Slims Tips: "I often get asked what tunings I use for slide playing".....

 "The most common one I use is a OPEN D tuning and goes from bottom to top as DADF#AD. It'g great for those country blues songs and gives you more flexibility at the higher end of the fret board than it's close cousin OPEN G. Elmore James version of Dust My Broom is a prime example of OPEN D tuning at it's blusiest best. OPEN G tuning though is a real gem for getting that Delta Blues sound and has a bottom bass string that's made to boogie. It goes DGDGBD and was a favourite of John Lee Hooker, listen to Boogie Chillun or Son House's Death Letter to hear its growling power. Some people like Keith Richards remove the bass D so they can play a loose groove without thinking about dampening the strings but I'd advise to keep it on, hammer off the 3rd fret and then hit the open 5th string and you'll never want to go back to standard (European) tuning.  Open tunings offer you instant freedom from normal rules and my main advise is to just experiment with them, if it sounds right then it is right! Look for patterns and try out simple two fingered shapes (double stops) whilst hitting the open bass note and see where it leads and don't forget to use a capo for key variations".

 
 
BIOGRAPHY                                          

 

After forming and fronting The Swamp Things for over seven years, Slim decided to leave and concentrate on a solo career in 2003. This was a return to his pre-Swamp days when, with just an acoustic guitar for company he would play his version of down home delta blues to anybody who would listen. Self taught he then sought the need to incorporate his style with others and so the Swamp Things were born in 1995 to flesh out his vision and reworking of blues standards and obscurities. During a busy few years and many personnel changes, The Swamps released an impressive album per year; ‘Catfish Row’ (1999) & ‘In The Doghouse’ (2001) saw the band at their peak with a settled line-up and a few of Slim’s originals were making their way onto the wax.

 

In that time The Swamps played with a host of blues luminaries including Paul Jones Blues Band, American harmonica wizard Johnny Mars (whom they backed on a TV show) and Andre Williams writer of ‘Dark End Of The Street’. They also played the European circuit from The Czech Republic to Germany, France, Holland and Belgium as well as doing many blues weekenders on these shores. Slim is a well travelled man and his music has also traversed the radio waves in The States as well as on Paul Jones blues show on Radio 2.

 

What is now evident is that the bulk of his material is original and it still harks to that Delta/New Orleans style that he pertains too. In 2004 he released two albums ‘Standing On The Banks Of The Mighty Blues’ and ‘Dust Bowl Soup’. The new album `The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea’ with his new band The Backbones was released in December 2005 and showcases his love of Howlin’ Wolf , Muddy Waters and CPT Beefheart . Recent converts to his latest material have been Paul Rodgers (ex Free), Rick Parfitt (Status Quo) and even Jack Dee the comedian, who have all bought his C.D’s.

 

Slim is always gigging and refining his blues and depending on the setting could play a Dobro infused blues to a rocking electrified boogie in accordance to the mood. It is never over rehearsed and patter is kept to a minimum, it’s the music that speaks volumes!

 

BOOKINGS

Slim is always available for gigs however big or small and the bulk of his live work is usually private. So if you want something different like a rockin' sound for your party, Slim's your man. If your feeling really brave you can book him and The Backbones for that full on Boogie onslaught that'll definitely shake up your neighborhood!!

 

 

To book Slim - email here