Nat Riddles.Easy.mp3

An mp3 recording of Big Walter Horton's instrumental, "Easy," performed by Nat Riddles (d. 1991), one of New York City's greatest blues harmonica players. Nat is accompanied by guitarist Charlie Hilbert.

This live recording was engineered by Adam Gussow in June 1989 with a hand-held Walkman Professional.

Riddles also sings a few verses of Sonny Boy Williamson's "Eyesight to the Blind" and, at the end of the track, offers a bit of his famous "El Cafe Street" rap. El Cafe Street was his nickname for whatever blues combo he happened to be fronting on the streets of New York.

This is the VERY FIRST DIGITAL RECORDING of Nat Riddles ever made available to the public. Nat's vinyl discography is modest; it includes two import albums with guitarist/vocalist Larry Johnson, a solo album recorded by Len Kunstadt (Spivey Records), and scattered tracks on several other Spivey recordings.

This recording, a powerful but controlled slow blues instrumental, makes clear why Riddles was held in such high repute by the New York City blues performers who knew him, and why his death of leukemia in his early 40s, only two years after this recording, shocked so many.

Running time: 11:24.

Another Modern Blues Harmonica production (www.modernbluesharmonica.com)