Ain't Nothin' But The Blues

YouTube Of The Month

2009-12-16T23:29:00.003+13:00

Seasick Steve

Live on Jools Holland's 2007 new year show with his fantastic 3 string guitar.

Marchwood Blues Picnic 2010

2009-12-16T23:10:00.002+13:00

Set against the backdrop of the gorgeous Bay of Plenty scenery, the Blues Picnic is blues heaven for music connoisseurs. Both performers and audience love the relaxed atmosphere as much as the great music.

The 2010 festival is going to be bigger and better than ever with some of New Zealand's greatest blues performers.

The marchwood Blues Picnic is held at 316 Youngson Road, Omokoroa, Tauranga.

Blues Picnic tickets are only $35.
You’ll go a long way to beat that.

See the Marchwood Blues Picnic web site for more details.

The 2009 Whangarei International Jazz and Blues Festival

2009-12-01T23:34:00.002+13:00

The 2009 Whangarei International Jazz and Blues Festival is at the Tikipunga Tavern, Tikipunga, Whangarei.

The festival will only have the best of blues and jazz artists and features performers such as the legendary Hammond Gamble and Billy TK Senior, Brilleaux, Liquid Colors, Mike Garner, The Jukes, The Flaming Mudcats, Los Diablos etc

Also featuring is the ever popular, internationally recognized kiwi blues guitarist Billy TK Jnr with San Francisco Soul Queen, Edna Love and her band and Sultry Jazz, Blues singer, Diana Harris from Los Angeles.

Billy TK Jnr is a festival favourite and was a feature of the 09 'A Day on The Green' concert series where he played support for Jimmy Barnes leading to an invitation to play lead guitar with Jimmy as special guest on two songs. Billy's new album, 'Presenting Billy TK Jnr' is available.

Special international guests include , Edna Love and Diana Harris who are two seasoned performers who offer the international, world class taste of soul, blues and jazz. Edna Love is recognized as the undisputed Queen of San Francisco Soul and Blues and has a repertoire that includes, Aretha Franklin, Sam Cooke, Otis Redding and her own originals.

Blues, Jazz singer Diana Harris is a stunning performer who is also in a band with CSI star, Marge Helberger. Diana has a show that will get your feet jumping with her authentic blues, Jazz and rock n roll that graces the large stages of the USA.

There will be up to 20 different acts performing in the 3 bars at Tikipunga Tavern, with shuttles available and accommodation packages through the Kingsgate Hotel.

Profits from the proceeds of this event will go towards funding the Holden Driving A Future High Schools Road Safety Campaign's visit to Whangarei and Kaipara area high schools in February 2010.

Tickets can be purchased direct from the venue or via our advertised ticketing agent.

For more details and direct ticket sales call: 021 138 7005 or ring 021 0261 4260 or the venue.

BluesFeast 2010

2009-11-27T07:59:00.000+13:00

Bluesfeast, Rotorua’s annual celebration of great blues, gourmet foods, fine wines and boutique beers, is on track for Sunday 31 January 2010.
It will be held on the RAVE grounds in Hinemaru Street.

There will be an exciting line-up of blues acts, including UK blues guitarist Pete Harris.
Pete has 30 years experience both as a solo acoustic player and leader of electric blues bands, and a separate career as a folk musician.

The line-up will also feature the return to Rotorua of a perennial crowd favourite, Australian blues and boogie pianist Jan Preston.
Also performing will be the best of our Bay of Plenty blues artists, plus top acts from elsewhere in the country including The Jukes, The Gary Harvey Blues Band and The Self Righteous Brothers.

As in previous years, there will a fine selection of food, wine and beers on offer from some of the region’s best restaurants, wineries and breweries.

TICKETS $20 PRE-SALES, $25 AT THE GATE

Tickets on sale now at:
NZ Credit Union, cnr. Pukuatua and Ranolf Sts, Rotorua
Rotorua City Focus, cnr Hinemoa and Tutanekai Sts, Rotorua

or by mail order:

send a cheque made out to BluesFeast for $20 per ticket, plus 50c postage (or include stamped, self-addressed envelope) to BluesFeast Tickets, c/- R.A.VE., 1240 Hinemaru St, Rotorua

You Tube Of The Month

2009-11-26T08:49:00.000+13:00

Johnny Guitar Watson - Gangster of Love

Recorded 'live' in Bremen, Germany circa 1977

The Flaming Mudcats

2009-11-25T17:31:00.002+13:00

The Flaming Mudcats are a new Auckland-based rootsy blues band.
This four piece band swings, playing those great grooves along with burning harp and smoking guitar lines.

Influenced by the likes of Little Walter, Johnny Guitar Watson, Magic Sam and Kim Wilson, the boys have compiled an exciting set list.

The Flaming Mudcats

Out of a rehearsal in 2009, a gathering of four players with a common drive to play this brand of blues, resulted in the formation of The Flaming Mudcats.

So here we are….come and see us…hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

The Flaming Mudcats are available for festivals, pub gigs, corporate events and private parties.

Blues September

2009-09-04T14:05:00.005+12:00

If you don’t know already, the month of September is known as Blue September in the hope of raising awareness about prostate cancer.

Every year about 600 men in New Zealand die of Prostate Cancer.

So... what can we do?

Well, in association with the Auckland Live Blues Club, The Jukes will be performing on Sunday 6th September (4pm start) at the Family & Naval Hotel (situated on the corner of K' Rd and Pitt Street) and donating the fee from the gig to the Foundation.
We will also be inviting a gold coin donation (or two) from the crowd on the day... and you will be pleased to know that, despite the recently publicity about what percentage of your donated money goes to charities these days, 100% of the money donated goes directly to the Prostate Cancer Foundation.

If that wasn't enough reason to come along, the band might be fortunate enough to be joined by a very special guest; Bill Cherry, who is currently on his holidays in New Zealand.
Bill knows his blues...
During his early years in Chicago Bill spent time with, Buddy Guy, A.C. Reed, Otis Rush, Junior Wells, Muddy Waters, Siegel-Schwall, Linn County, and many others.
He became particularly close to Luther "Georgia Boy" "Snake" Johnson, who was playing guitar with Muddy at the time.
He and Luther spent a great deal of time together when the band was in Chicago, with Luther trying to teach Bill how to play the blues, and Bill trying to teach Luther how to read music.
Bill's involvement with the Las Vegas Blues Society included being an officer of the organisation for 7 1/2 years (6 1/2 years as President) and also led to his being elected to the board of the Blues Foundation in Memphis, a position he held for four years.
After moving from Las Vegas, Bill and his wife are now residents of La Paz, Mexico, where he has assembled some of the top musicians in La Paz to resurrect his band, who perform two nights a week at the El Paraje Roadhouse.

Bill Cherry and his amigos

So that's a couple of reasons to join in but of course, but this is isn’t about promoting the band; it’s about raising awareness about prostate cancer, so you can always donate or check out what else is going in Blue September via the foundation's web site Blue September web site for more details.

You Can't Say "Crap" On The Radio

2009-08-18T19:50:00.006+12:00

My friends, Nate at The Blues Room, and James and Simon at Crossroads, strive to bring the air and Internet waves the very best in all forms of blues.

Blues Room host, Nate Taiapa, will air Interviews with local and international artists, provide up to date blues News, announce giveaways, and from time to time host live jams on air.
The Blues Room, Wednesdays at 9.00 pm.

For all the latest from Nate check out The Blues Room web page and The Blues Room blog.

Now operating on a budget of slightly more than nothing (apparently), Crossroads brings you the finest blues selection Auckland Radio has to offer.
Crossroads, Thursdays at 10.00 pm.

To find out more about the Crossroads show, see the KFM web site for full details.

You Tube Of The Month

2009-08-06T19:49:00.001+12:00

Errol Linton's Blues Vibe - Dust This Broom

Recorded 'live' at Keighley Blues Club 12.6.09

Adam Blake Interview

2009-08-06T19:14:00.006+12:00

In this interview I chat to a guy I am pleased to call a personal friend... Adam Blake.

Adam after learning to operate the record player before the age of 2, and despite being dragged kicking and screaming to see a Hard Day's Night at the age of 4, is the guitar player with Errol Linton’s Blues Vibe and the Lunar Dunes.

Having been, and currently also, a writer, journalist and teacher, Adam has also played bass with Natacha Atlas (the pseudo-Arabic diva) and sitar with Cornershop.

When I resided in the UK Adam tried his best to teach me something about playing blues bass, and every hour with Adam was always part music lesson - part history lesson.

ANBTB: Hi Adam, great to talk to you, thanks for making the time. How's business?

AB: No complaints! I’m teaching in two schools and I have a bunch of private students. Plus, I’m working on Errol’s long overdue 3rd album; also about to do a UK tour with Cornershop to promote their new album (“Judy Sucks A Lemon For Breakfast”) and I have a nice live album in the can from my psychedelic space-rock band, Lunar Dunes, that’s waiting to be mixed. Busy, busy!

Adam Blake

ANBTB: Great, no rest for the wicked then. I mentioned above that you have played bass and sitar can you give me a run-down of any other various weird and wonderful instruments you play?

AB: I tinkle with Tibetan Singing Bowls sometimes.

ANBTB: I read your short bio on http://www.rocksbackpages.com and it says that after you got the record “Rocking Goose” by Johnny and the Hurricanes you got full tilt into music, leaving school at 17 to become a musician. Growing up in the late 60s and 70s, who were some of the bands and artists that got you hooked?

AB: Well I was literally a babe in arms when I got given “Rocking Goose”! It’s a great record. Sounds just as good now as it ever did. But it was The Beatles, The Beatles all the way. They got me into music. Everything came through them. My dad used to buy all the Beatles records as they came out in the 60s. He was one of those guys that The Beatles “got” – he liked jazz and classical, and The Beatles. It was a big event in our flat when dad would come home with the new Beatles LP.

ANBTB: So it was The Beatles over The Stones...?

AB: Ha ha! I didn’t get into The Stones until I was at least ten. “Brown Sugar” was one of the first records I bought with my own money.

ANTB: Tell us a bit about Errol Linton's Blues Vibe, it's not your typical blues band...

AB: I think Errol is fairly unique in the way he combines Jamaican music with the blues. It’s a completely natural blend for him and we just go right along with it. I always liked reggae but it took me awhile to learn to play it halfway convincingly. It looks easy but it isn’t. I suppose you could say the same about the blues.

ANTB: Errol is a fantastic harp player. You both have a love for Sonny Boy Williamson II (aka Rice Miller), was he the common denominator that hooked you two up?

AB: Yes actually he was. First time I heard Errol was from a distance. I thought someone was playing a Sonny Boy record that I hadn’t heard – and of course it was Errol. I knew I wanted to play with him immediately.

Errol Linton's Blues Vibe

ANTB: I recall you tell me that you once jammed with Clarence 'Gatemouth' Brown, which must have been a cool experience. Of the all blues players you have played with over the years, any special favourites?

AB: The Gatemouth Brown thing was surreal. It was in Japan and I was jet lagged to hell and off my head on whiskey and painkillers as I’d done my back in. Gate got all of the musicians involved to get up and do a little solo with him. I kept thinking I must be dreaming. But apart from him, I played with Henry Gray once, Howlin’ Wolf’s old piano player. That was through Errol and Richard Rhoden who were backing him up. They invited me up on stage and Henry immediately left the stage. Ha ha! I did a number and then halfway through the second he crept back on. I’d obviously passed the audition.

ANBTB: Cool. Is there anyone in particular you'd like to play with?

AB: Aaah, they’re all dead. B.B King, I guess. Maybe Ernest Ranglin.

ANBTB: You must have seen considerable changes in the London gig scene since you first got going. Would you say things have generally got better, worse or just different?

AB: Oh much worse, I’m afraid. There used to be so many more places to play. And the stupid new music licensing laws have made it so much more difficult for anyone wanting to promote live music.

ANBTB: On a good day, what would you say is the best bit about being a working blues musician in London?

AB: Getting paid and seeing pretty girls dancing to your music.

ANBTB: And on a bad day, what’s the worst thing about it?

AB: Not getting paid, and no-one dancing.

ANBTB: Touché. During our lessons you always actively encouraged me to open my ears and mind, but how has your attitude towards blues changed over time? Do you still get the same things from the music or has it altered and/or grown as you've gotten older?

AB: It starts when you fall in love with the blues. Then the blues is something you grow up with, grow into and accept into your life. Having said that, I don’t want to live the blues life, its way too hard. Besides, I’m white and middle-class. I have a choice. But one’s love and understanding and respect for the culture of the blues deepens as you get older. I still love the music just as much as I ever did.

ANBTB: What do you think is the state of Blues music right now?

AB: I think the blues has been dead as a vital Black American cultural force since the mid-60s. But the music goes on and each subsequent generation has a small percentage of people who get into it – to varying different levels. It’s a bit like Classical Music in that way: there’s a small but loyal core audience for it.

ANBTB: Do you notice a difference between different parts of the UK? Abroad?

AB: In the UK they like blues more up North. It’s tougher and they like tough music. They see it as unpretentious and they like to see themselves in that way. Scotland too, unsurprisingly. We haven’t played much abroad so it’s hard to say. The Eastern Europeans love it!

ANBTB: Much is made about the question of authenticity in blues... you know... whether so and so, and such and such is authentic or knew or learned from someone in particular. How much weight do you give it?

AB: It either comes from the heart or it doesn’t.

ANBTB: So how about the 'authenticity' of us 'white boys' playing the blues?

AB: My opinion? The blues is black music and it doesn’t matter how good you are, how well you play, how sincere your blues are – you will always be just another white guy playing blues. You know it in your heart and so does everybody else. And THAT’S the White Boy Blues. But you do it because you love it, and that’s enough.

ANBTB: How do you see the blues evolving in the future? Any new blues artists you’ve been listening to?

AB: I think, I hope, that the fashion for flashy playing is over. But new players? C’mon, are you kidding me? I still haven’t finished listening to Little Walter.

ANBTB: Any words of advice for aspiring musicians?

AB: Listen to the music of the guys who inspired the music of the guys who inspire you.

ANBTB: It's good to hear of the plans for a new Blues Vibe album soon, can't wait to hear the finished product, make sure you let me know when it is done and send me a copy.

AB: Yes, yes, yes. Some nice stuff in the can already. Watch this space!

ANBTB: Thanks very much Adam, it's always great to talk to you.

For all the latest on the Errol Lintons' Blues Vibe check out their MySpace page and you to find out more about the Lunar Dunes see the web site for full details.

Six Strings Down - Bessie Smith

2009-07-01T20:53:00.001+12:00

Blues Week Review – Rotorua – 2009

2009-06-11T13:38:00.001+12:00

BOP Blues Club presented its 4th “Blues Week” this year and the festival is fast becoming an established part of the city’s annual events calendar.

The current economic climate meant tighter purse strings than usual for the event, which relies heavily on sponsorship and a grant from NZCT (NZ Community Trust) enabled the festival to go ahead.

Headline act, Mojo Mama & the Hired Guns (with Bullfrog Rata), opened the festival on the Friday night.
Wellington’s Laura Collins brought her band of talented musicians to town and rocked the Belgian Bar.
With Bullfrog’s guitar and Cindy Muggeridge’s boogie piano playing, behind Collins’ passionate vocals, they presented a great show.

Appearing at the festival for the first time was “Isis Blue” featuring Tauranga’s Grant Haua on guitar and Rotorua’s Micky Ututaonga, Rob Patterson and singer Delaney Ututaonga.
Patterson and the Ututaongas are local musical giants, with big name band credits and frequent overseas tours on their CVs.
They presented a mix of soul and R&B, played with finesse to a packed bar.
They were followed by Rotorua’s Anton Elkington.
As well as his powerhouse trio, Anton’s young son, Eli did a brief cameo, singing and playing bass.
It’s wonderful to see father and son performing together on stage like this – and the crowd just loved it!
Local acts also drew a good following and included Rawiri Waru, Lindsay MacKenzie, Mike Garner, Peri Grant, Lyndsey Sinclair & Keith Garratt, the B-side Band, and Andrea Bailey and her band.

The final show on the Sunday night opened with “Ladies Sing The Blues”.
This featured BOP Blues Club female singers Lyndsey Sinclair, Jill Briar, Sally Garner and Andrea Bailey.
Each presented a short selection of songs, many telling the story of the blues from a female perspective, with songs such as “Dump That Chump”, “Love Me Like A Man”, “My Man Blues”, and so on.

Auckland’s “The Jukes” closed the festival, taking the stage late on Sunday night.
They had the crowd dancing and played two sets of all-classic blues songs, with oodles of Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, Howling Wolf, Slim Harpo and many other classics covered. It was a strong ending to fantastic weekend, with blues fans from as far away as Canada, Auckland, Hamilton and Palmerston North, and even tourists from both Brazil and Russia all boogying to blues music!

Thanks to Mike Garner for the use of the article taken from B.O.P Blues Bulletin June-July 2009.
Check out the B.O.P Blues Club web site for more.

R.I.P. Chicago Blues Legend - Koko Taylor

2009-06-04T20:35:00.004+12:00

Chicago blues legend Koko Taylor, known internationally as the "Queen of the Blues," passed away on Wednesday June 3, 2009 as a result of complications from a recent operation.

Koko Taylor had undergone surgery in Chicago on May 19th to fix a gastrointestinal bleed, and according to a previous post on her website, was originally expected to make a full recovery.

Koko Taylor

Koko Taylor made her last public appearance a couple of weeks ago, singing her signature Chess Records hit "Wang Dang Doodle" in front of a thrilled audience at the 30th Blues Music Awards show in Memphis, Tennessee.
Koko Taylor walked off stage that night with the award for "Traditional Blues Female Artist of the Year," her 29th W.C. Handy/Blues Music Award, more than any other blues artist.
She was also a Grammy™ Award winner and the recipient of a NEA National Heritage Fellowship Award, and was honored by induction into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1997.

Over an amazing career that spanned 45+ years, Koko Taylor carved out her own niche in the male-dominated blues world.
One of Chess Records' most popular artists, Taylor was a master of all media.
The bawdy blueswoman appeared in several films, including Blues Brothers 2000, and performed on television several times, including Late Night With David Letterman and Late Night With Conan O'Brien.
Taylor remained a creative force at the time of her death, her critically-acclaimed 2007 Alligator Records album Old School widely considered to be one of her best, and earning Taylor a Blues Music Award for "Traditional Blues Album of the Year."

Koko Taylor overcame poverty, tragedy, and physical infirmity to become one of the most popular blues singers in the world, male or female.
Her dynamic live performances and recordings have influenced countless young musicians, including artists like Bonnie Raitt, Shemekia Copeland, and Susan Tedeschi.

Koko Taylor is survived by her husband, daughter, and other family members. Her presence in the world of the blues will be missed greatly.

Check out Koko Taylor's web site for more.

Darren Watson Interview

2009-06-03T08:30:00.000+12:00

In this interview, it's my absolute pleasure to talk to Darren Watson, vocalist and guitar player in his band Darren Watson and the Real Deal Blues Band.

Darren's been making great music from his heart and soul for some twenty-five years now and in that time he has established a reputation second-to-none in New Zealand for world class, original rhythm & blues. He has recently won first place in the blues category for his song ‘All Going Wrong’ in the International Song writing competition . . . judges included James Cotton, John Mayall, and Alligator boss Bruce Iglauer.

Darren Watson

ANBTB: Hi Darren, first of all thanks for taking the time to talk with me, and second of all many congratulations on your winning the International Song writing competition. That must be a real thrill...

DW: Yeah, well you could have knocked me over with a feather when I found out. I was chuffed enough just to be in the finals…. It’s bloody brilliant, innit?!

ANBTB: You have been nominated six times for NZ Music Awards for a body of recorded work that includes two Top 40 albums and singles with Chicago Smoke Shop, in 2002 the album King Size was nominated for a Tui and 2005's album 'South Pacific Soul' is terrific. Does winning the competition top all of that?

DW: It’s up there, bro. I’m looking forward now though…. It’s nice to win awards but I prefer to concentrate on new things all the time.

ANBTB: What made you decide to enter All Going Wrong into the competition?

DW: Actually I wasn’t such a fan of the song, but then Midge started playing it in his set and I figured if it’s good enough for him? LOL…. So I fired off an entry and thought nothing more of it until I found out I made the finals. I don’t think most songwriters are the best judges of what their best songs are – I feel way too close to most of ‘em. It’s a real love/hate relationship.

ANBTB: I first saw you play with (who I thought were) Chicago Smoke Shop back in the mid-nineties at the Nelson School of Music and you guys were shaking bits off the ceiling. It must have just before the band split. Can you tell me a bit about the band at the time?

DW: Actually that was a post-Smokeshop line-up called The Behemoths. It would’ve been me with Richard Te One on drums, Darrin Hancock on bass, and Bob Smith on Piano/Organ. I remember getting to that gig and I couldn’t believe they only had a vocal PA for a 500 seat theatre?!!

ANBTB: Like Darcy Perry, you didn't start out on guitar did you... wasn't your first instrument trumpet? How did you get from there to playing guitar?

DW: Yeah, I played some trumpet, drums and then bass before I got to guitar. My first gigs were playing bass in a covers band. I was 14 – it was nuts. At 17-18 I took up six string and got on with learning to play blues…

ANBTB: So when you growing up, what music did you listen to and what really go you hooked into the blues and started you playing?

DW: I had a lot of 45s and EPs of Beatles, Creedence Clearwater Revival, and The Rolling Stones to start with… that’s what got me fired up. Plus I kept hearing stories about my cousin Rod Stone who played guitar in a beat group called The Librettos during the 60s… kind of got me interested. Hearing Muddy Waters as a young teenager changed my life. I didn’t know music could be that powerful…

ANBTB: In past you have worked a lot with Midge Marsden. Was he a big influence and did you learn a lot from him?

DW: I love working with Midge. His enthusiasm is totally contagious. He is a great friend and a ‘bluesologist’ extraordinaire!

ANBTB: You've played with Robert Cray, Koko Taylor, George Thorogood, Billy Boy Arnold, Doug MacLeod, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Dr. John and Keb Mo. Who has been your favourite artist to work with and why?

DW: Koko Taylor and her band were amazing to tour with. We met Bruce Iglauer (Alligator Records) and had a total ball.

ANBTB: Can you tell us you least favourite?

DW: Not really, mate. They’ve all been pretty good in one way or another. Jimmy Vaughan wasn’t particularly nice to be around though…

ANBTB: 'South Pacific Soul' has been described as "genre breaking". There are quite obviously blues references, but it also encompasses rhythm and blues and soul. Was that a conscious decision because strict 'blues' audiences are a shrinking market, or is the blending of these different styles just where you are at?

DW: Mate, I’ve always been about blues/soul. I can play almost any blues style you care to name but I LOVE the soulier stuff. Most of the original Smoke Shop tunes were more ‘Stax’ than ‘Chess’, if you get my drift.

Darren Watson and South Pacific Soul

ANBTB: Specifically on blues and blues-related music, how would you assess the current live music scene in New Zealand at present?

DW: Well, much as I hate to be one of those older guys going on about how good things were ‘back in the day’… I think things were better ‘back in the day’. It seems to me that a lot of people are pretty much working for next to nothing and taking whatever they can get in the way of gigs.

ANBTB: Is it harder to please the venue owners or the audience?

DW: I find if we play well and enjoy ourselves it seems to keep both happy.

ANBTB: Do you think that as fans of the blues genre we value, or are perhaps encouraged to value, the wrong things about blues acts and performances? For example, guitar solos over songs?

DW: This is a pet peeve of mine. I really loathe long, noodly solos. For me it’s always been about the groove and the story. SOME solo work is great but only where it supports telling the story, in my opinion. We don’t play a lot of 15 minute jams in E, bro… Grin*

ANBTB: So, what can we expect from Darren Watson and the Real Deal Blues Band in the next year or so? I think there is a new album on the way isn't there, and any plans to tour? We'd love to see you back in Auckland.

DW: Yep, new album this year hopefully…. I would love to play in Auckland again soon but the guys won’t work for nothing let alone take a loss – which is pretty much what an Auckland excursion would be for us – so we’ll have to wait ‘til someone offers us enough to make it viable. I’m sure I’ll be up there in some capacity this year to support the new album. It’ll be hard to top my last Auckland gig with Midge at the Kings Arms in ’07 though… that just went OFF!

ANBTB: Thanks very much Darren, it was great to talk to you.

For all the latest on Darren and the band check out the offical Darren Watson and the Real Deal Blues Band web site for full details.

YouTube Of The Month

2009-06-01T14:49:00.001+12:00

They're Red Hot

Eric Clapton: Vocals and Guitar

Six Strings Down - Robert Johnson

2009-06-01T14:26:00.003+12:00

While watching a performance of Six Strings Down by Jimmie Vaughan it got me thinking and I was also reminded of an article I was reading on a web site I 'stumbled' upon about Sean Costello and I thought I would compose a series of posts for this blog about other blues artists whose lives were also tragically cut short.

This is the third in the series of these posts and please check back in with this blog regularly as I will be composing a further posts on this subject.

Robert Johnson
b. Hazlehurst, Mississippi: 8 May, 1911 or 1912
d. 16 August, 1938

Robert Johnson is perhaps the most famous of Delta (if not all) blues musicians. His records from 1936–1937 are a remarkable combination of singing, guitar playing and songwriting and have influenced generations of musicians.

Robert Johnson's poorly documented life and death have given rise to the most famous legend in music.
According to that legend, Robert Johnson was a young man in rural Mississippi with a burning desire to become a great musician, and he was instructed to take his guitar to a crossroad near Dockery Plantation at midnight.
There he was met by the Devil who took the guitar from Robert Johnson and tuned it.
After tuning the guitar, the devil played a few songs and then returned it to Robert Johnson, and thereby giving him absolute mastery of the guitar, being able to play, sing, and create the greatest blues anyone had ever heard and in return Robert Johnson had sold his soul.

Robert Johnson's recordings have recently become the source of conjecture, and so suggesting that they recording we accept as Robert Johnson's genius have in fact been sped up by maybe as much as 20%.
And some even doubt the influence of Robert Johnson and authors such Elijah Wald ask why "Robert Johnson was ignored by the core black audience of his time yet is now celebrated as the greatest figure in blues history".
(Please check back in with this blog regularly as I will be composing some further posts on these subjects).

There are a number of accounts and theories regarding the events of Robert Johnson's death.
Leading up to his death he had been playing for a few weeks at a country dance in a town near Greenwood and one evening Robert Johnson began flirting with a woman at a dance.
One version of the account is that the woman was the wife of the juke joint owner who unknowingly provided Johnson with a bottle of poisoned whiskey from her husband, while another account suggests she was a married woman he had been secretly seeing.
Johnson was offered open bottle of whiskey and accepted it, and the bottle was laced with strychnine.
Honey Boy Edwards, another blues musician was present, and essentially confirms this account.
Robert Johnson is reported to have started to feel ill into the evening after drinking from the bottle and had to be helped back to his room in the early morning hours.
Over the next three days, his condition steadily worsened and witnesses reported that he died in a convulsive state of severe pain—symptoms which are consistent with poisoning.

His death occurred on August 16, 1938, at the age of 27.

Album Review: Bob Dylan - Together Through Life

2009-05-20T19:39:00.005+12:00

Bob Dylan’s latest album, “Together Through Life” (Columbia), marks his third self-produced (under the name of Jack Frost) studio release in a row recorded with members of his current touring band.

Absent are guitar players Denny Freeman and Stu Kimbal, while drummer George Recile, bass player Tony Garnier (Tony has played more live shows with Dylan than anyone else) are joined by guitarist Mike Campbell (of Tom Petty’s Heartbreakers) and David Hidalgo (of Los Lobos) on accordion.
Dylan himself shares the song writing credits with Robert Hunter, who was Jerry Garcia’s longtime lyricist in the Grateful Dead.

Bob Dylan Live

The news of a new Dylan album came as a surprise to many.
Director Olivier Dahan (who directed La Vie En Rose - a film about the life of the legendary French chanteuse Édith Piaf) asked Dylan if he would write a song for the soundtrack of his forthcoming film My Own Love Song.
Dylan wrote Life Is Hard and then nine more songs, which were quickly recorded late last year.

The cover photograph, by Bruce Davidson, is an image of a young couple kissing desperately in the back seat of a car.
Josef Koudelka’s back-cover photograph is much more to the point: five hardened Romanians around a table, with accordion, trumpet and drums, some playing, some smoking, in a state between making music and killing time.

The cover art of Together Through Life

Bob Dylan's music has always drawn from the blues and on this record his creaky brand blues harks back to an America that may or may not have ever existed.
On “My Wife’s Home Town,” Dylan recalls the Chess Studios of 1954 and Willie Dixon’s “I Just Want to Make Love to You”, indeed Dylan rightly credits Dixon in the sleeve notes.
The 12-bar shuffles come in slow, midtempo, or jaunty; and the ever present accordion adds a layer of dusty antiquity.

As a follow up to Modern Times, it is a difficult record.
As a young folk singer Dylan strained to sound older and more sorely tested than he was but Dylan, who turns 68 in May, has never sounded as ravaged, pissed off and lusty (all at once) as he does on Together Through Life.
The success and critical acclaim of 1997's Time Out of Mind, 2001's Love and Theft and 2006's Modern Times, may have rejuvenated him artistically and although hardcore Dylan fans will probably love it Together Through Life may very well be an acquired taste for most.

Check out the offical Bob Dylan web site for full details.

The Blues Foundation: 30th Blues Music Award Winners Announced

2009-05-20T18:39:00.003+12:00

On the 7th May the cream of the crop of blues artists were honoured as part of a six-plus-hour Blues marathon at the Cook Convention Center in Memphis, Tennessee.

The event brings together Blues performers, industry representatives and fans from all over the world to celebrate the best in Blues recordings and performances from the previous year.
Each year, the Foundation present The Blues Music Awards to the artists selected by its members.
They are universally recognized as the highest honor given to Blues artists.
As always, a pre-party will immediately precede the Awards.

Acoustic Album of the Year: Mississippi Number One - Eden Brent

Acoustic Artist of the Year: Eden Brent

Album of the Year: Skin Deep - Buddy Guy

Band of the Year: Lil' Ed & the Blues Imperials

B.B. King Entertainer of the Year: Janiva Magness

Best New Artist Debut: 2 Man Wrecking Crew - Cedric Burnside & Lightnin' Malcolm

Contemporary Blues Album of the Year: Skin Deep - Buddy Guy

Contemporary Blues Male Artist of the Year: Buddy Guy

Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year Janiva Magness

DVD: M For Mississippi: A Road Trip Through the Birthplace of the Blues - Broke & Hungry Records, Cathead Blues & Mudpuppy Recordings

Historical Album of the Year: Albert Collins Live at Montreux 1992 - Eagle Records

Instrumentalist-Bass: Mookie Brill

Instrumentalist-Drums: Willie “Big Eyes” Smith

Instrumentalist-Guitar: Sonny Landreth

Instrumentalist-Harmonica: Billy Gibson

Instrumentalist-Horn: Deanna Bogart

Instrumentalist-Banjo: Otis Taylor

Pinetop Perkins Piano Player: Marcia Ball

Rock Blues Album of the Year: Mess of Blues - Jeff Healey

Song of the Year: “Let Life Flow” - Kenny Neal

Soul Blues Album of the Year: Simply Grand - Irma Thomas

Soul Blues Female Artist of the Year: Etta James

Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year: Bobby Rush

Traditional Blues Album of the Year: One Kind Favor - B.B. King

Traditional Blues Male Artist of the Year: B.B. King

Traditional Blues Female Artist of the Year Koko Taylor

Check out the The Blues Foundation web site for full details.

Guy King Interview

2009-05-18T21:29:00.007+12:00

For the third blog interview I republish the BluesWax, Sittin' In With Guy King article in which blues guitar player Guy King is interviewed by Bob Margolin.

In the fall of 2007 I played at the very enjoyable Orton Park Festival in Madison, Wisconsin.
The musicians were all impressive, Lurrie Bell, Katherine Davis, and Guy King from Chicago and the deep, old school Cashbox Kings from Madison.
I hadn't heard of Guy King before, but he caught my attention as soon as he started singing and playing. His guitar playing and singing were both refined and powerful.
He was obviously an experienced and natural entertainer without resorting to tired stage tricks. Offstage, he was friendly and sociable.

Guy King has already taken his own place in today's Chicago Blues scene -- right in the middle of it.
And with his CD Livin' It he shows how ready he is to hit the road and become a modern Blues star.

King is a natural talent, but as often happens in the Blues World, a bandleader/mentor can really help a young musician find his direction.
He worked in the band of one of the finest Chicago Blues bandleaders ever, the late, great Willie Kent.
King's fine music today is a tribute to Willie Kent's gift to him, to the fine musicians who are his foundation, and to his own talent and vision.

BW: I certainly understand the concept of working with a Chicago Blues bandleader, being as helpful as possible on- and offstage while learning and performing. Tell us about your time with Willie Kent.

GK: I remember the first time I met Willie; I saw him play at Blue Chicago and I loved what I heard! His voice was simply the best I had heard - it was it! A friend introduced us and we hit it off right from the start - he invited me to come and sit in with him every time I wasn't working and I did just that... we talked a lot and Willie and the guys in the band liked what they heard, so after a few months a spot opened in the band and I got a call from Willie asking me to join - and that was that! It was great! I started getting deeper into the Blues and especially the style that Willie was doing. At first I didn't say too much, as I believed (and still do) that, as the new guy (and younger by about 30 years from the next to me...), I better just be quiet, learn, and soak it all in.

Willie's band played just about every night, either in Chicago or on the road, and before I knew it my repertoire expanded tremendously and I started to feel very comfortable in the band. Willie appreciated my opinion and after a while I started having an input on the music, bringing ideas to the band and Willie made me his bandleader. Willie gave me a lot of freedom as a guitar player, which was great, but I really enjoyed playing the fills between Willie's vocal lines; it was a treat for me to try to make my guitar sound and relate to his voice as a call and response.

Willie Kent really took me in and became family to me in every sense of the word. We spent a lot of time together talking about music and life, and I really feel that I learned just as much from the conversations we had and the time we spent as I did from the actual playing in the band.

As you said, I tried to help offstage as well, loading the van, taking care of business, being on time, clean and ready to play when the time came; you just do what needs to be done! I believe in all these things and it was great to work with Willie, who believed in the same things. Bob, it was really a wonderful time that was cut too short because of Willie's death, but you can't buy an experience such as playing and touring so many nights with someone like Willie Kent; he will always mean the world to me.

Guy King

BW: Did you see while you were playing with Willie that you would be a bandleader some day?

GK: Well, I sang since an early age and led groups as a kid, and really - the reason I picked up the guitar at first was so I could back myself up singing (my first instrument was the clarinet), so I knew that I would form my own band and Willie knew it, too. I would open the show every night with two or three songs and Willie played bass while I was singing, and he prepared me and gave me as many tools as he could to start my own band when the time was right. I really believe that you need to be a good follower in order to be a good bandleader. I mean, the instinct to lead a group should be natural, but it is very helpful to know how to play behind someone else and make them sound good.

BW: I hear a lot of originality in your music. Of course I can hear your influences, but you don't copy them. Who are the musicians who have inspired you?

GK: Thank you, that means a lot to me! I learned from everything I ever listened to...I see the "Blues" as a very broad word. To me Count Basie is just as deep as Robert Johnson and Wes Montgomery as T-Bone Walker. Great music is great music and it should be regarded as such! Of course I have my favorites, but only because I get more "feeling" (or goose bumps) when I hear them and not because they play this kind or that kind of Blues, or music in general. Labeling the type of music we listen to (and even sub-labeling within the genres...) hurts the listeners and the artists alike.

There are so many wonderful artists that inspire me, I'm not sure where to start, but I know I can't analyze it (it will just ruin it!) - It is just great music to my ears and heart: Ray Charles, B.B. King, Nat "King" Cole, Robert Johnson, T-Bone Walker, Albert King, Muddy Waters, Albert Collins, Howlin' Wolf, Johnny "Guitar" Watson, Guitar Slim, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Wes Montgomery, Jimmy McGriff, Percy Mayfield, Lightnin' Hopkins, Erroll Garner, Oscar Peterson, Dinah Washington, Ella Fitzgerald, Charlie Parker, Lee Morgan, Tampa Red, Son House, Charlie Patton, Lonnie Johnson, Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Otis Rush, "Gatemouth" Brown, Stevie Wonder, James Brown, Art Blakey...
Bob, I think I left out about 50 more...but I really love everything that is true, heartfelt, and soulful!

BW: Today is a particularly challenging time to try and move your career along, but you seem to have a strong home base of gigs in Chicago. Do you have plans to hit the road more this year?

GK: Yes, I am very proud of my band and the music that we are making and I definitely plan to hit the road this year as much as possible. It is great to have a home base in Chicago and I love it, but we are going to hit the highway (and the airports) to support the new album, Livin' It.

BW: Livin' It is a mature and developed album and it shows that you're already very experienced and advanced. Did it take you a long time to conceive the album? Did you record it all at once? Did you have help and advice?

GK: You know, I wanted to record for a while now and was talking to a few people from the industry, labels and such, but nothing really came of it, so I decided to produce my first album myself. I took a few old tunes that I always enjoyed performing and wrote a few, and that was it.

Once I had the songs down, the band got together to rehearse it, first, my four- piece band, then the horn section and the background vocalists, and then the whole band. Everyone involved was great and brought great love, enthusiasm, and ideas to the table - it was a beautiful experience! After the material was ready, we went into the studio to record; we recorded the music in about three days.

I really wanted to make an "album" - songs that fit, tell a story from start to finish, and not just some tunes back to back. There is a lot of material that I perform live which I wanted to record but didn't think it fitted that particular album's set list, so it got left out. I guess it's a good reason to record again soon!

Guy King - The Album: Livin' It

BW: What are your plans and hopes for the future?

GK: The plan is to make music! Hit the road and play my music to as many people as possible! To me, music is everything, it's a healer, a friend, a song can be pretty much everything you want it to be! I hope that the people enjoy my music that way, and that they can feel some of what I feel when I play it!

Bob Margolin for BluesWax, turning to you: I hope that getting to know Guy here inspires you to check out his music, and to expect an excellent show when you see his name on a festival, concert, or club bill. His deep, strong music will open doors for him, and you'll want to welcome him as he steps up.

Bob Margolin is a senior contributing editor at BluesWax.
You may contact Bob at blueswax@visnat.com.

Sign up for your weekly does of blues news and interviews at BluesWax by checking out the BluesWax web site.

You Tube Of The Month

2009-05-01T10:57:00.001+12:00

High Water (for Charlie Patton)

Bob Dylan and band live...

Six Strings Down - Charlie Patton

2009-05-01T08:00:00.000+12:00

While watching a performance of Six Strings Down by Jimmie Vaughan it got me thinking and I was also reminded of an article I was reading on a web site I 'stumbled' upon about Sean Costello and I thought I would compose a series of posts for this blog about other blues artists whose lives were also tragically cut short.

This is the second in the series of these posts and please check back in with this blog regularly as I will be composing a further posts on this subject.

Charlie Patton
b. Hinds County, Mississippi: 1 May, 1891
d. April 28, 1934

Charlie Patton, (also known as Charley Patton) is considered by many to be the "Father of Delta Blues".
He was one of the first mainstream stars of the Delta blues genre and lived most of his life in Sunflower County, in the Mississippi Delta.

Most sources say he was born in 1891, although the years 1887 and 1894 have also been suggested.
In 1900, his family moved to the Dockery Plantation sawmill and cotton farm.
It was here that both John Lee Hooker and Howlin' Wolf fell under the Patton spell.
It was also here that Robert Johnson played his first guitar.

At Dockery, Charlie Patton was taught guitar by Henry Sloan, and by the time he was about 19, had become an accomplished performer and songwriter in his own right, having already composed "Pony Blues," a seminal song of the era.
He was extremely popular across the Southern United States and Robert Palmer describes Charlie Patton as a "jack-of all-trades bluesman" who played "deep blues, white hillbilly songs, nineteenth century ballads, and other varieties of black and white country dance music with equal facility".

Charlie Patton played scheduled engagements at plantations and taverns which is in contrast to the itinerant wandering of most blues musicians of that time.
Charlie Patton was also a showman often playing with the guitar down on his knees, behind his head, or behind his back and his gravelly voice was rumored to have been loud enough to carry 500 yards without amplification.
His bellowing was a major influence on the singing style of a young Howlin' Wolf.

Charlie Patton died on the Heathman-Dedham plantation near Indianola from heart
disease on April 28, 1934.

Blues Week Festival, Rotorua

2009-04-23T11:07:00.003+12:00

The Bay of Plenty Blues Club Inc. presents its 4th annual Blues Festival in Rotorua on Queen's Birthday weekend.
Ten bands over 3 days, including Mojo Mama and The Hired Guns (Wellington) and The Jukes (Auckland), plus the popular 'Ladies Sing The Blues' show.

Venues include The Belgian Bar, Scotty's Bar, Solace, Seismic Gastrobar and ex-Herbs Restaurant and Bar. Free entry to all venues.

Check out the Bay of Plenty Blues Club web site for full details.

Credit for rotoruaNZ.com as the source of this event information.

Ric Hall Interview

2009-04-13T19:04:00.011+12:00

In my second blog interview I talk to Ric Hall, one of the best misciains of his generation to come out of Chicago.
Ric had played with everyone from Albert King to Buddy Guy, and is a damn nice guy too.

BG, Sean and Ric

ANBTB: Hi Ric, we met just before you played the Buesfestival in New Zealand last Year, how did you enjoy playing in New Zealand?

RH: The jetlag, man…24 hours or so in the air. Usually I need a day to get adjusted to the new time zone and to have some rest after a long flight like that.
But I felt great that we met you and your friends, and jammed together. It cheered me up…I always watch the audience’s temperature and people’s reaction to what we do. Every audience is different, especially when you play shows outside the United States. We never know what to expect. But our meeting with you guys really put me at ease with environment, and put me in tune with the place. I think we played a great show; as far as I remember people loved it; I had a good time.

ANBTB: Had you been to New Zealand before and if so, has it changed much since then?

RH: We were here in New Zealand in 2005 with Buddy Guy. I haven’t noticed any difference. It’s still a pretty cool place.

ANBTB: Did you manage to hear any of New Zealand’s blues acts wile you were here?

RH: When you and I met, you introduced me to your friends at your friend's house – musicians from New Zealand’s blues community. I remember you from The Jukes and other guys. I was glad that it turned out that we spoke the same language exchanging lics, and communicated really well; I had a great jam with you guys.

ANBTB: Is the blues atmosphere here in New Zealand significantly different to the US or the UK and the rest of the world?

RH: I noticed that in New Zealand people who play it (you and your friends) have a core understanding and feel of it. You and I spoke the same language when we jammed together. In some lands people sometimes use the “Blues” label and attach it to something else. It’s ok with me.

ANBTB: Can you tell us a bit about your background and how you got the gig with Buddy Guy?

RH: Initially, I wanted to be a football player but due to trauma, quit that path, and decided to be a music teacher. I enrolled into Chicago Music Conservatory. During my time there, I passed an audition with Albert King who came to audition Conservatory’s students, because he needed a guitar player for his upcoming tour. That was my first gig, and it was so cool that it shaped what I really choose to do in life: to be a performer.
As far as Buddy’s gig: Buddy was looking for a new guitar player, and his brother, Phil Guy (good memory to this man), gave Buddy a word about me. I worked for Phil for many years before that…Buddy gave me an audition but beyond my knowledge: one night during the summer of 2004, he showed up at the small club on the South side of Chicago where I work every Monday and just mixed with the audience. I noticed him but thought he was just hanging out. Next Monday he showed up again. During break he asked me if I want to work for him and left. I was given some time to meet my obligations with The Dells I was playing with at the time, and after about two weeks I hit the road with Buddy’s band and went on tour to Europe and Japan.

ANBTB: Buddy’s a showman and I guess anything can happen during a gig…and I guess you just have to go with it…?

RH: The showman is the right word…We are never told what exactly we are going to do tonight. There are exceptions, of course. If Buddy wants the band to learn a few new songs before the tour, then we have a couple of rehearsals one or two days prior to it.
When we play the annual winter package of 20 January concerts at Buddy’s club in Chicago(Buddy Guy’s Legends), you may hear Buddy saying right in the middle of the song: “Band, hold it, hold it…I don’t like this song” and then he goes right into another one. And he may be doing it during his walk into the crowd offstage. He may be even out of my sight then.
Right at the beginning of my work with Buddy, he said to me: “When in the middle of the show I am giving you a solo, you better be ready to take that solo…If not, I am not going to be sorry for you”.
My way of being prepared is being prepared for anything onstage. And with Buddy, no two shows are exactly the same. He doesn’t like to rehearse too much, he likes to keep it raw.

Ric Hall

ANBTB: Buddy’s gigs aren’t strictly wall to wall “Chicago” blues are they? He throws in a lot of different styles and even different genres of music…

RH: Sometimes Buddy makes some kind of a break, in a way, and in the middle of a really dramatic and loud performance, he wants to play an acoustic set – a few songs that Buddy and I play on acoustic guitars. That’s when he sings songs in the style of Mississippi Delta – a region in the South of the United States, also known as a cradle of the blues.
Buddy came from a very strong blues tradition before he came from Louisiana to Chicago in 1957. He played with acclaimed artists in Baton Rouge and was a front man himself back in the days when he lived there. His earliest influences shaped what he brought to Chicago and recorded on Chess records. It was spread around the world under the label of “Chicago Style” of blues. He himself contributed a great deal to what later become known as the blues “Chicago Style”.
Many people made their start from what he had already accomplished. To name a few: Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Rolling Stones. None of them deny that it’s Buddy’s playing that shaped what they wanted to do in music, and paved the way for them. It sounds ironic but sometimes he includes (or has to include, probably under production companies’ pressure) songs by Hendrix and Clapton who rose on his shoulders on the initial stages of their music careers.

ANBTB: He likes his band members to be able to play, but do you get much freedom to do your thing, or is Buddy pretty strict about what he wants from the band?

RH: I don’t feel really restrained in my work for Buddy but the show must have its structure, and certain landmarks apply. Nevertheless, Buddy encouraged me to play my solo by telling me: “You go ahead, man, and do your thing”. That was the only instruction I got from him. So I could do nothing but to go ahead and to shred it.

ANBTB: What do you think is the state of the “blues” right now?

RH: It’s a big question. .. The state of the blues can be better described if we talk about the quality of blues musicians’ lives… It’s a long talk and I am not sure if the format of your blog gives me enough space for it.
I’ve heard that San Francisco Blues Festival has been cancelled this year altogether.
Chicago Blues Festival will run for 3 days this year instead of the usual 4…To get a better answer to your question, take a look at the page “groups” on Myspace. What are the most numerous groups there? The answer is: rock and hip-hop. Their followers are numbered in millions. The group of the blues lovers includes a few thousand members. So, you can see what kind of music feeds musicians better.
But I personally think that the elite group should not become a “majority” group. In order to be saved from bad taste and from worthless contributors, it must be carried by selected few. Yet there are should be parties interested in preservation of this cornerstone of American cultural heritage, in supporting musicians who live a life of blues – by giving them jobs, by giving them more venues and festivals to play at, by recording them, by giving them grants for their projects etc etc.

ANBTB: Your playing encompasses a wide range of styles, doesn’t it with a background in R&B, soul and jazz, can you tell us a bit about it?

RH: I started my music career as a performer playing R&B on Chicago scene. I worked with many bands covering Motown tunes, contemporary funk artists etc. Most of the music we were playing in the 60s and 70s was, basically, R&B. I play funk, rock, jazz, blues, R&B, reggae, Polka, swing jazz, smooth jazz.

ANBTB: Was there anyone you saw play or heard, and thought “Damn! That’s what I’m gonna do…”?

RH: My idols of my early days still fascinate me: Earth, Wind and Fire; Tower of Power, George Benson, Phil Upchurch, Wes Montgomery, Blues Conte (guitarist for Tower of Power), Skips Pitts (guitarist for Isaac Hayes).

ANBTB: And what about your gear, can you give us insight to what you are using on stage?

RH: Take a look at my website: Ricjaz.net. It has “endorsements” page. It describes all the gear I use: Flaxwood – guitar company; Musicman Guitars – Earnie Ball company; Writeman Spin – spin guitar unit; Dean Markley – accessories; Chicago Blues Box- guitar amps; Dunlop- accessories; Ernie Ball – accessories; FuziBro – foot pedals; distortion/overdrive stomp box; Uncle Funky Guitar Cables – cables; Analysis Plus inc. – guitar cables.

ANBTB: The “spinner” strap has become a bit of a trademark for you, how did you come to use that?

RH: I worked for the NAMM show one year in Chicago, and at the end of the run the companies don’t want to take the items back with them, so they would try and sell to anyone for very low prices to get rid of the items…So at the end of my work day I went around checking for sales and walked upon the spinstrap company and said: “Hey, man,…how much?”
So, for a very low price I took the last one he had not knowing it would become my trademark. The year was 1999…I’ve been spinning since then.

ANBTB: You have shared the stage with plenty of music legends in your time. Do you have a favorite?

RH: I played with The Dells, Jerry Butler, Bobby Womack, Ray Goodman and Brown, Stylistics, Delphonics, Bloodstone, The Emotions, Tower of Power, Manhattans, Millie Jackson, Robert Townsend (5 Hearts Tour), Gladis Knight, Steevie Wonder, Howard Hewitt, Eddie Griffin, Albert King, BB King, Rolling Stones, John Meyer, Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, Robert Cray, Keb Mo, Hendrix Experience tour people (Johnny Lang, Eric Johnson, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Hubert Sumlin), Koko Taylor, but Carlos Santana is my favorite one.
Carlos is a great musician, deeply spiritual man and, most importantly, has a lot of respect for his colleagues. We played at Montreaux Jazz Festival and the DVD of our live performance was made. A great DVD, many great artists played there – Buddy Guy, Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, Bobby Parker, Carlos Santana. It’s called “Carlos Santana Presents. Blues at Montreaux”. He was really meticulous trying to make sure all the band members’ names were included in the “credits” section of the DVD. I want to thank him for that. It reveals a man of high ethical principles. I don’t take it for granted.

ANBTB: It’s been a very busy time for you and the band, was there a particular highlight in the Experience Hendrix tour for you?

RH: I am glad that I met people of the original Jimi Hendrix band – Jimi’s bass player Billy Cox, late Mitch Mitchell who died during that tour, Jimi Hendrix’s sister Janie, and a host of great guitarists!!!...the whole tour was a highlighted experience for me!

ANBTB: In your time off do you get to do much in your studio?

RH: No, the studio is at the hiatus at this moment. Buddy keeps me on the road these days, we are only home for a short time, then back on the road.

ANBTB: What have you got coming up in the next year or so? Do you think you might be back in New Zealand soon?

RH: I hope to return back to play in New Zealand during the next year or so.
Looks like Buddy makes it to New Zealand every other year. We went there with him in 2006 and 2008. I don’t know if that’s a pattern. I want to believe so.

ANBTB: Thanks very much for talking to me Ric. Thanks to to your publicist Tony Musicz for arranging and recoping the interview. I really hope to catch up with you in New Zealand (although it would be great to see you in Chicago...) sometime very soon.

YouTube Of The Month

2009-04-01T09:00:00.000+13:00

It's My Own Fault

Sean Costello: Vocals and Guitar

Six Strings Down - Sean Costello

2009-04-01T08:00:00.010+13:00

I have just finished watching a performance by Jimmie Vaughan of Six Strings Down, a song written by Art Neville, Eric Kolb, Aaron Neville, Cyril Neville, Kelsey Smith, and Jimmie Vaughan as a eulogy to Jimmie's brother, Stevie Ray Vaughan.

The song refers to the Alpine Valley Music Theater, Wisconsin where the helicopter carrying Stevie Ray and several others crashed following a concert in 1990.
It also references other blues guitarists including Jimi Hendrix, Albert Collins, Muddy Waters, Lightnin' Hopkins, T-Bone Walker, Eddie "Guitar Slim" Jones, Freddie King, and Albert King.

Listening to the song and watching the performance on the DVD of the Eric Clapton 2004 Crossroads Guitar Festival got me thinking and I was also reminded of an article I was reading on a web site I 'stumbled' upon (and now can't recall or find again) about Sean Costello and I thought I would compose a series of posts for this blog about other blues artists whose lives were also tragically cut short.
This is the first in the series of these posts and please check back in with this blog regularly as I will be composing a further posts on this subject.

Sean Costello
b. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: 16 April, 1979
d. 15 April, 2008

Described by some as "the most gifted young Blues guitarist on the scene...", Sean Costello mastered traditional blues guitar at an early age and became increasingly eclectic as his career progressed.
Obsessive about the guitar, he got hooked on the blues after buying Howlin’ Wolf's 'Rockin' Chair album.

At sixteen, Sean Costello recorded his first album, Call The Cops, and in the words of music historian Tony Russell he was already ‘displaying a flawless command of 1950s blues guitar’.
His second album, Cuttin’ In (2000),was nominated for a W. C. Handy Award for Best New Artist Debut.
His playing on the Nappy Brown comeback album, Long Time Coming (2007) was crtically aclaimed and in 2008 Sean Costello released what was to be his last album, We Can Get Together, and was described by many as his best work.
He has been nominated for two Blues Music Awards in the categories of Best Contemporary Blues Male Artist and Best Contemporary Blues Album for We Can Get Together.
Winners will be announced on May 7, 2009.
(Please check back in with this blog regularly as I will be composing a further post on this subject).

Sean Costello was found dead in his Atlanta hotel room on April 15, 2008.
A medical report later determined that he died of an accidental drug overdose.

To see Sean Costello in action please see this month’s YouTube of The Month post.

The Jukes: Bar159

2009-03-30T20:23:00.006+13:00

In association with the Auckland Live Blues Club, The Jukes would like to invite you to Bar159 (the old Lincoln Green) on Lincoln Road on Saturday 4th April for an evening genuine hip shakin', house-rockin' music...

The Jukes will be on stage at 8.30 pm.

A full bar menu is available and there isn't a door charge so entry is free.
So, put on your dancing trousers and bring your friends... what is there to lose?

If you wish to join The Jukes mailing list, please visit the web site and email the band or leave a message in the Guestbook.

The Auckland Jazz & Blues Club

2009-03-24T13:44:00.006+13:00

The Auckland Jazz and Blues Club was formed around 1990 to further the interests of Jazz & Blues in Auckland, New Zealand.

The Club has a membership of around 250 and has regular club nights every Wednesday at The Gables Pub and Cafe, Jervois Rd, Herne Bay, Auckland.
These club nights start at 7.30pm and are free to the public.
Each night features a local or out of town band for the entertainment.

To see what's on at the club this week click the Auckland Jazz and Blues Club link in the sidebar.

The Club has an active social committee who organize breakfasts, outings and picnics throughout the year which are always great fun.
In addition the Club organizes concerts by touring overseas artists.
These are always a highlight and often give locals the chance to see and hear some of the best Jazz in the world.

The club also has it's own beautiful Yamaha grand piano, one of the few grands available for easily accessible performances in Auckland.

Anyone can join the Auckland Jazz and Blues Club for $30.00 on any club night.
Members receive a monthly newsletter which includes an Auckland gig guide as well as a 10% discount on meals at the Gables.
Members also get cheaper entry to Club sponsored events of which there are many throughout the year.

The Auckland Live Blues Club

2009-03-21T14:20:00.008+13:00

The blues is in your blood and whether or not you were drawn to its people and what it stands for via Robert Johnson or Son House, Muddy Walters or Howlin’ Wolf, The Rolling Stones or Led Zeppelin, Stevie Ray Vaughan or Gary Moore… the blues is inside you.

It can remain hidden, just under the surface and in the shadows, but it can’t be denied.
You can try to suppress and dismiss it, but it will never die.

In recent times the blues has started to make its presence felt once again.
The Auckland Live Blues Club committee, chaired by Dean Morris, aims to bring the best of local blues talent back into the light by regularly putting on quality shows throughout the Auckland region.

“The blues is the story of mans journey through life and I have meet some great people on my journey. It’s taken me too many crossroads and given me a lot. Through The Auckland Live Blues Club committee I’m glad to be able to give something back and look forward to the future” says Dean.

With the support of Bulleit Bourbon and Music Works, The Auckland Live Blues Club committee hosts a show every Sunday afternoon at The Naval and Family Hotel (formally known as The Crest Hotel) on the corner of Karangahape Road and Pitt Street, starting at 4.00 pm with free entry.

On the last Sunday of each month the show moves to The Thirsty Dog on the corner of Karangahape Road and Howe Street.
Each of these shows is proceeded by a screening of a blues themed DVD, starting at 2.30 pm.
The band starts at 4.00 pm.
A full lunch menu is available, and there is a $10 door charge.

The Auckland Live Blues Club committee also hosts a show every Thursday night at the Broadway Pub and Café located at 4 Osborne Street in Newmarket.
The purpose built live music venue provides an excellent area for live music and the Broadway Pub and Café offers a full dinner menu.
The show starts at 8.00 pm, with the dinner service from 6.00pm.
Entry to these gigs is free.

Check out The Auckland Live Blues Club web site for more details.

Dean Morris
As well as being the Chairman of The Auckland Live Blues Club, Dean also manages the Darcy Perry Band [please see my Darcy Perry Interview post].
Dean can be contacted via Live Music Marketing Management, check out The Auckland Live Blues Club web site for more details.

Darcy Perry Interview

2009-03-21T13:22:00.014+13:00

This interview was originally published on the BluesinNZ web site in 2008.
The site never really got off the ground due to several reasons I've just scaled it back to create this blog.

So, in the first ever interview I talk one of New Zealand’s premier bluesmen.
Darcy Perry has worked alongside such New Zealand blues icons as Bullfrog Rata, Midge Marsden and Shayn Wills before fronting his own band in pubs and clubs around the country.

Now established on the New Zealand festival circuit, the band is touring internationally and after sharing the stage with Buddy Guy at the inaugural The Coromandel Peninsula Blues and Roots Music Festival 2008 and have finished the hard work on their new album.

ANBTB: Hi Darcy, thanks very much for talking with BluesinNZ. How’s it going?

DP: Great! Thanks for getting in touch and congratulations on the new website.

Darcy Perry

ANBTB: Thanks... I understand your currently recording a new album, how is that progressing?

DP: Well, this is an album from a band I really enjoy working with. Great musicians and good people. More than ever before, the song writing is coming from all of us. So we're making sure we get all the good stuff packed in tight. Right now we are putting demo tracks down at Helium Studios. At the end of June we will be recording a whole band live demo as part of the pre-production. Then it will be a case of picking the best for a final return to the studio (probably Montage or Revolver).

ANBTB: What role has ‘the Blues’ played in the creation of your music?

DP: I’ve released four blues albums with another one due October 2008. I expect a lot of the songs I write would fit in other genres as well. Definitely my arrangements are open to improvisation when played live. No matter what I do musically (rock, funk, soul, etc.), blues is the style that most people hear. Having a great band helps. With Craig Bracken on harmonica a song gets an authentic blues stamp without much effort on my part! I keep my writing simple. Everything starts with a feeling, the truth and a groove. When it comes to working in the studio, having musical direction from someone as talented as Simen Taylor is also a boon. His skills on the piano have seen him tour internationally with Tim Finn but it’s his ears and love for blues music that I value most when recording.

ANBTB: On your first album you recorded some classic blues covers and of course for Blues 4 Dad. All the songs your other records are all original tunes, do you find that writing blues songs is a much part of being a blues musician as playing them?

DP: My first blues album was 8 covers and an original instrumental, the title track Blues 4 Dad. Previously I had recorded with original indie rock bands (Sweet Deceit, Nacho Mama, The Next Big Thing) and of course, live to air recordings with Bullfrog Rata. Bullfrog's set-list was exclusively covers of blues greats back then. I'd been talking about doing a blues album for years and when my dad died, I decided to record a tribute album. Kingsley Smith had introduced me to a young Norwegian piano player, Simen Aanerud. Simen was playing a lot of the blues standards I had in my set. I asked him if he would record a CD with me and the rest is history.

The instrumental song Blues 4 Dad had not been rehearsed. I gave the chord changes to the band, asked the drummer to play with brushes and we recorded it. Simple as that. I feel that song is my best recorded work to date. It felt like my dad was there in spirit. By the time I recorded the 2nd album (Don't Hold Back), I had a solid working band and a whole lot of song ideas. More than that though, I didn't want to have to pay royalties on the songs we were about to record. It cost about $900 the first time round and I guess I thought I could use that sort of money elsewhere.

In my mind, it doesn't matter who wrote the song. As long as you feel it when you sing it. If your heart is in it, that will shine through.

ANBTB: You've written several songs about your dad, was he a big influence on you as a musician?

DP: My father was a Brass Bandsman. His main instrument was trombone but he played anything else brass also. He gave me a trumpet when I was 7 and I started playing in public when I was 11. I played alongside him in Brass Bands throughout my teen years. Dad's record collection was also huge and covered everything from Tijuana Brass to Homer & Jethro at the Country Club. Classical music through to Comedy and everything in between. My mother had an extensive Beatles collection. She arrived in New Zealand at the age of 14 and knew all the lyrics off by heart but the Beatles didn't hit here until a few years later. In my early childhood the family record player was well-used.

I guess the biggest influence my dad had on me was that he enjoyed playing music. It wasn't serious. It was fun. Playing in the brass band with him was important because there was a connection playing music with him that I didn't have otherwise. Outside of the band hall he was dad and I was his eldest son. Inside the band hall we were men amongst men. I'm not sure I can explain it better than that.

ANBTB: B.B. King and Freddie King and Jimi Hendrix are often quoted as "influences" but didn't you start out with a trumpet? Then as a bass player? Why the switch to guitar?

DP: I always wanted to sing songs and play guitar, even though I didn't start playing until my early twenties. I guess the biggest reason for picking up bass was having a younger brother (Regan) who played guitar. In his early teens he was a regular "Hendrix" and I wanted to play along with him. Being older, I ended up booking the gigs as well. I have 3 younger brothers and we are all musicians. Regan is the only one who pursued music exclusively though. I don't believe he's ever had a job that didn't involve playing guitar. We formed Te Kuiti High School's first Rock Band and entered in the Rock Quest in 1991. Little Wing was the name of the band. We started doing gigs around the area and then changed the name to Native Gypsys (sic) and travelled as far afield as Auckland. I was eventually replaced as Bass player because Regan found a better one! It was around that time I joined a local covers/originals band called Sweet Deceit. I also jammed with anyone and everyone.

Soon after moving to Palmerston North (in '92?), a shared van trip in the company of Bullfrog Rata to see Chicago legend Junior Wells (Billy TK Jnr. Support) at the St. James in Wellington proved to be a life changing event. Bullfrog was looking for a bass player who could play the blues. I actually introduced him to Earl Pollard, his long time drummer and collaborator. I played bass and some harmonica in the band and also picked up some slide guitar tips from Bullfrog. After a failed marriage I left the Manawatu for the Waikato and started busking with an acoustic slide guitar plugged into a pignose amp. I formed a band or two (Basin Street, All Blues) and spent a year at the Polytech learning music theory/guitar studies (Rik Bernards), songwriting (Liam Ryan) and bluesology (Midge Marsden). Then came the move to Auckland, with my new wife and the present she bought me. A Gibson Les Paul. That guitar and a Buddy Guy CD (Vanguard years) picked up in a music store in San Francisco had a profound effect on my guitar playing. Buddy Guy is the biggest influence on Blues 4 Dad for certain.

Lightning Hopkins opened up my ears and fingers when I began working out the acoustic guitar. When I started out as an electric guitarist, Buddy Guy was who I had in my head. People would say to me, “Hey, I liked that Hendrix thing” or “it’s great when you play like Stevie Ray Vaughan” or “you sound just like B.B. King.” Well, I got all that from listening to Buddy Guy. Now further on in my career it’s not as obvious. I’ve made it my own. The whole idea of playing what you feel and being free to do what you want onstage. The band is a part of that too. Working with other musicians and jamming with fellow guitarists has taught me a lot and I share that knowledge whenever I can. Listen to everything and use what sticks. No matter who first inspired you, in the end you end up being yourself. In the blues, that’s the most important thing. Be yourself.

ANBTB: What are your thoughts about the current state of blues scene in New Zealand?

DP: At the moment though there is a real resurgence. The Blues is more popular than it's been for a while. It's always there. It always will be. One2One Café on Ponsonby Road has also done wonders for the Auckland folk & blues scene. Of course nationally you'd have to credit people like Brian Richards, Roger Fox and also all those fantastic blues/jazz/arts festivals New Zealand is becoming renowned for. A new generation of international blues musicians are reaching our shores and that’s fantastic. Blues societies/groups all over are brimming with new members, their love and patronage is boosting the live music scene. It’s a great time to be a blues artist!

The Darcy Perry Band

ANBTB: You were on the bill at the BluesFest in Whitianga this year, how did you and the band enjoy that? Did you get to meet Buddy Guy?

DP: The band loved it! We had a ball, talking and exchanging philosophies with musicians from the world over. Yes, we even shook hands with Buddy Guy. In a sense that was a religious experience. It is fantastic that the Byron Bay festival has grown to the point it’s reached the Coromandel. Not only does this mean we get world class International artists here for Easter, there’ll be more NZ artists turn up over there in 2009. That’s our goal for now, performing at Byron Bay Bluesfest 2009.

ANBTB: Any plans to tour again when the new album is released?

DP: Yes. I’m heading overseas in 2008 with my band, with dates in Australia. We are also looking at venues for a summer tour here.

ANBTB: What's the best piece of advice you have ever received about playing the blues, and what would you like to say to any aspiring blues player?

DP: I guess from my own experience the best advice I can give is to keep playing. In my life I've had plenty of people tell me I'm not good enough. Often I was young and dumb enough to take that to heart. Work on your own thing and find people who share your vision. It's not enough to be a good musician (there are plenty of those out there), you have to be able to work with other people too. Even if you're a solo artist work on your people skills. Everything I have accomplished has been with the help of others. Share that gift as much as you can.

I’m excited that NZ artists are now getting more international recognition. They work hard for it, no doubt. I believe you make your own luck. I also believe you need to have a good band! My advice to others would be "have fun with your music and turn up on time". Attitude is everything!

ANBTB: Thanks very much Darcy, it was great to talk to you. Congratulations on the new record too.

Deatils of where you can get hold of a copy of Phoenix (the new album) are available on the Darcy Perry Band web site.

YouTube Of The Month

2009-03-21T00:46:00.006+13:00

Messin' With The Kid - 1978

Junior Wells: Vocals and Harmonica
Jimmie Johnson: Guitar
Buddy Guy: Guitar
Dave Myers: Bass
Odie Payne: Drums

The Jukes

2009-03-19T20:53:00.007+13:00

In the age of DJ’s, artificial, synthesized meaningless pop and tired covers of songs the world was pleased to be rid off the first time round (and the time after that...), The Jukes are as much a cause as a band.

Blues is about tradition and personal expression, and at its core, the blues has remained the same since its inception.
The Jukes try to play genuine, emotional music that you can dance to, the shuffling feet and shaking hips that accompany a performance are a testament to that.

The Jukes were formed in 2006 with the vision of bringing something different to the increasingly popular New Zealand blues scene.
The premise of the band is uncompromising authenticity, as faithful to the original Chicago blues style as five guys from New Zealand can manage.

The classic “Chicago style" was developed in the late 1940s and early 1950s, taking the Delta blues, amplifying it and putting it into a small-band context.
By adding drums, bass, and (sometimes) piano, the genre created the now standard blues band lineup.

Grasping the value of playing as a solid unit, The Jukes don’t try and reinvent the wheel or take the blues to the next level or in another direction; The Jukes just play the blues with the classic Chicago ensemble feel.
The Jukes sound is the balanced sound of “South Side” and “West Side” blues tunes.
Propulsive shuffles, some fierce slow blues and a few funkier grooves are the hallmarks of the band's performance.

Mark and me at a gig

The band consists of vocals, harmonica, guitar, keyboard, bass and drums and the set list includes classics (and some other not so well tunes) from such legends as Willie Dixon, Muddy Waters, Howling Wolf, Little Walter, Jimmy Reed and Slim Harpo.
A couple of original tunes have also found their way onto The Jukes set list.

If you can’t be in a blues club in Chicago and you don’t find too many Juke Joints in New Zealand, being at a Jukes performance is the next best thing.

The Jukes are available for Festivals, Pub Gigs, Corporate Events and Private Parties so for bookings or enquires please click the link in the side bar.
The site is updated as often as possible, so please keep checking back for the latest band information.
If you’ve made it to a gig, the band thanks you for your support and if you enjoyed the Jukes performance or would like to leave a comment, please sign the guest book.

Blues In New Zealand

2009-03-19T19:31:00.004+13:00

There is a phase that is often used (both in and out of blues circles)... 'we must keep the blues alive'.
So much so in fact, that people could be forgiven for thinking that the kindest thing for all concerned would actually be to turn the life-support off.

For most non-blues fans 'the blues' invokes images of rural misery and racial stereotypes, or a middle aged accountant with a Stratocaster and a hat singing about “goin' down to Clarksdale”.

This may have been true in the 90’s and at the beginning of the millennium, but in the last couple of years there has been much more going on than that and the blues is experiencing somewhat of a resurgence.
The ‘die-hard’ blues fans have always been hiding just underneath the surface, but now the blues is starting to make its mark back out in the music place amongst main stream music fans also.
The blame for any miss-conception to the contrary must lie with those so-called blues fans.
Blues music doesn't need to be kept alive; it's doing very well all on its own.

Evidence of this is seen in many of the newer players and bands who are making their mark on the music scene today, previously they were reluctant to even use the word 'blues' which in itself is a damning indictment of the self proclaimed powers that be within the blues over the past 2 decades or so.

What the blues needs now is to rid itself of the in-fighting and factions that think that "The only REAL blues is..." and for those factions to forge an open and inclusive appreciation of blues in all its forms and modern day iterations.
History is, and always has been, an important aspect of blues but so also has innovation and development.
And, just as it's always done, it's continuing to evolve and reflect the changing times and lifestyles of the people who play it.
After all blues is, at its core, folk music - in other words it's music that comes from us, the folk, rather than them, the corporate suppliers of 'entertainment'.

The real enemy of the blues is the idea that music is no longer something that we do or participate in, but something that we buy.

In recent times, more and more international blues artists have been willing to tour New Zealand and support for the many blues festivals around the country is growing by the year.
However more could still be done to celebrate and nurture the blues scene here and now.
I believe that the most important thing we can do is to encourage the live playing of blues music and New Zealand has a pretty good depth of blues talent.

Gig poster advertising the Tribute to Sonny Day concert

My hope is that by more live music being played in non-traditional blues venues will attract those people not only actively interested in blues music and culture, but all music fans.
The entire music community in New Zealand (bands, managers, promoters and venue owners) have an obligation to help by celebrating and nurturing the blues scene here and now.

That being said, please check out The Blues Room and the Auckland Live Blues Club links for two great examples of pro-active blues fans going above and beyond the call of duty to bring the blues to the wider New Zealand public.

I guess one of the objectives of this blog is offer some interesting posts, with maybe even at some stage offering up content such as interviews with blues players and live gig and CD reviews.

I’m positive that there are many, many people in New Zealand who love blues, and wish to get out and support local musicians and venues but finding any information is hard as most blues societies and clubs are run by less than a handful of volunteers and on a no-string budget.
It’s up to those that play the blues to also get involved and do what you can to help out those fans find out whats going on and to promote not only yourselves but the ‘scene’ too by telling us what you're up to.

If you’re thinking about the blues is along similar lines to me and you think you can help out with anything then please get in touch.

Playing The Blues

2009-03-19T13:44:00.005+13:00

I love playing bass and I love playing the blues.
When I started out playing the bass I was lucky enough to find and study under the critical eye of Adam Blake.

Adam is a great guitar player and a wonderful teacher.
He taught me about the necessities of a respect for the music and traditions of the blues.
Every hour I spent with him was part music lesson, part history lesson.
Adam was trying to teach me not how to play the bass but instead tried to teach me how to be a bass player and there is a difference!
Adam gave me the foundation from which to work with and an appreciation for the role of the bass in the blues and in the band, and for me, it’s not about playing like 'this guy' or 'that guy' because they're popular and well known.

For just over a year I was very fortunate to have played with BlueHeat550, a blues band in London trying to cut its teeth in the very competitive London music scene.
Now, back in Auckland, New Zealand I have formed The Jukes.
The idea for this band is to continue playing the blues as it was and to bring something different to the New Zealand blues scene.

Ok, (as I confessed in my first post) I haven’t ever picked a bale of cotton with the boss man paying me less than the mule, but I sure have seen some evil, and I've had my fun too.

At a gig it's not about me It's not about the "hey look at me aren't I good" type of players, of which there are a few.
It's all about the audience and hopefully giving them a good time.
It's about making sure I do whatever I can to help the audience have that good time.
That is why I (and I'm sure the band too) want to give our audiences the best performance that we can.
If people at a one of our gigs are having a good time and leave smiling then hopefully we have accomplished our goal.

Playing with the blues

I love playing bass and I love playing the blues.
I wish I could play more and I wish I could play much, much better.

Some Thoughts On What The Blues Means To Me

2009-03-19T09:50:00.007+13:00

As I said in my welcome note in the side bar there... I’m not sure exactly what I’m going to do with this blog. However, trying to express why I want to listen to or play the blues or what the blues means to me seems like a natural place to start.

Some people say that everyone one in the world can remember where they were when they heard that President Kennedy had been shot or that Lady Diana was dead.

Well, I pretty sure I can still remember the first time I heard the blues.
Maybe I can’t... maybe I just think I can, but whichever it is I know I was at home with my Dad, and he was playing through some of his record collection.

He put on one of his old 45s on the turntable and the first few bars of High Heel Sneakers by Tommy Tucker hit me like a ton of bricks and got me headed down the blues road forever.

Blues musicians on Maxwel Street (circa 1980)

Blues is a style music that can lift you up when you are down and it can make you laugh when you feel like crying.

It can make you happy, make you dance, and yes, even cry... sometimes all at the same time.

Some people (who don't know any better) say that the blues brings you down, and that it's sad and depressing, but it's not.

It might sound a bit trite and a very cliché but the blues definitely is a healing music, the blues can be happy music and the blues is the truth.

Now, the only cotton I’ve ever picked is my underwear off the floor, but that shouldn’t preclude me, or anyone, from listen to and playing this music.

Everyone can identify with the blues; it's just that not everyone knows it.

You may be trying to express something about some bad times you had in your life, or that the woman you love has been messing around with another guy and through singing and playing you are healing yourself and trying to perhaps pass on some advice to whoever is listening.

The blues helps us put our troubles into perspective, and lets us know we are not alone.

The blues helps us move on down the line.
The blues makes you feel good... or at least better.

Blues The Healer, as John Lee Hooker put it.

Thanks for taking the trouble to read what is my first post in this new blog.

Hopefully (at least from my perspective) there will be a few more posts on a fairly regular basis.

If you have any comments, please feel free to leave them.
Please also check out the other blogs and web sites listed on the side bar.
If you like the blues, I’m sure you’ll find them interesting.