Bob Corritore Blues News

March 30, 2011

• Dave Riley & Bob Corritore to headline Old Town Blues Fest in Cottonwood Arizona! The Old Town Blues Fest in Cottonwood, Arizona is a full day event that happens Saturday April 2nd, at the Old Town Center For The Arts, at 5th Street & Main. Dave Riley & Bob Corritore will headline the festival which also includes Hans Olson, Joe Neri & Blues Dog, Don Whitcher, Big Daddy D & The Dynamites. For more information on this event, click here
• Pinetop Perkin's Clarksdale funeral information. This week has seen a series of rituals as the blues community says goodbye to Pinetop Perkins, one of the most loved of all blues artists. In addition to Monday's funeral in Austin, Texas, there will be another funeral, as well as a burial in Clarksdale, Mississippi this weekend.  Here is the information:

Thursday, March 31, 2011
The weekly jam at Ground Zero Blues Club will be dedicated to Pinetop in Memoriam.
Donations will be accepted.  The jam will be hosted by Philip Carter and the
Blues Underground and is an open jam starting at 8:00PM.
Visitation
Friday, April 1, 2011, 4:00pm to 7:00pm
Century Funeral Home
506 Ashton Avenue, Clarksdale, MS  38614
662-627-4182

Ground Zero Blues Club will host a reception for friends and fans of
Pinetop from 2:00PM to 6:00PM.  Hors d'oeuvres will be served and the
bandstand will be available to anyone who wants to play.

Funeral Service
Saturday, April 2, 2011, 11:00am
Century Funeral Home or larger venue TBA
506 Ashton Avenue, Clarksdale, MS  38614
662-627-4182

Burial
Saturday, April 2, 2011 - immediately following funeral service
McLaurin Memorial Garden Cemetery
Highway 61 North
Clarksdale, MS  38614

Celebration of Life and Repast
Saturday, April 2, 2011 - immediately following burial
Hopson Commissary
8141 Old Highway 49 S, Clarksdale, MS
662-624-5756

• Pinetop Reflections. Here are Bob's comments reflecting some of his many experiences with Pinetop Perkins. This appeared in last week's Blueswax ezine:

I first saw Pinetop Perkins in 1974 when the Muddy Waters Band played at my high school in the north suburbs of Chicago. Since then Pinetop has been a constant and positive force in my life. I would see him perform with Muddy close to 100 times. I was at the Soundstage "Blues Summit" filming, and at the Alligator session for Luther "Guitar Junior" Johnson, both which featured Pinetop. I first took Pinetop into the recording studio in 1980 to play on a Big Leon Brooks CD. Though I had been a fan of Pinetop, I look at this experience as the start of our friendship, and it was the first of many recording sessions we would do together. I would move to Arizona in the early 1980s and in 1991 I opened a blues club called the Rhythm Room where I would bring Pinetop to perform annually. Sometimes he would be coming through with his own band, but most of the time he came by himself and I would have my band back him. I was with Pinetop when he received 2 of his three Grammys. The first time was in 2005 when he got his lifetime achievement Grammy. There was a wonderful private luncheon ceremony at a ballroom at the Biltmore. Each of the many inductees had their entourage, and I felt honored to there as part of Pinetop's.  This entourage included his manager Patricia Morgan, Pinetop's lifelong friend Ike Turner, Kim Wilson, Paul Oscher, Mark Carpentieri of M.C. Records, and Elvin Bishop. We all felt so proud of Pinetop. The next day was the televised Grammy's ceremony, and I was on Pinetop wheelchair duty (which was a great honor). Well we had planned over an hour to get Pinetop to his seat so that at a specific determined time they would announce his award and the camera would zoom in. Well the security was not very wheelchair friendly, and despite Patricia Morgan's frantic attempts to cut through the red tape, we were made to wait at various security points. We cut it so close. So if you can imagine that on the commercial break with just a couple minute's to go, Patricia is clearing the way while I am wheeling Pinetop through the isle at top speed to get him to the 2nd row in the area where all the celebrities were strategically seated. Through all this rush, Pinetop was cool as can be. We got him to his seat, and he when it was his time, he waived to the camera and smiled for all the world to see! A few years later Pinetop got his second Grammy for his part in the CD Last Of The Delta Bluesmen. I remember a great moment at the Grammy after-party when Kim Danielson (My girlfriend of that time) and I took Pinetop outside for a smoke. I remember how lucky we felt as we watched this happy and satisfied man, puffing on his cigarette, and recalling stories of playing with Robert Nighthawk years ago in the deep south. After just receiving the highest musical honor, it was an amazing contrast of this man's experiences. It was also a joy to feature Pinetop as part of Willie "Big Eyes" Smith CD "Way Back" (which I produced). In 2009, we performed a spell-binding set together at the Bisbee Blues Festival. The last time that I saw Pinetop was in December of 2010 when we played at the Rhythm Room. During that time, Pinetop went out of his way to say "I love you" to me, which I am sure he says to many people, but it sure meant the world to me.

- Bob Corritore

To see the full Blueswax article with this and many other reflections, click here.

• A dinner for Pinetop! Please enjoy this photo of a group of Pinetop Perkins' close friends, who gathered for dinner immediately after the funeral to honor our great friend. Included in this photo are James Cotton and his wife Jacklyn Hairston, Paul Oscher, Barrelhouse Chuck, Little Frank, David Maxwell, Noel Neal, and Bob Corritore. There was unspoken love and respect for Pinetop that filled this group's collective conciousness. To see this photo, click here.
• Bob Porter to be guest on Bob Corritore's radio show! Bob's radio show Those Lowdown Blues on KJZZ will have a 2 hour guest appearance by blues treasure Bob Porter, noted for great production work, his long running Portraits In Blue, and his encyclopedic knowledge of blues and jazz music. Bob Porter will cohost the show and share musical highlights from his many productions, play a set honoring the recently deceased Melvin Sparks, and a few other musical surprises! Bob Corritore's show runs 6pm to 11pm each Sunday night with Bob Porter making a 2 hour guest appearance starting at 8pm. You can hear this show at 91.5 FM in Phoenix, or at www.kjzz.org anywhere in the world.
• Blues Births! With all the passings of legendary blues artists we are pleased to announce three newborn blues babies. Drummer Kenny "Beedy Eyes" Smith (the son of Willie "Big Eyes" Smith) reports that his wife Holly gave birth to Mae Lily Smith on January 31st, 2011, 7 lbs, 3 oz. Guitarist Little Frank (AKA Frank Krakowski) reports that his wife Melissa gave birth to Elsa Grace Krakowsi on February 8th, 2011, 7 lbs, 10 oz. This is Frank and Melissa's third child. And Kevin Johnson, the promotional director of Delmark Records reports that his wife Briana gave birth to Adeline Johnson on Saturday, March 26th, 8 lbs, 2 oz. Congratulations to all as we welcome these blessings into our blues family.
• Muddy Waters with Pinetop Perkins on YouTube! Please enjoy this video of the Muddy Waters Band performing "Champagne And Reefer" and "Blow Wind Blow" with the classic 1970s lineup of Muddy, Pinetop Perkins, Jerry Portnoy, Bob Margolin, Luther "Guitar Junior" Johnson, Calvin "Fuzz" Jones. To see this clip, click here