pretty frustrc..ted too. V!11en I listen to him you see, in other Yrnrds, he was probably stri yj_ng for something greater then he ever got.. So maybe he becmne frustrated,, filaybe that's why he played the Blues.. Cause see, he v,ras even striving after he went deaf. You :know he conducted an orchestra after he 1vent deaf .. No1,1 you know that that man had to be striving for something. Still keeping them sounds in his mind and he reall;7 tvanted even after he lost his hearing.. Nor: that was Beeti1oven... No'N I'm going to tell you about another man ,;,rho did the same thing"' Now he cou1dn't see what: he \'tas really looJ..~ing at.11 That v1as Blind Boy Puller. Now he made up one hell of a song,. 12 I,'.L.A .. : Did you ever know him personally? E,.}'i,.: No .. Ifo, I didn1t but I had a friend that knew him~ Yeah, he sta.rted teaching me some of his songs., He had 011 called, 1'EATH OF BLIND BOY FULLER. Yes, see they called him by his bedside .. ThouGh what it 1r1as, like he sang not from what he saw with his eyes, You see he sang from 1Hhat he felt in the vibrations in the air .. Around the people. That's what he done .. H.,A*: Do you remember any of the songs that he taught you? Songs that were B:Lind Boy Fullers that he passed on? E,,.M.,: Ifo.. I didn I t say that he teached me .some, I was saying, V1ell he would sing them to me.. No, some of his songs I don't liJs:e to do them and I' 11 tell you why. .See because I don I t feel that I can do them exactly ltke Blind Boy Fuller did because I never heard him play in person .. knyway it uas just one of the thoughts that I was trying to use to play on his hand a lj~ ttle.. Cause I don1 t v1ant to get into 1:ilaying Blind Boy Fuller n.orr, 1 ca.use I haven't listened to him" I only listened to people that knev1 him.. I r1ant 'to say I 1111as trying to EfXJ..Jle.in the real feeling that a. blues man has. Do .you exchange music 1vith other 11eople that you meet here and there, learn f.rom them, perhapsthey learn from you? E .H., : Yeah., yeah I play some Hank Uilliams. Like Tim Timmons:, vrhen I started playing the washboard that was pc~rt of an axcaange. M.,A"': Wou1d you consider Hank Willia.ms to be a sort of blues also? 13 SIDE THREE I VIAS LEANING GAINST THE LAMPPOST FEELING MOST DISGUSTED I QUIT MY JOB MY BOSS SAID I COULDN1 ;I: BE 'rRUSTED I BELIEVE I'LL GO HOME WRERE THERE S "NOTHING TO DO A FIVE WORKING DAYS A WEEK YOU KNOW I'M ONLY VIORKIN TWO I'D LIKE TO Rll.ISE MY HEAD AND JLI\.VE SOME BREAD AND MEAT BUT THE WAY YOU GOTTA DO IT SURE MAEES A FELLOW HEAT YEAH I BEEN OUT OF WORK FOR THE PAST YEAR AND HALF I DON'T KNOW HOVI TO DO IT I MUST HAVE TO GO ON WELFARE SOMETIMES I DON' 1' HAVE NO FOOD LITTLE GIRL HELP ME PLEASE HELP JVJE SOMEBODY WHAT AM I SUPPOST TO DO MAYBE I SHOULD GET A JOB WORKING SEVEN DAYS A WEEE AFTER A MONTH OR SO I CAN BE BACK ON MY FEET I WAS LEANING GAINST THE LAMPPOST FEELING MOST DISGUSTED I QUIT MY JOB MY BOSS SAID I COULDN1T BE TRUSTED I BELIEVE I' LL GO HOME WHERE THERE'S NOTHING TO DO A FIVE WORKING DAYS A WEEK YOU KNOW I'M ONLY V/ORKIN TWO I D LIKE TO RAISE MY HEAD AND HAVE SOHE BREAD AND MEAT BUT THE WAY YOU GOTTA DO IT SURE MAKES A FELLOW HEAT M.A.: That sounded good! G,S.: That was one of the first songs I made. When I first just started fooling around vdth the guitar. M,A.: Did you write that song yourself? C,S.: Yea),, tell the truth now. I've got it on record. 11,E,: Yeah, yeah he wrote that song. But see what hamiened. See I was already playing tl,is melody and when I meet Charlie ( I was playing and he was .singing) he told me that he already got this song that already ft:t this music. c.s.: Yeah see1;tha-way I 'Wrote it it was just a little bit differant from that. In fact right now I can't even think of how I ever did it. E...:H,.: Yeah he had just something different in mind v1hen I was doing it on the guitar; but he said it rrnuld fit. And we put it together. C.S,: Really that's how I understand way to communicate with other musicians. If I meJre some music and I'll play it and they don't play the exact way that I r:ant it, I' 11 let it slide, cause in a since it's almost the way that they feel it should be. If.eel if I Im going to be the one sj_nging he' 11 be the one playing the guitar. I'll let him go do what he feels to be right and he'll be smooth that vray. If you say, fNo, that ain~t right.' The dude might get fed up and never feel the song, M,A.: You have to kind of compromise so that both of you can get together, E.M,: Yeah, see I was sitting down playing this thing that I did behind his singing then. It was actually his song but what it was., I was doing this behind something else that I had heard. I was doing this behind a song that a fellow did about what makes a broke man brea1r. inside somebody 1s house. You ever heard that? M,.A,.: I don't believe I did. E.M.: ~-'hat was my impressions of what this dude did,. Frank Si:mnd.ons. I.t 'Was11.: t. -_really his~ The vr8,3r : I did it, it wasn't really his song,. But I have to give him credit for the thing because you see, what it he was doing another song behind whe.t vrn did,. He was recreating an impression of it to throv1 the people,,. See that's v1hat I 1m saying. M.A.: Did he ever write a song and then find that the tune to the song melody is a melody to a song that youve heard somewhere else? E.M.: Yeah this is what I'm talking about now.. You sit dovm and you hnve a feeling and you think youv'e got something new together and after you record it and you hear it over again, Hell j_ve heard that before, But when it first comes to you, you think that you've done something Oifferant.. It reminds me of the guy that thought he invented the f 15 boogie v.roogie.. He ain ft but nineteen years old e.nd he thought he had invented the tgoogie vroogie .. He's about the best guitar player I 1ve known of, that 1s not playing professione,lly,. When he was a kid he started this thing and he ran tn all his friends, 1 Hey I got this new thing ms.nJ and they all la.u5hed, '"Ah that ain't noting. 1 But 17hat it was he had probably heard a little of it, But the dua.e is creative anyway, So for real he might have actually, in a since, invented the boogie woogie1 But it was to late, somebody had already did it .. M.,A .. : Is it the same thing with words to songs? Do you find yourself using old verses to other songs? C.S-t: Well lately I,ve been v1ritting, Now I used to--see I started writting when I first started playing harp then I just stopped, I said, 1 :No, I had better learn how to play the harmonica be:fore I be 1:rritting. 1 .And novr I'm back to vrritting a little bit again and I donit find it myself, No I don't fi.nd it v1ith 1uords. Cause the only thing that I write is 1vhat actually what I've experienced. Most the time I don 1 t use anybody els es vrords. The only time I do that is v1hen I'm meJs.ing e. song right off the top of my head. Ltke a lot of times Eddie starts playing some music and 1vords come to both of us. Somebody's listening so I 1rn. just singing .some ,;rnrds and they 111 be half of other peoples songs. That's when I do it. Vfoen it's coming off the top of my head, But if you sit down and think, you know a song's just like ta1king .. Telling experiences. It's just like that thing where I really don't work .. I still don't work. I remember the last job.. They alv1ays fire me for playing the harp or something .. E .. M .. : Yeah, like the dude out there at ...... ,.that day. C .s .. : Vfo 1 s getting down, me and Eddie, I was playing the ha!'p and 1 6 Eddie jamming man. Yeah, on our lunchbreak .. We had this job,, and we ,;rnre playing about ten minutes t long on the 1unchbreak. He vramted to fire us and all the people in the plant liked what we vsras doing good to. He felt bad about firing us so he didn't .. M.A.: Did you ever get any of the other people in the plro1 t to sing along with you or anything like that? c.s.: On lunchbrea}::s? Yeah, but most people won 1 t sing. Yeah, they stand back and listen because if you're not into the music you know, :f:Ellying it, a lot of people thj_nk that it takes a lot of misterious supernatural talent to play music. It really don't. I thin};: the best musicians are average people. Just avero.ge .. I just try b.ard you knm1r 1.vhat I mean? Really the ones that have got the talent never even bother to work on it .. It comes so easy, thatis one of my beliefs anyv1ay,. The people that rn.a1'.;:e it in thi.s world are not the super talented. The average people that's got a lot of drive yeah, trying. H.A.: You got any thoughts about being discovered? C,.S.: Oh yeah, I tell you the truth., I mean I'm not concieted, I thinl:: I'm just the opposite. I never give myself enough credit but I plan one day to be about the best harmonica player in the country, I've listened to all the best harmonica players and I just hnoTI that I'rn gonna get p there one of these days. It's gonna take a 1;,rl1ile, maybe another seven years. M,.A,.: Do you think you'll be able to make it with what you7Ve got? G,.S .. : Oh yeah:, it111 be differant .. It wontt be actually the blues like that,, It'll be bluesy feeling, in a since it's gonna be me .. Just like Jimmy Hendrex is him, that's why he's so big., 17 I haven't got a plan. I don't even flnmv 1Nhat picture I 1m going to be like. I can't picture myself yet, 1 That's me.' I just knmv that it's going to be something good. It'ss feel good. r-,ve been to a lot of concerts and seen certain prefo1"mers and I know which ones I like .And I learn a little bit about each one. Just like I go see Huddy Waters and I notice that he captures hls audiance better then an;:rbod. y I've ever seen in blues .. Kind of a spiritual thing. Then again I saw Ted Negunt two weeks ago. He's a psychod.elic rock player. Yet he did the same thing" In a d..ifferant Yray,, I don't knm7 what Ra;y tales will be, but I know he's gonna do something good. Just differant .Soul! I guess the best thing about blues is you never get to old to play. Like if you do sports.once you get over 35 that's about it E.Ji.: Flhat about Sonny Boy? C*.3 .. : Yeah Sonny Boy Williamson finally made it,.when he was 60.. 60 years old and he final1y made it big .. M.A.,: They seemed to be satisfied anyv1ay .. C .. S.: When you're a blues player, in a since we work for yourselves .. So I thinl,;: that can mal1'".e almost anybody satisfied11Sometim.es I fee1 that same uay. I feel pretty good. I don't feel super happy or nothing. I'm getting enougl1 to eat nov1 and a place to stay,and my music. H,.A.,: Do ~rou thiriJ[ that you1re going to try and make it one of these days? Records and that sort of thing or just ldnd of roll along? E.,H,.: I feel like I can. You know how it j,s in our business'!' M,JL,: You're not going to put out a lot of effort, kirnPa roll with it? E.M.: If I feel that I have something that I want to tell somebody world 1;1j_d.e so to speak, You see the i1ay it is now I don't knm1 that what I have in mind will be worthwhile. I have a message. Hou it vfill turn out I don't know, like Lighnin. The main thing is for people to have a good tj_me,. 19 A PDF transcript exists for this recording. Please contact an archivist for access. Professor John Burrison founded the Atlanta Folklore Archive Project in 1967 at Georgia State University. He trained undergraduates and graduate students enrolled in his folklore curriculum to conduct oral history interviews. Students interviewed men, women, and children of various demographics in Georgia and across the southeast on crafts, storytelling, music, religion, rural life, and traditions. 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