Bman's Blues Report

Chris’s musi­cal back­ground includes duties as lead singer and front man for rock and roll hall of famer and Grammy award win­ner Levon Helm’s band The Barn­burn­ers. Dur­ing the 6 years that Chris and Levon played together they toured across the US and Canada light­ing up stages every­where they went. Chris has appeared on stage with: Leg­endary Rolling Stones side­man Bobby Keys, The Fab­u­lous Thun­der­birds, Jimmy Vivino, Jeff Healy, Dan Akroyd, Albert Lee, Dave Edmunds, Dave Maxwell and the great James Cot­ton to name just a few. Chris has also recorded with Bill Perry and Hubert Sum­lin among others.   If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues news and Fathers of the Blues, -  ”LIKE” ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorite band!

                              Real Blues Festival Of Orange County 4:                          SoCal's #1 Grassroots Blues Music Fest Sunday, September 8, 2013 - Malone's in Santa Ana, Calif. Soulful guitarist-vocalist PEACH (left); Blues harp ace Rod Piazza and the Mighty Flyers (center); and rockin' blues guitarist-vocalist Alastair Greene (right) head an eclectic Real Blues Festival of Orange County lineup now in its fourth year - the only true grass-roots music festival presently in the Southern California area! Presented by the Orange County Blues Society. Tickets/additional information at: www.orangecountybluessociety.com                     ...

The Jules Carter Trio. Three guys who aim to recapture some of the excitement of the great guitar, drum and bass trios of the past! They have been immersed in music ranging from Cream to Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan to Eric Johnson, Mike Stern and beyond. But the band is not only limited to music by trio bands! They have a great passion for the music of Steely Dan! Now Steely Dan are anything but a trio... but their music is so interesting, diverse and so strong, that the band's own renditions of their songs always impress Dan fans. JCT has recently written a set of songs for the next all-original CD. These songs are going down well at gigs ... come to a gig soon and check 'em out! The band certainly understands that there's something about the stripped-down and open sound of a three-piece group, that makes the music sound great So, in a nutshell, the Jules Carter Trio are three highly skilled musicians taking their favorite covers and original music, and enjoying the ...

I just received the newest release, Cobalt , from Holland K. Smith and I really like it. Opening with Love Liquidation , a laid back Elvin Bishop / R&B style track with swinging blues riffs, this is a real cool track. You Get What You Deserve is a cool track sounding a lot like some of the earlier Steve Miller blues tracks with a jazz flair to it. Mr. Anson Funderburgh adds his guitar wizardry to this track as well as produces the release. Wes Starr on drums has just the right touch to highlight great vocals and Funderburgh's unmistakable style. Ron Jones also adds a lot of warmth on the bottom with sax. Just One Heartache smells like Texas blues with a great Texas lope Smith rips some great Texas style blues riffs. Real nice! The Itch has an early rock sound with emphasis on piano (Little Richard or JLL) and sax. Chuck Berry like riffs permeate the track but never sounding like anything but original. Title track, Cobalt is a really sweet jazz number. Leading off with gui...

Alex McKown was born in 1996 and he first picked up the guitar when he was 6 years of age. When he was 8 he asked if he could have an electric guitar for Christmas. Alex quickly progressed and spent many hours playing along to guitar legends such as Eric Clapton and BB King. When Alex was 11 he started to have lessons from Samuel C Lees at Tameside Music Academy. A passion for the blues was ignited ! Alex developed his performance skills by performing regularly at the blues/rock jam at The Whittles in Oldham. "The Moon and Sixpence" in Glossop gave The Alex McKown Band their first gig in 2008. The band went down a storm and the local paper carried the headline "Guitar Prodigy is Star of the Future". When the next gig was announced the headine was "Brilliant Blues not to be Missed". Alex then started to listen to the artists appearing at the major blues festivals in the UK and met Hamilton Loomis from Texas over the internet. Hamilton kindly agreed to let...

I just received the newest release (October 29, 2013), Still Climbing , from Leslie West and it has exactly what you listen to a Leslie West for.... gutsy vocals, a driving beat and flaming guitars! Opening with Dyin' Since The Day I Was Born , West is wide open on his amp, all volume controls and his vocals. With a strong metal influence, West shows all of the patience of a freight train with grinding riffs and pinched harmonics. Busted, Disgusted or Dead takes a more moderate pace with flashy sliding blues riffs from West and long time slideman Johnny Winter. Fade Into You is a 3/4 ballad with a solid melody giving West the opportunity to fire up his vocal chords and a wide open door to bust down with powerful fat guitar riffs. Real nice! Not Over You At All has a real cool intro with the smokin sound of an overdriven tube amp. Surprisingly a sax solo on this track takes a different direction than I would typically associate with West. A cool melodic guitar solo which I do ...

It is hardly a surprise that his two latest albums, "Freewheelin" and "Mojo Zone", are often found in music stores next to Chet Atkins and Eric Clapton on the "guitar hero" shelf. Showcasing a mighty sounding guitar that manages to be at the same time refined and explosive, the two Electro-Fi releases have propelled Enrico Crivellaro into the upper echelons of blues-and-beyond guitar royalty. The definition of Guitar Hero might not be in harmony with Enrico's unassuming nature and with his genuine and humble devotion to music, but it serves to thoroughly depict the status of a guitarist who has earned international fame, and who is now considered to be one of the most influential of his generation, thanks to a style that bridges Blues with Jazz and American Roots Music. Among dozens of rave reviews of "Freewheelin" and "Mojo Zone", it might as well be Downbeat's 4-star lead review--which is in itself every musician's asp...

I just received the newest release (September 24, 2013), All Frequencies , from MonkeyJunk and it's a cool blues rocker. Opening with You Make A Mess , a fleet footed rocker,with Steve leading the way on vocal and baritone guitar. Tony D plays a flashy guitar solo and Matt Sobb is tight on drums. This is an easy play for radio play with it's solid beat and melodic hook. Right From Wrong has a more traditional rock blues rhythm and vocal track. Marriner has a particularly good voice for music like this comparable to Paul Rogers to my ears. Also adept at harp, Marriner holds down the bass line on the bari as he trades harp riffs with Tony D on guitar. Why Are People Like That is a particularly strong track with a hammering drum beat reinforced by Marriner on bari and leading the way with his vocal style. Tony D lays down some really nice shimmery guitar riffs on this track making it one of my favorites. Je Nah Say Kwah is a funky little pop track with Wonder like harp riffs...

I just received the newest release (September 24, 2013), All Frequencies , from MonkeyJunk and it's a cool blues rocker. Opening with You Make A Mess , a fleet footed rocker,with Steve leading the way on vocal and baritone guitar. Tony D plays a flashy guitar solo and Matt Sobb is tight on drums. This is an easy play for radio play with it's solid beat and melodic hook. Right From Wrong has a more traditional rock blues rhythm and vocal track. Marriner has a particularly good voice for music like this comparable to Paul Rogers to my ears. Also adept at harp, Marriner holds down the bass line on the bari as he trades harp riffs with Tony D on guitar. Why Are People Like That is a particularly strong track with a hammering drum beat reinforced by Marriner on bari and leading the way with his vocal style. Tony D lays down some really nice shimmery guitar riffs on this track making it one of my favorites. Je Nah Say Kwah is a funky little pop track with Wonder like harp riffs...

Born & raised in Seattle, Key grew up exploring the great world of the Pacific Northwest during a time when the old Indian totems still stood tall and proud, when the powerful Indian spirit still breathed freely in nature. One can hear this presence in Key's guitar tone, resonating beyond the mundane. Key's work ethic developed during the summers he spent on a large wheat and cattle ranch. As a child he had to feed the pigs, which were bigger than he was. Later he drove heavy farm equipment and fought brush fires. Key's rite of initiation into manhood came via the Marine Core. Based at El Toro, Key became exposed to the vibrant music scene in and around Los Angeles. This was the era when R & B dominated the radio and jazz was at its peak. Sam Cook, the sounds of Motown, and Ray Charles filled the air. He heard Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Dave Brubeck, Sonny Rolands, and Charles Mingus, all live in their prime. This era segued wayed in to psychedelic blues ripping ...

I just received the newest release (September 17, 2013), Stepchild Of The Blues , by Howard Glazer and he lives up to his guitar man reputation. Opening with Don't Love You No More , a blues based rocker, Glazer punctuates his vocal phrases with searing riffs. On Shakin' , a R&B style track along the lines of Willie and the Hand Jive. With a lot of Bo Diddly rhythm, Glazer opens a door for open range soloing and he lays it down over a fairly open rhythm pattern. Nice! Gas Pump Blues is a basic acoustic with metal bodied resonator, vocal and featuring Harmonica Shah on harp. Cool change up. Telephone Blues digs down and gets BB King style tension and bend vibratos of Johnny Winter. Larry Marek adds some really nice organ work on this track but its the bend vibrato that is king here. Honey and Spice has the rhythm pattern of Wilson Picket but with a healthy dose of blues rock guitar. Somewhere really has the feel of an early Bob Dylan or Lou Reed track but with a bit o...

I just received the newest release, Down On My Luck , from Jon Zeeman and it's quite entertaining. Opening with a loping shuffle, You're Right, I'm Wrong , Zeeman shows a good command of the guitar and shore handed riffs. Rich guitar tones sounding like a strat through a Super drive the track. With a band made up of Phil McArther on bass, George Lilly on drums and Tom Regis a d Bob Taylor on keys, these guys are tight. Down On My Luck is a strong, slow blues ballad with complex jazz construction. A really nice melody gives Zeeman a nice platform for his vocal and warm organ backing gives him adequate space for interesting guitar riffs. Hangman's Bridge has a distinct Jimi Hendrix Foxy Lady rhythm and a Don Nix like melody sounding a bit like Mahogany Rush. Really strong blues rock track. I Love Everybody again has a Hendrix influence but in this case over Muddy Waters. A really cool twist. I Love Everybody continues in the contemporary Muddy Waters/Johnny Winter ...

Paul Rose is without doubt one of the most unique and talented guitarists in the world today. Fundamentally a rock guitarist, his extraordinary playing style touches on blues, country, jazz and folk, blended together into a style that is entirely his own. Never a gig goes by where audience members don't comment that Paul is the best guitarist they've seen and heard. Born in Newcastle, north east England in July 1966, Paul's natural gift shone through at an early age. He was already being hailed as one of the best guitarists in the region by the age of 16, playing regularly on the Newcastle live scene with the most popular local bands of the day. Since then Paul has continued to go from strength to strength, having released a total of 12 solo albums to date, selling worldwide to an ever increasing circle of fans. Coupled with his stunning live shows built on 25 years of tough performing experience, Paul is now gaining the worldwide recognition he deserves. Paul has been n...

Miss Marcy is a Bar Singer. She graduated from University of North Texas in 2001 and has spent the better part of the last decade hanging out in bars and playing music with Dallas’ finest musicians. Miss Marcy has been working the Dallas/ Ft. Worth entertainment circuit regularly for several years now. Her musical passion resides with Blues and traditional Jazz. Miss Marcy’s musical style is derived from the Divas from the first part of the 20th century including Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, Big Mama Thorton , and the like. She rarely does popular standards and instead selects songs that were considered by 20’s and 30’s audiences to be too suggestive for radio or too racial. She has always enjoyed the music of that era and tries to re-create the sound as it would have been. Miss Marcy has a self- released CD of all original music and has been working steadily in the Dallas/ Ft. Worth are doing club gigs, private parties, and festivals. Miss Marcy has been a guest as well as guest DJ on...

Alan Haynes (February 19, 1956), born in Houston, Texas, is an American Texas Blues guitarist. Alan has been playing professionally since the 1970s and has performed with a variety of Blues legends that include Stevie Ray Vaughan, Johnny Winter, Albert Collins, Albert King, The Fabulous Thunderbirds (1980's version with Jimmie Vaughan), Robert Cray, Bonnie Raitt, John Lee Hooker, and Otis Rush among others. He now resides in Austin, Texas and plays locally in and around Texas' major cities, especially Houston (where he performs nearly every month), occasionally in Dallas and Fort Worth, and also Europe, where he has a large following in Scandinavian countries, Germany, Denmark and Israel. In the late 1970s Alan joined the Texas Boogie Band as a second guitarist but eventually became the main guitarist. Alan moved to Austin, TX in the early 1980s. While playing with the Texas Boogie Band, Haynes got to open and share the stage with legendary Blues artists such as Muddy Waters....

Jörg Danielsen (Git., Voc) Gerhard Beisteiner (Bass) Christian Kurz (Drums) Special Guests: Tom Hornek (Piano) Gerry Lülik (Harp) Featuring: Norberto Pronto (Git.)   If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues news and Fathers of the Blues, -  ”LIKE” ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorite band!

London-born Nick Woodlandis one of the veterans coming out of the British blues-rock scene. Inspired by those like Alexis Korner, Eric Clapton, John Mayall and Peter Green, Woodland started out on guitar at age 15 and was almost to become a member of the Rolling Stones in the sixties. Since those days, he stuck to the message of rhythm’n’blues gaining some fame among insiders as one of the hottest live-acts around. “If you dig Dave Edmunds, Ry Cooder or Stevie Ray Vaughan, you will get your money’s worth from Nick Woodland,” Germany’s leading musicians’ magazine read. Süddeutsche Zeitung, one of Germany’s biggest dailies, wrote: “Nick Woodland is among the best live performers of the white blues.” Based in Munich (Germany), Nick Woodland has played his guitar for a whole lot of different bands in rock (Amon Düül II, The Clash), pop (Donna Summer, Boney M) and jazz (Herbie Mann) and recorded five albums with Germany’s top act Marius Müller-Westernhagen. With his own band he has been t...

        NO ONE ROCKS THE BLUES LIKE THE TODD WOLFE BAND!!      HEAR FOR YOURSELF ON THEIR NEW ALBUM, MILES TO GO    Guitar maestro Todd Wolfe and the Todd Wolfe Band release their new album, "Miles To Go" (American Showplace Music), representing another music milestone in Todd's storied career. The album's ten tracks run the gamut from straight blues to post-classic rock, each featuring Wolfe's uniquely rockin' soulful vocals. Guest performers on Miles To Go (Wolfe's fifth studio album, eighth total) include noteworthy blues harpist Steve Guyger and organ ace, John Ginty. The Todd Wolfe Band features Justine Gardner (bass, backing vocals); Roger Voss (drums, backing vocals); and Todd Wolfe (vocals, guitars). Yes, they're a trio. And we're pretty sure if you look in the dictionary under the word "tight," you'll see a photo of this band!  Wolfe - formerly the guitarist in rock singer Sheryl Cr...

Another in a series of releases that I believe are noteworthy which weren't sent to me for review, Revelator by the Tedeschi Trucks Band is as fine a contemporary R&B/ blues release as you're likely to hear. When slide guitarist extrordinaire, Derek Trucks determined to pair up with his wife, blues guitarist and vocalist Susan Tedeschi it was a marriage literally made in heaven. Tedeschi has a sassy vocal that lends itself really nicely to R&B and blues/pop music and Trucks, like many of the great players of our times needs a musical vehicle to express his art. Opening with Come See About Me , a funky pop track with really strong vocals, key work, great rhythm and hot hot slide work! Don't Let Me Slide has a bit of formatting like some of the earlier Allmans work but again with Tedeschi's silky vocals and super harmonies. It is nearly impossible for Trucks to play on any recording without being noticed as his sound is so his signature...and that is great. ...

The Sarah Ayers Band began cooking up their unique blend of blues, funk, and rock on a cold Tuesday night in January ‘02 as the hosts of a brand new blues jam in Macungie, PA as Sarah’s Rhythm Recipe. Little did they know that less than a month later their little blues jam would be the hottest jam in the Valley. Since that time, the group has branched out to become one of the valley’s best blues bands. Their spicy recipe for funky, kick-ass, butt-shaking blues has rocketed them right through the usual rites of passage for a new blues band, peforming at the Lehigh Valley Blues and Jazz Festival, competing in the regional International Blues Challenge, and performing in the Best of the Lehigh Valley Festival. Sarah has been awarded Best Female Vocalist at the Lehigh Valley Music Awards every year since 2003. In each year she has also taken home additional awards in other categories, including: best original band, best blues vocalist, best all around performer, and best original song “B...

Today I'm featuring another fine release that was not sent to me for review but that I feel deserves a good listen. I checked on Amazon and even they don't have a review. Well readers, here's a review of a real cool release that deserves your attention. This is an August 2012 release of Tell Me Why by Vance Kelly . Opening with Twenty Four Hours , a smooth shuffle track, Vance demonstrates in seconds that he is a first rate blues singer. Wall To Wall is a high stepping R&B song along the lines of James Brown (Living In America among others). How can you not like this. Kelly strikes hard with his guitar and with solid bass behind him and brass pushing, this is a super track. Foot Loose & Fancy Free is a solid blues track with gospel influence. This is a super track with Kelly playing smart guitar riffs balanced by organ, horns and harp. Possibly my favorite track on the release, it's certainly one not to be missed. Doing My Own Thing is a strong R&B /so...