“You wonder why he would play like that”: Jack White on the blues player that can’t be topped
Jack White is truly one of the most underrated guitarists in modern music. There is a desire in us as people to allow people to be defined by their legacies, and White is unfortunately still too present in music to allow people to do that. He is constantly putting out new music, changing the way people perceive him as an artist, and therefore, people struggle to define him because he remains so undefinable. However, make no mistakes: decades down the line, when we are discussing the greatest guitarists and songwriters of all time, Jack White’s name will be high up the list.
One of the most exciting aspects of Jack White is his versatility. He is in a number of different bands and has released a great deal of music as a solo artist, all because he appreciates how much range he can tap into as a musician and wants to exploit that. Whether you’re looking for hard rock, blues or acoustic music, you will be able to find it in Jack White’s exciting music.
He has also never shied away from using music as a means to express himself. Whether he wants to sing about his emotions or politics, White is able to put his thoughts onto paper and wonderfully express them. He pairs this message with his message to create a sonic experience unlike anything modern musicians might be able to offer.
Of course, White isn’t the first person to do this; a great deal of musicians have come forward in a bid to use music as a form of expression. This applies to both instrumentation and lyricism. You can write about the fact you are sad, but if the music doesn’t reflect that feeling, people might be unable to buy into the song. Blues artists were very effective when doing this, as they used their voice and guitar as a means to express sadness.
When asked for some of his favourite blues players, Jack White named several different artists; however, he also raised the common issue that for music during this period, it can be difficult to know who wrote what. As such, it can be difficult to determine whether the instrumentation and lyrics reflect one person.
“Cole Porter’s definitely one,” he said, “Then there’s Irving Berlin, Charlie Patton, Hank Williams, Bob Dylan, Robert Johnson, Howlin Wolf… Although it’s hard to say with some of the blues guys because you don’t know what they actually wrote and what they didn’t.”
It turns out that while White might be great at combining both lyrics and instrumentation, one of his favourite blues artists was more renowned for just his instrumental work. “Blind Willie Johnson is my favourite slide player,” he said, “His recordings have this otherworldliness, and the fact that they even recorded his music is kind of surprising to me. It’s just a beautiful haunting slide guitar. You wonder why he would even play it like that. He can’t really be topped on my list.”
