Dolly Says Woof/Hillgrass Hillbilly/VizzTone artist: Scissormen - Walking and Talking the Blues- New Release Review

I just received the new release by Scissormen and have listened to it a number of times. In fact, I listened to it a few times yesterday, watched the DVD which comes with the recording last night, and then listened to it again a few times today. I don't know if the cd accompanies the DVD or vice verse but I'll start with the DVD. The footage on the DVD is actually a 90 minute feature directed by legendary Robert Mugge [Gospel According to Al Green, Saxaphone Colossus (starring Sonny Rollins), Deep Blues and New Orleans Musicians in Exile]. I loved Deep Blues and this movie is every bit as captivating but for different reasons. It captures singer, songwriter, guitar player Ted Drozdowski along with drummer R.L. Hulsman reconnecting with the early primitive blues and the life that still exists with it. Drozdowski went to North Mississippi after seeing Mugge's Deep Blues and visited RL Burnside, Jesse Mae Hemphill and Junior Kimbrough. These interactions had a profound affect on Drozdowski. This new film documents the life of a musician turned North Mississippi blues player on the road and it is captivating to watch. The film takes place in a number of settings including numerous "Juke Joints" across the midwest and the Rock and Roll Hall of fame talking with regular people and just capturing the essence of his journey. Drozdowski goes into guitar tunings and explains how and why certain artists sound the way they do. He plays primarily on a heavily tattoo'd (autographed) tele with a humbucker installed in the neck pickup position but also played an old ES 345. Looked like he was playing through an Epiphone Junior amp. He was getting some terrific authentic sounds. The name of the release is Big Shoes referring to Drozdowski's acknowledgement that he is following some legends.

The cd portion is also terrific. It contains 15 tracks all of them great. Both cd and DVD capture the essence of that music genre that we love so much. The slidework all has the characteristic unpolished sound of the real delta blues (sometimes with a bit of delay). Specific tributes are made to both Hemphill and Burnside and if you know their work you know that'd be happy with it. This is a hot package of video and music and I highly recommend it.

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"Big Shoes" Trailer from Robert Mugge on Vimeo.

Gregg Wright @ Onezia Upscale Lounge, Gonzales, This Saturday!

"KING OF THE ROCKIN' BLUES!"

The Official Gregg Wright Newsletter February 29, 2012

THE ONEZIA UPSCALE LOUNGE, GONZALES, THIS SATURDAY!

The Onezia Upscale Lounge, This Saturday! Greetings friends. We're proud to announce we'll be at the fantastic Onezia Upscale Lounge in Gonzales, this Saturday, March 3rd. I sincerely hope you'll come join us, because this is one you won't want to miss. My good firend Chris LeBlanc www.chrisleblanc.com is going to come by and sit in with us for a spell. It'll be a night of total guitar madness!!! Onezia owner Kyle Sonnier is a great guy who has put together a really nice, relaxing atmosphere at Onezia, with big, comfortable sofas, and great drinks. We love playing here! Special discount on CDs will be available at the show! The Onezia Upscale Lounge 13091 Airline Highway Gonzales, LA 70737 Tel: 225-647-2447 Showtime: 9:30 PM Admission: $10 http://www.onezialounge.com

The Station in Broussard and Phil Brady's, Next Week! Next Friday, March 9th, it's the Station Live in Broussard. It's our first time in and we hope to have a good turnout. Since I never know who the Hell is running Grant St. from week to week, the Station might be an ideal venue & keep coming to play the Lafayette area. So, come on out and help us have a great turnout!! Saturday, March 10th, it Phil Brady's in Baton Rouge. According to Joe Hall, I own Phil Brady's attendance record. Let's see if we can break the record this time, Baton Rouge! Always a good time. Thanks for your support. You are greatly appreciated! Friday, March 9th: The Station Live 236 Burgess Drive Broussard, LA 70518 Showtime: 9:30 PM Admission: $10 Tel: (337) 839-2320 Saturday, March 10th: Phil Brady's 4848 Government St. Baton Rouge, LA 70806 Showtime: 9:30 PM Admission: $10 Tel: (225)927-3786

MUSIC MAKER RELEASES SHELTON POWE'S CAROLINA BLUES AND GOSPEL

HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. - Music Maker Relief Foundation is excited to announce the release of Shelton Powe's first album, Carolina Blues and Gospel. The 14 tracks on Carolina Blues and Gospel are a blend of fresh and traditional, combining intricate melodies with a feel of spontaneity. The album will be available March 13, 2012, on iTunes and through the Music Maker online store.



Born in 1957 in Charlotte, N.C., Powe grew up on the tent revival circuit, surrounded by a family of Gospel musicians. Early on, he absorbed the influence of legends on the Atlanta blues scene including Cora Mae Bryant, Neal Pattman, Cootie Stark and Frank Edward, collecting a wide range of lyrics and melodies along the way.



Listen to "Diving Duck Blues" from the ablum here: http://www.musicmaker.org/jukebox/2055



Powe, a self-taught musician who now plays the Piedmont finger-style guitar, calls his music "old style country picking." He has had the opportunity to play on several Atlanta radio shows and at various festivals and events in the Southeast, and recently recorded a Blues documentary with Jim Ransome and Music Maker president Tim Duffy.



Tim Duffy said of Powe, "Shelton Powe carries on the tradition of Carolina Blues and Gospel with deep authenticity. His style and delivery are all his own, as he woos audiences with nuances and intricacies that recall Curley Weaver. "



Powe joined the MMRF family in 1997, which has enabled him to perform at a number of venues and festivals throughout North Carolina, including the Eddy Pub, St. Anne's Chapel and Event Center, the Lincoln Cultural Center, Shakori Hills Grasroots Festival and Warehouse Blues.

Shelton's tour dates:
3/3: Rev's Coffeehouse, High Point, N.C.
3/10: St. Anne's Chapel and Event Center, Tarboro, N.C.
3/27: Capitol Blues Night, Washington D.C.




About Music Maker Relief Foundation:

Music Maker Relief Foundation, Inc. is a tax exempt, public charity under IRS code 501(c)3. Music Maker aims to keep our Southern culture vital by directly supporting senior (over 55) American roots musicians in need, expanding their professional careers, and assisting Next Generation artists in the development of their professional careers. Since the organization's founding in 1994, Music Maker has assisted hundreds of musicians who represent the traditions of Blues, Gospel, Old-Time String Band, Jazz and more. Music Maker's programs ensure the talents of these cultural treasures are accessible so that our rich musical heritage can be shared with the world and preserved for future generations.

Policy Dream Blues - BUMBLE BEE SLIM

Amos Easton (May 7, 1905 – June 8, 1968), better known by the stage name Bumble Bee Slim, was an American Piedmont blues musician.
Easton was born in Brunswick, Georgia, United States. Around 1920 he left home to join the Ringling Brothers' circus before returning to Georgia, marrying briefly, and then heading north on a freight train to Indianapolis where he settled in 1928. There, he met and was influenced by pianist Leroy Carr and guitarist Scrapper Blackwell.

By 1931 he had moved to Chicago, where he first recorded as Bumble Bee Slim for Paramount Records. The following year his song, "B&O Blues", was a hit for Vocalion Records, inspiring a number of other railroad blues and eventually becoming a popular folk song. Over the next five years he recorded over 150 songs for the Decca, Bluebird and Vocalion labels, often accompanied by other musicians such as Big Bill Broonzy, Peetie Wheatstraw, Tampa Red, Memphis Minnie, and Washboard Sam.

In 1937, he returned to Georgia, then relocated to Los Angeles, California, in the early 1940s, apparently hoping to break into motion pictures as a songwriter and comedian. During the 1950s he recorded several albums, but these had little impact. He recorded his last album in 1962 for the Pacific Jazz label.

He continued to perform in clubs around Los Angeles until his death in 1968.
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Fat's Frenzy - Fats Domino

Antoine Dominique "Fats" Domino, Jr. (born February 26, 1928) is an American R&B and rock and roll pianist and singer-songwriter. He was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana, and Creole was his first language.
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Mean Old World - Dave Myers

The Aces was one of the earliest and most influential of the electric Chicago blues band in the 1950s. Led by the guitarist brothers Louis and Dave Myers, natives of Byhalia, Mississippi, the brothers originally performed under the name The Little Boys; with the subsequent addition of harmonica player Junior Wells, they rechristened themselves the Three Deuces, followed by the Three Aces. The 1950 enlistment of drummer Fred Below prompted another name change, this time to the Four Aces; finally, to simplify matters once and for all, the group performed as just The Aces. Influenced in large part by jazz, they developed an urbane, sophisticated style well ahead of its time; in particular, Below's refined rhythms led to the rise of the blues shuffle beat, and helped launch the drums to a new prominence within the blues band hierarchy.

In 1952, Wells quit to join the Muddy Waters band, filling the vacancy created by the recent departure of Little Walter; Walter himself quickly signed the remaining Aces as his new backing unit, renaming the trio The Jukes to capitalize on his current hit single, "Juke". A series of seminal recordings followed - "Mean Old World," "Sad Hours," "Off the Wall," and "Tell Me Mama" among them - before Louis' 1954 exit resulted in the Jukes' gradual dissolution as Little Walter's band, but freeing up the members to reform as a backing band for other Chicago blues musicians such as Otis Rush, Eddie Boyd, and others.

In the late 1950s Dave Myers switched from guitar to the electric bass, becoming one of the first Chicago bluesmen to adopt this relatively new instrument, and helping to popularize it in Chicago blues. During the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s the original Aces periodically reunited for recordings, tours, and festival gigs.
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Disco Strut - Booker T Laury

Booker T. Laury (September 2, 1914 – September 23, 1995) was an American boogie-woogie, blues, gospel and jazz pianist and singer. Over his lengthy career, Laury worked with various musicians including Memphis Slim and Mose Vinson. He appeared in two films, but did not record his debut album until he was almost eighty years of age.
Lawrence Laury was born in Memphis, Tennessee, and grew up with his lifelong friend, Memphis Slim. At the age of six, after helping his mother play the family's pump organ, Laury learned to play the keyboards. His barrelhouse playing style, which he developed alongside Slim, was based on the influence gained from regular Memphis performers Roosevelt Sykes, Sunnyland Slim, and Speckled Red. In the early 1930s, and in the company of the younger Mose Vinson, Slim and Laury began playing in local clubs.

In 1935, Sykes suggested to Laury and Slim that they relocated to Chicago, with a view of obtaining a recording contract. Slim took up the advice, but Laury decided to remain in Memphis, where he played in gambling houses and clubs for decades. Laury had a large hand-width, which enabled him to span ten keys. His playing dexterity was such that, after losing one finger on his left hand following an accident with a circular saw in the 1950s, he was still able to play well. Based around Memphis' Beale Street, as that area started to degenerate, Laury traveled around Tennessee, Arkansas and Missouri. Despite differing fortunes, the friendship with Slim did not diminish over the years, up to Slim's death in 1988.

In the 1989 Dennis Quaid film, Great Balls of Fire!, the plot had a young Jerry Lee Lewis and Jimmy Swaggart, look into a juke joint to see Laury playing "Big Legged Woman". This attention led to Laury having the opportunity to record later in his life.

Laury appeared in the 1991 documentary film, Deep Blues: A Musical Pilgrimage to the Crossroads. In the film, Laury played "Memphis Blues" in his own living room.

Laury finally recorded his debut album in his late seventies. In 1993, Bullseye Blues Records issued Nothin' But the Blues, which simply incorporated Laury's voice and piano playing his own compositions. The following year, Wolf Records released a live album, containing concert recordings made in 1987.

Booker T. Laury died of cancer, in September 1995 in Memphis, at the age of 81. He has a brass note on Beale's Walk of Fame.
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Phillip Walker & Gonzalo Araya

It is a matter of public record that Phillip Walker was born in Welsh, Louisiana, February 11, 1937. Phillip was the seventh of twelve children of Malvin and Viola Weber Walker, sharecroppers who were married at ages 14 and 13 and began raising a family when they were only children themselves. Malvin was a smart hardworking farmer who always managed, somehow, to keep a roof over the heads of his family. Malvin could fix anything, and Phillip seems to have followed in his dad's footsteps with a mechanical aptitude nothing short of amazing. When Phillip was 8 years old his family moved to Port Arthur, Texas. It is this combination of Louisiana Creole, French, and Indian (his mother’s mother was full-blooded Cherokee), and Texas western gunslinger that combines to prod Phillip’s unique speech patterns, accent and dialect. His mother spoke in the French Creole dialect (Cajun) of the area.
Things went smoothly in Port Arthur for a while, but by the time he was 12 years old, his father’s health had begun to fail and the biggest and strongest boys were expected to get the crops in. From that time, as happened in so many poor families, attendance at school became sporadic, and Phillip’s formal education was essentially finished. Phillip’s uncles, (his mother’s five brothers, including Uncle Phillip Weber), all played in bands in the 20’s and 30’s and often came around and played guitar; musicianship runs in the family. Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown is a second cousin. [For the record, Aaron “T-Bone” Walker, who also had a full-blooded Cherokee grandmother does not appear to be related to Phillip, though it has been documented otherwise in quite a few places and there is some question.] Phillip became interested in music at a young age. Not being able to afford a guitar of his own (his work in the fields earned no cash), Phillip constructed his first instrument from a cigar box, using the thinnest wire he could find (carefully and secretly removed from the family’s window screens) for strings. He had a natural ear and a God-given musical talent, and became very good quite early. He spent every spare minute, when he wasn’t working in the fields or helping herd or brand cattle, learning his instrument. He would play softly into the middle of the night, and to this day rarely sleeps more than 5 hours at a stretch.

Gonzalo Araya es el Primer armonicista chileno patrocinado por la prestigiosa marca Internacional de armónicas brasileñas HERING.
Nacido en la ciudad de Rancagua en Chile el año 1976. Gonzalo aprendió el arte de la armónica como autodidacta llegando a conocer con el tiempo a quienes han sido sus maestros en el camino de la música como Antonio Serrano (Banda de Paco de lucia),Carlos del junco ,Alexandre Rossi, Christian Galvez y Juan Moya entre otros.

Ha compartido escenario con los mas grandes artistas Internacionales y nacionales como :
-Eric Clapton,Scott Henderson,Little charlie and the Nightcats, Lurrie Bell, Carlos del junco , Howard Levy,Phil Guy, Eddie C.Campbell, Bob Margolin Phillip Walker,Melvin taylor, Maurice John Vaughn, Andrea Dawson,Michael Burks, Larry MaCcray Peter Madcat ,Randy Singer, Jefferson Goncalvez, Alexandre Rossi, Mariano Massolo ,Nicolas Smoldjan,Big Chico,Jose luis pardo, Flavio Guimaraes , Greg Rzab, Matthew skoller, Guitar shorty , Jehovah da Gaita, Thiago Cerveira, Miguel Botafogo,Memphis la blusera, Fernando Noronha & Black,
Christian Galvez, Gloria Simonetti,Joe vasconcellos, Daniel Retamal,Alexis venegas,Soledad Guerrero,El cruce y Pancho rojas entre otros


Gonzalo Araya ha sido uno de los referentes más fuertes de la armónica en Chile, siendo uno de los pocos músicos de la escena del blues que ha estado representando a Chile en diferentes países como Suecia ,España, Argentina y Brasil.
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Lucy Mae Blues - Frankie Lee Sims

Frankie Lee Sims (April 30, 1917, New Orleans, Louisiana – May 10, 1970, Dallas, Texas) was an American singer-songwriter and electric blues guitarist. He released nine singles during his career, one of which, "Lucy Mae Blues" (1953) was a regional hit. Two compilation albums of his work were released posthumously.

Sims was the cousin of another Texas blues musician, Lightnin' Hopkins, and he worked with several other prominent blues musicians, including Texas Alexander, T-Bone Walker, King Curtis and Albert Collins. Sims is regarded as one of the important figures in post-war Texas country blues.
Frankie Lee Sims was born on April 30, 1917 in New Orleans, Louisiana, to Henry Sims and Virginia Summuel. He claimed he was born on February 29, 1906, but 1906 was not a leap year and April 30, 1917 is generally accepted as his birth date. He was the nephew of Texas blues singer Texas Alexander, and the cousin of Texan guitarist Lightnin' Hopkins. Both Sims's parents were "accomplished guitarists". His family moved to Marshall, Texas in the late 1920s, and at the age of 12 he learnt to play guitar from Texas blues musician Little Hat Jonesand ran away from home to work as a musician. In the late 1930s Sims had a duel career of a teacher in Palestine, Texas on weekdays and a guitarist at local dances and parties on weekends. When the US entered the Second World War at the end of 1941, Sims enlisted, becoming a Marine for three years. After the war Sims made Dallas his home where he pursued a full time career in music.

In Dallas Sims encountered, and performed with, Texas blues guitarists T-Bone Walker and Smokey Hogg in local clubs. In 1948 Sims recorded two singles for Blue Bonnet Records, but his first success came in 1953 when he recorded his song, "Lucy Mae Blues" for Art Rupe's Specialty Records, which went on to become a regional hit.The Encyclopedia of the Blues called "Lucy Mae Blues" a "masterpiece of rhythm and good humor". Sims continued recording songs for Specialty through the mid-1950s, many of them not released at the time. In 1957 he moved to Johnny Vincent's Ace Records and recorded several songs, including "Walking with Frankie" and "She Likes to Boogie Real Low", which Allmusic called "mighty rockers". Sims also recorded with other blues musicians, including his cousin Hopkins, and appears on several of their records. In the early 1960s Hopkins "cashed in" on the folk-blues revival, but Sims faded into obscurity.

In 1969 blues historian Chris Strachwitz tracked Sims down to record him on his Arhoolie label, but Sims died soon after on May 10, 1970 in Dallas at the age of 53. The cause of death was pneumonia brought on by his poor health. At the time of his death he was reported to have had a drinking problem and was under investigation regarding a "shooting incident". Soon after his death, Specialty Records released a compilation album of Sim's recordings with the label, Lucy Mae Blues. In 1985 Krazy Kat released Walkin' With Frankie, an album of unreleased songs he had recorded for the label in 1960.
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I'm A Train - Cinqui

Ian or 'Cinqui' (pronounced 'Sinkie', a nickname acquired as a child) was a recording artist in his own right with Creole Records, and has also worked as a session vocalist, most notably he has collaborated and performed with Phil Collins to produce charity concerts for the Princes' Trust.

Cinqui says “Originally I didn’t intend to necessarily perform these songs myself. As I worked the material with guitarist/arranger Stuart Dixon it immediately became clear that the combination of styles could, and did, evolve into a hybrid of musical genre.

The result of this collaboration was the eventual recording of the acoustic album titles ‘Cinqui’ which basically recreated, albeit in a studio environment, the essence of the acoustic duo, on songs such as "Mighty Mighty" and "Never Forget your Face".

Audience feedback showed phenomenal appreciation of the rhythms and intimacy of the acoustic duo and also the way that Cinqui deconstruct some classic songs and make them their own. Less "cover" and more "version"...
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Life And Troubles - Blues Queen Sylvia

Sylvia Lee Burton Embry (June 14, 1941 - February 28, 1992) grew up in Arkansas. She had been a vibrant part of the Chicago blues scene. Blues Queen Sylvia had a big husky voice in the tradition of Koko Taylor and Big Mama Thorton. She was backed by such greats as Jimmy Rogers, Jimmy Dawkins and Louisiana Red.
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Black Snake Blues - Jeff Martin

Jeffrey Scott Martin (born October 2, 1969 in Windsor, Ontario) is a Canadian guitarist and singer-songwriter best known for fronting the rock band The Tea Party. Martin began his career as a solo artist in October 2005, when The Tea Party disbanded.
Forming The Tea Party in 1990 after a marathon jam session at the Cherry Beach Rehearsal Studios in Toronto, Martin (a self-confessed "control freak") produced all of The Tea Party's albums, including their eponymous debut album in 1991, distributing it through the band's own label, Eternal Discs. In 1993 The Tea Party signed to EMI Music Canada and released their first major label recording entitled Splendor Solis. Martin employed open tunings to imitate Indian instruments such as the sitar, something he has continued to employ throughout his career. Further developing The Tea Party's sound in 1995, The Edges of Twilight was recorded with an array of Indian and Middle-eastern instrumentation while Martin drew lyrical inspiration from occult themes and pagan influenced literature.

Upon returning from successful tours in Canada, Europe and Australia in 1996, The Tea Party went onto record Alhambra, an Enhanced CD which features acoustic re-recordings of songs from The Edges of Twilight, followed by a brief tour around Canada known as "Alhambra acoustic and eclectic". Transmission, released in 1997, saw Martin's first foray into electronica, with Martin conceding that Transmission was "an honest attempt at going somewhere poetically where most people would be unnerved to go. It was very dark, extremely angry and you could only listen to it in a certain mindset. I mean for me, going to where I went with Transmission, almost destroyed me." Triptych followed in 1999; the first single "Heaven Coming Down" rose to #1 on Canadian radio. Lyrically, Martin was less enigmatic than he was on previous albums: on Triptych he wrote about the experiences of his years in the band. After releasing Tangents, a singles compilation, in 2000 and Illuminations, a DVD compilation of music videos which Martin remixed in Surround sound, The Tea Party released The Interzone Mantras in 2001 and Seven Circles in 2004. In October 2005, The Tea Party disbanded due to creative differences.

The band members regrouped in 2011 for a series of shows in their native Canada.

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Devils Son - Skylar Wolf

SKYLAR WOLF— is an accomplished artist, musician, guitarist and harmonica player. He is a singer songwriter of great talent...
..
WOLF grew up in the Four Cornner's area of ....New Mexico.... and ROLLS.. a ..WILD STYLE.. in L.A... but lives a life of tradition. He walks in ..TWO WORLDS.. and tells his stories from BOTH SIDES. Apart of Skylar's TEACHINGS came from the ..STREETS.. of ....Niagara Falls, New York... His music takes you back to 444 4th street, Willow Ave and the up stairs Hotel California Zodiac Bar rooms in ..Niagara Falls.. ..!
A hard way of life pushes SKYLAR WOLF to spread his music sharing it with the world, helping the less fortunate, the lost souls living out on the streets.
Most importantly, MR. WOLF wishes to ..dedicate his lifes work for the children.., teaching and guiding them towards a BETTER LIFE or a new beginning. ..
..
.. His message is one of hope and redemption..: a life free from addiction and suffering is a life of beauty and harmony. ..
......Skylar's PASSON.. resides in.. many .. Non-Profit Entertainment Specials, Focusing on Children and Teenage OutReach Programs... Especially, helping our Disable Children... He states, “I can always deal with fame and fortune in the next life. As for now, I spend my music/stage time and money on the children…”....
....During the winter holiday seasons, Skylar holds free concerts that benefit Children's Hospitals throughout the US. These concerts are toy and fundraising drives that benefit the children. Visit periodically for ..Howlin' Updates.. to see if he will be in your area during the winter holiday season. If he is, you are invited to join in on the fun - bring a toy and enjoy the show!
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Somethings Cookin' - NORMAN NARDINI

Norman Nardini, longtime Pittsburgh rock’n roller wrote the lyric "I've Been Doin It For Years Before Ya All Was Here” in 1979. Twenty five years later, he’s still doin it.

Norman spent the late 60's and early 70's doing covers and learning the ropes. In 1971, while living in Boston and attending the Berklee School of Music, Nardini spent a week playing guitar for music legend Big Mama Thornton and George "Harmonica' Smith at The Jazz Workshop. In 1975, as bass player for rock band "Diamond Reo", he got his first national release and toured extensively through 1978 performing on shows with Ted Nugent, Aerosmith, Canned Heat, Kansas, Rush & Kiss. It was a great education. After two more releases, 1976’s “Dirty Diamonds” on the Kama Sutra label and 1978's “Ruff Cuts” on Mad Dog Records. Norman left the band to start "Norman Nardini & The Tigers", his first shot as lead singer, lead guitar and chief song writer.

The 1981 release "Eatin Alive", recorded live at Cleveland’s legendary Agora Club, received a 4 Star Review from Rolling Stone’s record guide. The Tigers toured together through 1986. 1983 saw the CBS release of "Norman Nardini and The Tigers", which featured Norman’s longtime friend, Jon Bon Jovi, on background vocals. In 1987, CBS released "Love Dog" which featured Rick Derringer, Dr. John and Paul Schaeffer.

Throughout the 90's, Norman continued touring and released 3 CDs on the New York City custom label “Circumstantial”. 1991’s "This Ole Train" brought Norman over to Germany for a tour with the Blues Brothers, 1994’s, "Breakdown In Paradise" and 1996’s, "It's Alive". In 1998, Moondog Records released "There Was A Time". Through the years, Norman has continued to develop his guitar playing, song writing skills and stage persona. At this time, we are proud to present "Redemption". This brand new recording of 16 Norman songs written between 1977 – 1988 features longtime drummer/singer (24 years), Whitey Clyde Cooper and longtime bass player,/singer Harry Bottoms (17 years). Also, Herman Granti appears as special guest on keyboards along with Phil Brontz on Tenor Sax.

Norman Nardini is known as the “Manful! Handful”…cause he plays ruff. He’s the high priest from the church of rock’n roll. He can talk the talk, cause he paid the toll. He’s a man with no bling-bling, who calls himself the "Uncrowned King". Is Ya Been Redeemed?
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Crosscut Saw - Mark Pontin Group

The Mark Pontin Group,or MPG for short are a three-piece blues/rock outfit based in Swansea,South Wales.Following a tradition that stretches back to the days of bands such as Jimi Hendrix Experience and Cream,the band play with top class musicianship,utilizing power,subtlety and dynamics.Improvisation is a key feature,and the band work on good interplay between the musicians.Members have shared stages with Albert Lee,The Hamsters,The Cult,Eugene Hideaway Bridges,Snatch It Back amongst others.

Members

Mark Pontin-Guitar/Vocals

Chris Baglole-Drums/Vocals

Alun Walters-Bass/Vocals

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Better Vision For Children Benefit@House of Blues/L.A. Featuring Bluesman Papa J

Presents A "Better Vision For Children" Benefit Featuring Real Blues Festival Of Orange County Founder Papa J & Friends Saturday March 3 - House of Blues - Hollywood, Calif (HOLLYWOOD) - In a development that is guaranteed to make Southern California's fiercely loyal and ever-growing Blues community jump for joy, the House of Blues/Sunset is presenting a new, all-ages, Blues Concert Series in its second floor Crossroads Restaurant and Concert Hall. This Saturday night, March 3, the House of Blues presents Real Blues Festival of Orange County founder/harpist-vocalist Papa J & Friends with an auction benefiting Better Vision For Children - a non-profit charity working to prevent and cure partial or total blindness resulting from amblyopia (Lazy Eye), Autism, Diabetes, and Eye Cancer. 9:00 p..m-12:00 a.m. on the Voodoo Lounge stage; no cover and free appetizer with entree purchase. Info: (323) 848-5136 or http://www.houseofblues.com/venues/clubvenues/losangeles/. Papa J & Friends just-released album is entitled THE BIG SHOW. "A good solid blues album...there are actually a few of my modern blues favorites on here and Papa J has his own take on them. Very cool!," affirms BMANS BLUES REPORT. Casey Reagan of the AMERICAN BLUES NEWS writes, "coming up on sixty years of age, Papa J still bounces on stage every night with the energy of a guy half his age. A showman by nature and musician by instinct Papa J's stage presence and energy is undeniably huge to anyone who's seen him perform. From his contagious smile to his gut wrenching blues he puts a thousand percent into making every performance mean something special to every person watching and it sure works on me." In other breaking news, the longtime performer is nominated in the "Best Americana, Blues or Roots Artist" category for the 2012 Los Angeles Music Awards. Read recent reviews of Papa J and Friends latest release The Big Show by Southland Blues, Barrelhouse Blues, and BMans Blues Report below. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ PAPA J & FRIENDS RELEASE "THE BIG SHOW" - "As a group we tried to run the gambit of styles and feelings that are what make up the blues," says Papa J about the band's new 10-song disc. Some of the album's tracks in his own words. "Checkin' Up On My Baby" - "a great Sonny Boy Williamson tune that I thought would be fun to do...it kind of shows how insecure musicians are." "Dimples" - "a truly simple John Lee Hooker song, that reminds me of all the girls on the road." "Laundromat Blues" - "Albert King for all you guys that worry if your woman is too clean...so sad, so true." "Slip Stumble & Fall" - "at sixty-plus years of age I still say this every day: it's so easy to forget what got you here. God Bless the Blues." Watch a live performance of the William Clarke song "Pawnshop Bound" by Papa J, Ray Goren, and Deacon Jones from last May's Real Blues Festival 2 below: Papa J THE BIG SHOW CD Review SOUTHLAND BLUES Papa J/THE BIG SHOW CD Review BARRELHOUSE BLUES Papa J THE BIG SHOW CD Review BMANS BLUES REPORT

New Release: Last Time I Saw You - Microwave Dave and the Nukes - Review

I have just received and had the chance to review the new release, Last Time I Saw You by Microwave Dave and the Nukes.The recording starts out with Drinkin' Wine Since Nine, a loosely structured rocky blues. Jesus Was Smart is a clever song put together just for your enjoyment with a cool guitar riff in the middle to top it off. I've Got A bet With Myself is a straight up rocker done country style. The Worst Thing is a soul oriented blues tune with a relaxed guitar solo interlude for you blues lovers. Tire Man is another clever song with lines alluding to suggestion to get the audience thinking and paying attention. Alabama Saturday Night is a rockin' boogie with harp and Nawlins flavor with a Bo Diddley beat. All Night Boogie is exactly what it is...boogie! Goin' Downtown has a great intro and I love the interesting guitar tone that Dave gets on this particular tune. Cadillac Ride has some pretty cool guitar riffs especially if you dig the under polished stuff like I do! Vagabundos is a cool surf style song. I don't want to listen to entire recordings of surf music but I always appreciate one stuck in the recording somewhere. This is a cool one! Rafferty is an instrumental that could have come right from a Dead or Phish recording. Sound good...CD Baby!

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Guitar Lesson w/ Alastair Greene - Lesson 2 Kitchen Sink Scale

This is the second installment of guitar lessons with Alastair Greene.

Here's Greene's upcoming tour schedule with Alan Parsons:

March 3rd Las Vegas, NV - Railhead at Boulder Station

March 25th San Jose, Costa Rica - International Arts Festival

March 27th TBA, Costa Rica

June 9th Beaumont, CA - Cherry Festival

July 17th Beirut, Lebanon

July 19th Munich, Germany

July 20th Essen, Germany

July 22nd Corsica, France

July 24th Curcassonne, France

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Walter Trout adds new date to UK tour

www.waltertrout.com www.provoguerecords.com

24 HOUR TICKET HOTLINE: 0844 478 0898
BOOK ONLINE: www.thegigcartel.com

Walter Trout's 21st album Blues for the Modern Daze will be released in the UK on Monday 23rd April (24th April in the US). The new album showcases the contemporary guitar legend’s return to his hardcore blues roots, with songwriting at a creative and personal zenith. Blues For The Modern Daze is Trout’s sixth recording for Provogue Records, a division of the Mascot Label Group, and his first full-fledged blues album in 23 years as a bandleader.

Walter Trout is one of the world’s great guitarists. The former lead guitar player with John Mayall Blues Breakers, Canned Heat and John Lee Hooker, recently celebrated his 20th years as a solo recording artist in his own right with the chart busting album ‘Common Ground’. Now comes the preview of his brand new album ‘Blues For The Modern Daze’.

"A torrential, gladiatorial guitar player." – LA Times

Trout’s practical schooling in blues started when he arrived in Los Angeles in 1973 and secured gigs behind Hooker, Big Mama Thornton, Finis Tasby, Pee Wee Crayton, Lowell Fulsom, Percy Mayfield and Joe Tex. By 1981 he joined the remaining original members of Canned Heat.

The real turning point for Trout was his tenure with British blues giant John Mayall. Trout became part of the Bluesbreakers’ lineage of great guitarists along with Eric Clapton, Peter Green and Mick Taylor.

Beginning in 1984 he shared six-string duties with Coco Montoya in Mayall’s band, creating a flexible guitar dynamic that helped provide the Bluesbreakers a renaissance that returned the group to the apex of the international blues touring circuit.

Trout began leading his own group in 1989 and cut his debut album Life In the Jungle, and rapidly became a star in Europe. His first US release, 1998's critically heralded Walter Trout, made him a permanent fixture of the American blues-rock scene that he is today.

Trout's travels over the past 39 years, and his wide appreciation of his predecessors, yield a significant influence on his new album Blues For The Modern Daze.

"My main inspiration for this album,” says Trout, “was the country bluesman Blind Willie Johnson, an early blues innovator who recorded such timeless gospel informed blues numbers as Soul of a Man and Nobody’s Fault But Mine. His music is beautiful, primal, direct and deeply spiritual. I wanted to feel it at my back when we were cutting these songs.”

Continues Trout, “The new album explores a side of my music that’s rooted in my first musical love, and it reveals something about me, too. It sums up the thoughts and attitudes of somebody who is getting a little older and is feeling like he’s a part of another era, with different values and a different perspective on life that’s prevalent today. I stand behind compassion, authenticity and honesty, as strongly as I stand behind my music.”

Blues for the Modern Daze was recorded at Entourage Studios in North Hollywood, California, with Trout and engineer Eric Corne producing. It’s the fifth time Trout has collaborated with Corne, who contributed to the arrangements and sonic palette of the songs that Trout wrote and demoed on acoustic guitar during the year before the sessions.

24 HOUR TICKET HOTLINE: 0844 478 0898
BOOK ONLINE: www.thegigcartel.com

Southampton, The Brook
Tuesday 6th March
Tickets: £15.00 (advance), £17.00 (door)
Box Office 023 8055 5366
466 Portswood Road, Portswood, Southampton SO17 3SD
www.the-brook.com

Newcastle, O2 Academy
Wednesday 7th March
Tickets: £17.50 / Box Office: 0844 477 2000
O2 Academy Newcastle, Westgate Road, Newcastle, NE1 1SW
www.o2academynewcastle.co.uk

Leeds, City Varities
Thursday 8th March
Tickets: £22.00 / Box Office: 0113 243 0808
City Varieties Music Hall, Swan Street, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 6LW
www.cityvarieties.co.uk

Sheffield, O2 Academy
Friday 9th March
Tickets: £20.00 / Box Office: 0844 477 2000
O2 Academy Sheffield, 37-43 Arundel Gate, Sheffield, S1 2PN
www.o2academysheffield.co.uk

Clitheroe, The Grand
Saturday 10th March
Tickets: £20.00 / Venue Box Office: 01200 421599
The Grand At Clitheroe, York Street, Clitheroe, Lancashire, BB7 2DL
www.thegrandvenue.co.uk

Salford, The Lowry
Sunday 11th March
Tickets: £20.00 / Box Office: 0843 208 6000
The Lowry, Pier 8, Salford Quays, Salford, Lancashire, M50 3AZ
www.thelowry.com

Pontardawe, Arts Centre
Monday 12th March
Tickets: £17.00 / Box Office: 01792 863722
Pontardawe Arts Centre, Herbert Street, Pontardawe, SA8 4ED
www.npt.gov.uk

Sutton Utd FC, Boom Boom Club
Tuesday 13th March
Special Guests: WT Feaster Band
Tickets: £15.00 (advance) £17.00 (door) / Box Office: 0208 761 9078
Borough Sports Ground, Gander Green Lane, Sutton, Surrey, SM1 2EY
www.feenstra.co.uk

Wolverhampton, Robin 2
Wednesday 14th March
Tickets: £15.00 (advance), £17.00 (door)
Box Office: 01902 401211
The Robin 2, 20-28 Mount Pleasant Bilston Wolverhampton, WV14 7LJ TE
www.therobin.co.uk

Bristol, The Tunnels
Wednesday 15th March
Tickets: £17.50 / Box Office: 0845 6050255
The Tunnels, Arches 31 & 32, Lower Station Approach Road, Bristol, BS1 6QF
www.thetunnelsbristol.co.uk

Tavistock, The Wharf
Friday 16th March
Tickets: £18.00 / Box Office: 01822 611166
Wharf Community Art Centre, The Wharf, Tavistock, Devon, PL19 8AT
www.tavistockwharf.com

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Can't Make Another Day - Edith North Johnson

Edith North Johnson (January 2, 1903 – February 28, 1988) was an American classic female blues singer, pianist and songwriter. Her most noted tracks were "Honey Dripper Blues", "Can't Make Another Day" and "Eight Hour Woman". She wrote another of her songs, "Nickel's Worth of Liver Blues".
Born Edith North, in 1928 she married a local record producer, Jesse Johnson. She originally worked at her husband's Deluxe Music Store as a sales person. Although not a professional singer, between 1928 and 1929 Johnson recorded eighteen sides. She started on QRS Records in 1928, later switching to Paramount. Her output tally included those from a recording session in Grafton, Wisconsin, for the Paramount label with Charley Patton. Oddly, it is now reckoned that Patton did not play on any of her recordings.

During World War II, Johnson managed a taxicab operation in St. Louis, as well as later running Johnson's Deluxe Cafė after her husband's death in 1946. By 1961, she had returned to recording when Samuel Charters tracked her down. She was accompanied by Henry Brown on Charters' set entitled, The Blues in St. Louis. It was released by Folkways.

Using pseudonyms such as Hattie North (on Vocalion) and Maybelle Allen, Johnson also earlier waxed additional tracks for other small labels. Under the Hattie North name, she recorded "Lovin' That Man Blues" with Count Basie.

Her recording of "Honey Dripper Blues" was the inspiration for the nickname used by Roosevelt Sykes. In her later life, Johnson spent time undertaking social work in her hometown.

Johnson died in St. Louis in February 1988, at the age of 85
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