Mose Allison Has Left The Building ...

AcornHouse

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Probably like many from my generation, I learned of him through the Who. But let's go to the source.
 

Cougar

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I guess we all gotta go sometime, and that time's coming up for some of the leading lights of the sixties, apparently. Man, Mose had that syrup thick voice, with his great piano accompaniment.... I always looked up to him, and wished I could find a voice like that for myself....
 

Quantum Strummer

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Yeah, a lotta musically seminal & influential folks are hitting the threshold beyond which their chances of making it through another year begin to nosedive. Mose (and Leonard Cohen) were already well into "We've got good genes!" territory, so I guess we should be grateful they managed to stick around as long as they did. And, in Leonard's case anyway, continued to bring it right up to the end.

-Dave-
 

gjmalcyon

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Oh that one hits hard.

Yeah it does.

First heard Mose Allison in the early '70's when the Philly AOR FM station, WMMR, would let their DJ's program their own playlists. One of them (not sure who it was) would occasionally toss some Mose Allison or Horace Silver into the mix of Led Zeppelin, The Who, Strawbs, Genesis, etc. I'd listen to Your Mind Is On Vacation and think, "hey, I know somebody like that ... hope it ain't me".

 

davismanLV

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Wow, and the HITS just keep on comin'. What a year. However, 89 years old is not too bad. He had a good life. Y'all probably know I'm not a huge fan of "the blues" as a category, but every now and again someone shines through. Mose was one of those. What a great musician and songwriter. One of my personal favorites:

 

AcornHouse

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Wonderful response on The Who's FB page.
It is with great sadness that we report the death of Mose Allison at the grand age of 89. Mose Allison was a huge influence on The Who and in particular, Pete Townshend. One of his most well-known numbers,'Back Country Suite: Blues' aka 'Young Man's Blues' from Allison's 1957 album Back Country Suite was covered by the band very early in their career and became a staple of Who live shows for many years, appearing on their 1970 album Live At Leeds. The Who's version became known as 'Young Man Blues'.Mose Allison's songs have been covered by Van Morrison, John Mayall, The Who, The Clash, Eric Clapton, The Yardbirds, Elvis Costello and Bonnie Raitt to name a few. Van Morrison recorded a tribute album, Tell Me Something: The Songs of Mose Allison, and musicians such as Pete Townshend, Bonnie Raitt, Ray Davies and Bill Wyman have frequently cited Mose Allison as a major influence. Time Out magazine said of him . . .
"Mose Allison’s popularity in the UK dates from the ‘60s, when his mixture of Delta-born blues feel and his gift for writing a song with a sting in the tail made him a prime source of inspiration for the UK’s new generation of blues/rock artists. Not just namechecked but lionized by the likes of Pete Townshend, Jack Bruce, Brian Auger and Georgie Fame, he became British rock’s most popular jazz musician. His piano style is notable for its strange mixture of classical-influenced sophistication and blues-based intimacy, and there’s still none like him with a lyric."
Here's Mose Allison's original version of 'Back Country Suite: Blues' aka 'Young Man's Blues'.

R.I.P. Mose Allison, 11November 1927 - 15 November 2016.
 
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