Albert Collins was born in Leona, Texas in 1932. Some of his earliest musical influences came from family. His cousin, Willow Young taught him about minor tuning and shared his unique style of finger-picking, so Albert never used a pick to play. His sense of humor was ever-present when he smiled and said another cousin he “learned a lot from” was Lightnin’ Hopkins. As Collins transitioned from acoustic guitar and began electrifying the world as the ‘Master of the Telecaster’ he was quick to credit guitarists Eddie (Guitar Slim) Jones, T-Bone Walker and B.B. King as just a few of his most influential.
From student to mentor, Albert’s own style of blues would shape and enhance the next generation of players. From Jeff Healey, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Debbie Davies to Gary Moore, Coco Montoya, and Joanna Connor…they all shared their love of the music and the stage with Albert Collins. But Albert insisted, “I learned from the young people…I listened. When you stop listening that’s when you’re in trouble.” It’s been said the Blues are best shared, like a form of communication, storytelling with rhythm and emotion…blues is a feeling. To paraphrase the Iceman, “when you play you try to get other people to see how you feel. If they can’t feel you, ain’t no sense in playing.” Albert would have turned 94 this year.
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For a bluesman, Albert Collins was different. Some attribute it to his jazz influenced, Texas upbringing while others simply credit his ‘legendary’ family members. Then, there are those who seem to think it was his unique guitar-tuning or that dynamic style of finger-picking that set him apart. Most blues fans, including yours truly would probably check the box; all of the above. My only caveat would be to add Albert’s tremendous sense of humor then attach a guitar chord long enough to stretch through a crowded club, out to the street and around the corner enabling the aforementioned Mr. Collins to order a pizza and return to the stage without dropping a note or missing a riff from the song he was performing. Yes, Albert Collins was different…different with extra freaking anchovies.
In 1990, after anchoring a star-studded, high-octane performance at the Long Beach Blues Festival, Mr. Collins stepped off stage to talk about his blues, his road and his life as ‘Master of the Telecaster.’ Our conversation began with Albert’s earliest musical influences… “Well from my raisin’ up man,” he smiles, “I was around jazz musicians a lot in Texas…and also blues musicians. But we mostly had horn players, like big band sounds out of Texas. That was a little bit different, you know?’
Collins connecting with his audience. Photo: Mike Meadows
Blues ran through Albert’s family, including a famous cousin…“Lightnin’ Hopkins!” He finishes my sentence. “I learned a lot from him growin’ up. My next one was John Lee Hooker from acoustic guitar. Then after I left acoustic guitar… I had Guitar Slim (Eddie Jones), T-Bone Walker and B.B. of course, they were my favorite’s man. I always listened to their music but I never wanted to play like them, though. I always wanted my own style, you know? I used to play their records and listen to them.”
How does it feel when younger players come up to you now and say the same thing? “I love that, you know? At least I’m leaving something here when I’m gone, huh? Yeah… I enjoy that man, really. Because you know, I don’t play with a pick, and a lot of people say man, ‘How do you play your guitar without a pick?'”
That can be a little hard on strings? “I usually break three or four ’em,” he admits. “I don’t play with a pick man; I have to pull hard, man that’s why I have to tell people to turn my amp up. All set on 10, trying to find 12! (laughing) And the way I tune is different. I start out with standard tuning and I change from that to try to have my own style that’s the reason why… it’s a minor tuning that I have. A minor, D minor whatever you want to call it.”
Albert’s finger-picking style combined with the minor tuning he learned from another cousin, Willow Young, helped shape Collins’ distinctive cool sound. And for Albert, less was sometimes more. “You know before ‘wah-wah’ came out,” he told me, “I was doing ‘wah-wah’ with my hand… before ‘wah-wah’ hit the streets. A lot of people use electronics, but I don’t care nothin’ about it.”
As the picture is snapped, Albert says, ‘Act like you’re rich!’ I laughed.
Photo: Mike Meadows
Just off the stage, I mentioned that some of those ‘younger’ players seemed to enjoy working with you as well… like harp player, Juke Logan. “Yeah, Brother Juke. We worked together a lot in the middle 70’s. His band used to back me up, you know? He’s a very good friend.”
And guitarist, Coco Montoya? “He played drums for me for four years. He’s a drummer and I taught him how to play guitar, you know? He plays!”
How about Debbie Davies? “Oh, she can play. I didn’t teach her, she does her thing. She holds on. I’m glad for her, it keeps me going. I met her when she was with Maggie Mayall when they were called Maggie Mayall and the Cadillacs. We go all over the world together.”
Earlier this month, American blues player and former Icebreaker, Debbie Davies recalled that initial meeting… “I first met Albert when he came to a small club that Coco and I were playing. At the time, Coco and I were each touring with the Mayall’s and booked our own little bar gigs when we were both in town. It was the Coco Montoya Band. He (Albert) said he really dug my playing that night, and then he sat in with us and blew that little club away! After that we formed a friendship… me, Coco and Albert and his wife, Gwen… then Debbie adds, “We would go to their place for Bar-B-Q’s… and Gwen’s secret punch!”
As fate would have it, timing was everything, “The Cadillacs broke up” Davies said, “about six months before I got asked to join the Icebreakers.”
‘Frosty’
In 1964 Collins returned to the recording studio… Albert remembered it well. “I got with the Big Bopper (J.P. Richardson), you remember ‘Chantilly Lace?’ I went down to Big Bopper Enterprises” he said. “After he got killed in an airplane crash, with Buddy Holly and all of them… I was the only black artist on that label in Beaumont, Texas. And I stuck with ’em for years, man.”
That was Hall-Clement Publishing Company and Hall-Way Records? “Yeah, Jack Clement… Bill Hall and ‘Cowboy’ Jack Clement were the main people. You know, ‘Runnin’ Bear?’ Johnny Preston.”
Albert’s Beaumont session would produce his first major hit,’Frosty!‘ “I was glad that ‘Frosty’ came to be a million seller,” he smiles. “That was a good thing and I enjoyed that one. During the early 60’s I was doing instrumentals, I never thought I was a singer, you know? I like to play behind good singing, I would never call myself no singer, you know?”
I had heard rumors that Johnny Winter was at the studio when you recorded that song and Collins starts nodding, “…and Janis was there when I cut ‘Frosty,’ when she was 15 years old.”
Years later, Albert would work a number of gigs with another young Texas bluesman, Stevie Ray Vaughan. “Oh yeah,” Albert says, “Toronto, Canada and New Orleans, Austin and Dallas… Antone’s.” (Vaughan had been killed in a helicopter crash just a few weeks before this interview.) With thoughts of what could have been, Albert just shakes his head. “Yes, it’s one of those things, man. I hate to talk about it, man. I ain’t got over it yet.”
That thought was universal.
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Otis Rush and Albert Collins on stage – Long Beach, CA. Photo: Mike Meadows
The Road
You still live in L.A.? “I lived here for 17 years, I just moved out of Southern California. I live in Vegas.” Up near B.B. King? “He’s the one that caused me to move over there, yeah.”
Didn’t you just get back from overseas? “I just got through with a big tour in Europe with Gary Moore.” Albert smiles and adds, “Got a gold album… it was nice.”
Icebreaker guitarist, Debbie Davies was also a part of that tour and remembers, “we performed in London at the Towne and Country Theater with Gary Moore sitting in as our guest.” Davies said, “I was pretty blown away playing back on forth on stage with Albert and Gary Moore! Back stage Gary was the nicest, most polite cat. I remember that more than one of the reporters that night had the last name Davies! ha ha!!”
In 1990, Albert was still touring constantly and was philosophical about life on the road… “You know, ‘on the road’ is what you make of it. Like a marriage, if you don’t take care of yourself, the road is hard to you.” Albert turns serious. “See, I’ve never been on drugs in my life, that’s what I tell all these kids. You don’t need drugs, man. I use to drink, I quit drinking. Now, I quit smoking. So I’m in good shape, I’m gonna’ hang around and see you all grow up.”
I know the crowd today was happy to see you; they were on their feet when you came to the stage. “I love it, man. You know I’ve seen the blues go up and down in the early 60’s and late 70’s and I hope it’s here to stay, man. I hope so.”
If your reception today is any indication, there’s little doubt about that. “Thank you. I’m going to try to hang on, too. No accidents, man.”
You’ve recorded a number of songs that make your fans laugh…for instance, ‘I Ain’t Drunk…‘ “Johnny Nitro had that tune,” Albert laughs, “and I decided to cut it over again. It’s a lot of humor, man.”
Let’s talk a little about the future of blues and some of the other young players today. Do you know Joanna Connor? “Yeah, we did a show with her,” Albert tells me, “she lives in Chicago. She can play, man. She used to be with A.C. Reed, that’s where I first met her. Man, I let her and Debbie hang out one night in Chicago…man, that was a sight to see, them two ladies playin.’ I’ve got her album, ‘BELIEVE IT‘ in my bus now. She can play; plays a lot of Rock, too.”
When asked about that specific night in Chicago, Debbie Davies told me, “I remember that night in Chicago, too. Joanna had just released her first CD for Blind Pig Records. ‘Believe It!‘ She and her band opened for us. Two female electric blues players in one evening was really rare… and crazy to be seen back then! We probably all jammed out at the end… I don’t recall.” Davies continued, “But Jo and I of course, became pals! We saw each other a lot back in the day. When I left Albert and went out on my own, I also recorded my first CD for Blind Pig Records.”
“There were three of us on the scene back then, me, Joanna and Sue Foley. I saw Joanna a lot at festivals, we both were playing. We always had a great hang. I love that gal! She’s down! The last years she hasn’t been on the road as much with her kids and all. I know she still plays all the time in Chicago.”
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Turning the tables, Albert starts asking me questions, “You hip to Jeff Healey?” I nod and Albert, always the keen eye for talent says, “I tried to take him on the road with me man, and the people wouldn’t let me bring him out of Canada. (laughing) “He’s got that movie out (Roadhouse) and got it together, now.”
Tell me about the rowdiest club you ever played? “Oh man! I was in a club in Texas one time. The club owner had…” Albert pauses and points, “our microphone was here and he was making an announcement that we were going to be back the next night… and a man got up from the table and shot another guy! And the bullet went through this guy and hit the club owner in the stomach. And when I seen that I started runnin’ (laughing) and I just pulled my amp and everything (laughing) out the door. That’s the only big one I ever had to run away from. I had to run off the bandstand.”
Can you describe Albert Collins’ blues? “Well, like from when the parents raise their kids, it comes from that, man.” He takes a breath, “Your bringing up, the hardships you went through, you know? The things I went through, I didn’t go through a lot of hardships like a lot of people have went through from the Deep South. I’m not from the Deep South, but I’m from the South but not the Deep South, and they had it a little bit harder than me. I never went hungry, but I know the feeling and I had a feeling for other people. And that’s what you play as you try to get the other people to see how you feel. And if they can’t feel you, ain’t no sense in playing.” Albert continues. “Just like you go to church and the man gives you a message, and if he don’t give you no message, well you just lost today. Rather stay at home and listen to spiritual music. It’s like they say, a child will always lead you and I’ve come to find through the years that I’ve been a grown man, some kids have lead me. I’ve listened. I learned more from 1968 than I learned in a lifetime when I first came to the West Coast… from the young people. When you stop listening that’s when you’re in trouble. I’m serious.”
Debbie Davies spent several years touring and performing with Albert Collins and she graciously shared her insights and a few memories. “It’s funny,” she said. “People always ask me if I learned to play from Albert… but of course not. He wouldn’t have hired me if I wasn’t already able to play! What I learned from Albert is how to have grace under fire. He went through a lot ya know? Comin’ up before civil rights… touring during segregation… I still saw some crazy stuff come down in the South. But he was able to be so kind to everyone and was truly a generous man. He kept his Bible on the dashboard of the bus, and tried to treat people like the book suggested. Not that we didn’t all party like crazy… the ’80’s ya’ know! But make no mistake, if push came to shove, Albert could take on anyone if the situation came to that. He was the true definition of a “sensitive tough.”
We lost Albert Collins to cancer less than four years after this original conversation on November 24th, 1993. Fortunately for music fans around the world he left us one of his greatest and most enduring gifts; his blues.
Last Call: I would be remiss if I didn’t thank Debbie Davies for taking the time from her busy touring schedule to share memories. As one of Albert’s friends and a former Icebreaker, her perspective truly personalized both the man and his music. For that, I can’t thank her enough.
Be sure to catch Davies live at a club or venue near you. You can check out her tour schedule at www.debbiedavies.com. Or pick up her latest release, Debbie Davies – Retrospective – The CD. Either way you can’t go wrong.
This original article was published April 2017
