Blues Historian: John Hammer Blues News

July 30- Aug.1: Boundary Waters Blues Fest

Ely, MN

July 31-Aug.1: Fargo Blues Festival

Fargo, MN
July 31-Aug.1: Prairie Dog Blues Fest
Prairie Du Chien, WI

Aug.1: Blues at the Barn

Red Wing, MN

* Checkout the 7 Day LIVE Blues Forecast*

Yo! Blues Buddies:

Be sure to visit www.bluemondaymonthly.com to read our entire August issue. Pass this along to friends and tell them they can sign up for this weekly e-bluesblast right on the bottom of the first page of the website. Check out the links and support yer local blues band! Hope to see you at a LIVE show soon! Until then, Take care of each other, and we'll catch up with ya real soon!

John 'blueshammer' Hammer

Major Conflagration on the Radio

Alrighty, thrillseekers. PLEASE, for your safety make sure you have a fire extinquisher, bucket 'o water, or a fire retardant blanket near your table top Zenith tube radio for the possibility that we may just set that sucker on fire! This week on Hammered By The Blues ( Sunday on KOWZ 10pm on 1170am. Classic episodes rebroadcast on line Tues at 9am and Sat at 11am on www.boundarywatersradio.com) we will definitely crank up the heat for ya with a trifecta of scortchin' guitar slingers. We will start off by gently melting yer face with Nick Moss and the Fliptops and some molten tracks off 'Live at Chan's, Combo Platter No.2'. We then will take the heat deeper and cause yer brain to burst into flames with the incendiary Ana Popovic as she melts you in place with a handful off 'Blind For Love'. To make sure we clean up what has now become a steaming pile, we will cremate the remains to micro-ash with a guy who dishes up surface of the sun like riffs for breakfast. Dennis Jones is our finisher with six string pyrotechnics off 'Pleasure & Pain'. Don't say we didn't give fair warning!

Think intense heat, then think about more;

This ain't blues hot sauce you can buy at the store;

We provide warning labels and advise you take care;

If you're too close to the speaker, you might lose yer hair!

Hammer-time!

Blues Pride
Do I have blues pride?
I don't know, but I sure wish I did.. when I listen to Buddy Guy play two blues licks on the guitar, I know I just heard "blues pride", but I'm not sure just what he did! Was it in the way Buddy tunes up his guitar.. or does he have a special guitar pick he's used for ever.. or is he like me just trying to impress the girls - well, probably not! I don't think you're born with blues pride.. I think you have to develop it along the way.. just how you do it is probably a natural thing like learning to play baseball.. it's a combination of your talents, people you play with and luck. oh.. and one more thing... a mentor of some kind that every once awhile knocks you over the head with a basebal bat - OUCH !!! Those that justify seldom convince
Did you ever hear that expression before? Well, you ought to make it your motto.. keep your mouth shut and let your playing speak for itself. Someday you'll know you've got it by the way people's heads turn wen you play two notes - and don't forget to help a young blues musician a break getting on stage with you to play a song... now that's keeping the blues alive.. good luck and funky blues! -Johnny Mayer

YOUR 7 DAY BLUES FORECAST