Blues Volume 2 Compilation CD

The Lehigh Valley area of Eastern Pennsylvania is something of a hotbed of blues. I’ve lived in this area since 1975 and there have always been a number of very good blues bands working the local clubs. All the musicians know each other and fill in where needed on a regular basis leading one club owner to remark, “There’s only one blues band on the East Coast. It has hundreds of members and they spread out to play whatever gigs are available!”

A local record label, Bummer Tent Records, decided in 2002 to record a compilation CD featuring the best of the local bands. The CD was a hit locally so they recorded Volume 2 in 2003. My band, The WilyGoats, were privileged to be featured on Volume 2. Apparently, we set the bar too high, as Bummer Tent never recorded another one!

Seriously, this is some good stuff. One cut features local phenom, Eric Steckel, when he was about 11 or 12 years old. He’d already been playing out for several years by that time and was blowing people away with his guitar prowess. Here’s the complete track list:

1. Mary Hawkins – Damn Your Eyes
2. The WilyGoats – I’ll Keep Comin’ Around (Click to listen)
3. Chicago Carl Snyder and Jimmy Lawrence – Finger Poppin’ Time
4. Todd Wolfe with Sarah Ayers – Light of Day
5. Thom Palmer Band – Down At The Bluetone
6. Sarah Ayers – Autumn Leaves
7. Tom Walz – Broke Down Engine
8. Illinois Slim & The Maxwell Street Band – Your Love Is Like A Cancer
9. Crosscut Saw – Always Chasing Nightmares
10. Eric Steckel Band – Blues Is A Feelin’
11. Bryant Brothers Blues Brew – Grinnin’ and Preachin’
12. Shades of Blue – Trying So Hard
13. Craig Thatcher and James Supra – Leave Me Alone
14. Doug Ashby – Lay Me Down

I only have a few sealed copies left. Grab yours today before they’re gone!

Learn To Play Blues Harmonica with Steve Guyger

My good buddy, Steve Guyger, has recently completed an instructional DVD for Hal Leonard & Co. Entitled “Blues Harmonica“, the DVD will hit the streets July 27th, 2010. If you’re a harp player, or as aspiring harp player, you’ll want to grab a copy of this one!

Steve is one of the top blues harmonica players in the world today and he shares many tips and tricks on this new DVD. Accompanied by Billy Flynn, an outstanding Chicago guitar player, the performances alone are worth the price of admission, but there’s much more.

Steve covers harmonica history, harmonica basics, harmonica techniques, sound and tone, playing chords, blues progressions, using positions and keys, playing in a band and more. The DVD includes guitar backing tracks so you can practice what you learn and try to match the technique and tone of this monster player.

As soon as I get my hands on a copy, I’ll be doing a complete review of the DVD, so stay tuned. It’s available for pre-order, so if you can’t wait, reserve your copy now by clicking the image above.

Roots, Rock ‘n Blues

2010 Blues Music Awards Nominees Announced

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.

John

Delaware River Blues Fest 2009 Report

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 J.B. Kline Band
• 2009 Blues Awards Nominee Steve Guyger and the Excellos
• The Sarah Ayers Band
• King Bee and the Stingers
• Paul Plumeri
• Joe Zook and Blues Deluxe
• The Don Mayer Band
• David Barry
• Cristina Harris

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:

Chon

Georgie “The Blacksmith” Bonds – Sometimes I Wonder

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.

Roots, Rock ‘n Blues

Living Blues Awards Voting Now Open

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.

Roots, Rock ‘n Blues

Koko Taylor – Goodbye To The Queen

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.

Roots, Rock ‘n Blues

2009 Blues Music Awards Announced

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!

Roots, Rock ‘n Blues

Is It Blues? Or Is It SRV?

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.

Roots, Rock ‘n Blues

2008 Blues Critic Awards Winners Announced

The results are in for the 2008 Blues Critic Awards Readers Poll. Blues Critic readers have spoken and the winners are:

• Blues Album Of The Year

  Kenny Neal “Let Life Flow” (Blind Pig)

  Runner-up: Sean Costello “We Can Get Together”

• Best Traditional Blues Album

  B.B. King “One Kind Favor” (Geffen)

  Runner-up: Kenny Neal “Let Life Flow”

• Best Soul Blues Album

  Curtis Salgado “Clean Getaway” (Shanachie)

  Runner-up: Johnny Rawls “Red Cadillac”

• Best Blues/Rock Album

  Elvin Bishop “The Blues Rolls On” (Delta Groove Music)

  Runner-up: Michael Burks “Iron Man”

• Best Live Or Compilation Album

  Fiona Boyes, Mookie Brill & Rich Del Grosso “Live From Bluesville” (Blues Empress)

  Runner-up: Various Artists “M For Mississippi”

• Blues Song Of The Year

  Albert Castiglia “Bad Year Blues” (Blues Leaf)

  Runner-up: “Blues Rolls On” by Elvin Bishop

• Blues Singer: MALE

  Curtis Salgado

  Runner-up: B.B. King

• Blues Singer: FEMALE

  Irma Thomas

  Runner-up: Susan Tedeschi

• Blues Guitarist

  Michael Burks

  Runner-up: Sonny Landreth

• Blues Harmonica

  Jason Ricci

  Runner-up: Steve Guyger

• Blues Keyboards

  Marcia Ball

  Runner-up: Christian Dozzler

• Blues Instrumentalist (Other)

  Larry Taylor

  Runner-up: Bob Stroger

• The BLUES CRITIC staff pick…

  Contemporary Blues ARTIST OF THE YEAR

  Kenny Neal

Congratulations to all the winners and nominees!

Roots, Rock ‘n Blues