Muddy wants some too

Michael Nerenberg, a regular at The New Penelope, proposes that Muddy Waters and his band record a “stoop session,” a casual and informal musical improvisation session, at an apartment a few blocks from The New Penelope during the day before his next concert. The band agrees, on the condition that Nerenberg provides them with marijuana.

Transcription:

Michael Nerenberg: “I’ve got a tape recorder. I’d love to do something like an old stoop session,” and Muddy liked the idea. And I was quite surprised! I think he liked the idea ’cause the guys were saying “Yeah, yeah, Muddy, yeah, yeah!” 

And then they came over to me and said, “Now you make sure you bring us all a joint tomorrow!” This is… There was Otis Spann playing with them, and so I brought one for everybody, plus one for the valet. And they said, and I said, “What about Muddy?” 

“Oh, oh, don’t, don’t tell Muddy!”

So the next morning I went up there, 11 o’clock in the morning it was at the rooming house and they’re all there in their robes hanging around. They look downstairs, they see me and say, “did you bring that ***?” 

“Yeah, man, sure.” “Bring it on up!” 

So I go upstairs, carrying the tape recorder, give them all a joint. They sit down, everybody lights up a joint.

By the time they’re finished, they’re laughing hysterically on the floor. I, I mean, the sight of Otis Spann like a baby holding his belly like this, laughing on the floor, is something I’ll never forget. 

And then Muddy walks into the room, purple robe, hairnet: “What’s that I smell?”

And I figured I’d, now he wasn’t gonna record. And then they all laughed and I said, “They told me you didn’t smoke, Muddy!”

“Where mine, boy? You go home get me some now.” [sic]

So I ran home and came back with a joint for Muddy, and that’s how the tape starts. He’s just finished the joint and then I turn it on and he says, “You ready?”

“Ready.”