John Hammond and Wicked Grin
Wicked Grin is the twenty-eighth studio album from blues singer John P. Hammond. The album is a collection of songs written by Hammond’s friend Tom Waits, who produced the project. It was released in March 2001. It’s a wonderful album. Here’s the track listing.
| Title | Writer(s) |
| :---------------------------------- | :-------------------------------------------: |
| "2:19" | Kathleen Brennan, Tom Waits |
| "Heartattack and Vine" | Tom Waits |
| "Clap Hands" | Tom Waits |
| "'Til the Money Runs Out" | Tom Waits |
| "16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought Six" | Tom Waits |
| "Buzz Fledderjohn" | Tom Waits |
| "Get Behind the Mule" | Kathleen Brennan, Tom Waits |
| "Shore Leave" | Tom Waits |
| "Fannin Street" | Kathleen Brennan, Tom Waits, Huddie Ledbetter |
| "Jockey Full of Bourbon" | Tom Waits |
| "Big Black Mariah" | Tom Waits |
| "Murder in the Red Barn" | Kathleen Brennan, Tom Waits |
| "I Know I've Been Changed" | Traditional |
There are a couple of people listed as writers on the tracks above.
Kathleen Brennan is an Irish-American musician, songwriter, record producer, > and artist. She is known for her work as a co-writer, producer, and influence > on the work of her husband Tom Waits.
Huddie William Ledbetter is better known by the stage name Lead Belly.
The first song on the album is “2:19”. It’s a droning song in A minor and I thought it’d be great for slide guitar practice on my Mule Mavis resonator. Below is a portion of a practice session.
The phrase “wicked grin” appears in the lyrics of “2:19”.
Now I've always been puzzled by the yin and the yang
Come out in the wash, but it always leaves a stain
Sturm and Drang, the luster and the sheen
My baby's leaving on the 2:19
Toss the baby with the water, and the preacher stole the bride
Sent her out for a bottle, but when she came back inside
Didn't have my whiskey, she didn't have my gin
But a hat full of feathers and a wicked grin
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
My baby's leaving on the 2:19
“Sturm und Drang” comes from German, where it literally means “storm and stress.” Although it’s now a generic synonym of “turmoil,” the term was originally used in English to identify a late 18th-century German literary movement whose works were filled with rousing action and high emotionalism.
For the audio sample I used the Mule Mavis single cone resonator, a ceramic Rock Slide and a Wooly Coats amp and recorded it with my iPhone.
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