One of the coolest stories from Iowa Blues history, and Iowa State University history,(My alma mater!) is that for about a year Big Bill Broonzy called ISU, and Iowa home. In the early 50s Bill was having health problems due to the smoky clubs in Chicago. He had played a concert at ISU, and was hoping to find a job on a farm in Iowa! He wrote to a professor at ISU who found him work as a janitor. For a year Big Bill recuperated in Ames, and eventually got well enough to perform for students and faculty. Bill enjoyed his brief stay in Ames, and joked that he went to college there. Eventually Bill was offered several thousand dollars to perform in France. Once he left for France Big Bill restarted his career, and only returned to Ames to pick up his stuff. However, he died of throat cancer in 1958.
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Artist Of The Week Big Bill Broonzy
One of the coolest stories from Iowa Blues history, and Iowa State University history,(My alma mater!) is that for about a year Big Bill Broonzy called ISU, and Iowa home. In the early 50s Bill was having health problems due to the smoky clubs in Chicago. He had played a concert at ISU, and was hoping to find a job on a farm in Iowa! He wrote to a professor at ISU who found him work as a janitor. For a year Big Bill recuperated in Ames, and eventually got well enough to perform for students and faculty. Bill enjoyed his brief stay in Ames, and joked that he went to college there. Eventually Bill was offered several thousand dollars to perform in France. Once he left for France Big Bill restarted his career, and only returned to Ames to pick up his stuff. However, he died of throat cancer in 1958.
Photo Of The Week Jay Taylor Of Chilihead Records
This weeks photo is none other than the guy who made the Iowa Blues showcase sound so good. Jay Taylor, owner of Chilihead Records, recorded, mixed, and edited together around 16 two hour shows that later became the Iowa Blues Showcase. Jay did an excellent job, and if you happen to hear one of the Iowa Blues Showcase recording on my internet radio station then you are listening to his work. Jay made us all sound like pros! Be sure to click on the title of the post it will lead you to Jay's webpage.
Saturday, October 6, 2007
Blues Historian On The Air!!!
I finally gave up and bought me an internet radio station. (Click Here to listen) I know that the possiblities of internet radio going bye, bye, are still pretty good, so I thought I would get online on a monthly basis, and if things go south with Sound Exchange, then I would bail out. Please give the station a listen too. I think you will be surprised at the talent in Iowa!!! I plan on doing some live broadcasts in the future. If I do a livecast I will probably play everyone. So stop on by and enjoy the blues:-)
Friday, October 5, 2007
Chuck Berry, Eric Clapton And A Cast Of Thousands:-) Wee Wee Hours
Chuck Berry was a bluesman before he became better known as one of the originators of rock and roll. Here is a clip from Hail, Hail, Rock And Roll, back in 1986! So if my math is correct Chuck should be 81 today!! Wow! It is amazing how long some of these guys keep on playing the blues. That is the beauty of the blues is there is no age limit. As long as you can sing, you can still play the blues:-)
Tab Benoit Interveiw
Florida Emerald Coast, has an interview with Louisiana bluesman Tab Benoit. He talks about writing music, Katrina, and about his new CD. Read more HERE.
Mississippi Tourism
So did you wonder who won the contest to the delta, and how did their trip go? Wonder no more! Our good friends down at Visit The Delta have a some blog posts from the winner as she took her trip down through the Mississippi Delta. You can check out her adventures on the Mississippi Delta myspace page HERE.
KUNI Blues Bash Eddy Clearwater
A press release from KUNI about the upcoming Blues Bash in Waterloo
For immediate release: October 5, 2007
Contact: Scott Vezdos, 319-273-3497
The KUNI Blues Blowout returns to the Electric Park Ballroom in Waterloo on Saturday, November 17, 2007 featuring versatile, flamboyant Chicago blues rocker, Eddy “The Chief” Clearwater touring in support of a brand new release.
With his distinctive blend of Chuck Berry-style rock (and the occasional duck walk) and Magic Sam-influenced West Side blues, combined with his left-handed/upside-down guitar playing and dramatic stage performances, Eddy Clearwater quickly developed a reputation as a great showman with a diverse repertoire. He recorded several singles (for Atomic-H, LaSalle and Federal) and worked steadily in Chicago-area nightclubs for the next 20 years, remaining one of Chicago's hidden treasures until recognition of his talents began to come from abroad in the late '70s.
His 1980 U.S. debut album, The Chief (named after Clearwater's affinity for wearing the full Indian headdress given to him as a good luck charm), was the first release on Chicago's fledgling Rooster Blues label. His next album, recorded for England's Red Lightnin' label, won a W.C. Handy Award for "Best Import Blues Album."
Clearwater continues to tour across the U.S. and Canada, Europe, Asia, and South America, performing 200+ concerts a year. With his powerful left-handed guitar playing, unique hybrid of West Side blues and relentless rockabilly, stage costumes, and high energy performances, Eddy "The Chief" Clearwater lives up to his reputation as one of the most versatile and colorful entertainers to have emerged from Chicago's blues scene. The Chicago Tribune proudly declares him "Chicago's premier blues showman."
A half century after his arrival in Chicago, Eddy "The Chief" Clearwater is still making history.
Opening the show is the 2007 Iowa Blues Challenge winners, Matt Woods & the Thunderbolts, from Des Moines. From the delta to the hills, the Thunderbolts thumping rhythm and stomping slide workouts will remind you what real party music is meant to be.
Showtime is 8:00 p.m. Tickets are $20 in advance ($25 at the door). Advance tickets can be ordered online at www.kuniradio.org (in the STORE section) or by calling KUNI weekdays at 319-273-6400 or 800-772-2440, ext. 0. Advance tickets are also available at Bob's Guitars in Cedar Falls. All proceeds benefit KUNI Public Radio.
Financial support is made possible by The Warner Group, Inc. (Waterloo); Veridian Credit Union (Waterloo); Dyton Creative (Cedar Falls); Impact Marketing Technologies (Waterloo); and The Blackhawk Hotel (Cedar Falls).
Scott Vezdos
Marketing Manager/Special Events Coordinator
KUNI/KHKE Public Radio
University of Northern Iowa
3rd Floor, CAC
Cedar Falls, IA 50614
p: (319) 273-3497
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Eric Clapton: Groaning The Blues
Old Slowhand, playing a cool cover of Otis Rush's Groaning The Blues. I think the thing about Eric is that he plays the blues better now then he ever did in his glory days of Cream. I think he learned, and a lot of us learn as we get older, that it is not the number of notes you play, but the quality of the notes you use:-)
Blouboss: Mister Cash
Here is a video from my friend Blouboss. It is a tribute song to Johnny Cash. It is in French, so I hope all my visitors from France get a chance to listen to this!
Joe Bonamassa BITS
Another cool article about Blues in the Schools. This time it is an interview with Bluesman Joe Bonamassa, who was a child prodigy himself. For the complete article from the Round Up, a student publication of New Mexico State Click HERE.
More On Blues And Boogie In Detroit.
An interesting interview with the founder of the Motor City Blues and Boogie Woogie Festival. American Music Research Foundation president Ron Harwood talks about Boogie Woogie. Its difference from the blues, and the rise and fall of the art form. It is interesting to read, and I realize that I need to study the topic a little more, since I assumed that Boogie Woogie was part of blues. Harwood, an ethnomusicologist, states that:
Boogie-woogie, first recorded in the 1920s, was a progenitor of rock 'n' roll and eventually was surpassed by the popular musical form. "People stopped calling it boogie-woogie in the late '40s and early '50s because it sort of had gone past its prime, and the eight-to-the-bar rhythm was changing from a piano left hand to an electric bass," says Harwood. "In the mid-'40s after the war, blacks came back from the war, and some of the newer forms of jazz were beginning, and jazz became a black intellectual music. And when that happened it became taboo for black artists to play boogie-woogie. It died very quickly.To read the article in total from the Detroit Free Press, Click HERE."Boogie is meaningful to me because we needed to get guys like Sugar Chile Robinson interviewed. Because it became such a taboo music, a lot of these boogie players just retired, or went to playing lounge music. A lot of them toured in vaudeville. They backed up blues musicians like Muddy Waters. Pinetop Perkins was Muddy's piano player and he was essentially a boogie player.
"So we're just trying to catch these boogie guys, pay justice to that music, understand that it was the foundation of rock 'n' roll."
Update Gary Smith Memorial
Here is updated information from the Des Moines Register. GARY LEE SMITH
DES MOINES
published in The Des Moines Register on October 04, 2007
Gary Lee Smith, 55, passed away at Kavanagh Hospice House, Des Moines, on Monday, October 1, 2007.
Funeral services will be 10:30 a.m. Saturday, October 6, 2007 at Caldwell- Raddatz Funeral Home, 8201 Hickman Road, Urbandale, IA.
A visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, October 5, 2007.
Gary was born in Des Moines on July 9, 1952 to Chester Smith and Mary Louise Swinehart.
He attended William Jewell College in Liberty, MO.
Gary worked as a warehouse man at Emco Enterprises.
Gary enjoyed music, the St. Louis Cardinals, and Kansas City Chiefs.
He was the lead singer in the band "Land Sharks" and also a member of UAW.
Survivors include his sisters, Judy (Ronald) Noyes, Peggy Higday;
brothers, Randy (Alice) Smith, Greg Higday, Jeff Higday;
cousin, Crystal (Alan) Farnsworth; nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by the love of his life, "Clover Buckingham"
A Celebration of Gary's life will be at Orlando's,
4337 Park Ave. in Des Moines, starting at 1 pm Saturday Oct 6, 2007.
The family would like to thank all Gary's musician friends for their time and talents.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Hospice of Iowa.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
The Curse Lives!
Here is an interesting article about possible curses that could effect the Cubs. As of press time the Cubbies are losing! Perhaps a bonehead decision to pull out Zambrano, but I think it is the goat!Anyway this article comes from Yahoo Sports.
Cubs curse talk of a hex
Wednesday, Oct 3, 2007 7:45 pm EDT
PHOENIX – The temptation to root for the forever forlorn Chicago Cubs is strong. After all, the team hasn't won a World Series since 1908, and a 99-year underdog is tough to resist. But here are three reasons to spare yourself the heartache.
The Curse of the Billy Goat, the Black Cat and Steve Bartman.
The Curse of the Billy Goat befell the Cubs during Game 4 of the 1945 World Series, and the team hasn't returned to the Fall Classic since. William Sianis brought his pet goat to the game – he had two tickets – but was escorted out of the stadium because of the goat's foul odor. Sianis, who owned the legendary Billy Goat Tavern, supposedly placed a curse on the team, and when the Cubs lost Game 7 to the Detroit Tigers, he sent a telegram to owner P.K. Wrigley that read, "Who smells now?"
The (forever capitalized) Black Cat walked in front of Cubs third baseman Ron Santo at Shea Stadium late in the 1969 season, the Cubs choked away an eight-game lead and the Mets became Amazin'. These days, Santo signs Black Cat memorabilia and it sells for $76.99 on Amazon.com.
Bartman, of course, was the Walkman-wearing Cubs fan who deflected a foul ball during Game 6 of the 2003 National League Championship Series at Wrigley Field. The Cubs were five outs from the World Series when Bartman's gaffe set off a chain of events that resulted in the Florida Marlins winning the game and advancing to the World Series a day later. Reporters have tried to locate Bartman this week without success. Friends (apparently, he has a few) say he's doing OK, but don't expect him to be throwing out the first pitch before Game 3 at Wrigley Field on Saturday.
There is much hand-wringing on the North Side these days over what calamity could befall the franchise next. Manager Lou Piniella will have none of it, though.
"There are no curses here," he said. "There never have been. It's a figment, it's good copy. But games are won or lost on the baseball field."
The Arizona Diamondbacks, of course, don't mind all the negativity surrounding their opponent. Said impish outfielder Eric Byrnes: "Bartman and the Billy Goat, I consider them teammates."
UPDATE
Ok, I turned off the TV tonight for game two. I swear I saw a goat in the outfield. Yup, It was a goat in a cubs uniform. Oh-well it was fun while it lasted:-)
Georgi And The Rough Week
I got an email tip about a great band in the California area that is doing some neat things. They appeared on Extreme Home Makeover, which is a pretty cool show that helps out people. In this case is was a show where both parents had died and that left 8 kids on their own. Georgi and The Rough Week performed for the show and here is a video of the performance.
Check out this video: ABCs Extreme Makeover - Home Edition - Cadigan-Scott Family
You can also check out their myspace page HERE, which has some great tunes on it. As always feel free to send anything blues my way. I am more than happy to help keep the blues alive by promoting local, regional, or national blues acts.
Beatles: Dont Let Me Down
I am feeling nostalgic tonight. The moment I first saw Let It Be, I wanted to play a concert on a roof top. The movie itself is pretty painful to watch. It is almost like watching a train wreck. It is really about the break up of the Beatles. As a fan of the band, and of all four of the guys in the band it is almost a sicking feeling watching them fight and bicker. But, when they get up on the rooftop and put aside all their differences the magic happens once again! It makes it worth while to sit through all of that angst just to see them making great music again. I suppose in away this is typical of almost every band. I think as musicians we fail to realize the happiness we bring to our fans, and when one band breaks up and another forms, it truly is like starting over. When we do that we disappoint those who followed the previous bands. Of course, as a fan we need to realize that a band is like a moment in time. It is there, it is beautiful, and then it is gone. Lucky for us we live in a time of audio and video recording so we can at least relive those moments. So enjoy the Beatles on the roof top one more time.
Ryan sent me this video of Taylor Hicks covering Don't Let Me Down. Enjoy!
Ryan sent me this video of Taylor Hicks covering Don't Let Me Down. Enjoy!
Carolyn Wonderland Group: Come Together
Not the Beatles Come Together, but an original blues song by a Woman who can sing, and play guitar!! Hey Marcus, Check her out!! Someone on Youtube commented that Janis Joplin has returned, and now plays guitar:-)
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