“Boogie Chillen” class recording

Hooker ‘N Heat: “Boogie Chillen (No.2)”

Alan Wilson on harmonica

Harmonica keys: D (2nd pos), G (3rd pos)

If you love John Lee Hooker and you’re a fan of  the band Canned Heat, then you probably dig the album ‘Hooker ‘N Heat”. Alan Wilson, co-founder of Canned Heat, played harmonica in the song “Boogie  Chillen” No. 2. which is the song that will be featured for this class.

John Lee Hooker is known for his epic 1 chord grooves and this classic song, which was first recorded by Hooker in 1948, is a great example of that driving I chord blues that he’s so well known for playing. This song was re-recorded by Hooker and the band Canned Heat in 1970, released in 1971. Alan Wilson, who demonstrates some really creative harp lines on this song, passed away a few months after recording this album.

In this class, we first analyze and break down the introduction.  We’ll start with the repeated harp line found throughout the song that even a beginner can take on and then move on the the variations of that line up until the solo.

From there, we will talk about all of the ideas that are contained in the solo section which begins at the 5:54 mark in this song. This 2 min long solo that Alan Wilson takes is fabulous. He switches, in the middle of the solo, from 2nd to 3rd position just to incorporate a few lines and then goes back to 2nd position to finish out the solo.

There’s plenty to discuss and learn in his solo and not just the musical ideas but also the techniques that he brings into his playing. This class runs approximately 1hr 10min..