BILL MESNIK'S SUNNY SIDE OF MY STREET PRESENTS: SHE CAUGHT THE KATY, LEFT ME A MULE TO RIDE BY TAJ MAHAL (COLUMBIA, 1968) EPISODE #92

Henry St. Claire Fredericks, Jr., aka Taj Mahal is 82 years of age, and like that monument in Agra, he stands as an ageless edifice of blues - rock grace. On his latest recording he croons in that familiar rasp: “I’m too young to be this old,” and there’s no denying the truth of that declaration. As the years have passed, it’s gratifying to contemplate that, 60 years ago, Taj and Ry Cooder combined forces in the seminal, interracial rock group The Rising Sons, then went their separate ways to establish themselves as the foremost living treasures of Americana and world music.  I would venture to say that, similarly to the white British rockers who influenced a generation when they recycled the blues back to America, Taj and Ry did the same thing, on their home soil, with more humility..I have a distinct memory of being ensconced during an arduous Iowa winter, laboring to get this song down for my set at the student union: one man, one guitar,- trying to catch the funky groove of the thing. The syncopation between Al Kooper’s piano, Jesse Ed Davis’s guitar and Gary Gilmore’s bass, propels this cut forward, moving it along a track of joy - even as the singer is bemoaning his lost love. That’s the thing about Taj: his ever-present, infectious humor is fundamental to his magical appeal. And, the fact that he took his name in tribute to Gandhi, a man of peace, speaks mightily to his personal mission to make us all happy.