Here’s a nice little interview with Bob Stroger done during his recent small Spanish tour.
The fabulous arts centre Pacific Road in Birkenhead, home to many a blues gig over the years has been slated for closure by Wirral Borough Council.
There are Facebook sites that has been set up to defend the centre against closure.
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=40793707133
I have been contacted by Roger Kenyon with news of a club just a few miles from my home that I have to shamefully admit that I did not know existed. Apologies chaps. Anyway Roger says….
Just thought I’d get in touch to mention a small scale acoustic/roots/blues venue I help to run in Warrington. We’re based at Appleton Thorn Village Hall and have been going a number of years.
To give you an idea of where we’re coming from, last year we had the following appear: Clive Carroll, Jim Crawford, Baker’s Fabulous Boys, Tom Doughty, Steve Phillips, Martin Stephenson and Steve Payne.
Our first two gigs this year are:
Sat 7th Feb - Andy Steele - Tickets £5 (£7 door)
Sat 14th March - Ray Stubbs & His Amazing One Man Blues Band - Tickets £6 (£8 door)Others planned for later in the year include Smokehouse Blues.
The Village Hall holds 90 at a push and is a cracking little venue as well as being the current CAMRA Club of the Year.
I can be contacted via e-mail villagehallmusic@yahoo.co.uk or on 07946 378599 if you want further details.
All the way from Pennsylvania but playing live in Finland. The real deal. Intense. Classic slow blues in the key of D. The start of the song on the old 3rd position chromatic completing by nailing the final few verses in 2nd position on the G harp then to finish the solo on the 3rd position C harp before closing with the vocals back with the 64 note chromatic.
Barbara Lynn Ozen on a Tele on the telly in 1966, Dallas Texas. Stick around for both tunes.
The great Memo Gonzalez and the Bluescasters will be in the country at the end of this month. They have often been written about here on bluesinthenorthwest.com as they are one of my favourite European blues bands.
The band have spare dates in the UK on 24 and 25 January. If anyone wants to book a fabulous band then please contact Erkan directly.
Hard on the heels of a triumphant nationwide tour, one of the country’s hottest blues performers is back on stage with an exciting new project - and he’s brought some of the UK’s finest players with him.
Alan Nimmo’s newly unleashed band King King are already creating a stir on the circuit and beyond, receiving rave reviews as they bring their electrifying brand of smoking hot blues to sell-out shows.
Perhaps best known for his work with the Nimmo Brothers (winners of a coveted British Blues Connection award for Best Blues/Rock Band) Alan’s impassioned vocals and dazzling guitar work are celebrated across Europe. Now they have a new chance to shine, performing straight ahead, kickass blues backed by some of the most accomplished players on the scene today.
Joining Alan in this blistering new project are:
Lindsay Coulson – A powerhouse of punchy, fat bass who has performed throughout Europe, Lindsay’s influences include Calvin Jones, Willie Dixon and Keith Ferguson. A cohesive player with almost 20 years under his belt, Lindsay’s warm, solid style has formerly seen him take to the stage with highly acclaimed blues acts including Ainsley Lister, as well as being a regular in the Nimmo Brothers line up.
Dale Storr - piano & Hammond organ: Inspired to play by early rock’n’roll greats, Dale took to the piano at the age of six - and he hasn’t looked back since. Now in demand across the country for his passion and skill for New Orleans-style playing, he has appeared alongside names including US R&B giant Eugene ’Hideaway’ Bridges, 60s icon Dave Berry and soul star Earl Thomas.
Dave Raeburn – drums: Dave was an original member of celebrated British blues act The Hoax, and played on their eminent debut album ’Sounds Like This’, which earned a 4 star review in Q magazine. His powerful, animated style takes influences from John Bonham, Billy Cobham and Buddy Rich, and has since seen him playing alongside the likes of Larry Miller whilst remaining a familiar face to fans of the Nimmo Brothers.
With this kind of pedigree, King King could only take their inspiration from the best in the business, ranging from legendary greats such as BB King, Albert Collins and Freddie King to the shining lights of contemporary blues like the Red Devils and Joe Bonamassa.
King King’s cracking line up and fresh new angle on the full-blooded blues sound is already in demand across the UK and beyond, and with a scorching new E.P. on release entitled Broken Heal they are ready to take the scene by storm.
Catch them while you can. Tickets are £8 in advance £10 on the door.
Tickets for the King King Gig on Saturday January 31st are available from Club Thirty Five or by sending a cheque payable to
Mr C J Denton
to
20 Whiteclosegate
Carlisle
CA3 0JD
Please ensure your address is clear or preferably enclose a SAE.
Othe upcoming gigs are..
February 28th - Marcus Malone
March 28th - Mitch Ladie Trio
April 25th - Funkdory (Provisional)
June 27th - John O’Leary
Ticket prices will be confirmed 3/4 weeks before the event.
Club Thirty Five has been recently refurbished, it has real ale and is a well priced central location in the city. It is supporting live music so let’s all support them. Membership of the club is not required to attend the gigs, but you could join.
News is in from Raphael Callaghan regarding the upcoming shows at the Fort Perch Rock in New Brighton.
Happy New Year!
Our Blues On The Rock season at Fort Perch Rock, New Brighton, Wirral, is brimming with great blues for the first part of 2009. Once again, blues duo Blue C (Raphael Callaghan, vocal, slide guitar, harmonica, and Christine Purnell, bass guitar) will host an afternoon of blues on the second Sunday of the month, from 1pm-4pm. Here are the confirmed guests so far:
Sunday Jan 11 - The JP Four (Andy ‘Jnr’ Parker’s soulful blues combo)
Sunday Feb 8 - Down At Antone’s (what can we say? The best in harmonica/guitar swing blues)
Sunday March 8 - Jim James (from the USA, Jim is originally from the UK and one of the best singers and blues songwriters this country has produced. He will also be celebrating the 40th anniversary of Jim and Raphael’s recordings with Jo Ann Kelly and Tony McPhee for the Gasoline LP on Liberty in 1969!).
Sessions start at 1pm, don’t be late! Adm £4. More details on 0151 709 5484, www.myspace.com/bluecblues, or email raphaelcuk@yahoo.co.uk
Flickr photo by The Bat-Max.
Here are some recently posted Sean Costello clips. If you recall, Sean passed away suddenly earlier this year.
The clips prohibit embedding so if you want to see, you’ll just have to follow the link.
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=bi6hDfdVsnk
I think that he pushes the timing groove of the solo a bit too much, however it is fine playing and a fine song
John Welsh has got another batch of fabulous blues coming to Liverpool in 2009. Each year just gets better and better.
Some gigs are confirmed and some are still TBC.
Thurs 22nd Jan - Kent DuChaine
Fri 20th Feb - The Stumble - Haig House Club (British Legion) in Garston
Thurs 12th Mar - The Backbones
April sometime Watermelon Slim (TBC)
Thurs 7th May - Hamilton Loomis Band
Thurs 25th June - John O’Leary Band
Late August Harper (TBC)
The gigs unless specified otherwise are at Liverpool Marina, an excellent venue, safe, with good viewing and a stack of free parking right outside.
Liverpool Marina is situated at Coburg Wharf, Sefton Street, Liverpool L3 4BP.
Tickets or information are obtainable from John Welsh on 0151 428 2855 or e-mail: johnswelsh@hotmail.com
johnswelsh@hotmail.com
Kent DuChaine Flickr photo from SJRowe53
Another Shertila upload.
Review of the Year
by Grahame Rhodes
Due to one thing and another I was unable to get out to as many as gigs in 2008, compared to previous years, however, I did manage to see some rather splendid sets.
It was a year of two festival firsts . . . Worthenbury and Maryport . . . and what two great days they were! Worthenbury, organised superbly by the three ‘Hookers’ musketeers of Pete Evans, Paul Taylor and Ian Williams, was a lovely late June day, with smashing people, fine beer and top performers . . . one of the sets of the year from The Stumble, and a first chance for me to see Dave Arcari and his revved-up ‘punk’ blues . . . . great stuff, and a lovely guy as well.
My most eagerly awaited set of the year, at Maryport, did not disappoint . . . keyboard maestro Jon Cleary and his Absolute Monster Gentlemen provided one of the finest hour’s music I have ever seen and heard! I was also quite taken with the set shared by Australian guitarists, Jeff Lang and Derrin Nauendorf . . . not strictly blues, but nonetheless superb! Bill-topper Jimmie Vaughan was sadly not on top form . . . but hey, I did manage to catch the rejuvenated Fabulous Thunderbirds at Pacific Road in Birkenhead . . . with the new guitar duo of Johnny Moeller and Mike Keller ably backing up Kim Wilson’s always staggering harmonica and voice.
British favourites The Cadillac Kings and Paul Lamb & The Kingsnakes both played at Warrington this year . . . both on top form and most enjoyable! Dutch harp player Big Pete brought his band, The Backbones, to Ray and Barbara’s club as well – catch them in 2009!
Ending the ‘live’ segment, quick mentions to the venerable 93-year old David ‘Honeyboy’ Edwards, who, in the company of Dave Peabody, rolled back the many years at Pacific Road; Michael Messer and The Spikdrivers, two fine shows at Pete’s Worthenbury ‘juke joint’; and Big Boy Bloater and band, rocking the house at the splendid venue, The Academy, in Buckley.
Recorded material-wise, have enjoyed a lot of stuff this year, without one particular cd jumping out at me, here’s my top ten, in no particular order:
1. The Cadillac Kings – Trouble In Store
2. Sean Costello – We Can Get Together
3. Moreland & Arbuckle – 1861
4. Chris Bergson Band – Fall Changes
5. FreeWorld – From The Bluff
6. JW Jones – Bluelisted
7. Various, including Big Walter Horton – Bocce Boogie
8. GravelRoad – Shot The Devil
9. The City Shakers – The Very Best Of
10. Jason Ricci & New Blood – Rocket No. 9
A few that will be familiar, and some maybe not . . . check them out!
To sum up. . . . not a vintage year, but some highly enjoyable moments!
Let’s spare a moment for those we have lost this year . . . . Sean Costello, a day before his 29th birthday, his “Going Home” the track of the year for me; big Robert Lucas, the bear of a man who led Canned Heat for many years, and who was the first ever act I set out to see at Alexander’s in Chester, but sadly arrived too late to play; not strictly blues, but two musicians forever linked with Jimi Hendrix – Buddy Miles and Mitch Mitchell; and also the likes of Phil Guy, forever in the shadow of his brother, Buddy. RIP to them all.
May I just wish all a peaceful and prosperous 2009 – and thank you to all promoters, bands, record labels, promotion companies, and fans, who keep our great music genre going, and to Ken for letting me play a small part in this great website!
GRAHAME RHODES
Of course a mainstream newspaper like the New York Times will not have a high blues content and last year the blues world lost many great performers. Having said that I really enjoyed the montage of photos and clips that the NYT has assembled, it’s beautifully done and very moving.
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/12/28/magazine/20081228-livesmusic-magazine/index.html
I would dearly love to see a blues version featuring Robert Ward, Robert Lucas, Phil Guy, Jimmy McGriff, Jeff Healey, Calvin Owens and all the others who passed away last year.
Best CD of the year.
I wasn’t as impressed by the CDs that I heard this year as I was last year. I bought some of acts that I’d heard live but as often happens, the CD didn’t do the live performance justice. However there were one or two gems.
The Stumble were justifiably one of the UK’s top rated bands and go from strength to strength and their recent release “The Houngan” will help keep the momentum going - a great release and my choice as UK CD of the year. In close contention were Sonny Black’s “The Best of Days” and The Cadillac Kings “Trouble in Store”
My favourite American CD of the year was more difficult as I was disappointed by CDs from some of my favourite artists like Watermelon Slim and Sonny Landreth, however I did like Buddy Guy’s latest release “Skin Deep” and whilst Jon Cleary is originally from London, I think he is recognised more as an American musician and “Mo Hippa” was live and brillant.
A CD I’ve been trying to get for a few years was ” Mel Brown and The Homewreckers- Blues - A Beautiful Thing”. Although two years old, I only bought it a few months ago and it was worth the wait - a superb CD.
However, the act which I thought was the best at this year’s King Biscuit Festival was Cedric Burnside and Lightnin’ Malcolm and their recent CD “2 Man Wrecking Crew” released on Delta Groove gets my vote as American CD of the year.
Best DVD of the year
Each year there are more DVDs being released and especially some showing old footage of long gone musicians and places. There have been some really interesting ones available and one that I picked up at Roger Stolle’s Cathead store in Clarksdale was the last ever recording in January 1993 of Doctor Isiah Ross just four months before he died - “Doctor Isiah Ross - The Harmonica Boss - The Last Concert”. It’s a lovely historical recording of a grand old gentleman, just slightly past his best, but nontheless an important influence on many modern bluesmen (including well known to us in the north west - Ray Stubbs). It must be remembered that he recorded at Sun Studios at the same time as Elvis and had tracks recorded by Cream and Jethro Tull and won a Grammy in 1980 for “Best Ethnic or Traditional Recording” for his release “Chicago Breakdown”. It’s released on Spacevision Video Productions and can be bought from www.Cathead.biz.
Also of historical interest is “And This is Free - The Life and Times of Chicago’s Legendary Maxwell Street”. Again of social historical interest, it does contain great previously unseen footage of some of the old Maxwell Street musicians. On Shanachie, it’s available from Red Lick Records.
However, I have two favourite DVDs of the year that I can’t separate, M For Mississippi by Roger Stolle and Jeff Konkl (full review earlier in November on this site) and “Bobby Rush- Live at Ground Zero” which although recorded last year was made available this year and is a brilliant example of the excitement of a full Bobby Rush musical review. Again contact Cathead or Red Lick.
Best book of the year
I’ve read four blues books this year and thoroughly enjoyed each one.
Although it has been released 6 years, “The Voice of The Blues” by Amy Van Singel and Jom O’Neal only came into my possession at the beginning of the year. The authors are the founders of top American magazine Living Blues and the book is a collection of interviews taken from the magazine over the years. It is a great read as included are most of the legends, Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Freddie King, John Lee Hooker and many more. It is available on Routledge.
The other American book I’ve enjoyed was “The Life of Mary Shepard - Queen of the Legendary Club Ebony”. The little blues club in Indianola is possibly the most famous blues club in Mississippi and for over 30 years, the remarkable Mary Shepard kept it going, presenting all the legends of the blues to this small community. The book tells us of her history and life in 40s/50s Indianola before she bought the club and the subsequent years of running it. Faced with retirement, she thought the club would close, however Indianola’s most famous son BB King has guaranteed its existence by buying it off Mary. The book is released by The University of Mississippi Printing and Graphic Service.
The two British books were “Riding Shotgun” by Gerry McAvoy and tells of his life story and the years he spent on the road as Rory Gallagher’s bass player before leaving to join Nine Below Zero and my favourite book of the year Paul “Sailor” Vernon’s “Last Swill and Testament”. This is a marvellously funny account of Paul Vernon’s early days in early 60s London at the start of the blues craze in the capital. It has been fully reviewed on this site.
Best Festival of the Year
No competition really - Worthenbury Blues and Roots Festival …. no seriously, it was The Arkansas Blues and Heritage Festival otherwise known as The King Biscuit. This was reviewed at length on this site in November. I couldn’t go to Colne or Burnley but having said that, there was not a lot on to attract me to either especially Colne. I enjoyed my one day at Maryport (Saturday) with Jon Cleary outstanding. I think over the years I prefer the more informal smaller festivals although the Biscuit is larger but very informal and relaxed.
Best Gig of the Year
Apart from a couple of gigs at John Welsh’s excellent Harbourside venue in Liverpool where I was impressed with always reliable Eddie Martin, most of my gigs were based on Worthenbury and I was really happy with the way the year went with some really memorable moments. The Spikedrivers were superb as was Michael Messer and also Sonny Black and Roland Chadwick. The new look Trafficker and Harper both gave us great gigs along with the veteran Mojo Buford in April, however my favourite gig was when Jim Crawford played for us in March. As a native north westerner it’s a shame we don’t see him more often since he has been based in Devon for many years. A superb musician he kept us in raptures with his tales and banter - it was more like Peter Kay meets Robert Johnson … “What a raight miserable bastard he moost ‘ave bin” was how he described the legend.
So there we have it - I hope it might stimulate more people to submit their choices.
Can I wish everyone who visits bluesinthenorthwest.com and everyone involved in the local blues scene a great New Year and can I suggest a resolution for next year - every time you go to a gig, why not bring someone new to the gig - we need to keep it going for everyone’s sake.
PETE EVANS
Highlight of the year - the fantastic build quality of the Chrysler PT Cruiser.
Lowpoint - the disappointing plumbing in the toilet of CatHead in Clarksdale.
Not a lot of blues for me this year. Compared to previous years I have been to fewer gigs, watched fewer DVDs and listened to fewer CDs. I don’t think that this reflects on the quality of the music more as a reflection of my change of lifestyle. With busy weeks working and travel that often rule out midweek gigs and tend to reduce my desire to leave the house at the weekends. When you are away a lot of the time, a night in your own house, at home, with a bottle of nice Rioja and a DVD is very sweet indeed.
Like previous years I have listened to more spoken word than music. The BBC have a fantastic range of podcasts available that I listen to very often on my iPod. However looking at my “Most played” stats for the year show that my most listened to tune was the Igor Prado band “Hoo-Ray For Hoo-Raw” and the the most listened to CD the fabulous “Inspiration Information” by Shuggie Otis.
The CD that I regret most not buying is Lightnin Malcolm and Cedric Burnside - many Saturday nights I have fancied reliving their excellent shows at the Biscuit but I did not take my opportunity to purchase so I will have to look for a UK source.
Live highlights were of course the fabulous Arkansas Blues and Heritage Festival. A fantastic experience for me, my first US festival. What an atmosphere, what a line-up!
I had some excellent nights at some of the blues clubs in my area: in Liverpool at John Welsh’s fabulous Liverpool Marina, Ray O’Hare’s long running Warrington Club and of course the Welsh juke joint at Worthenbury. My highlight of the club shows, probably, Hamilton Loomis in Liverpool, for the showmanship, the great UK band (¡Yes - I know! - it’s not often I say that eh?) and my topper ringside seats.
I can’t fail to mention the stunning show by John Cleary at Maryport - possible the best band I have ever seen. I spent the, all to short, show a mixture of open mouthed, smiling ear to ear or stifling back the tears. Truly brilliant! I am really looking forward to another UK tour in 2009.
Another thing that I am looking forward to in 2009 is travelling less with work and seeing more music here in Blighty. I am also looking forward to blowing some harp with my old mate Neil Partington in some infrequent returns for my old band Down at Antone’s. Watch this space for details.
In 2008 bluesinthenorthwest.com has continued to enlarge, with readership increasing slowly but surely throughout the year. I do my best to post interesting and relevant material but I am always on the lookout for more contributors, more ideas, more feedback and more interaction. So tell me what you want. Write a review of the blues gigs that you have seen. I don’t run this site for vanity, I am trying to provide a service that I could see was lacking. In the last three years, hopefully I have gone some way to resolving that gap but we can always do better. Help me.
My sincere and heartfelt thanks to the contributors to this site - writers and photographers. Without your help I would have thrown in the towel a long time ago. I would also like to thank the many bluesinthenorthwest.com commenters for providing much valued interaction and interest.
Thanks also to the promoters, artists and musicians. Then, of course, the fine, fine blues fans of this region that make the blues so special and treasured. I’ll see you out there in 2009. I’ll be the large guy with a beer, complaining about the lack of good British tapas, identifying the shuffle technique of the drummer and analysing the nuances of the harmonica tone to anyone who will listen.
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