The Blues Foundation has recently announced the nominees for the 31st annual Blues Music Awards (formerly known as the W. C. Handy Awards). A complete list of the categories and nominees can be found on the Blues Foundation News page:
http://www.blues.org/#tagNews_862
If you’re a blues fan and not already a member of the Blues Foundation, sign up! It’s not expensive and the money goes to support the blues.
The 3rd annual Delaware River Blues Fest was held September 20th, 2009 at the Stockton Inn. Showcasing a wealth of talent from the PA/NJ area, the event was headlined by Johnny Winter, the legendary Texas guitar slinger.
Also appearing were the following area musicians:
The event benefitted SAFE of Hunterdon County (for victims of domestic abuse), childhood cancer research and NOVA (Network of Victim Assistance) in Bucks County, PA.
The following photos are courtesy of Tom Furman of Richmond, VA:
Joe Zook’s Blues Deluxe
Steve Guyger and the Excellos
Don Mayer Band with Jim Weider
Jim Weider playing his Fender 1954 Tele
Johnny Winter
Johnny Winter with his 1963 Firebird
First of all, I owe Georgie Bonds a huge apology. He was kind enough to send me his CD “Sometimes I Wonder” what is now a very long time ago and I promised to review it. Well, to make a long story short, it got buried and I’m just now writing the review I should have written months ago. So, Georgie, thanks for being so patient and my apologies for taking so long to get a round tuit!
The shame of it is that this CD deserves all the attention it can get. This is the real deal, folks, blues from the heart sung and played with skill and passion. Georgie is a great singer and his band backs him up expertly throughout this record.
Whether it’s a slow blues ballad like the title cut, an upbeat West side shuffle like “Why Cry?” or the uptown R&B style of “Sorry Baby”, Georgie nails them all. There are some musical touches such as the flute on “Killing Me” that add interest to the arrangements, but these tunes stand on their own.
Check out Georgie’s web site at GeorgieBonds.com for a sample of each cut, bio, photos and more. And if he’s playing in your area, go see Georgie and his band, The BluesKeepers.
Living Blues Magazine has opened voting for its 2009 Living Blues Awards. Ballots must be received by July 5th, 2009 to be counted, so do it now while you’re thinking about it!
Simply go to the Living Blues web site at http://www.livingblues.com then click the link at the top of the page to cast your votes.
Chess and Alligator recording artist Koko Taylor, the legendary “Queen of the Blues”, passed away Wednesday, June 3, 2009 at the age of 80. Winner of more Blues Music Awards than any other blues performer in history, her last performance was May 7, 2009 at the Blues Music Awards presentation ceremonies after receiving the Traditional Blues Artist of the Year Award for 2008.
Check out videos of Koko doing her thing here:
http://rootsrocknblues.us/videos/kokotaylor
“Koko Taylor is the great female blues singer of her generation. Raw vocal power and blustery swagger.”
– Rolling Stone
“Koko Taylor is a national treasure…she packs firepower a lot of youngsters only wish they had.”
– Chicago Tribune
“Koko Taylor is the blues…a growling goddess of down-and-dirty. Sheer, unstoppable shouting power, full steam ahead and damn the torpedoes. There are many kings of the blues but only one queen. Koko’s voice is capable of pinning a listener to the back wall.”
– Boston Globe
“Raucous, gritty, good-time blues…Taylor belts out blues in a gravel voice with ferocious intensity. Foot-stomping music that’s rough, raw and wonderfully upbeat.”
– People
“Chicago’s best blues singer…she has fire in her lungs.”
–Chicago Sun-Times
Amen.
First of all, I have to say that I’m pretty much a blues and rock guy, so when I got the opportunity to check out Natasha James‘ “Tequila Time” CD, it was a bit of a departure for me. I’m willing to listen to most anything and let it stand on its own merits. I’ve ended up enjoying a lot of different styles of music that way.
So, this is country music. I think it’s officially referred to as “alt country”, to distinguish it from what they’re calling “country” music on the radio these days. Of course, now there are sub-genres of country music: pop country, rockin’ country, redneck country…whatever. This CD is pretty close to what I used to hear as a kid some 50 years ago now. Now THAT was country!
Anyway, I’ve heard country referred to as “white man’s blues”, and that’s pretty accurate in many respects. What they’re calling “blues” these days is a lot different from what I call blues and there are sub-genres of that, now, too!
Okay, enough of that. Natasha James is a fine singer and songwriter. She wrote 12 of the 15 tunes on this disc and co-arranged the other three. Her style is laid-back and easygoing. It’s obvious she’s very comfortable in her own skin, as the saying goes. Most important, in my opinion, it sounds like she’s having a good time
The title cut, “Tequila Time”, is straight ahead country with a hint of N’Awlins. I can see why it’s getting a lot of airplay. Two of her originals, “Fillin’ Station” and “Get Out Of My Way”, written in 1982 and 1983, respectively, have a bit of an edge to them, which I like. They’re a bit more blues-like, which is probably why they stuck out for me.
That’s not to take anything away from the rest of the cuts. “Cheetah On The Run” is another tune with a Zydeco flavor to it. “If You Think This Is Love” is a bluesy hip-shaker. “Ain’t Done Nothin’ Wrong” has a Delta feel to its paranoid musings. “Let Me Cry” could easily be turned into a rock anthem. The disc closes with “Modern Life” describing the dysfunctional family life that’s becoming more and more “normal” these days.
James’ simple, dead-on lyrics paint vivid mental and emotional images. The band is tight and the musicianship is up to the standard you expect from country musicians while covering a broad range of styles. There’s a lot to like on this collection. I suggest you check it out.
I dig finding out about musicians who when you watch them play make you stare in slack-jawed amazement. I can get around pretty well on several axes, but watching people like Ben Lacy just reinforces what I learned a long time ago…some people are just on a whole ‘nother level that the rest of us can only watch and appreciate.
Check out this video on the Truefire web site of Ben Lacy doing his version of the ZZ Top tune “Cheap Sunglasses”:
http://truefire.com/tftv/index.html?channel=blacy&videofile=gptv/benlacy/gpcheapsunglasses
If you dig that, you’ll also enjoy this collection of Ben Lacy videos:
http://rootsrocknblues.us/videos/benlacy/
Enjoy!
The Blues Music Awards (formerly known as the W. C. Handy Awards) for 2009 were presented in ceremonies Thursday evening, May 7th. For a complete list of the winners, click the following link:
2009 Blues Music Award Winners
Congratulations to all the nominees, as well as the winners!
Yeah, I know it’s not blues she’s singing, or rock either, for that matter, but this lady’s got a major set of pipes! I love this kind of stuff where something comes out of nowhere and knocks peoples’ socks off.
It’s pretty obvious the judges and the audience had no idea what was coming because they evaluated Ms. Boyle on her appearance. It’s an unfortunate fact of life that we all tend to do that, despite evidence like this to the contrary. Check it out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY
As Bo Diddley said, “You cain’t judge a book by lookin’ at the cover!”
First of all, let me say that I’m a huge Stevie Ray Vaughan fan. The man was simply a brilliant player and had a style all his own.
I find it really interesting that people tend to either love Stevie’s stuff or hate it. I don’t find many that are indifferent to it. I guess that’s a sign of great art, or in this case great music.
There’s a lot of debate about whether Stevie’s music qualifies as “blues”. Personally, I think the definition of “blues” has been so blurred over the years that you can jam almost anything into the box labeled “blues”, so the debate becomes more about whether it fits someone’s personal definition.
Stevie covered a lot of blues classics. So, did he somehow make them not blues by doing so? I don’t think so. I think he took them and put his own personal stamp on them. There’s plenty of the originals still there, but the renditions are unmistakeably SRV.
Yeah, he did a lot of stuff that’s more rock (”Voodoo Child (Slight Return)”) and some rockabilly (”The House Is Rockin’”) and other stuff that’s harder to classify (”Lenny”), but his blues stuff seems to me to fit the description. All that said, I don’t think it really matters.
Listen to anybody’s covers of blues tunes. Unless they’re trying to copy them note for note, they’re going to be different. Everybody hears the tunes a little differently and they come out sounding like Little Walter, or Big Walter, or James Cotton, or whoever is playing the song. That’s as it should be.
Frankly, it cracks me up to hear somebody try to play “Juke” exactly like the Little Walter single on Chess. Little Walter never played “Juke” the same way twice (check out the several dozen alternate takes that exist), so why should anybody else?
After Stevie’s death, brother Jimmy Vaughan said “He never played a song the same way once, let alone twice!” IMO, that’s what it’s about.
The great musicians take a song and make it their own. Sometimes that’s what turns a pretty good song into a classic. For example, who remembers “The Thrill Is Gone” before BB King’s version? Or, in Stevie’s case, “The Sky Is Crying”? Yeah, the original was a good tune and I like listening to it, but Stevie just kicked that tune in the ass.
Is it blues? I think it is, but even more, I don’t think it’s worth arguing about. It’s great music, no matter what you call it.
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