Mance Lipscomb - Jack of Spades

[rastablues1]

A guy here on youtube has the entire song..... go to "Jack O'Diamond - Mance Lipscomb (Live)"

Cheers

[NUJAKKCITIE]

I can not understand every word he's singing! I am from Austria and I need the whole lyrics, I didn't found it on the internet!

please, tell me anyone???

[mindistime]

Seven people were dealt the Jack of Diamonds.

[john5743]

@RobertLeroyJohnson amen.

[Scrapp52]

no lie my homeboy is related to mance lipscomb

[Romecay]

What tuning would you say this is?

Sounds between Open and D.

[timberbeast420]

Thank you for this exellent post,,the best of the Texas bluesmen,,Mance and Lightnin Hopkins are my favorites,,,

[jacksondemarre]

I gotta start playin with a pocket knife

[kaptainbastard]

@jacksondemarre Watch youre fingers lol I seen that bandage on other old B/W bluesmen clips like son house, mabie mance cut his finger with the knife .ive never seen any old blues men playing with a tube style glass slide over the pinky,always a knife.blind willie johnson used a knife too. how about an open razor.

[RonanKai]

and here I thought that I was the only one that ever played the pocket knife. Dang!

[neonbladedotcom]

This is why I love YouTube!

[superjules]

Maybe he cut his finger with that same knife.

[grieksestraat]

wow! have to love the tube for discovering unknown songs! my god wat a good version of this magic man,thnx for sharing

[kevindlinc]

I've disagreed with people who have voted down on a video and have never responded but I have to say if you dislike this you're obviously an idiot. This is one of the greatest examples of country blues ever committed to celluloid, fucking brilliant!!!

[paschal421]

i saw him at the sword and stone 7th and harvey okc so many times

and rubiyat in dallas

one of the priveleges of my life

80% of my guitar style is mance

my thanks always to him

and two clubs in ok and tx

that in the 60's brought in music that offended everyone except those of us in those troubled days who realized how special it was

god bless mance

[liveoilfree]

Saw him in L.A. "what can Mance Lipscomb do", said stupid me. "Anything!" was the reverent answer from the guitarist who had bought the tickets. For those who love Blues, Mance was a great one. Wish he were here now.

[belikewater001]

This man kicked serious ass on the guitar..

[ridovem]

.."when I played him 'gainst the Queen

Lord! he turned my money green.."

^..^

[Lansdownekid]

Fantastic stuff from a Legend! :-) thanks for posting.

[Argo108]

respect!

[Shemoth1]

We were so cool, so wonderful such a dynamic people when we were Black. Now that we are "african americans" there isn't much so cool about us. Thank you for posting this fine performance and reminding all who we used to be.

[bozez1]

@Shemoth1 I think that's true across the board. Hearts all used up in this world.

[underbebe1]

How marvelous! I've never seen the slide guitar used by a knife like that before. So thank you very much.

[Celestion321]

@underbebe1 It's theorized that it was the original slide device, before medicine bottles or bottlenecks. It's awesome to see Mance doing it in the 60s and 70s.

[underbebe1]

@Celestion321 Thank so much! Your comment gave me more knowledge about the slide guitar.

[busessuck1]

Skip james does a real cool version of this song _ it's called jack of diamonds by the by

[stanisbell]

I'll say! What the blues in this country was made from. Or played from. I was only 14 or 15 when I first heard him play in Iola at the school cafeteria stage at a talent show to raise funds for the school. I was playing Kingston Trio folk songs with two friends that night in 1964. I was blown away...

[frg8888]

Great masterful performance. Mance looks like he's in pain or sick.

[dalet63]

mmm. sum of that west texas blues

[osvelhos]

@Hippie1944 see: Os velhos da montanha

[flatw00d]

I was lucky enough to be close up an' personal w/ Mance in San Antonio @'68 at a place called the Sleepy Hollow .Great musician ...had a pal w/him on snare w/brushes.He is the real deal IMO.

[clean3]

@flatw00d Fantastic....so fortunate to see a breed that isn't around anymore; film like this is just invaluable.

[osvelhos]

@clean3 see: Os velhos da montanha

[3006khz]

And yea, surfercrow, it is Jack of Diamonds, but we all know what NaOH123 meant.

[3006khz]

THANK YOU, NaOH123 for posting this vid. One of the best songs Mance ever recorded. Amazing to to WATCH him perform it.

[Selenex9]

Drôle de musicien, technique pour le moins inhabituelle, opinel d'une main, picking furieux de l'autre, cette musique est géniale !!

[Cebeen]

Here whe have the real roots....

[surfercrow]

great DVD...but isn't this one called Jack O' Diamonds?

[Revumch]

Thanks for posting this.

[AnghelusAvellino]

I love it! :D super guitar! :D amazing!

[doodoobutter99]

Blues

[MrTubelurker]

could somebody give the lyrics of this version?

[talpajam]

This is East Texas front-porch blues..the real deal.

[DAVO1984FI]

Mance Lipscomb the meanest of all in this tune!!!!

[frg8526]

A genius at work!

[lounalual]

toujours avoir son couteau dans sa poche et une guitare à ses côtés

[deadmonikor]

Absolutely KILLS IT with that old pocket knife and a "tore up" finger.

[alexsimpson]

@deadmonikor fuck yes, he do.

[Nicoguays]

What year is this video moreorless?

[crownedjitter]

Mance was "discovered" in 1960 and died in 1976. I'm guessing this is probably mid-60's or so.

[poisenpen2003]

I was lucky enough to see him in person

[olderbluesfan]

I just love this guy!!

[Kiddolinfen09]

What is that he's using, a switchbalde? Bukka uses a hob-nail and this guys got a blade... need to find some icepick-slide now : D

[crownedjitter]

I saw a video on here recently of Bukka using a screwdriver. He played the guitar on his lap and held the screwdriver by the handle. Pretty awesome.

[Kiddolinfen09]

The 'Poor boy long way from home' vid? Yeah I love that one : )

[ilovelatinabooty1]

with his music mance always put me in a trance lol

[Octoberheart7]

I love you Mance! <3

[coolanddark]

Fawkin kick azz! Mance cut his finger working the fields earlier in the day before he made these recordings. Thats why his finger is all wrapped up. One of my fav performers. Thanks for posting!

[theghostboylives]

jack o diamonds not spades get it right

[littlerattyratratrat]

Yeah, that's just right. It's 11:30 at night, and Mance Lipscomb is playing guitar with a jack-knife. Thanks for posting this.

[RandyHaddock]

Amazing.

And isn't this actually called "Jack of Diamonds"?

[myfreshhell]

This man was a god.

[ipodjunkie5]

I like how he uses the pocket blade for a slide!

[NoRosesForMe]

perfect sound. He was amazing. Great to hear & see this. Love it. Thank you 5***** & faved!

[PussyTumor]

He's using a pocket knife as a slide... cool

[QuanYin71]

thats how the old guys played slide , its an art !

[eyeOOsee]

FaaaaaaanTASTIC!!!

[lampens]

Open E as the two alternating notes are both e so he must be tuned up.

[tholcx]

anyone have any idea what tuning this is. wanna see if i can play it on my lap.

[TheBluesSwimmer]

That's "A High Blues" , with a Glass of Whiskey is even much more HIGH !

best

vincent

[LaneCoutell]

Dylan nicked this melody for 'Jon Brown'...

[EBshitbird]

Anyone know what kind of tuning he uses?

[crapdeikaris]

Puts me in a trance.

[oggendoggen2]

dear lord, he really looks like daddystovepipe here

[Kluddmanbull]

Check the connection: knife in one hand, injury in the other....what a guy, what a song, what a performace.....

[darost]

I saw him in his 90s with Lightnin' and they totally blew everyone away!

[frenzexperiment]

KILLER!!!

[mrgreanjeans]

yeah the knife thing is too cool.i watched this dvd the other day with him doing a few and then lightnin doing a few.

[HudsonBendTX]

From the City of Navasota website: During the 2005 Texas legislative session, Navasota was honored as the Blues Capital of Texas. The community earned this recognition due to its promotion of the legacy of legendary bluesman and Navasota native Mance Lipscomb. The annual Navasota Blues Festival is held in his honor and provides blues lovers from around the world with an opportunity to hear the best in this American form of music.

[snicky58]

Mance was a Texas treasure, wasn't he? I wish Navasota would erect a statue in his honor.

Karen in Texas (Houston)

[xxnecromanceroo]

the real blues. this guy could stab clapton to death with that knife.

[rirumeyer1]

WOW

[maccartneyaj]

This man is a mother fucker the best!!!

[QuanYin71]

Jack of diamonds is by blind lemon jefferson if im correct ..

not sure though ..

[7142150]

correct Blind Lemon, give that man a cigar

[QuanYin71]

Please check it out .. this man is using his pocket knife for slide .. dude , this is the real delta !

Cheers !

[onitram1]

Mance was a Texas bluesman, not a Delta bluesman.

[jorgeandreartea]

esto es el verdaddero y unico blues lo demas viene aparte

[mance02]

thats cool, very bluesy

[crownentertainment]

please give mance some respect and fix the song title to jack o' diamonds. thanks

[aacotter]

shouldn't the name of the tune be jack o' diamonds?

[ATOMICBIGFOOT2]

Looks like he using a old Barlow pocket knife for a slide.Now thats old school.5 stars

[lycanhopes]

A friend jus' told me about this dude, so i thought id give it a listen, he's awsome ^-^

[warthouse]

excellent

[twelvebar68]

Fabuleux, tout simplement !

[rob1927young]

Thanks Mance for some fantastic music, you were one of the best dude.

[MancBluesman]

This guy was a total genius - he was part Choctaw

[EdwardBlues]

what does he has in the finger of his right hand?

[15secondfilms]

its a thumbpick

[frg8525]

I play It in open D with alternating bass. I think Mr. Lipscomb plays It in Open E. Tune to suit your vocals. Mance was a musical genius if there ever was one!!!

[templeofned]

with an old pocket knife. that's amazing.

[rothiepotato]

I cannot stop listening to this. ^_^ Thank you for posting it!

[lobizoon1]

This song is a classic texas ballad.

[LordOFtheFretboard]

does anyone have the lyrics to this? I didn't have any luck googling it.

[ncbrosig]

Damn, this fool wouldn'nt lose time if he was in a coma. Who needs a drummer when you got it like this?

[metallschwein]

Mance could keep on playing while sleeping. No joke!

[pixiepqueen]

wow, now that's f'n'great, I just love the switch blade slide he is using and how he has his finger bandaged, just so cool. I'm just learning how to play with a slide. This was inspiring, thanks!

[SianReynolds]

That's no switch blade, just an ordinary pocketknife.

[pixiepqueen]

righto

[Pablo668]

Wow, that was awesome, never heard that tune played in that style, I only ever heard Lonny Donegan doing it. Oh well, you live and learn.

[dhmusic]

One other thing...when he bars the slide at the 5th fret, its clear that he's getting a major chord..only do-able in open tuning.

[dhmusic]

Guys this is Open E tuning, and it does matter. He is striking the top two or three strings with his thumb each time, getting those strings resonating together. That will not work in standard. Whether its in 440 pitch or not (its a little sharp) just shows he tuned it by ear, not to an electric tuner, or piano. FYI The notes are just as if you played a first position E chord...that is.... E B E G# B E (lo to hi).

[wookiespal]

Right. Alot of these guys tuned to what was comfortable for them to sing.

[lostintheblues]

It's in open E tuned up almost a quarter step. It does matter, because you get sypathetic vibrations from other strings, and when you're tuned to open E the vibrations are in key with the slide notes.

[moloko89]

it reminds me on fred mcdowell

[lampens]

Damn I was tuned down, it's in F. Probably doesn't matter if it's open e or standard, just as long as the top and bottom string are tuned the same.

[lampens]

If it's in standard tuning how come it's in the key of G.

[sheafordrew]

wonderful!! love the style.

[Johniebeth69]

Mance, O, Mance I loved that East Texas sound.

You gladden many hearts with your wisdom, patience and golden guitar tooth. You Live forever in my heart. God bless your soul as you touched so many lives including mine. Your music brings tears to my eyes and I still have "Baby" belt buckle scratches and all. Jai B' Sword and Stone coffeehouse in OKC.

[zkafel]

what tuning is this in? can anyone tab this? plz respond w/ tuning if you know it

[ncbrosig]

dude, you can figure this out. He plucks all the individual strings in the very beginning, spend 10 minutes trying and you'd have it. But if I were a betting man, anbd I have been on rare occasions, I'd say open E. I'm feeling lucky.

[auranos]

Standard tuning. You can figure out how to play it just by watching, really. Basically he's using his pocket blade as a slide on the high e and plucking the low E on the downbeat.

[auranos]

It's Jack of Diamonds, not Jack of Spades. Blind Lemon Jefferson > all !!!

[gigaddygo21]

if only it was the 9 of clubs... ur realm would be destroyed

[DoPinhal]

cool

[Purarazapesada]

very good :)

[thisjustin3]

beautiful timing. im in awe

[morrissoon]

very good

[edboswell]

I'm proud to say Mance Lipscomb was the first booking I ever did, an outside concert at Whittier College in 1971. He was cool. He had dentures with his name on the roof and a guitar, and the front teeth had a diamond,heart, spade and club on the front four teeth. He played at a dentist's barbeque in trade. Mance was more of a songster, an old minstrel styled cat, who knew over 400 tunes.

[BoyCary]

This is what delta blues is all about. Simple but effective. Plus the impove use of the jacknife as a slide just tops it. Four stars easy by me. Cary

[achistoryed]

This is a variant of Blind Lemon Jefferson's Jack O' Diamonds. Sounds more like Blind Willie, but really it's Mance as much as anybody else. Thanks for posting this.

[JosephNScott]

Mance was only about one year younger than Lemon.

[ferfried6]

Sorry boys,its open E.

Absolutly sure because I play this song

since years.

[knobstick]

His playing always was amazing, but here doing it with one finger in a bandage!

[kieselsteinchen]

and a knife as a bottleneck!

[jaehoel]

Powerfull Sound

[Xaffax]

That must be how Blind willie Johnson played slide. Never thought he would do it this way. Since these two guys knew eachother and it sounds pretty much the same. This must be it. I didn't know Manse Lipscombe that well but obviously he's one of the greats. Brilliant!

[csason]

this is called 'drop D', quite popular for metalbands lately. Sonny Landreth tunes to this almost exclusively. He is playing with a Case XX pocketknife..  it is what the street players became accustomed to, they had to tune the guitars they used to an open chord since the intonation was usually shot from the elements of being outside all the time.

[millertest]

yeah, no one gets near bwj's voice though. is that a clipper mance's playing with?

[14nitetripper]

Amazing guitar work from Mance! In his autobiography, "I Say Me For A Parable," he talks about how he used to tune the guitar of the great slide guitarist, Blind Willie Johnson. According to Mance in his own words, "Blind Willie wasn't much of a gittah player..." Excellent video!!!

[arzachelek]

it's not open d, it's inaccurate open e, I mean beetween open e and f, I tune it to open e, and gives almost exact sound like on video

[myfukinggod]

Amazing stuff, sounds like an open d?  Shit I'm not sure, give me sometime, I'll figure it out

[mizterblack]

thanks. figure it out?

[myfukinggod]

yep it's open D like I thought, never tried slide in open d before.

[buffleheadcabin]

Man, I didn't think anyone would have a video of Mance up, I guess he was better documented than most though. One of the finest.

[mizterblack]

sweet. what is his guitar tuned too?

[doughnutbreath]

Genius even with a bum finger.

[stickyrat]

That is some rare footage

We're blessed to be able to view it

Thankyou

[Jorsh123]

Amazing stuff. Mance is one fine blues player.

[jezz77]

Fascinating.