• Rare NYC Blues Videos •
All videos are from the collection of Larry Simon and are © Larry Simon (except for the brief CBS news clip and the linked YouTube Rosco Gordon concert Video)
All videos are from the collection of Larry Simon and are © Larry Simon (except for the brief CBS news clip and the linked YouTube Rosco Gordon concert Video)
ROSCO GORDON - SOC Show • 3-5-1995
LIVE at THE BRADLEY HOUSE
LIVE at THE BRADLEY HOUSE
In January of 2023 I learned about this complete Rosco Gordon performance that is posted on YouTube. It is an amazing find!!! A full, well shot, performance, over 2 hours long, from a 1995 show in Pittsburg, PA, with my band Killing Floor and a horn section. Rosco's emcee/chauffer Ray Ellison also makes an appearance in this video.
Click on the link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVibqp-u_mc&list=PLdGZvOYPO5TN-ox5HTwetbRP3iYYP1B51
Click on the link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVibqp-u_mc&list=PLdGZvOYPO5TN-ox5HTwetbRP3iYYP1B51
•
APPEARANCE ON CBS NIGHTLY NEWS, NYC
APPEARANCE ON CBS NIGHTLY NEWS, NYC
This very brief clip aired on CBS Evening News in New York City in August 1992. They covered a show I did with Rosco Gordon and sax player George Coleman, along with my band Killing Floor. The show took place in the garden of the Brooklyn Museum on August 17, 1992. This concert was their first time playing together again since their youth back in Memphis.
ROSCO GORDON, GEORGE COLEMAN & KILLING FLOOR ON CBS NEWS. THE BROOKLYN MUSEUM
VIDEO SHOOT: MID-TOWN MANHATTAN-1993
At some point in 1993, through my friend Patrick Grant, we had gotten access to a theatrical stage set after the production ended, And Patrick was able to get a decent video camera. So I gathered together my band (Killing Floor: myself-guitar, Brian Jost-Bass, A.J. Johnson-Drums), Rosco Gordon, Bob Gaddy, and Larry Dale. I hoped to put together a, hopefully, high end, great looking video of a selection of our repertoire. Unfortunately Patrick was not a very experienced cameraman and didn't realize we did not have adequate lighting, so the video turned out way too dark. Still, for the sake of posterity I am posting some clips from that shoot. The music came out pretty well and you are able to see a bit of the performers even though the lighting is so dim.
Note: The date stamp on the video is incorrect.
Note: The date stamp on the video is incorrect.
ROSCO GORDON & KILLING FLOOR (WITH EMCEE RAY ELLISON)."Just a Little Bit" Video Shoot. NYC. 1993
"Just a Little Bit"" Was one of Rosco's most well-known songs and we pretty much always brought Rosco on stage with this tune. We would play the lick from the song repeatedly while Rosco was introduced. For a period of time we opened our shows with our very own emcee, a fellow named Ray Ellison. He was an incredibly sweet person who was also Rosco's valet, driver and friend. Ray would do the most amazing and spirited introductions that would rise to a fever pitch culminating in yelling and screaming, literally sweating and rolling around on his back on the floor. Sometimes he would also launch into a song over the intro music we were playing. As a matter of fact, on one show in particular at a club in Roslyn, Long Island called "My Father’s Place", Ray achieved what was probably his greatest intro I ever witnessed. So great, in fact, that the club never allowed us back again. Ray's artistry apparently was too great for them. It was rumored that Ray was once a member of the Drifter's.
Even though we were recording without an audience, the video above will give you just a hint of what Ray was capable of, the tip of the iceberg that was Ray. And of course, I hope you enjoy Rosco Gordon performing his legendary song "Just a Little Bit"
Below are two more songs from this session, with Rosco Gordon and Killing Floor.
Even though we were recording without an audience, the video above will give you just a hint of what Ray was capable of, the tip of the iceberg that was Ray. And of course, I hope you enjoy Rosco Gordon performing his legendary song "Just a Little Bit"
Below are two more songs from this session, with Rosco Gordon and Killing Floor.
ROSCO GORDON & KILLING FLOOR "Sit Right Here" Video Shoot. NYC. 1993
ROSCO GORDON & KILLING FLOOR "I'm the One" Video Shoot. NYC. 1993
CELEBRATE BROOKLYN FESTIVAL
These next videos were shot at a performance we did at the Celebrate Brooklyn Festival which occurs every summer in Brooklyn's Prospect Park. The show, which happened Saturday, July 7, 1990, featured my band Killing Floor accompanying Bob Gaddy, Larry Dale and Rosco Gordon. The other act on the bill that night was the Kinsey report.
For those of you interested in guitars, I am playing a 1966 Fender Jaguar that Jimmy Spruill sold to me. It is covered in burlap wallpaper that Jimmy decorated it with. You'll see me hand it to Larry Dale during the tune "Juke Joint" when Larry breaks his E string.
It was a beautiful summer night in New York City and a wonderful show.
For those of you interested in guitars, I am playing a 1966 Fender Jaguar that Jimmy Spruill sold to me. It is covered in burlap wallpaper that Jimmy decorated it with. You'll see me hand it to Larry Dale during the tune "Juke Joint" when Larry breaks his E string.
It was a beautiful summer night in New York City and a wonderful show.
BOB GADDY & KILLING FLOOR "Woke Up This Morning" Celebrate Brooklyn, Prospect Park, Bklyn NY, 1990
BOB GADDY & KILLING FLOOR "The Things I Used To Do" Celebrate Brooklyn, Prospect Park
Brooklyn NY, 1990
Brooklyn NY, 1990
LARRY DALE & KILLING FLOOR "I Need Your Love So Bad " Celebrate Brooklyn, Prospect Park
Brooklyn NY, 1990
Brooklyn NY, 1990
LARRY DALE & KILLING FLOOR "Juke Joint " Celebrate Brooklyn, Prospect Park
Brooklyn NY, 1990
Brooklyn NY, 1990
ROSCO GORDON & KILLING FLOOR "Sit Right Here " Celebrate Brooklyn, Prospect Park
Brooklyn NY, 1990
Brooklyn NY, 1990