That was an excellent introduction. Thank you.

 
I was fortunate to see him perform in his early years (1972) at an intimate club in Georgetown DC called The Cellar Door, and have remained a fan. He is still going strong here at the Crossroads Festival 2013, he and Keb Mo' playing two National Steel resophonic guitars, a tri-cone and a single cone. A nice little break by Keb Mo' too.
 

 
Link to original video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTu9tujtTcs

https://youtu.be/YkzKw1erF_Y?list=WL

Love this one with Taj and Tedeschi Trucks Band!

quote:

Originally posted by Skins2881:
I've never heard of him...

Shit, man, he's so famous, they named a really fancy shopping mall in India after him.

Tedeschi Trucks Band with Taj Mahal and Jerry Douglas? Yes please!

quote:

Originally posted by Skins2881:
I've never heard of him, is there a Best of or top CD I should be looking at buying? Really liked the songs posted.

The man has evolved and reinvented his music multiple times. He is one of my sentimental favorites. He has a box set called "In Progress and In Motion" that is a quality sampling of his work, but my no means complete.

I thought I was as cool as him once when I was 22 years old, but it only lasted two minutes.

Back to the top for the uninitiated

Doesn't get any cooler than that! His percussion/drummer comes in a close second

A favorite from an album I had years ago. I think it was lost when the house was flooded. Pisser, that was.
https://youtu.be/5C9q_DPJHi8

I'm not getting the picture of the album--too bad--but the tune is called, "You Ain't No Streetwalker Mama, Honey But I Do Love The Way You Strut Your Stuff". And if that's not worth a listen...

No, I won’t, but it’s arguable that even Taj Mahal wasn’t as cool as John Lee Hooker sittin’ on that Buick with a 335 Epi

Resurrecting this thread as a snapshot of the lockdown.

Let's see- April 26, 2020. It was a Sunday evening and the world was in full swing with the COVID Crazy. I guess I was trying to post something happy for readers, what with most of us just sitting at home waiting for the world to end.

Despite all the insanity on the planet, I think we actually have become more sophisticated in certain respects, in the last two and a half years. It would take a bit more to fool us again, a lot more, perhaps.

And if I'm wrong- well, Hell, at least there's Taj Mahal...

I once sat next to him on a flight from ATL to MSY, he had his guitar that he wanted to sit by him so they ask me if I would move back a row. He strapped his guitar into the seat next to him. He wore that Panama Hat and a Hawaiian shirt. Must have been around 1989 or so.

Saw Taj Mahal and Bonnie Raitt playing on a riverboat on the Mississippi early 80’s.

I've watched that video dozens of times since then. Thanks Para.

I distinctly remember this thread...Thanks for bringing it back up top!

Resurrected...It's a cool day today, but certainly not as cool as Taj Mahal!

It’s arguable, but I think the place to start with Taj Mahal is his 1968 self-titled debut album. Jesse Ed Davis, who played in Taj Mahal’s band for years, and Ry Cooder both played on the album. The story goes that Gregg Allman gave a copy of the album to his brother, Duane, along with a bottle of Coricidin cold medicine for the cold he was fighting. Duane didn’t play slide at the time, but he was so blown away by Jesse Ed Davis’ slide on “Statesboro Blues,” that he steamed the label off the Coricidin and began teaching himself slide guitar.

They're in the French Quarter.

At the beginning of the video they're at the corner of Esplanade Avenue and Dauphine Street. The Port of Call Restaurant is in the background.

They're heading down Dauphine Street towards Canal Street.

I've heard a lot of blues musicians in the quarter walking past the clubs while at work. I wonder if I went past a club he may have been playing in at any given time.

It was almost always easy to stop walking for a minute or two when hearing a good song from a street performer or someone playing in a club.

Hell and yeah. Thanks for this thread!