Adam Gussow – Blues Harmonica, Books & The Meaning of It All
Adam Gussow didn’t just play the blues—he lived it on the streets of Harlem, side by side with the late Mister Satan. That legendary partnership shaped not just his music but his life’s work. These days, he’s a harmonica master, a blues scholar, and a full professor down at Ole Miss.
In this episode, we get into the whole journey, from busking on corners to writing some of the most talked-about books in blues culture. Titles like Mister Satan’s Apprentice, Seems Like Murder Here, Beyond the Crossroads, and Whose Blues?—books that ask big questions about race, music, and identity without losing the soul of the story. His latest, My Family and I: A Mississippi Memoir, takes it even further, peeling back the layers on roots, conflict, and the search for meaning in the modern South.
We also talk shop: teaching the harp, finding humour in hard places, and why the blues still hits home in a world that feels more disconnected by the day.
Smart, soulful and straight from the heart. Stream the episode now at https://www.TalkingBluesPodcast.com or wherever you podcast.
Hit play, and then:
Read My Family and I: A Mississippi Memoir – Available now on Amazon:
Learn Harmonica at ModernBluesHarmonica.com – Lessons, tabs, and blues harp tutorials. http://www.modernbluesharmonica.com
Adam’s Harmonica of Choice – Hohner Marine Band - https://www.hohner.de/en/adam-gussow - "I've been using it for 50 years.”
Connect with Adam Gussow:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/adam.gussow
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@modernbluesharmonica
YouTube: : Gussow’s Claddic Blues Harmonica Videos
Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/adamgussow
Connect with Matt Cooper – Host & Broadcaster – Talking Blues Podcast
Website: https://www.patreon.com/c/TalkingBluesPodcast/posts
Personal Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Matt.Cooper.Broadcaster/
Talking Blues Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TalkingBluesPodcast/
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