Classic Track

Stevie Ray Vaughan –Mary had a little lamb

By 1982, Stevie Ray Vaughan was already making a name for himself with Double Trouble, playing at the Montreux Jazz Festival, when his career got a further boost from none other than Jackson Browne, who offered the band free studio time – and David Bowie, who asked him to play on the sessions for his Let’s Dance album. Stevie and Double Trouble also recorded their debut album Texas Flood – in just three days! The band apparently set up in a circle so they could look at and listen to each other as in a live performance. The result is a document of the instinctive musical interaction which had so impressed David Bowie and Jackson Browne.

We’re looking at album track Mary Had A Little Lamb here, a cover of Buddy Guy’s original. Of course, there’s plenty to learn from Stevie’s trademark lead work, but don’t ignore the basics. You can learn a lot of improvisational ideas from his approach to chords, and you can see how he follows both 12- and 8-bar blues patterns, too.