I think Rick's description of Aykroyd's playing as "workman-like" hits the target. I have played blues harmonica for a few years, and Aykroyd is what I call a "spitter", that is, a harp player who uses breath control and mouth position in his playing- he doesn't tongue-block. The greatest degree of precision in harp playing is achieved through a combination of breath-control and tongue-blocking. John Popper with Blues Traveler is probably the all-time champ of the tongue-block, but I think his playing sometimes suffers from his desire to show his technique off. There are three attributes of a great harp player- skill, emotive power and enthusiasm. James Cotton, Charlie Musselwhite and Paul Butterfield exhibit all three in their playing. Others show these attributes, but in lesser measure,ie. Stevie Wonder,Sonny Terry, Junior Wells, even Mick Jagger. Aykroyd, though a middle-weight spitter, had enthusiasm in abundance. Much like yours truly.

LEJ