Discography
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Links
Ted Hawkins
by
Jeffrey Sobczynski
I first heard of Ted Hawkins in a Rolling Stone review of Happy Hour I went right out and bought it along with Watch Your Step. Needless to say I became an immediate disciple! Not long after my conversion to the "Cult of Ted" I took a trip to California. While out there I plied the Venice boardwalk looking for Ted, but had no success in finding him (I later found out he was over in merry old England). Later, after I moved to Chicago following graduation from college, I kept my ear to the ground looking for him to tour. It wasn't until he moved back to the states and released The Next Hundred Years that I got a chance to see him. He was touring in support of the new album and appeared at the Chicago Blues Fest (1993 I think). He also played an in-store show at Tower Records which was initially attended by only four people (me, my friend Frank, Ted himself and his agent). Nonetheless he put on a great show and by the end of his set he had attracted a large crowd of customers, completely enthralled, just like he always had on the Venice Beach boardwalk.
Later that day he appeared at the Tower Records record tent on the Blues Fest grounds proper. It was a great set (approximately one hour) in which he brought both himself and the audience near to tears. I must add that Ted was fighting an uphill battle at the Blues Fest because the crowd has a definite anti-folk bias. Normally the crowd only goes for real hard driving electric blues. Anything that sounds popish or folkish is ordinarily dismissed out of hand. Ted even raised this point during his set saying something like, "I don't play regular blues, but I hope you like it." But that day even the blues snobs took time to listen. He was on that day and his uniqueness immediately grabbed the crowd's attention. Mid-point through the set he paused and actually shed a tear because he was so taken aback by the crowd's response. I really think it was Ted's unrestrained emotion that captured the audience's attention that day rather than his unique style or vocal ability (which were nonetheless prodigious). Ted's spirituality and faith seemed to ooze right from his pores. (A point that Mavis Staples raises on the Amazing Grace documentary.) Unfortunately, this was the only time I got to see Ted, but it was a memory I won't soon forget.
Not only did Ted sing his heart out, but he exhibited several of his trade mark habits including the use of a leather glove and baby powder. He also had "spiced water" on hand during the show which was a mixture of mineral water and Mexican hot sauce. He claimed the spices were good for his singing voice. Ted was definitely one of a kind!
Regarding Ted's discography, my favorite record (after Happy Hour of course) is the "two disc" version of the On The Boardwalk At Venice Beach. The one disc version is readily available, but there was two disc version put out by Munich Records in 1986. There are 27 songs on the two discs and I am lucky enough to have them both. Even better, I am one of the lucky people who has a copy of the I Love You Too recording. There is a story behind this as well. My father went to London on vacation (i.e. holiday) and I told him to look for it because I had seen it mentioned in a magazine somewhere. My dad took it upon himself to go to no less than a dozen record stores. This is very unlike my dad, but for some reason he kept on looking (I guess he likes a challenge). Finally he found it in a small record stall in an underground mall (I think it was connected to the subway system). At any rate I am now the proud owner of a very rare copy of I Love You Too!