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John 'blueshammer' Hammer
Blue Monday Monthly Magazine
www.bluemondaymonthly.com
Hammered By The Blues Weekly Radio
KOWZ 1170am/ 100.9fm
510 West McKinley
Owatonna, MN 55060
Sunday, May 8, 2011
John Hammer Blues News
John 'blueshammer' Hammer
Blue Monday Monthly Magazine
www.bluemondaymonthly.com
Hammered By The Blues Weekly Radio
KOWZ 1170am/ 100.9fm
510 West McKinley
Owatonna, MN 55060
Bob Corritore Blues News
- Last night at the BMAs in Memphis, Tennessee Bob Corritore & Friends / Harmonica Blues picked up the win as Historical Blues Album of the year. Bob would like to congratulate all award winners in all categories. Bob would also like to thank the Blues Foundation for this great honor. Bob Corritore and Randy Chortkoff were presented the award by actor Jason Lee of My Name Is Earl. Bob would like to thank Delta Groove Records, DJs, writers, publicists, and everyone who believed in, and got behind Bob's efforts. More news to follow on the BMAs as Bob is traveling to Europe now to perform at the Moulin Blues Festival, and then a week of touring. This collaborative effort featured so many wonderful musicians, representing many traditions of the blues, all who also take part in this win. The following is a list of the 2011 Blues Music Award winners:
Acoustic Album of the Year
Last Train to Bluesville
The Nighthawks
Acoustic Artist of the Year
John Hammond
Album of the Year
Living Proof
Buddy Guy
B.B. King Entertainer of the Year
Buddy Guy
Band of the Year
The Derek Trucks Band
Best New Artist Debut
On the Floor
Matt Hill
Contemporary Blues Album of the Year
Living Proof
Buddy Guy
Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year
Robin Rogers
Contemporary Blues Male Artist of the Year
Buddy Guy
DVD
Ruf Records
Songs from the Road
(Luther Allison)
Historical Album of the Year
Delta Groove
Harmonica Blues
(Bob Corritore & Friends)
Instrumentalist-Bass
Bob Stroger
Instrumentalist-Drums
Cedric Burnside
Instrumentalist-Guitar
Derek Trucks
Instrumentalist-Harmonica
Charlie Musselwhite
Instrumentalist-Horn
Eddie Shaw
Instrumentalist-Other
Sonny Rhodes (Lap Steel Guitar)
Koko Taylor Award
Ruthie Foster
Pinetop Perkins Piano Player
Dr. John
Rock Blues Album of the Year
Live! In Chicago
Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band featuring Hubert Sumlin, Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Bryan Lee and Buddy Flett
Song of the Year
"Living Proof"
Tom Hambridge/Buddy Guy
Soul Blues Album of the Year
Nothing's Impossible
Solomon Burke
Soul Blues Female Artist of the Year
Irma Thomas
Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year
Solomon Burke
Traditional Blues Album of the Year
Joined At the Hip
Pinetop Perkins & Willie "Big Eyes" Smith
Traditional Blues Male Artist of the Year
Charlie Musselwhite
Last Train to Bluesville
The Nighthawks
Acoustic Artist of the Year
John Hammond
Album of the Year
Living Proof
Buddy Guy
B.B. King Entertainer of the Year
Buddy Guy
Band of the Year
The Derek Trucks Band
Best New Artist Debut
On the Floor
Matt Hill
Contemporary Blues Album of the Year
Living Proof
Buddy Guy
Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year
Robin Rogers
Contemporary Blues Male Artist of the Year
Buddy Guy
DVD
Ruf Records
Songs from the Road
(Luther Allison)
Historical Album of the Year
Delta Groove
Harmonica Blues
(Bob Corritore & Friends)
Instrumentalist-Bass
Bob Stroger
Instrumentalist-Drums
Cedric Burnside
Instrumentalist-Guitar
Derek Trucks
Instrumentalist-Harmonica
Charlie Musselwhite
Instrumentalist-Horn
Eddie Shaw
Instrumentalist-Other
Sonny Rhodes (Lap Steel Guitar)
Koko Taylor Award
Ruthie Foster
Pinetop Perkins Piano Player
Dr. John
Rock Blues Album of the Year
Live! In Chicago
Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band featuring Hubert Sumlin, Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Bryan Lee and Buddy Flett
Song of the Year
"Living Proof"
Tom Hambridge/Buddy Guy
Soul Blues Album of the Year
Nothing's Impossible
Solomon Burke
Soul Blues Female Artist of the Year
Irma Thomas
Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year
Solomon Burke
Traditional Blues Album of the Year
Joined At the Hip
Pinetop Perkins & Willie "Big Eyes" Smith
Traditional Blues Male Artist of the Year
Charlie Musselwhite
Bob Dorr And The Blue Band Update
Tonight (Fri. 5/6) is the final First Friday GEEeeeeeZER Gig for the season, at The Hub, 4th & Main, Sparkle City USA. Remember, we're moving to the second Friday when the series starts again in October. Kick off the weekend with pizza by the slice, a few adult sodas, lots of dances, and still be home for the 10 o'clock news! We play 6-9:30 ish. We're hoping that Avis' husband brings out the green guitar (or any of the other 399 guitars he has on the wall at Bob's Guitars) Eddie joins Al in the horn section and we're looking forward to the high school horn players sitting in on some tunes. What's not to like, right Avis? BRING CAKE! Stayin' with the mother theme, The Hub has been the mother of all Blue Band employers again this past year. More than 10% of all our gigs in the last calendar year came from The Hub. Thanks to Marcus and staff and house soundman Josh Hubrig for another great Friday evening season. Remember The Hub is also hosting the Blue Band's hometown Birthday Party on Sat. June, 11, 7-10p. Outside in the beer garden if possible, inside if necessary...
Saturday (5/7) Jeff and I are doing something we haven't done in over 10 years: Play a date as a duo. Fortunately, Jeff has some new fangled electronic gizmo that makes us sound like a 40 piece band with horns and slide whistles. I'll be the drummer/harmonica player/singer, Jeff will be the other 37 guys, as well as sing 3-part harmony at the same time. The event is really a fundraiser for The Food Chain, a new feed-the-poor initiative in Cedar Rapids. Most of the money they hope to raise is from the sale of the original works of art that are currently on display in the "gallery" part of The Sub City Sandwich Shop (421 1st Ave, SE) Have a sandwich, buy some art, feed the poor, and hear a 40 piece orchestra from 6-9pm. CheeseCAKE would be perfect for this gig...
Then we are not currently scheduled to play until May 22, with the big kickoff to the summer season happening over Memorial Day weekend (it'll be interesting to see if we can physically still do 3 full shows, and drive 300 miles in 36 hours!) Let us know if you need entertainment for that Welcome Spring garage/deck/block party in the next couple of weeks...
It seems that I have gotten the mother of all sicknesses. The antibiotics have taken away some of the sore throat and ear pain, but my sense of sweet taste and appetite seems to have vanished. This is not all together a bad thing, as I dropped another 3 pounds, getting ever closer to my high school football playing weight. (ya shoulda seen me throw that ball) (preparing for an attempted comeback in case the NFL has no season this year) I've been treated by a medical doctor, a chiropractor, and a dentist. The dentist says I need to go back to the oral surgeon. And I just want to taste some devil's food CAKE!...
So this week's Backtracks radio show is another rerun (the show that featured all the recently rediscovered vinyl in Iowa Public Radio libraries) I'm hoping to feel well enough to do a live call-in/request show on 5/14 and, thanks to so many people who responded to last weeks note, the Horn Band Special, scheduled for May 21, is already half done! The playlist, much of it suggested by people on this list, or people on my Facebook page, currently includes: Chase, Tower of Power, Sly & The Family Stone, The Buckinghams, Chicago, Average White Band, Isley Bros., Edgar Winter's White Trash, South Side Johnny & The Jukes, Blood Sweat and Tears, Isis, Lighthouse, Sons of Champlin, Delbert Mc Clinton, Commander Cody, Delaney & Bonnie & Friends, Joe Cocker, Willie Murphy and the Bumble Bees, The Fabulous Flippers, Buddy Miles, Cold Blood, and The Ohio Players. And that's just the first half of the show! Let me know if you have any other suggestions, I'll be finishing recording that show in the next few days...
My mother was an incredible woman. She could make unbelievable dinners for 8 people, out of thin air, anytime The Little Red Rooster Band or The Blue Band showed up at her door at 2am in the morning. I was a fat kid because of the bite size, special recipe, frosted, apple/cinnamon/chocolate chip cookies she would make. Her gardening skills allowed her to grow roses that flourished, outside, enduring year after year through the brutal midwestern climates that she lived in her entire life. She could manage a catered ballroom or special event like no other because she had a work ethic that was inspiring. I was her only child. I would give everything I have and mortgage the house twice if I could spend one more hour talking with her so I could thank her for everything she did for me...
Unless we get some last minute work, there probably won't be a Blue Note next week (you'll have to be on your own to remember to get those Riverboat/Blue Band Anniversary Party tickets on The Spirit of Dubuque Riverboat, June 3) See ya on The Blue Highway, rub yer washboard tie to the tune of Mama Told Me Not To Come, let all the mothers in your life know how you feel, strawberry shortCAKE makes the perfect Mother's Day dessert, and don't forget we love you (my friend Chuck commented that I really must have been sick last week because I forgot to remember to remind you of our affections) Bob Dorr & The Blue Band
Illinois Blues News
© 2011 Blues Blast Magazine
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| From The Editors Desk Hey Blues Fans, The Blues Music Awards Ceremonies were held last night in Memphis, TN. Big winners included Buddy Guy who took home 5 trophies including Album of the Year , B.B. King Entertainer of the Year, Contemporary Blues Album of the Year , Contemporary Blues Male Artist of the Year and Song of the Year. Charlie Musselwhite picked up two more BMA wins and Solomon Burke who won both Soul Blues Album of the Year and Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year. Sentimental favorite of the awards show was Robin Rogers who won Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year. Robin passed away this year just a couple days after the 2011 BMA nominees were announced. We have a complete list of all the winners at the bottom of this issue. SCROLL DOWN Noted photographer Marilyn Stringer was there to catch all the fun for Blues Blast Magazine and we will have her complete photo coverage of the show in an upcoming issue. Good Blues To You! Bob Kieser In This Issue Chefjimi Patricola has our feature interview with Eden Brent. Rainey Wetnight reviews a new CD by The Curbfeelers. George "Blues Fin Tuna" Fish reviews a new CD by Blues International. Steve Jones reviews a new CD by Eric Bibb. John Mitchell reviews a compilation CD by Popa Chubby. Mark Thompson reviews a new CD by Rich DelGrosso & Jonn Del Toro Richardson. All this and MORE! SCROLL DOWN!!! |
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Featured Blues Story - Eden Brent Interview
| A dynamo whether on piano or vocally, Ms. Eden Brent has taken the Blues world by storm over the last few years. A fan favorite on the Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise where she holds court at the piano bar, or trading licks with other keyboardists at piano showcases. But her relaxed self-effacing posture hides what is a truly talented musician and deeply interesting lady of the Blues. I was thrilled to get the chance to sit down and talk to her about how she got here, and where she is headed. Enjoy !  BB: To start with, tell us about Boogaloo Ames and your relationship with him. You, being pretty much, a white girl of privilege, and him, the classic black musician. How did you meet? EB: Boogaloo had been living in the Mississippi Delta since the mid-1960’s but moved to Greenville, my hometown in about 1980. As a young teenager, I heard Boogaloo at parties and restaurants. When I was fifteen, he played my boat christening party after I christened the M/V EDEN BRENT, a towboat built and owned by my family shipyard and river transportation company. A year later he played my older sister’s wedding reception, and a few years after that, he played a celebration honoring my father as the King of the Queen of Hearts Ball, a kind of Mardi Gras type celebration here in my hometown. So I had seen Boogaloo play many times, and he was sort of a fixture all over the Delta. Everybody in the Mississippi Delta knew Boogaloo, and he normally entertained the white, wealthy social class here. All of the wealthier folks loved him because he could play anything, all the old jazz standards, popular country songs like “Release Me” and popular rock and roll songs like the Beatles’ “Yesterday.” He could play it all and he was very charming and charismatic. They all respected him, and I never heard him say “Yes Ma’m” to anybody like I had been brought up to do and some of the older folks from his generation customarily do. He drank with the white, wealthy, social class and visited with them and entertained them. They adored him. Everybody adored him. BB: What was it that drew you in, to want to learn at his side? EB: I always admired him but didn’t consider asking him to teach me until I enrolled at University of North Texas. Before that, I had planned on being a rock star. I had played in a couple of rock bands as a junior high and high school student, but usually the guys didn’t really want me or maybe even any chick in the band. They only needed me to play stuff like the piano solo in “Freebird” or the synthesizer solo in The Cars’ s song “Just What I Needed” or that cool opening synth sound and solo in Rush’s “Tom Sawyer”. As a freshman in music college at UNT, I was not making much progress learning how to play, really. I was learning a lot about music theory but having a hard time putting a practical application to the jazz harmonies and jazz concepts that were introduced. In other words, I could talk about jazz harmony but I couldn’t play it. I would go to hear Boogaloo on college breaks and request certain tunes, and Boogaloo and I developed a kind of friendship. He knew my parents of course, but we were developing a friendship of our own. On college break sometime in 1984, I asked him if he would teach me. He taught me during my college breaks, nearly every time I came back to Mississippi. I even took a break from UNT for about nine months, moved home and worked as a commodities broker in training briefly, then attended classes at Delta State University. Boogaloo taught me during this time, too. I returned to North Texas to complete my bachelor’s degree in music theory. Throughout it all Boogaloo was providing the practical education that I really valued and the very thing I was not getting in music school. His style was magical. I watched people light up when they were near him and when they were listening to him play. He made everybody laugh and smile and dance and tap their feet. Everybody loved Boogaloo, and I wanted to learn to give people that kind of joy. After I graduated college, I studied with Boogaloo more regularly, and we applied for and received a Folk Arts Apprenticeship Grant from the Mississippi Arts Commission. The MAC paid Boogaloo to teach me twice weekly for a period of three months. I learned more in those three months than in any other single year that we worked together. I took it very seriously because we were required to submit a final report, and I wanted to make sure that I exhibited adequate progress so that he would get final payment which was sizable. Boogaloo taught me throughout our friendship, but our teacher and student relationship developed into a performing duo and a lifelong friendship which continued until his death February 4, 2002. We celebrated birthdays together and went out drinking and dancing. Boogaloo taught me the importance of a strong, rhythmic bass line in solo playing and some wonderful piano licks, but he also taught me how to dress properly and be gracious to the audience. He was really something. BB: You have been quoted as saying something to the effect of 'music school taught me to think, but Boogaloo taught me to Boogie", tell me more about this and the differences that exist between thinking and really playing music. What is your background musically?  EB: I took piano lessons from the age of 5 and continued throughout my high school years. I also played flute in marching and concert band in school, so I’ve been reading music from a musical staff almost all of my life. I also played piano and keyboard in junior and high school jazz band where I was first introduced to the idea of reading chords rather than notes on the grand staff. To this day, after all of these years of reading music, I am still not a very proficient sight reader, even though I practiced that craft for countless hours in my life. I always preferred memorizing or improvising. I continued my musical education at one of the more respected music colleges in the country with a very celebrated jazz department. But, there’s only so much direction that a composer can give on a musical staff. For instance, certain rhythmic figures are not easily written because when they are noted on the staff, they are actually not exactly precise. If played exactly as notated, a good bit of ragtime, blues and jazz would sound very stiff and not communicate the true essence of the composer’s intent. Much of piano boogie and blues is a little lazier than can be written on the music staff, and it sounds almost like the left hand and the right hand are independent of each other, like they are being played by two different people. Boogaloo had a wonderful grasp of this and was able to show me, sometimes note for note. And he encouraged me to practice my hands separately so that I could learn to use my hands independent of each other. Boogaloo was able to show me what the music is supposed to sound like, not what it looks like on the music staff. He taught me that music doesn’t have to be precise. It’s really more the essence of music that is important and memorable and moving. The academic education that I received at North Texas did help me to understand the techniques that Boogaloo was teaching me. Most importantly, my academic education gave me tools that aided my understanding and helped me to remember what he showed me lesson to lesson. I also recorded our lessons on a cassette recorder, but having notes and figures notated on staff paper to help me practice the licks and bass lines he was showing me was very helpful, and I would not have had good ways to communicate that without my North Texas experience. The two types of education actually complemented each other nicely, and neither without the other would have been as effective. In other words, the whole was much greater than the sum of the parts. I’m really lucky to have had both experiences, and I think it gave me a more rounded musicianship. I’m very proud of my music degree from North Texas and also very proud of my time with Boogaloo. BB: With Pinetops' passing, where does that leave the state of piano blues?  EB: Pinetop was the eldest, celebrated living blues piano player from his era, so many of his contemporaries are many years departed. He also lived long enough to be a role model for another three generations of piano players, at least. So, he has influenced a lot of pianists that will continue to share his style with the world. During the Pinetop Perkins Foundation Workshop in Clarksdale last year, I saw the faces of students of all ages light up when Pinetop came around. He had a way of inspiring people with his presence. He had such a gentle demeanor, and even though he won so many countless awards, he always carried his fame with tremendous grace and was happy to give anybody the time of day. He never lost his connection to his humble roots, and that humility communicated to the folks around him. He made time for anybody from Senators to laborers to the unemployed and never let his fame overshadow the compassionate human being that he was. He seemed to take it all in stride, the fact that he had worked very hard as a laborer himself, that he had to quit playing guitar after he got stabbed in the arm, and all of his fame and recognition, too. He took all in stride. He seemed proud but not the least bit prideful. He set such a fine example for the rest of us to follow, and I think all of us will honor that and strive to be as generous a musician as he was. Certainly there will never be another Pinetop, but we do have a shining example to strive towards. His influence on blues piano will be heard for generations to come, and his influence cannot be overstated. Piano blues will be in the capable hands of those that Pinetop inspired who will continue his legacy and pass it on to future blues pianists. And thankfully we have some fine recordings to help continue his legacy. I’m so happy that he lived to be the oldest Grammy winner and to celebrate that recent Grammy with Willie “Big Eyes” Smith. It is a fabulous reunion album of two living legends who have paved the way for the rest of us. The Pinetop Foundation will carry on Pinetop’s legacy through the annual workshops. The second annual workshop is scheduled for June 15 – June 17, 2011 in Clarksdale. Scholarships are available for students under the age of 21, but students of all ages are encouraged to participate. Ann Rabson will once again lead the piano classes, and this year’s workshop features the addition of a guitar workshop, led by Bob Margolin. More information can be found at PinetopPerkinsFoundation.org. BB: You won the the Pinetop Piano Player Award from the Blues Foundation at the BMA's, what was your relationship with Pinetop? EB: I met Pinetop at his Homecoming in Clarksdale in October 2002 held annually at Hopson Plantation. Ike Turner was in town, too, and I met both of them there. Ike had been a student of Pinetop’s way back, and I noticed that Pinetop was wearing a suit just like Ike’s band members had been wearing that weekend. It showed me that Ike still had a great admiration for Pinetop and was looking after him a little. I was completely star-struck, of course, and Pinetop was really sweet to me that afternoon. I got my photo made with him and was really excited about that. Since then, I saw Pinetop at Mississippi and blues events and always made a point to sit and visit with him when I saw him. We’d smoke cigarettes together and snicker at all the pretty gals passing by. I played at the Mississippi Blues Trail Marker unveiling in Clarksdale in 2008 where Pinetop was an honoree. I started into “Pinetop’s Boogie” to encourage Pinetop to play because I could tell that everybody wanted him to. And he did, and he was wonderful. I watched him with adoration during his short set that day and gave him a big tip for playing. We only worked on the same stage together once, at a Mississippi Grammy event in 2009. I was really proud to sing a duet with him at that event and knew that the moment would always be a career milestone in my memory. Then, last year, when my name was announced as the Pinetop Perkins Piano Player Award recipient, I know the smile on my face must have said it all. What a moment! I’ve never really felt like music is a contest, and I take awards for what they are: a way to celebrate everybody, not just trophy takers, but all of the nominees. Winning an award isn’t necessarily the measure of one’s ability or quality of one’s work, but winning does validate your music to some extent, and it really meant a lot to me to hug and kiss Pinetop and his manager Pat Morgan at that “winning” moment and to pay homage to Pinetop and to my mentor, Boogaloo. I admire Pinetop and am really proud of his Mississippi roots, and I want to honor his memory and follow his example. The Pinetop Piano Player Award is really the award I have wanted more than any other, and I am so grateful that I was able to live that moment while Pinetop was still with us. I’m grateful that he shared that moment with me. It don’t get no better than that.  BB: You are equally adept at the many different ranges within Blues music, from soft heartfelt ballads, to melancholy tunes, to shout and stomp jook joint boogie, both on piano and vocally. Do you have a favorite within these styles? EB: I am very blessed to have an eclectic taste in music so I enjoy performing and appreciate lots of styles. I really enjoy entertaining and have always considered myself a better entertainer than a recording artist. I try to tackle various styles so that my shows can have a beginning, middle and end, just like a sonata or a stage play would have. In order to try to keep the audience’s interest, I try to incorporate boogies and ballads and shuffles and slow blues and soul songs and even some comedy, at least with funny songs. I work to keep the show interesting for everybody. Boogie is about the most fun to play, but I like to vary the rhythms and moods of the songs so that the show flows. When I sing a mournful ballad, I sometimes start to cry, and while I want to move the audience, I don’t really want to make them sad. So I try to offer happy songs and funny songs to give a little comic relief. I do love to sing ballads, like “Leave Me Alone”. I want for the audience to feel something, to forget their troubles, to hopefully transcend the moment and leave the show with the feeling that they’re glad they came. I like all of it, but not all repeatedly throughout a show. For instance, I used to work with a blues band that performed a lot of tunes in a row that vamp on only one chord with maybe a certain catching riff, songs like “Wang Dang Doodle”. I love that song, but I don’t want to play it “all night long.” Eventually, I want to change keys or play a chord progression or a different groove or rhythm. So, I love playing all sorts of grooves and keys and tempos, but I enjoy all of them best when they are followed by something contrasting but complementary. BB: How did you develop your vocal style? EB: What’s really funny is that I’ve never really considered myself a singer first, always a piano player first, but more people respond positively to, or compliment my voice than my piano playing. It’s kind of ironic that I spent years and years trying to be a piano player and most audiences think of me as a singer first. I always sang, ever since childhood. Everybody in my family sings. We sing together during family holidays and gatherings and harmonize nicely together. I grew up in a house where we often sang together after supper and nearly always sang a song or two for guests who visited. Often when I and my family are guests of a party, we are coaxed into performing a tune or two. So I suppose that my voice sort of developed naturally. In music school at UNT, voice was my second instrument, but I was studying classical voice, very different than the more popular style that I sing now. I was singing soprano then, too, and I am definitely an alto in my chest voice or popular voice. It seems much more natural to me because even my speaking voice has always been rather low. I am repeatedly referred to as “Sir” on the telephone, much more often than “Ma’am.” What’s great is that even though I never felt that my voice was suited for classical or opera, many of the techniques that I learned were helpful for any style. For instance, breathing from below the diaphragm (as I had also learned when playing flute in high school band) is helpful to maintain more vocal and pitch control. Opening my mouth and throat gives better vocal tone and control. Even visualization techniques are helpful. For example, if I imagine the pitch above a high note that I am having trouble hitting or that I tend to sing flat, it helps to more consistently hit the proper note. My visualizing the pitch above the high note, or trying to sing that problematic note a bit sharp helps to achieve the desired pitch. All in all, the thing that developed my vocal style is singing a lot and singing everything from arias to Aretha. Singing is on one hand very simple because even babies can do it. But on the other hand, singing is complex because there are many things to focus on: annunciation, breath, pitch, vibrato, dynamics, melody, phrasing, rhythm and emotion. The trick is to somehow use all of the elements of the voice and melody to convey the message of the song, whether pensive or sassy or humorous, whatever. I love to sing, and I am thankful that my voice has been well received by audiences. The voice is the most universal and powerful instrument in the world. I’ve listened to and mimicked many voices and even horns and violins. I love lots of singers, but probably my most favorite are the voices that are unusual or androgynous and voices that have a lot of overtones. The voices that I am least drawn to are those that are simply pretty without being distinctive. I would rather listen to a not so pretty voice sing with feeling than a pretty voice sing without. I wouldn’t say that I have any major influences exactly. Anybody who I have ever heard sing has influenced me, and I love listening to both men and women. I’ve listened to many different styles, but my study of jazz probably colored my style more than anything else, besides Boogaloo. I studied the jazz greats like Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole, Mel Torme, Dinah Washington, June Christy, Chet Baker, Billie Holiday, and loads of others, as well as many blues and soul greats. One of my most influential albums was Aretha Franklin, Aretha Sings the Blues, recorded in 1965, I think, and on it she not only sings great blues but plays great blues piano, too.  BB: Besides Boogaloo, and Pinetop - who were your influences for you piano playing? EB: Boogaloo was overwhelmingly my major piano influence, but I have listened to lots of pianists and have been influenced or at least impressed by most of them. I studied the jazz styles of Art Tatum, Errol Garner, Horace Silver, Nat King Cole, Bill Evans and other greats. I also studied blues piano records like Memphis Slim and Floyd Dixon, but I was most drawn to the women who sing and play, like Julia Lee, Camille Howard and Katie Webster. Boogaloo didn’t mention a lot of contemporary piano players, so it wasn’t until some years after we got together that I learned about contemporary greats like Marcia Ball. She and I actually know each other now, and it knocks me out that I am friendly with somebody whose music and career inspired mine. One of my newer inspirations is the best kept secret in blues music, Memphis pianist and singer Di Anne Price who delivers a song with as much charisma as anyone on the planet ever has. BB: Let's see, in 2006 you won the IBC's, in 2009 you walked away with 2 BMA's, and in 2010 the Pinetop Perkins Piano Player Award, dang, that's not bad ! EB: My career progress before becoming a member of my local blues society versus afterwards is remarkable. The Mississippi Delta Blues Society of Indianola sponsored me at the 2006 IBC which introduced me to The Blues Foundation, and the rest has been like a blues fairytale. I know that “blues fairytale” sounds like an oxymoron, but it’s the best way I can describe it. Apparently, I had the proper tools for a greater success, but The Blues Foundation and its membership introduced me to a worldwide audience that enjoyed my music. Since Boogaloo’s passing, the most important relationship that I have developed in his absence has been that with The Blues Foundation which changed my life exponentially. BB: Where does Eden Brent go now ? EB: I’m headed to the top of course, but that doesn’t mean I won’t have to crawl back up from the bottom! The great thing about music is that the sky is the limit. In other words, there are no limits. I continue to strive towards developing my musicianship, style and performance. In music or any other art form, the blessing is the curse, since the artist’s pursuit is endless. Every success is satisfying, but no success is truly satisfactory. Every success celebrated, of course, but only tentatively because the drive toward progress is so strong. It is a blessing to always have something to strive for, but likewise, it is a curse to always have to strive for something. I want to continue to write songs that folks relate to, make albums that people respond to and perform shows that audiences connect with, but I want to do these things with increasing perfection. Perfection can’t ever be reached, naturally, but the pursuit of it is relentless. I would be delighted to win awards, stay on the charts, and get great reviews, but pleasing myself and satisfying audiences are very personal and enduring rewards. As I’ve said before, while trophies, charts, reviews and other accolades validate one’s music to some extent, the musical pursuit is ongoing and very personally rewarding. I love connecting with people and visiting new places. Very often I am humbled by the kindness and generosity of music fans from all over the world. BB: Your latest release 'Ain't got No Troubles' was produced by Colin Linden, how was it to work with him? EB: Colin is an absolute joy to work with. He is very knowledgeable about sound gear and microphones and techniques to achieve the right sound, and he’s an expert at conveying the mood of a certain song. He has loads of very technical knowledge and ability, but he is also very personable and charming and clever and funny. He is tasteful in every way, personally and in his many musical professions. Colin is a truly versatile musician and not at all limited to any particular style of playing. He did fabulous guitar work on the album and exactly what was appropriate for the material. I love his playing and it enhanced the music in all the right ways. He is also a great song writer and one of the most played and requested songs on the album is a tune of his called “Later Than You Think” which has a mysterious sort of edge and chord changes that are really fun to play. I also had a ball playing that piano solo. He wound up making the most honest studio recording of me ever, and I am so pleased with it. I admire him very much not only because of his tremendous ability as a producer, engineer and guitarist, but I also admire him because of his very easy disposition. Recording has never been more relaxed for me, and his method completely erased all my fear of the studio and the recording process. He knew that I was intimidated by the process, yet he made it so easy. All I did was play and sing, and he did everything else. What’s interesting is that as a teenager years ago, Colin came to Hollandale, Mississippi, only about 25 miles from my home, and apprenticed with Sam Chatmon of the Mississippi Sheiks, much the same way that I apprenticed with Boogaloo. I am sure that I probably saw Colin at Chatmon’s grave marker dedication in Hollandale years later, but we weren’t introduced at the time. It’s too bad. Interestingly, I didn’t know this story about Colin and Sam until we had been in the studio for a couple or three days, but I have often thought this shared history contributed to our getting on so well. Colin is a genius and a man of many hats, although you wouldn’t know it by looking at him. He wears the same damn outfit everyday, and I love it! He is my Blues Rabbi. BB: How did you two meet, and what drove you to work together for this release?  EB: Colin and I met at the Blues Music Awards in 2009. I believe that we spoke briefly at the awards, and then were introduced again the next day at Marcia Ball’s noon show at Alfred’s. Bill Wax looked at me with a seriousness and encouragement and said, “Here’s somebody you need to know,” just before introducing me to Colin. I was looking for a producer at that time, and I was aware of Colin’s work with others, particularly the two albums he produced of Janiva Magness, which I adore. Later in the year, I emailed Colin and asked if he would be interested in producing a record for me, and in his reply he wrote that he would “cartwheel through the streets of Memphis” to make a record with me. Well, when I read that, I knew he was just right for the album. I was already a fan of his work and flattered by his enthusiasm. I am so happy that we met and made the album together. I am very proud of it. I think it’s a great record that has a certain timelessness, and I’m not saying that because it’s mine. I’m saying that because Colin Linden did a spectacular job. The record could not have been any better. It is exactly what I wanted but did not know how to describe or achieve. Mississippi Number One had been really well received and was awarded the Blues Music Award for Acoustic Album. I wanted to follow that success with something different that could once again please the listening public. I wanted Ain’t Got No Troubles to be fresh and delightful, and Colin did that. What’s funny is that on about day three of tracking I met Colin a little bit earlier, before everybody else got to the studio, and I leaned over to him with worry and quietly said, “Colin, I don’t want to make Mississippi Number Two.” He laughed and assured me that it wouldn’t be. Boy was he right. I am very proud of Mississippi Number One. It is a fine album that I believe also has longevity, and I still love listening to the whole album. I especially love rolling all the car windows down and listening to the title track at maximum volume while driving Highway 1 at maximum speed, but I didn’t want to make the album twice. And Colin didn’t. He made exactly the album I would have produced if I knew how. BB: What are you up to these days ? EB: Last year was crazy busy with recording Ain’t Got No Troubles then promoting and releasing it. Lately my schedule has been slower than I enjoy. I am glad I got some time to rest, reflect and get myself together after a busy year, but now I’m getting a bit restless. My touring schedule picks up later this summer, but this year has had an unusually slow start. I am using the idle time to plan and develop the concept for my next album. I am still not sure exactly which direction this album will take me, but having the leisure time to knock around new ideas is kind of a luxury, and I’m enjoying that creative process at the Mississippi Delta pace. I’m writing some new songs and developing songs from an ongoing collection of song ideas that I maintain. I’m also practicing licks and bass lines and grooves that I should have mastered years ago, and I’m learning some new classic songs that I’ve always wanted to add to my repertoire. Again, I want my next album to do be fresh and different. I don’t want to make Ain’t Got No Troubles II either. Ain’t Got No Troubles came to me by way of the title song just a week before I went into the studio with Colin, so sometimes the perfect ideas come together at just the right time, but in their own time. I look at each album as a new adventure and a way to continue my musical journey. I want to grow and develop as a musician and songwriter and hope that each new album will show progress. I don’t have any idea how some recording and touring artists are able to record, promote, release and tour a new album nearly every year. That pace amazes but would exhaust me. After all, I’m from the Delta, and we don’t get in too much of a hurry around here! I’m still developing my songwriting abilities, and that craft requires practice. Music is an art form, but it’s also a business, and making an album is a great way to continue to promote and market your business. Perhaps I will even hone my business and marketing craft. I am hopeful that someday I might learn to be a more organized and better businesswoman. The only problem with all that is that if I had actually wanted a business career, then I would have likely chosen something a little more lucrative than a career in blues music, but guaranteed, it wouldn’t have been nearly this much fun or this rewarding! I guess that’s the blues for sure! BB: OK, here's one for ya. tell us about some music that you listen to purely for Eden Brent? Stuff that not many people know you listen to? Like in my case my guilty music pleasure is sometimes going back to listen to Paul Revere & The Raiders...LOL...what's the stuff no one would ever imagine you liking? EB: I have so much favorite music! My favorite late night radio stations are the gospel ones like “Hallelujah FM” and the true blues stations where the DJ talks through most of the song, giving shout outs and singing along with the record and talking about the recording artist who’s singing. Right now on my turntable is Mozart’s Symphony 29 in A Major. In my cassette deck is a recording of my 32nd birthday party where all my Greenville blues friends showed up to play. In my car CD player is my sister Bronwynne’s new album that is my absolute new favorite thing. I love Ray Charles and Betty Carter singing “Ev’ry Time We Say Goodbye” and I’m a sucker for cool rock and roll like Yes’ “I’ve Seen All Good People” or “Roundabout.” Several years ago my sisters and I were performing at a local festival. In the middle of our concert we launched into AC/DC’s “You Shook Me All Night Long.” It was a wonderful choice, right there in the middle of my boogie and blues and my sisters’ country, folk and indie singer/songwriter stuff and all three of us harmonizing on classics like CSN’s “Helplessly Hoping.” I love Thin Lizzy doing “The Boys Are Back in Town,” and one of the best rock and roll songs ever written is “Stranglehold” by Ted Nugent. I guess the rock and roll would be the most surprising to people who’ve heard me, but I don’t know. The blues had a baby and named it rock and roll, right? Interviewer Chefjimi Patricola is a classically trained chef, blues loving writer and creative master of Blues411.com. He can also can be found on FaceBook and at festivals and clubs in your neighborhood and town. For other reviews and interviews on our website CLICK HERE |
Featured Blues Review 1 of 5
 The Curbfeelers - Grit ‘N’ GrooveSelf Release Styles: Full band sound in Up-tempo Blues, Soul, Funky Rocking rhythms, Slow Female- Vocal Love Songs, New Orleans rhythms When it comes to music, deciding whether it’s “good” or “bad” is a matter of subjective opinion. Case in point: Some listeners like the sound of horns in blues music. Other listeners can’t stand that! However, this reviewer feels that in the case of the Curbfeelers and their latest CD, “Grit ‘n’ Groove,” there lies a certain patch of common ground. Blues music is not meant to make people feel melancholy or depressed. On the contrary--it’s meant to chase the blues away and let listeners know that someone understands (about being broke, losing love, and adult dilemmas). “Grit ‘n’ Groove” does exactly this and more. Every single one of this fun album’s songs banishes one’s blues. The Curbfeelers, a Blues and Soul band based in Arlington VA, have been playing Chicago Blues and Soul music in area clubs for the past several years. The band was formed in 1997 with some talented local musicians. Laying down the "Groove" is the rhythm section of Sally Swan (bass, vocals, and background vocals) and Jeff Miles on drums. Working that "groove" and filling out the band are none other than: Pete Connell (songwriter, guitar & vocals), Peter Runk (songwriter and keyboards, David Harris (songwriter, blues harp), and the horn section: Neil Reedy (trumpet), Charles Dharapak (Baritone sax), Tom Anderson (tenor sax), and Howard Levine (alto sax). Diversity and enthusiasm are their fortes. On this, their third record, all but one of the fourteen songs on “Grit ’n’ Groove” are band member originals, and the quality makes one glad no songs were left off, replaced by remakes and covers. “Try to Satisfy” takes a commanding lead as the swinging blues first track. Sally Swan on sassy vocals sings, “My baby went out shopping down at the mall. He bought me a diamond ring--I said, ‘Take it back, it’s too small!’ I know you’re trying. Baby, can’t you see? I know I satisfy you. Why can’t you satisfy me?” Even though this kicker and the funky “Got Love” are notable earworms, Swan’s finest singing comes on slower songs like the fantastic “If I Knew Now.” As for Pete Connell, who performs “grittier” numbers, his highlights are “Red Wine (with red-hot guitar), the New Orleans flavored “[Back to the] Cul de Sac,” and the hilarious “Coal for Xmas.” Check out the wry “Jingle Bells” riff on the end! The Curbfeelers feel the blues deep down, and it shows. No matter what your personal taste in blues instruments, “The Curbfeelers” will make you feel fantastic! Reviewer Rainey Wetnight is a 31 year old female Blues fan. She brings the perspective of a younger blues fan to reviews. A child of the 1980s music, she was strongly influenced by her father’s blues music collection. For other reviews and interviews on our website CLICK HERE |
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Blues Society News
Send your Blues Society's BIG news or Press Release to:  You can submit a maximum of 175 words or less in a Text or MS Word document format. Mississippi Valley Blues Society - Davenport, IA The Mississippi Valley Blues Society presents the 2011 Mississippi Valley Blues Festival July 1 -3, 2011 in Davenport, IA. Artists scheduled to perform include Linsey Alexander, Jimmy Burns, Eric Gales, Paul Rishell and Annie Raines, Dwayne Dopsie and the Zydeco Hellraisers, RJ Mischo with Earl Cate with Them, Smokin’ Joe Kubek & Bnois King,“Way of Blues” Revue from Mississippi on Friday July 1st, Chocolate Thunder, Kevin Burt, Lionel Young Band, Johnny Nicholas, Ryan McGarvey, Peaches Staten, Mississippi Heat, Joe Louis Walker and a Koko Taylor Tribute featuring Nellie “Tiger” Travis, Chick Rogers, Jackie Scott and Delores Scott on Saturday July 2nd, and The Candymakers, Winter Blues Kids, Studebaker John and the Hawks, Harper, Chris Beard, The Paul Smoker Notet, Rich DelGrosso and John Richardson, Sherman Robertson, Mitch Woods and his Rocket 88s and Otis Clay on Sunday July 3rd. For more information or to purchase tickets visit www.mvbs.org or call (563) 322-5837 The Alabama Blues Project - Northport, AL Rural Members Association and the Alabama Blues Project presents the 14th Annual Freedom Creek Festival in honor of the late, great Willie King. The festival will be held Saturday, June 2nd 2011 from 11am until 10 pm at “Cookieman’s” Place at 1438 Hwy 17 South/Wilder Circle, Aliceville, AL. The Rural Members Association is proud to announce the 14th Annual Freedom Creek Blues Festival founded by the late great Willie King and held this year in his honor, following his untimely passing in 2009. Lineup: international blues stars Super Chikan and Homemade Jamz will headline the show. The festival will open gospel music from the Mississippi Nightingales. Blues bands will play all day, including the Alabama Blues Project Advanced Student Band, local bluesmen Clarence Davis and “Birmingham” George Conner, the Alabama Blues Women Review including Shar Baby, Rachel Edwards, B.J. Miller and Debbie Bond. Birmingham blues great Elnora Spencer band, Little G Weevil, the Missississippi Blues Boys . . . and more! Admissions is by suggested donation of $10. For more information: www.willie-king.com or call (205) 752 6263. The Santa Barbara Blues Society - Santa Barbara, CA The Santa Barbara Blues Society is the oldest existing blues society in the U.S. The next SBBS show will be on June 11 with dynamic band Café R&B! Check www.SBBlues.org for more info. The Henderson Music Preservation Society - Henderson, KY The Henderson Music Preservation Society peresents the 21th Annual W.C. Handy Blues and Barbecue Festival in Henderson on June 11-18. The festival will host performances in a wide variety of blues styles, from gritty Chicago blues to smooth soul to Delta blues. The lineup includes Preston Shannon, The Amazing Soul Crackers, The Cold Stares on Wendesday June 15, Matt Schofield and Terrance Simien & the Zydeco Experience on Thursday June 16, Dana Fuchs, Guitar Shorty, Deanna Bogart, Mightychondria, Beasley Band, Damon Fowler on Friday June 17 and John Primer with special guests, Lurrie Bell and Eddie Shaw, The Dynamites featuring Charles Walker, Carolyn Wonderland, Lionel Young Band, Eden Brent and Damon Fowler on Saturday June 18. For more information about the festival, go to www.handyblues.org or contact: Christi G. Dixon at cdixon@handyblues.org, Marcia Eblen at marcia@hendersonky.org or call 1-800-648-3128. The Blues Kid Foundation – Chicago, IL Columbia College Chicago, Artistic Director Fernando Jones, and the Blues Kid Foundation proudly present the 2nd Annual Blues Camp July 12 to 16 at Columbia College Chicago Music Center • 1014 S. Michigan Avenue • Chicago. This fun-filled experience will give national and international student musicians ages 12 - 18 an opportunity to learn and play America’s root music in the Blues Capital of the World, Chicago. Students will receive professional instruction in the hands-on, user-friendly environment of Columbia College Chicago’s South Loop campus. Placement in ensembles is competitive, and student musicians (intermediate-to-advanced skill levels) must audition for positions. Openings for beginner-level students may also be available. Chicago-area student musicians are expected to audition in person Auditions will take place Saturday April 23 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM at Columbia College Chicago Music Center 1014 S. Michigan Avenue • Chicago. Out-of-town and international student musicians may audition by submitting online video links to BluesNewz@aol.com by Friday, May 6, 2011. For Updated Information Visit www.Blueskids.Com & Watch The Blues Kids TV Special or contact Fernando Jones, Blues Ensemble Director Email: Bluesnewz@Aol.Com • Hotline 312-369-3229 The Blues Blowtorch Society - Bloomington, IL The Blues Blowtorch Society presents the 2011 Central Illinois Blues Challenge on July 15 & 16, 2011 at Tri-Lakes in Bloomington, IL during the Ain't Nothin But The Blues Festival. The winner will be sent to Memphis in early 2012 to compete as our representative in the International Blues Challenge. To be considered bands must apply by June 18, 2011. The solo/duo acts competition is to be determined based on interest. For further information and submission guidelines, please contact Deborah Mehlberg, Entertainment Director at: Deborah464@aol.com www.bluesblowtorch.org West Virginia Blues Society - Charleston, WV The West Virginia Blues Society presents the 4th. Annual Charlie West Blues Fest May 20 & 21, 2011 at Haddad Riverfront Park in Charleston, WV . Showtime is 4 pm to 11 pm on Friday and Saturday 1 pm to 11 pm, with after jam to follow both nights at The Boulevard Tavern. Admission is FREE ! That’s right, FREE to everyone !Over the two day period we will be having over 18 acts performing on both stages. There will be plenty of food vendors to suite your fancy along with beer and wine sales this year. The lineup includes Sit Down Baby, Izzy & Chris, Kinds of Crazy, Lil Brian & The Zydeco Travelers, Davina & the Vagabonds and Joe Louis Walker on Friday and Lionel Young Band, Slim Fatz, Mojo Theory, Sean Carney, Kristine Jackson, Smokin’ Joe Kubek & Bnois King and Ana Popovich on Saturday. For more info contact: 304-389-1439 or bkravenhawk@hotmail.com or visit www.charliewestbluesfest.com or www.wvbluessociety.org Rosedale Crossroads Blues Society - Rosedale, MS Rosedale Crossroads Blues Society presents The Crossroads Blues and Heritage Festival Saturday, May 7, 2011 at the River Resort. Highway 1 S. in historic Rosedale, MS. Gates open at 12:00 noon - music starts at 1:00. Admission $5 - adults, $1 - children under 12. Bring your own ice chest - $10 No beer sold - No glass - No pets, please! Parking $5 Lineup ( in order of appearance - subject to change): Vinnie C., Eddie Cusic, Mickey Rogers, T-Model Ford, Daddy Mack, Big T, Guitar Mikey and the Real Thing, and Eden Brent. Fest Feast on Friday evening, May 6 at the River Resort with a 5-course Creole dinner, $50 per person - Cash bar. Limited seating. Call 662-759-6443 or 662-897-0555 for reservations and information. If you have questions about the above information, call 662-402-6251. Thank you. Mary Anna Davis Crossroads Blues Society www.rosedaleblues.com The Friends Of The Blues - Watseka, IL 2011 Friends of the Blues shows - April 26 - The Rockin’ Johnny Band, Bradley Bourbonnais Sportsmen’s Club, May 03 - Too Slim and the Taildraggers, 7 pm, Kankakee Valley Boat Club, May 19 - The Sugar Prophets (2011 IBC Finalists), 7 pm, Bradley Bourbonnais Sportsmen’s Club, June 23 - Sean Chambers, 7 pm, River Bend Bar & Grill, July 13 - Reverend Raven & C.S.A.B., 7 pm, River Bend Bar & Grill. For more info see: http://www.wazfest.com/JW.html Illinois Central Blues Club - Springfield, IL The Illinois Central Blues Club presents “Ladies Sing The Blues For Illinois WINGS” Saturday, May 7, 2011 at 7:00pm at the Hoogland Center for the Arts, Theater III, 420 South Sixth Street, Springfield, Illinois. This special concert is to raise awareness and funds for Illinois WINGS, a non-profit organization whose mission is to bring quality breast cancer treatment to women and men in central and southern Illinois regardless of their ability to pay. Female vocalists scheduled to appear will include Mary Jo Curry, Ruth LaMaster, Brooke Thomas, Josie Lowder, Lorrie Eden and Lori Ann Mitts and will be backed up by Tombstone Bullet who will serve as the house band for the event. Admission to the concert is $10.00 at the Hoogland Center Box Office or online at http://www.hcfta.org/tickets.html . Net proceeds from ticket sales will be donated to Illinois WINGS. Also every Monday night for the last 25 years - BLUE MONDAY SHOWS - Held at the Alamo 115 N 5th St, Springfield, IL (217) 523-1455 every Monday 8:30pm $3 cover. May 9 - The Blues Deacons, May 16 - James Armstrong, May 23 - Eric "Guitar" Davis and the Troublemakers, May 30 – Steve the Harp, June 6 – Matt Hill, June 13 - Frank Herrin & Blues Power, June 20 – Roger ‘Hunnicane’ Wilson, June 27 – Jim Suhler & Monkey Beat. icbluesclub.org The Alabama Blues Project - Northport, AL The Alabama Blues Project is proud to present the annual "Blues Extravaganza" Friday May20th 6pm at the Bama Theatre, 600 Greensboro Avenue, Tuscaloosa AL. The show features Grammy winner Sugar Blue and the Alabama Blues Project student blues musicians. Sugar Blue is the Grammy-winning harmonica player who has played and recorded with Johnny Shines, Willie Dixon. Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder and the Rolling Stones, amongst many others. This annual celebration is the culmination of the Alabama Blues Project's after-school Blues Camp program and features our young students, alongside internationally renowned blues artist. The event will feature blues all night long showcasing our Blues Camp musicians' bands and our Blues Instructors Bruce Andrews, Shar Baby, Stuart Bond, BJ Reed, Debbie Bond and BJ Miller. Tickets available at brownpapertickets.com - general seating $12.50, VIP $35 and $50. For further information call (205) 752 6263 or email info@alabamablues.org www.alabamablues.org . We are on Facebook! |
Featured Blues Review 2 of 5
 Blues International - Smooth and Slippery at Atlantis Blues International (Australia) 13 tracks - Total time: 53:28 Melbourne, Australia’s Blues International takes its name from the multi-country origins of its members: guitarist/vocalist Tommy Blank is Swedish, guitarist/vocalist Chris Dawes in British, and both drummer/vocalist Les Oldman and bassist John Dynon are Aussies. The group’s live-in-the-studio debut CD, Smooth and Slippery at Atlantis, takes its title from its recording at Atlantis Sound—hence the rather unusual name. A good part of the strength of Blues International is the versatility of its personnel; three vocalists, and two guitarists who are able to alternate on both rhythm and lead. In addition, two of its members, Les Oldman and Chris Dawes, are also songwriters, having together penned seven of the CD’s 13 tracks. All four musicians comprising Blues International are long-time veterans of Australia’s pop and blues music scene. Also know for his custom-made guitars and amps, Tommy Blank credits the late British blues guitarist Peter Green as his chief influence, and Green is further given special thanks by the band as a whole on the CD jacket. The CD features three Peter Green compositions, with Blank taking lead roles on two. These are track 1, the lyrical non-blues instrumental “Albatross,” and track 5, the blues-rock “Oh Well,” two well-known songs quite familiar to listeners of classic rock radio. Needless to say, Tommy Blank takes the guitar lead on the lyrical non-blues instrumental, “Albatross,” and half-talks the vocals and does lead guitar on the blues-rock “Oh Well,” done here essentially as an extended instrumental with vocal breaks, each of them highlighting two different verses. The third Peter Green number, track 10’s “Watch-Out,” is a lesser-known traditional Chicago-style boogie shuffle, with Chris Dawes on rhythm guitar and vocals, and Tommy Blank again on lead. Three other songs on the CD are also non-band originals. Track7, “Need Your Love So Bad,” sung by Chris Dawes, is a slow, insistent, blues ballad whose theme is nicely summed up in the title; track 9, also sung by Dawes, is an up-tempo blues lament again summed up by its title, the loneliness of living in a “Cold, Cold World.” Les Oldman does the vocals on the last non-band original, track 13’s magnificent contemporary medium-tempo blues of money problems and promises to creditors to take care of them, as the title proclaims, “Soon as I Get Paid.” Oldman also joined with three other non-band members to compose the lone instrumental here, the drum-showcase “Show Off,” track 8, where his chops are amply displayed amidst a simple, direct, riffing tune. Chris Dawes contributes two originals, and Les Oldman four originals and is fitting, each sings his own tune. Dawes has the honors on track 3, “Help Yourself,” a rocking soul number that takes from both Motown and Stax influences; and again on track 11, “Raisin’ Hell,” with its mid-50s blues, even rockabilly, feel. Les Oldman enters on track 2, the rocking philosophical number of fooling others for a time but being found out, “Smooth or Slippery,” and does another rocker on track 4, “Lovin’s Got Me.” He switches to more traditional blues approaches on the Jimmy Rogers-reminiscent jump, “Gotta Go,” track 6, and the contemporary-sounding song of shyness getting in the way, “Old Time Me.” Tommy Blank and Chris Dawes complement each other nicely as the group’s dual guitarists, and there’s a nice separation on the recording that displays each well: Dawes comes out of the right speaker facing the listener, and Blank the left. While Dawes’ favorite groove is playing rhythm guitar in tandem with the rhythm section, but he is an able soloist as well, and his mellower, lower-register lead approach melds nicely with Blank’s crisper, more often high-note, lead attack. Blank also fills in nicely as a rhythm player when Dawes is playing lead, and each has ample lead space. The same complementariness graces the diverse vocalists as well. Blues International demonstrates with strength that is an accomplished ensemble that can draw from several versatile, skilled performers, each of whom contributes unselfishly to the total sound, yet where each also has his own space to work things his way. Lastly, despite the CD’s length it flows seamlessly and well throughout, and never leaves the listener with an irritated desire to glance at his watch. Even though several of the numbers contain longish, extended instrumental approaches, there is never a sense with the listener of any track being overlong, or of being undermined by gratuitous overplaying. Which is to recommend both Blues International and Smooth and Slippery at Atlantis as more fine offerings from a bourgeoning and creative Australian blues scene that literally spans this island continent from Harper’s and Dave Hole’s Perth on one end to Tasmania’s Pete Cornelius and Melbourne’s Blues International on the other. Reviewer George "Blues Fin Tuna" Fish hails from Indianapolis, Indiana, home of blues legends Yank Rachell and Leroy Carr. He has written a regular music column for several years. He wrote the liner notes for Yank Rachell’s Delmark album, Chicago Style. He has been a blues and pop music contributor for the left-wing press as well, and has appeared in Against the Current and Socialism and Democracy. For other reviews and interviews on our website CLICK HERE |
Featured Blues Review 3 of 5
 Eric Bibb - Troubadour Live13 tracks I finally got to see Eric Bibb live about 5 or 6 years ago. If you have never seen him live, you are missing out on something that you must try to get to see and hear. Sure his CD work is spectacular and when captured live on a special recording like this one you get to hear and feel his depth and power in singing, songwriting, lyrics and playing. But live he is even better. Kudos to Telarc for capturing the electricity and spark of a fine live show- it really transmits the feel of a spectacular show! Recorded in Upsala, Sweden, about 50 miles north of Stockholm, Bibb is joined by Swedish guitarist Stefan Astner who has recorded with many of the music industry greats including Ray Charles, Ian Hunter and Celine Dion. Glen Scot, Andre De Lange and Paris Renita are known collectively as the gospel trio Psalm4, who Bibb worked with before (both individually and as a group) and join him in the latter half of the live show.. The set opens with “The Cape”, a tune that hearkens back the child-like innocence of putting one’s mind to impossible tasks and achieving them despite what adults would deem impossible odds. It is a nice opening track from one of the top blues story tellers and it precedes even more great tunes. He then introduces Astner and the two get into a rousing “New Home” and the title track; Bibbs acoustic guitar and Astner’s electric guitar blend beautifully on top of Bibb’s storybook lyrics. They slow it down for the next four cuts, again harmoniously blending acoustic and electric guitar in a tasteful and delicious blend and then raise the tempo up slightly for two before a final slow number encore entitled “For You”. The Pslam4 singers do an amazing job with Bibb. On “Connected”, Bibb features DeLange in a moaning Zulu chant. Paris is amazing “For You” while all three harmonize nicely with Bibb on “New World Comin’ Through” and “Thanks for the Joy”. The final two tracks are from the studio that first goes down to the country and then into a reggae style. “Put Your Love First” is a slow country duet with Troy Cassar-Daley and “If You Were Not My Woman” is pretty much a joyful, straight up reggae Bibb delivers sweetly. This is really a fine and amazing CD that shows this talented man and the talented people he makes beautiful music with. I give Bibb high marks for this great high CD and recommend it for anyone who wants to see how amazing acoustic blues can be and how they can be jazzed up with electric guitar tastefully and yet maintain the spirit of raw, acoustic blues. For other reviews and interviews on our website CLICK HERE |
 Blind Willy Willing To Crawl Available now at |
Featured Blues Review 4 of 5
 Popa Chubby – The Essential Popa Chubby16 tracks; 74.58 minutes Popa Chubby (real name Ted Horowitz) has been a prolific performer and recording artist since the mid 1990s. He is very popular in Europe and plays frequently right across the continent as well as back home in the States. He is originally from New York and this CD represents a value for money ‘Best Of’ collection from his decade-long association with Blind Pig. I have kept an interested eye on this guy since the first time I saw him. Not just because he played a good set, but also because of the way he behaved towards the main band that night. He was supporting Little Feat in London and after playing his set he immediately installed himself at the front of the theatre to watch the entire Feat set, paying rapt attention to the two guitarists, Paul Barrère and Fred Tackett. I observed that here was a young guy intent on learning as much as possible from an opportunity to watch two great players in action – all credit to him. On this collection we have tracks from all Popa Chubby’s albums with Blind Pig apart from his two Hendrix covers CDs, “Electric Chubbyland Vols 1 and 2” and the compilation of early tracks “The Hungry Years”. All material is original except for three covers, live versions of “Hey Joe” and “Hallelujah” and AP Carter’s “Keep On The Sunnyside Of Life”, though the version here is a far cry from the Appalachian country original! Chubby plays all guitars and harp (as well as drums and bass on two tracks), supported by a variety of bass and keyboard players and drummers. I expect that most readers will be familiar with Chubby’s output, but for those who are not what you get is plenty of cranked up guitar, lots of slide and good tunes. From an early stage in his career he has blended a wide range of influences, including something of a rap feel in some tracks – opening track “Daddy Played The Blues And Mama Was A Disco Queen” is one such example, “Life Is A Beatdown” another. The tracks here are an excellent introduction to the big man’s repertoire, offering a cross-section of styles. “How’d A White Boy Get The Blues” is almost a country blues, “Somebody Let The Devil Out” features some strong harp work as well as slide. “Slide Devil Man Slide” comes into similar territory, with an element of autobiography in the lyric. “Like The Buddha Do” is very catchy, as well as funny. Chubby has a way with his titles and ones such as the slide-driven rocker “If The Diesel Don’t Get You Then The Jet Fuel Will” is an immediate winner! The earliest song here is a live version of his first big success “Sweet Goddess Of Love And Beer” (a concept the guys can easily relate to) which featured on his first album released on Okeh in 1995. It’s classic Chubby, catchy tune and an amusing, slightly unusual lyric. The longest tracks are a respectful version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” which stands up very well, in my view, to other better known versions and “Grown Man Crying Blues” which is a classic slow blues, beautifully played. My personal favourite here is “Back In My Baby’s Arms” which is a real rocker, and I also enjoyed the slower paced “Another Ten Years Gone” and the slide driven “Somebody Let The Devil Out”, but frankly every track is a keeper. The last track, the cover of “Keep On The Sunnyside Of Life” takes what was a country tune and pushes it through an urban filter – the result is an uptempo romp with a positive message, a great way to conclude the collection and no doubt the reason why it is the only exception to a strictly chronological approach. You should also be aware that Popa Chubby has issued several CDs on other labels, so if this one ‘floats your boat’ there is plenty more to listen to! Those who already have many of his Blind Pig albums will not need this CD but for anyone just getting acquainted with him this is a highly recommended place to start. Review John Mitchell is a blues enthusiast based in the UK. He also travels to the States most years to see live blues music. He was recently on the January 2011 Legendary Blues Cruise. For other reviews and interviews on our website CLICK HERE |
 Beverly Lewis All Shades Of Blues ”Forceful, robust and soulful offering from South Florida blues vocalist Beverly Lewis.” Available for download at ITunes, CDBaby and Amazon. |
Featured Blues Review 5 of 5
 Rich DelGrosso & Jonn Del Toro Richardson - Time Slips on Byself-released 14 tracks/63:35 Last year I finally made it to the Blues Music Awards show in Memphis, sponsored by the Blues Foundation. At one point during the evening, I was talking with the great guitarist, Billy Flynn, who had just done some Blues in the Schools programs for our blues society. Billy grabbed someone walking by and immediately introduced me to Jonn Del Toro Richardson. Jonn is the award-winning guitarist who has gained fame for his work as a member of Diunna Greenleaf's Blue Mercy Band. Flynn spoke highly of Del Toro's abilities and made it clear that he had a tremendous amount of respect for Jonn's work. During the discussion, Del Toro mentioned a new project that he was working on with the great blues mandolin player, Rich DelGrosso. I couldn't wait to hear what these two Houston – based musicians would come up with – but I knew it would be special. And now the wait is over. These two musical forces use an all-original program – eight by DelGrosso – as a springboard for their stunning instrumental work. Vocally, the two offer a stark contrast with DelGrosso possessing a deep, brawny voice while Del Toro has a lighter, more expressive tone. Their rhythm section is composed of Carl Owens on drums, Ed Starkey on bass and Nick Connolly on keyboards. DelGrosso romps through “Mandolin Man” on his amplified National resonator mandolin, turning the spotlight on three of his influences – Charlie McCoy, Yank Rachell and Johnny Young – and giving listeners a brief taste of their individual styles on the mandolin. Another great Houston musician, Sonny Boy Terry, provides an additional spark with his down-home harp licks. On the opening cut, “Baby Do Wrong”, DelGrosso uses a vintage Gibson mandola to get a bright, metallic sound that pairs perfectly with Del Toro's rich guitar tone. “Shotgun Blues” gets a boost from the presence of the Texas Horns – Mark Kazanoff on tenor sax, John Mills on baritone sax and Al Gomez on trumpet. Del Toro recreates the distinctive sound of Albert Collins and Connolly's B-3 organ work fills in space underneath the horns. DelGrosso takes an unflinching look the plight of working musicians on “A Gig is a Gig” with Connolly's piano driving the rockin' arrangement and the leader picking out a tasty solo on the mandolin before Del Toro finishes off the cut with ringing guitar passages. Terry's amplified harp is prominently featured on “She's Sweet”, with another booming vocal from DelGrosso. The instrumental “Good Rockin' Johnny” showcases DelGrosso playing in the style of Johnny Young. “Hard To Live With” is the longest cut on the disc and finds DelGrosso doing a humorous self-examination as the leaders dazzle you with back-to-back solos. Del Toro possesses plenty of amazing technical skill on guitar but what really stands out on this recording is the exquisite tone he achieves no matter what guitar he is playing. On the title song, his yearning vocal is punctuated by blasts from the Texas Horns, while his biting guitar statement on his '59 Strat contrasts with DelGrosso's intricate picking. “Summertime is Here” takes you deep into the Tex-Mex sound with Joel Guzman on accordion. Connolly's B-3 brings some funk to “The Real Deal” and Del Toro responds with a more forceful singing approach plus another spot-on solo. ”Katalin” is taken at a slower pace with Guzman's accordion helping set the deep groove. Del Toro's solo is an unhurried masterpiece that proves that tone wins out over speed and volume. The closing track, “Baby Please” is just the two leaders on a lowdown blues, with Del Toro's darkest vocal turn over his menacing guitar sound. DelGrosso is nominated for the fifth time for a Blues Music award for his skill as an instrumentalist. Del Toro won the Albert King Award as the best guitar player at the 2005 International Blues Challenge. And when musicians like Billy Flynn are singing your praises, the rest of us had better sit up and take notice. If you haven't taken the time to check out them out, get a copy of this one right away. They serve up traditional blues in a variety of settings with DelGrosso's mandolin giving the music a unique texture while Del Toro provides a clinic on generating awesome sound from a guitar. This one is highly recommended !!! Review Mark Thompson is president of the Crossroads Blues Society in Rockford, IL. For other reviews and interviews on our website CLICK HERE |
| 2011 Blues Music Award Winners Acoustic Album of the Year - Last Train to Bluesville - The Nighthawks Acoustic Artist of the Year - John Hammond Album of the Year - Living Proof - Buddy Guy B.B. King Entertainer of the Year - Buddy Guy Band of the Year - The Derek Trucks Band Best New Artist Debut - On the Floor - Matt Hill Contemporary Blues Album of the Year - Living Proof - Buddy Guy Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year - Robin Rogers Contemporary Blues Male Artist of the Year - Buddy Guy DVD - Ruf Records - Songs from the Road (Luther Allison) Historical Album of the Year -Delta Groove - Harmonica Blues - (Bob Corritore & Friends) Instrumentalist-Bass - Bob Stroger Instrumentalist-Drums- Cedric Burnside Instrumentalist-Guitar - Derek Trucks Instrumentalist-Harmonica - Charlie Musselwhite Instrumentalist-Horn - Eddie Shaw Instrumentalist-Other - Sonny Rhodes (Lap Steel Guitar) Koko Taylor Award - Ruthie Foster Pinetop Perkins Piano Player - Dr. John Rock Blues Album of the Year Live! In Chicago - Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band featuring Hubert Sumlin, Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Bryan Lee and Buddy Flett Song of the Year - "Living Proof" - Tom Hambridge/Buddy Guy Soul Blues Album of the Year - Nothing's Impossible - Solomon Burke Soul Blues Female Artist of the Year - Irma Thomas Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year - Solomon Burke Traditional Blues Album of the Year - Joined At the Hip - Pinetop Perkins & Willie 'Big Eyes' Smith Traditional Blues Male Artist of the Year - Charlie Musselwhite |
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