Friday Blues 1/10/2025
Will it lead to a Stormy Monday?
In this early stage of bringing Vixology to life, I have not yet shared my deep love for music. Especially the Blues and later Rock N Roll that rose up from the Mississippi Delta. “Call It Stormy Monday But Tuesday Is Just As Bad” was written by Aaron Thibeaux (T-Bone) Walker and released in 1947 as the B-side to I Know Your Wig Is Gone
Stormy Monday was covered by everyone who laid claim to being a blues musician and was a staple of the Allman Brothers Band, notably on “Live From the Fillmore East.”
In T-Bone’s lyrics, “The eagle flies on Friday” but that’s not what happened in the markets today. The jobs report was seen as good news that was bad news and US equity indices all dropped by at least 1.5%. An afternoon rally attempt hit a wall and ended in a whimper. The VIX Mix dropped into the deep red as shown below.
The VIX futures “curve” did what we refer to as “lift and separate.” The slight contango we had at Wednesday’s close was erased and futures closed (green) just below the highs of the day. With less than one point from low to high, traders are saying things could go either way.
So, what happens after the eagle flies on Friday? Well, T-Bone would go out to play on Saturday. For a young T-Bone, that involved club gigs in Los Angeles and later Chicago. But Sunday was a day of rest that would include a trip to church where he’d '“kneel down and pray.” T-Bone left us in 1975, but his music will live on forever.
Love me the Allman Brothers in all their various incarnations, especially their many instrumentals and long instrumental interludes... I first discovered them via Enlightened Rogues iirc, Pegasus and Can't Take it With You.
Feels like a song for Friday.
To reference another Delta blues jam resurrected in the late 60s/early 70s, it all depends on how well the levies hold throughout this upcoming week. VIX puts are starting to look juicy ngl. Almost there...