Bob Corritore Blues News

The weekly blues news update from Bob Corritore!!

July 2, 2008

• Dave Riley & Bob Corritore Nominated For Blues Blast Music Award: Blues Blast is a wonderful, free, weekly e-magazine that is an extension of the Illinois Blues website. Publisher Bob Kieser has just announced the nominees for the 2008 Blues Blast Music Awards, and we were delighted to see that Dave Riley & Bob Corritore/Travelin' The Dirt Road on Blue Witch Records was listed as a nominee in the category of "Best Traditional Blues Recording". Also in this category are Omar Kent Dykes & Jimmy Vaughan/On The Jimmy Reed Highway, Lurrie Bell/Let's Talk About Love, Bobby Rush/Raw, and David "Honeyboy" Edwards/Roamin' & Ramblin'. Some great company indeed! To see the full list of nominees in all categories, click here. Voting will be by subscribers only and starts on July 14, 2008. To subscribe to this free magazine, which will entitle you to vote, click here. Thanks you, Illinois Blues and Blues Blast Magazine!
• Mississippi Valley Blues Festival this weekend! The Rhythm Room All-Stars featuring Big Pete Pearson appear Friday, July 4, 2008 at the Mississippi Valley Blues Festival in Davenport, Iowa. This legendary 3-day blues festival, now in its 24th year, always features a top-notch lineup of blues and this year is no exception. Acts include Koko Taylor, The Holmes Brothers, Marie Knight, Billy Boy Arnold with Jody Williams, Denise LaSalle, Elvin Bishop, Otis Taylor and The Black Banjo Project, Jimmy Thackery, Steve James, John Németh with Junior Watson, Phil Guy, Tinsley Ellis, Doug MacLeod, Paul Geremia, Teresa James, Kal David, Kent Burnside and the New Generation, The Kinsey Report, Kilborn Alley Blues Band, and Big George Brock. Bob will also conduct a blues harmonica seminar at the festival. Seminars on various topics will also be held by Steve James, David Horwitz, Jimmy Thackery, Del Ray, and many others. David Berntson will host the kids BlueSKool program. Due to flooding in the area, the festival has been moved to downtown Davenport, and Big Pete and the All-Stars' set will now be at the Adler Theatre.
• Rhythm Room All-Stars Featuring Big Pete Pearson appear Saturday at the Rhythm Room: After performing at the Mississippi Valley Blues Festival on Friday, The Rhythm Room All-Stars will catch an early flight the next morning and appear at the Rhythm Room on Saturday, July 5, 2008. The Rhythm Room is located at 1019 E. Indian School Road, Phoenix, AZ 85014. Doors open at 8pm, cover charge is $7. Rack Shack Barbeque will be available at this event. This night will be a patio smoking only event; no indoor smoking will be permitted.
• Jackie Payne/Steve Edmonson Band appearing 4th of July Weekend at the Rhythm Room: The multiple Blues Music Award-nominated team of singer Jackie Payne and guitarist Steve Edmondson appear on Friday July 4, 2008 at the Rhythm Room. This appearance is part of their CD release tour for their sterling new Delta Groove CD, Overnight Sensation. Look for some dynamic R&B and blues from true masters of the game. Also, please note the nearby Fabulous Phoenix 4th Fireworks Display can easily be seen from the Rhythm Room's outdoor patio. The Rhythm Room is located at 1019 E. Indian School Road, Phoenix, AZ 85014. Doors open at 8pm, cover charge is $9. Rack Shack Barbeque will be available at this event. This night will be a patio smoking only event; no indoor smoking will be permitted.

• Bernie Pearl appearing Sunday at the Rhythm Room: Veteran blues guitarist and promoter Bernie Pearl makes a stop at the Rhythm Room on Sunday, July 6, 2008. Bernie has been a blues activist in the Los Angeles area since the late 60s, when in 1968 he began hosting a blues radio show on LA's KPPC FM 99.3. This led to a 12 year radio stint on KLON and KCRW, which started in 1980. He co-produced (with George "Harmonica" Smith) and plays guitar on the now classic recording of Luke "Long Gone" Miles’ magnificent version of “Hello Josephine”, originally issued on Kent records. He was a founder of the legendary Long Beach Blues Festival. He has always kept a great band together, and often promoted veteran blues artists who would appear as special guests on his shows. In the early '90's, Bernie started a record label, Bee Bump Records, and produced records by Papa John Creach and his longtime partner, the late Harmonica Fats. He teaches blues classes at Cal State Long Beach, and has been an advocate of Louisiana Red in recent years. He will bring his blues wisdom and kind voice to the Rhythm Room for a show this Sunday, as he tours in support of his new CD, Old School Blues on Bee Bump Records. The Rhythm Room is located at 1019 E. Indian School Road, Phoenix, AZ 85014. Doors open at 7pm, cover charge is $7. This night will be a patio smoking only event; no indoor smoking will be permitted.
• Blueswax article and photo exposé from Delta Groove showcase: A warm thank you to Blueswax, the great weekly online blues magazine, for their recent reflection of the 3rd Annual Delta Groove Showcase last May at Ground Zero Blues Club in Clarksdale. This show brought together both Delta Groove Artists, plus artists who label chief Randy Chortkoff describes as "the extended family of Delta Groove Records". Bob Corritore and the Blue Witch Record label are proud to be in that extended family. Appearing at the showcase were The Mannish Boys, Phillip Walker, Jackie Payne/Steve Edmondson Band, Los Fabulocos (with Kid Ramos), The Insomniacs, Debbie Davies, Jason Ricci, Mike Zito, Mikey Junior, Marco Pandolfi, Bill Sims and Mark LaVoie, Lionel Young, Cedric Burnside and Lightnin’ Malcolm, a Blue Witch label showcase with the Rhythm Room All-Stars, Big Pete Pearson, Dave Riley, and Tomcat Courtney, and many others. Delta Groove has put the article and photo page on their website. To see the photos by Scott Allen and Jen Taylor, click here; and to read the article by Art Tipaldi, click here.
• Sam Lay, Bob Riedy, Eddie Kobek as Special Guests at the Chris James/Patrick Rynn CD Release Party at the Rhythm Room:. The Rhythm Room's party celebrating Chris James and Patrick Rynn's new CD, Stop And Think About It on Earwig Music, keeps on growing! The event, which takes place August 1-2, 2008 at the Rhythm Room in Phoenix now boasts a special lineup of Chris James, Patrick Rynn, Bob Corritore, and special guests Sam Lay, Bob Riedy, and Eddie Kobek. Sam Lay and Eddie Kobek are two of the best Chicago blues style drummers around, and they both appear on the CD. Sam Lay received a Blues Music Award earlier this year as "Best Blues Drummer"; and, in addition to his drumming, will be a guest frontman for part of each night. Bob Riedy is a great piano player, who was the most active bandleader and blues promoter in Chicago during the 1970s. He headed the Bob Riedy Blues Band, which served as a revue for a revolving lineup of frontmen including Carey Bell, Eddie Clearwater, Johnny Littlejohn, Johnny Young, Jimmy Rogers, Sam Lay, Andrew Jeffery, B.B. Jones, and others. His RMR Productions was crucial in bringing blues to the North Side of Chicago during the 1970s, and helped bands such as Magic Slim & The Teardrops, J.B. Hutto & The Hawks, George "Wild Child" Butler, Otis Rush, Howlin' Wolf, and Jimmy Dawkins secure gigs and win audiences that they would not have without his promotional efforts. Chris and Patrick's new CD will show the world the power of their great blues partnership, which often is overlooked while it serves as a consummate backing role in numerous settings backing various veteran blues artists. As members of the Rhythm Room All-Stars, Chris and Patrick are key players, and the band maintains the tradition and utility that was exemplified in the 1970s by the Bob Riedy Blues Band. To see the cover art of the new CD, click here.
• Thanks, Blues Guitar News! Blues Guitar News is another great online blues magazine. Thanks to blues guitarist/editor Mike Dolins for including a photo, logo, and link to Bob's website. To check out Blues Guitar News, click here.
• More Great Reviews for Tomcat Courtney! Tomcat Courtney/Downsville Blues on the Blue Witch Record label continues to rack up unanimously great reviews in various publications. The latest is a review from France's ABS Magazine, written by Jean-Luc Varbes, and another from DJ Gary Miller from Bluessource. Thank you, ABS Magazine and Bluessource! To see these reviews of Tomcat Courtney/Downsville Blues and 14 others, click here.
• Dave Riley and Bob Corritore looking forward to performing at the Cognac Blues Festival in France: The BMA and BBMA-nominated duet of Dave Riley and Bob Corritore will be heading overseas at the end of July to participate in the Festival Cognac Blues Passions in Cognac, France. Also appearing at this festival will be an eclectic mix of blues and roots, which includes Willie King & The Liberators, Etta James, Joan Baez, Marie Knight, Beverly "Guitar" Watkins, and many others. The 6 day event runs from July 22 - 27, 2008 and is one of the most highly regarded blues festivals in Europe. The Cognac Blues Festival boasts of 120 performances in various stages, and Dave Riley and Bob Corritore are scheduled to perform Friday and Saturday, July 25-26, 2008. The festival website does not list the full lineup, but does give some great information about the event, and can be viewed by clicking here.
• New Honeyboy Edwards photo page! We have just added a photo page honoring the great Honeyboy Edwards to www.bobcorritore.com. Honeyboy Edwards, now 93, is the greatest living delta blues guitarist, and just this year he won a Grammy® award for his participation in Last Of The Great Mississippi Delta Bluesmen: Live In Dallas (featuring Pinetop Perkins, Robert Lockwood, Jr., Henry Townsend, and Honeyboy Edwards) on the Blue Shoe Project label. For our photo page, Michael Frank (Earwig Music label chief and Honeyboy's manager and harmonica player) donated a program from Honeyboy's 1979 Carnegie Hall appearance. If anyone has vintage photos of Honeyboy (50's 60's or 70's) that they would be willing to contribute to this page, please send them via jpeg. To see our current Honeyboy photo page, please click here.