Johnny Winter in 1984: "Guitar Slinger" Release and International Tours Mark a Landmark Year

-

Johnny Winter as the headliner, with the Dave Kelly Band as the opening act—this was how it was announced, and the expectations of the visitors who gathered around the open-air stage in Hamburg's Stadtpark, despite the mediocre weather, were accordingly high.

It was well known, even by the lady from the concert agency Karsten Jahnke, that Johnny Winter isn't the easiest person. No interviews were granted, which was particularly unfortunate as there were many unresolved questions regarding Winter's future. So, patience was required. Those who expected and hoped that the man with the snow-white hair would be supported by a black combo on his tour, or even by the musicians who so brilliantly accompanied him on Guitar Slinger, would have been disappointed. The bass was, as in previous years, played by Jon Paris, who also contributed some harmonica and had the urge to put himself in the spotlight. On drums was Tom Campton, who had been Alvin Lee's drummer for years and was recently seen with him in local venues. This continued the tradition of hard-hitting but always varied drummers in Winter's bands, from Johnny Turner to Randy Zehringer, Richard Hughes, Bobby Torello, and, in a way, Willie Smith and, most recently, Casey Jones.

There isn't much to say about the concert. Visually, with his guitar, hat, and tattoos covering his chest and arms, Johnny Winter appeared exactly as he does on the cover of Guitar Slinger. The opening number was, as usual, "Hideaway." This was followed by five tracks from the mentioned album, the classics "Johnny B. Goode" and "Jumpin' Jack Flash," and that was it! Powerful, even more energetic than on the record, with a steady, strong beat, a full bass, and the grand, dissolute marathon pieces that spanned several choruses, in which he made it clear, without room for contradiction, that no other blues guitarist could outplay him on stage. The optical interest came not from big show effects or lighting tricks but from his sheer presence. The 40-year-old Texan offered more charisma and personality than most of his musical peers.

Still, many of the (sober) attendees likely left with a bitter aftertaste. After just one hour of playing, the master bid farewell to the roaring crowd. Some "fans" forced their way onto the stage, others were violently prevented from doing so, cans were thrown toward the musicians, Johnny Winter cut short his encore and disappeared! Minor scuffles broke out between security forces and the audience, with the police called in to bring a dramatic end to the evening.

Who should be held responsible for these events? The organizer, who naively allowed beer in cans to be sold? The already partially drunk spectators, who saw no issue in turning their drink containers into projectiles? The stage security, who reacted violently rather than with finesse? Or Johnny Winter, who should have offered more than an embarrassingly short hour of music for 20 Marks—less than his opening act? Surely, everyone shares some blame.

A first step in the right direction would be to serve drinks in plastic cups, which would have better complied with Hamburg's ban on bringing cans onto the premises. It might also be worth considering a general alcohol ban because, frankly, we can probably do without those who would be deterred by such a rule.

Timo Hoyer

Johnny Winter als Headliner, die Dave Kelly Band als den OpeningAct bestreitende Gäste. So war es angekündigt und folgerichtig waren die Erwartungen der Besucher, die sich bei mäßigem Wetter um die Freilichtbühne im Hamburger Stadtpark versammelt hatten, dementsprechend.

Dass Johnny Winter nicht einer der einfachsten ist, wusste schon die Dame vom Konzertbüro Karste Jahnke. Interviews wurden keine gewährt. Was besonders schade ist, da etliche Fragen, die Zukunft Winters betreffend, noch ungeklärt sind . Man muß sich also in Geduld üben. Wer erwartet und gehofft hat, dass der Mann mit dem schlohweißen Haar von einer schwarzen Combo auf seiner Tournee unterstützt wird oder gar von den Musikern, die ihn auf Guitar Slinger wo großartig begleiteten, wird enttäuscht gewesen sein. Den Baß zupfte wie in den vergangenen Jahren Jon Paris, der auch etwas Harmonika spielte und den Drang verspürte, sich in Szene zu setzen; und am Schlagzeug saß Tom Campton, seit Jahren Drummer für Alvin Lee und mit diesem erst kürzlich in hiesigen Hallen zu bewundern gewesen, Damit setzte sich die Tradition der harten, aber in ihrem Bereich immer abwechslungsreichen Trommler in den Winter-Bands fort, die von Johnny Turner über Randy Zehringer bis hin zu Richard Hughes und Bobby Torello und in gewisser Weise auch Willie Smith und zuletzt Casey Jones reicht.

Zum Konzert lässt sich wenig sagen. Äußerlich mit Gitarre, Hut und den Brust und Arme bedeckenden Tätowierungen, erscheint Johnny Winter genau so, wie er sich auf dem Cover von "Guitar Slinger"darstellt. Die Eröffnungsnummer hieß, wie gehabt, "Hideway". Es folgen fünf Titel aus dem besagten Album, die Klassiker "Johnny B.Goode" und "Jampin'Jack Flash" und das wäre es dann gewesen! Druckvoll, (noch) energischer als auf Platte, mit einem geraden, kräftigen Beat, einem vollen Bass und den grandiosen, dissoluten, über mehrere Chorussen sich erstreckenden Maratonstücken, in denen er, keinen Widerspruch zulassend, deutlich machte, dass er von keinem anderen Bluesgitarristen von der Bühne gespielt werden kann. Optisches Interesse erweckten keine großen Showeinlagen und schon gar keine Lichteffekte, als vielmehr seine bloße Präsenz. Ausstrahlung und Persönlichkeit bot der inzwischen 40jährige Texaner in größerem Maß als die meisten seiner Musikkollegen.

Einen faden Beigeschmack wird wohl jeder der (nüchternen) Besucher dennoch mit auf den Heimweg genommen haben. Nach nur einer einzigen Stunde Spielzeit verabschiedete sich der Meister von der johlenden Menge, ein paar "Fans" verschafften sich unerlaubten Zutritt zur Bühne, andere wurden gewaltsam daran gehindert, Dosen flogen in Richtung Musiker, Johnny Winter brach seine Zugabe ab und verschwand! Kleine Schlägereien zwischen Ordnungskräften und dem Publikum und Polizeieinsatz als krönender Abschluss. Wem soll man die Verantwortung für diese Ereignisse zuschreiben? Dem Veranstalter, der in naiver Fahrlässigkeit Bier in Dosen feilbieten ließ? Den schon teilweise angetrunkenen Zuschauern, die sich nicht entblöden konnten und in ihrer Aggressivität die Trinkbehälter in Wurfgeschosse umfunktionierten? Den Bühnenordnern, die alles andere als geschickt, nämlich gewalttätig reagierten? Oder Johnny Winter, der für 20 Mark einfach mehr zeigen muß als eine peinlich kurze Stunde Musik und somit weniger als seine Vorgruppe? Eine Mitschuld trägt gewiss jeder. Ein erster Schritt in die richtige Richtung wäre der Ausschank von Getränken in Kunststoffbechern, was dem Hamburger Verbot, Dosen mit aufs Gelände zu bringen, ja auch eher entgegengekommen wäre. Überlegen sollte man sich auch ein generelles Alkoholverbot, denn auf diejenigen, die solches von Konzerten fernhielte, können wir, glaube ich, gern verzichten..

Timo Hoyer

The lure of the intimate club atmosphere never fades entirely, even for those bands familiar with the biggest venues in the world. The Stones played the 100 Club on Oxford Street in 1982, and more recently, ZZ Top, Genesis, and The Police have all appeared at the Marquee. The Police's gig was such a well-kept secret that their road crew had to round up passers-by from Wardour Street to fill the audience!

This wasn’t a problem for Johnny Winter at Dingwalls, where records were surely set for extremes of audience discomfort. Dingwalls, unlike the Marquee, is particularly ill-suited to staging bands. A long, narrow room with a low ceiling divided into three sections and obstructed by a line of pillars, it’s possible to be at the back and not even realise the band has started playing. The crush at the front to see Johnny Winter would have given a sardine claustrophobia. People were standing on tables, on partners, swinging from pipes around the ceiling, and even a fair-sized contingent was lounging in the toilets, conveniently located next to a PA stack. It wasn’t the night to find yourself desperate for a break!

Winter, of course, knows all about the clubs. Before gigs were staged at Hammersmith Odeon, the Fillmores, and Madison Square Garden—before rock’n’roll became mass-media entertainment—there were the clubs, and there was the blues. Winter spent much of the '50s and '60s hacking his way around Texas bars and beer joints, and it’s surely a testament to both the man and the music that he’s still around in 1984, playing the blues to the obvious delight of this packed house.

With long-standing cohort Jon Paris on bass and newcomer Mark Potowsky on drums, the skeletal albino, stripped to the waist to reveal the enormous demon tattoo on his chest, started with a leisurely instrumental—the kind of jam that crams every blues lick in the book into one tidy package and delivers it gift-wrapped as new. Much of the set was drawn from the recent *Guitar Slinger* album, with Winter’s raucous vocals and endlessly fluid guitar working their distinctive magic on numbers like “It's My Life Baby,” “Don’t Take Advantage of Me,” and “Mad Dog.”

During one slow number about New York, Winter’s unique combination of technique, emotion, and crude power produced a near-perfect reading of the blues guitar, that magical moment when wood, metal, and electrics can make time stand still. The big crowd-pleasers, though, were the old favourites—an uptempo “Jumpin' Jack Flash” and the perennial “Johnny B. Goode,” both from his excellent *Johnny Winter And Live* album from 1971. For the encore, he chose the slow, countryish “Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye,” revealing the sad, gentle side of his otherwise aggressive guitar-slinger image.

I didn’t catch Winter the following night at Hammersmith Odeon—a more typical gig for him—but seeing him at Dingwalls was strangely reassuring. No matter the ebb and flow of his commercial status, Winter will always be able to pick up his guitar and perform. But not in the manner of a faded star, scraping around the clubs; rather, as a wanderer returning from fantastic voyages to the heart of rock’n’roll.

Based on Johnny Winter's 1984 concert performances, a typical setlist during this year would include a combination of blues and rock covers, along with original material from his "Guitar Slinger" album. The consistent tracks across his shows throughout 1984 include the following:

1. Hideaway – A frequent opener, showcasing his blues guitar skills.

2. Don't Take Advantage of Me – A regular feature, especially after the release of "Guitar Slinger."

3. Mad Dog – Another staple from his 1984 performances.

4. I Smell Trouble – Appearing consistently, often with extended solos.

5. Johnny B. Goode – The Chuck Berry classic, a mainstay of his setlists.

6. Highway 61 Revisited – A regular feature towards the end of the set.

7. Boot Hill – Often performed as part of the encore.

8. Jumpin' Jack Flash – Another rock classic featured in encores.

9. It's All Over Now – A common closing song or encore.

Additional songs that varied from show to show included:

- Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye

- Bony Moronie (often with a drum solo)

- Lights Out

- Help Me

- She Moves Me

- Honky Tonk or Succotash as introductory jams at select shows.

This combination of blues standards, rock covers, and his own material from "Guitar Slinger" made up the core of his performances in 1984.