The Swingers Ball 16: The Masquerade Ball - Live Music, Swing Dancing, And More!

      

Big Tyme Presents

The Swingers Ball 16 - The Masquerade Ball

At The Famed Willowbrook Ballroom - Saturday, March 30 

  (Willow Springs, Illinois) - Big Tyme presents The Swingers Ball 16 - The Masquerade Ball, featuring live swing music and ballroom dancing (with Detroit's dynamic Swing Shift Orchestra) along with one of Chicago's finest blues groups  (blues-rock heavies Head Honchos'), at the Willowbrook Ballroom, 8900 S. Archer Ave., Willow Springs, Saturday, March 30. The evening also features a Best Masquerade Mask contest. Doors open 7 p.m. $25. (purchase tickets at the door) Info: http://www.swingersballinfo.com/.

The Swing Shift Orchestra started in 1993 as a result of a stage band comprised of members belonging to The Grosse Pointe Community Concert Band. While the band has had changes in membership, leaders, and rehearsal sites, saxophonist Lynne Henry continues to own and manage the band. Venues include concerts, parties, balls, weddings, and theme shows. Over the years, the band's bookings have increased dramatically. The focus of The Swing Shift Orchestra has always been to keep the nostalgic sounds of the Big Bands alive. The dedicated musicians attend weekly rehearsals to keep improving and recreating the ensemble sound of the Big Band legends.  The goal of the band is to bring the joy, harmonies, and fullness of this wonderful music to people of all ages. The Swing Shift Orchestra aims to make every event happy and fun with live, authentic performances of Big Band music. swingshiftorchestra.org/.

In a time when American music is too often characterized by emasculated melodies, narcissistic lyrics, and hyped mediocrity-- Head Honchos' offer up intense body-moving 

rhythms and emotionally-charged guitar expressions on their debut seven-song, self-titled CD. Grounded on the foundations of American blues, rock, soul, and funk, Head Honchos' launch their improvisational excursions with an irresistible invitation to kick back, let go, and enthusiastically ENJOY!!! Head Honchos' CD contains some quickly-memorable originals ("Lucky's Train," "Whiskey Devil," "Good Love," "That Driving Beat") as well as sizzling interpretations of classics such as Albert King's "Going Down," "Fire On The Bayou" by Aaron Neville, and Wilson Pickett's "99 1/2 Won't Do." Front person Rocco Calipari's Detroit-schooled vocals will leave no doubt of the unapologetic American identity we all experience. In an artistic celebration of our shared pride and joy, Head Honchos' cover some of our most loved standards, while introducing to an appreciative audience "roots-inspired" new tunes. www.headhonchosband.com. 

"There's a scene in Ghost World where Steve Buscemi ventures to see an acoustic bluesman at a sports bar, and he brushes off a girl hitting on him because she's more into the headliner, Blues Hammer. Head Honchos are like Blues Hammer: as subtle as an uppercut and making Stevie Ray Vaughan sound like Skip James. The band's self-titled debut cannons chunky guitar riffs and cymbal crashes, and turns train songs into party anthems. Buscemi's Seymour would have cringed at how frontman Rocco Calipari Sr. enunciates The Meters' "Fire On The Bayou," but then again Seymour didn't like to have fun and Head Honchos certainly do."                                    ILLINOIS ENTERTAINER

  

Big Twist &The Mellow Fellows

Larry "Big Twist" Nolan heartily epitomized the image "300 pounds of heavenly joy." Based in Chicago, the huge singer and his trusty R&B band, the Mellow Fellows, were one of the hottest draws on the Midwestern college circuit during the 1980s with a slickly polished sound modeled on the soul-slanted approach of Bobby Bland, Little Milton, and Tyrone Davis. Twist started out singing and playing drums in rough-and-tumble country bars in downstate Illinois during the late '50s and early '60s (chicken wire-enclosed stages were a necessity on this raucous scene). Young saxist Terry Ogolini jammed often with the big man at a joint called Junior's in a Prairie State burg called Colp. Ogolini and guitarist Pete Special spearheaded the nucleus of the first edition of the Mellow Fellows in the college town of Carbondale during the early '70s, with Twist doubling on drums. After taking southern Illinois by storm, the unit relocated en masse to Chicago in 1978. Live from Chicago! Bigger Than Life! Their eponymous 1980 debut album for Flying Fish accurately captured the group's slick sound, while the 1982 follow-up, One Track Mind, attempted to be somewhat more contemporary without losing the band's blues/R&B base. A move to Alligator in 1983 elicited an album co-produced by Gene "Daddy G" Barge, whose sax solos previously enlivened R&B classics by Chuck Willis, Gary (U.S.) Bonds, Little Milton, and countless more. The group's final album with Twist up front was the Live From Chicago! Bigger Than Life!! Street Party Numerous personnel changes over the years failed to scuttle the band, and neither did the death of Twist in 1990 from diabetes and kidney failure. Martin Allbritton, an old singing buddy of Twist's from downstate who had previously gigged around Chicago as frontman for Larry & the Ladykillers, had already been deputizing for the ailing Twist, so it fell to Allbritton to assume the role full-time. Barge shared the singing duties at selected gigs and on the band's 1990 album Street Party. Special left the organization not long after that, taking the name Mellow Fellows with him when he hit the door. That's when the remaining members adopted the handle of the Chicago Rhythm & Blues Kings. With Ogolini and longtime trumpeter Don Tenuto comprising a red-hot horn section, they're still a popular, dance-friendly fixture around the Chicago scene.

  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!

Shiny Stockings - Sonny Cohn w/ Count Basie

George T. "Sonny" Cohn (March 14, 1925 – November 7, 2006) was an American jazz trumpeter. After working for fifteen years with Red Saunders (1945–1960), he went on to spend another 24 years in Count Basie's trumpet section (1960–1984). Cohn started playing in small groups in Chicago with King Fleming while still a teenager. Cohn joined Red Saunders' group in 1945, while Saunders was out of the Club DeLisa and working with a sextet instead of his usual mid-sized band. Fresh out of military service, he joined the Saunders group at the Capitol Lounge in Chicago; Leon Washington had recommended him. He was featured on Saunders' first recordings as a leader, for Savoy, Sultan, and (behind Big Joe Turner) on National. He was heard on the records that Saunders made for OKeh Records (1951–1953) and for Parrot and Blue Lake (1953–1954). Sonny Cohn survived several downsizings of the Red Saunders band, as well as the closure of the Club DeLisa, but eventually accepted an offer from Count Basie, with whom he worked from 1960 through 1984. After Basie's death, Cohn returned to Chicago, where he remained active as a musician for another two decades. Cohn died in November 2006 in his home town of Chicago, at the age of 81.   

 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!

Was I Drunk - Georgia White

Georgia White (March 9, 1903 – c.1980) was an African American blues singer, most prolific in the 1930s and 1940s. Little is known of her early life. By the late 1920s she was singing in clubs in Chicago, and she made her first recording, "When You're Smiling, the Whole World Smiles With You," with Jimmie Noone's orchestra in 1930. She returned to the studio in 1935, and over the next six years recorded over 100 tracks for Decca Records, usually accompanied by the pianist Richard M. Jones and also, in the late 1930s, by guitarist Lonnie Johnson. Her output exceeds that of her rivals Lil Johnson and Merline Johnson, and even Memphis Minnie, during those years. She also recorded under the name Georgia Lawson. Many of her songs were mildly risqué, including "I'll Keep Sitting on It," "Take Me for a Buggy Ride," "Mama Knows What Papa Wants When Papa's Feeling Blue," and "Hot Nuts." Her best known song was "You Done Lost Your Good Thing Now." In the 1940s, Georgia White formed an all-women band, which never recorded, and also performed with Bumble Bee Slim. In 1949 she joined Big Bill Broonzy as pianist in his Laughing Trio. "She was very easy to get along with," said Broonzy. "Real friendly." She returned to singing in clubs in the 1950s, and her last known public performance was in 1959 in Chicago. One of her songs, "Alley Boogie" (recorded November 9, 1937), was used as the theme music for the British romantic comedy drama series, Love Soup.

  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!

Sure as Sin - Laura Lee

Laura Lee (born Laura Lee Newton, 9 March 1945, Chicago, Illinois) is an American soul and gospel singer and songwriter, most successful in the 1960s and 1970s and influential for her records which discussed and celebrated women’s experience. Lee was born in Chicago, but as a child relocated to Detroit with her mother. After a few years, she was adopted by Rev. E. Allan Rundless, who had previously been a member of the Soul Stirrers, and his wife Ernestine, who led a gospel group, The Meditation Singers. Featuring Della Reese, they were the first Detroit gospel group to perform with instrumental backing. The group recorded on the Specialty label in the mid 1950s, appeared on the LP Della Reese Presents The Meditation Singers in 1958, and in the early 1960s recorded for Checker Records. As Laura Lee Rundless, she replaced Reese in The Meditation Singers in 1956, and over the next few years toured widely around the country. In 1965, as Laura Lee, she launched her secular solo career as an R&B singer in clubs in Detroit, although she also continued to record occasionally with The Meditation Singers. She first recorded solo for Ric-Tic Records in 1966, with "To Win Your Heart". The following year, she signed with Chess Records and, after initially recording in-house with the label's producers in Chicago, it was decided to send her to Rick Hall’s FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals to record "Dirty Man". This became her first hit, reaching #13 R&B and #68 pop. She stayed with Chess until 1969, also recording "Up Tight Good Man" (#16 R&B) and "As Long As I Got You" (#31 R&B)). A short spell with Atlantic subsidiary, Cotillion resulted in two singles and then in 1970, Lee moved to former Motown producers, Holland, Dozier and Holland’s newly established Hot Wax label in Detroit. One of her first recordings for Hot Wax, "Women’s Love Rights", became one of her biggest hits, reaching #11 on the R&B chart in 1971 and #36 pop. In 1972, "Rip Off" became her biggest R&B hit at #3 but only climbed to #68 on the Billboard Hot 100. She also recorded an album, Two Sides of Laura Lee, while in a relationship with singer Al Green. Most of her material on Hot Wax was produced by William Weatherspoon, formerly with Motown. Lee left Invictus / Hot Wax in 1975 and signed with Ariola Records, but became seriously ill shortly afterwards and retired from the music industry for several years. She returned in 1983 with a gospel album, Jesus Is The Light Of My Life, on which she worked with Al Green. By 1990 she was recovered from her illness, and had been ordained as a minister. She has continued recording music, mostly gospel. A Swedish garage rock band did an unexpected homage to Lee by baptizing themselves as Division of Laura Lee.

  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!

Baby Scratch My Back - Scott Dirks and Chicago Bound

Award winning blues record producer Scott Dirks, whose credits include work with Alligator and Delmark records, and a who's who of Chicago blues artists. Dirks is also a well respected writer, with recent credits including co-authoring the Little Walter biography, "Blues With A Feeling", which has been inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame as a Classic of Blues Literature. Dirks is also a talented musician who fronts his own blues band in Chicago.   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!

She's Worse - Queen Sylvia Embry

Carey Bell-voc/harmonica Louisiana Red-git Jimmy Rodgers-git Lovie Lee-piano Queen Sylvia Embry-bass Charles"Honey Boy"Otis-drums For a period of time in the ‘70s and ‘80s, it appeared that Queen Sylvia Embry was going to emerge as one of Chicago’s leading blues women. After she emerged from her role as bass player for Lefty Dizz and the Shock treatment in the late 1970s, she began fronting her own small band in South Side clubs and making guest appearances on the North Side circuit. Everywhere she went, her big smile, warm stage presence, rich gospel-rooted voice and solid bass playing won her new fans. There were (and are) only a few professional-quality instrumentalists among the city’s blues women, and only one other playing bass. “I played piano when I first started out as a kid,” Sylvia recalled, “and I got away from it because my grandmother was very strict. She demanded I play gospel, and I wanted to play a little boogie-woogie. I was crazy about Chuck Berry and Lloyd Price; I didn’t care for blues then. My grandmother and her friends would drink white lightning and play blues records at their little outdoor cookouts, but she didn’t want me to do it.” To please her family, Sylvia sang in church choirs, even in a professional gospel group, The Southern Echoes, while a teenager. But at the age of nineteen, her ambitions grew bigger than the tiny town of Wabbaseka, Arkansas (where she was born in 1941) could hold. “I always wanted to be an actress or a vocalist. So I left home, went to Memphis. But unfortunately I got married, started to raise a family. I really didn’t trust leaving my home with someone else, so I was mainly a common housewife.”

  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!

After The Rain Fell - Big Dog Mercer

For over a decade, Marty “Big Dog” Mercer’s heartfelt, southpaw Blues and soulful voice has growled through the Chicagoland music scene. Mercer’s ability to combine emotional lyrics with aggressive slide guitar makes him an artist unlike any other. Earning his moniker from local Chicagoland blues favorites, the “Big Dog” has proven to be a talent no one saw coming. Mercer’s music career began in Northern Illinois where he performed at local jam sessions. While dealing with the struggles of life and developing his musical skills, Mercer found solace in the blues. As Mercer has said, “I’ve been told that a musician doesn’t pick the blues, the blues picks the musician.I love all kinds of music, but the Blues grabbed me and never let me go.” Mercer followed the driving rhythm of the blues to the suburbs of Chicago where he started performing locally. That's when the “Big Dog” was born. "They started calling me Big Dog & pretty soon that's what everyone called me.There's so many people that don't know my name is Marty.They just know me as Big Dog." Since residing in Chicagoland, Mercer has shared the billing & or stage with ; The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Billy Branch & the S.O.B's, L.V.Banks, Toronzo Cannon, Lonnie Brooks, Ronnie Baker Brooks, Mud Morganfield ,Eddie Taylor Jr., Lindsey Alexander, Tom Holland , Larry McCray , Rockin' Johnny, Anthony Gomes, Hollee Thee Maxwell, Chris Beard and Sharon Lewis, just to name a few. In April 2007, Mercer was crowned Joliet, Illinois’ Guitar Center “King of the Blues”. 2010 proved to be a big year for the “Big Dog”, beginning with the signing to Electro Glide Records in October. The year also brought the release of his 2nd album,"Attack of the southpaw" and the honor of having his recording on the top 60 blues songs of 2010 by “Friends of the Blues”. He placed second in the July 2010 Muddy Waters’ Chicago Blues Slide Guitar Championship. In January 2011, Mercer was nominated for the Chicago SuburbaNites Magazine "Best of the Burbs" contest in the categories of best guitarist, best male vocalist, best acoustic duo, best cover band and best blues band. The “Best of the Burbs” readers’ poll earned him the title of Best Blues Band in both 2010 & 2011. In September 2011 Mercer signed a 2 album contract & released his latest cd on Electro Glide Records simply titled "Big Dog" Mercer. Reviews. It's receiving regular airplay on many radio & internet stations. The band tied for first place at the Chicago Blues Challenge hosted by the Windy City Blues Society at Chicago Blues Fest 2012. Mercer demonstrates this desire to help others through his contribution to area causes including the Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Guardian Angel Home, St. Joe's Academy, several Humane Societies, Heal With Love Foundation, private fundraisers, and many others. You can find the Big Dog’s music online, on over 150 radio stations in over 12 countries and live all over Chicagoland & surrounding areas. The “Big Dog” can be found playing with his band, as a duo and solo.

 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!

I Got News For You - Andrew Brown

Tragically under-recorded until late in his career, Chicago blues guitarist Andrew Brown still had time enough to wax a handful of great singles during the mid-'60s and two '80s albums (unfortunately, both of them were only available as imports) that beautifully showcased his fluid, concise lead guitar and hearty vocals. The Mississippi native moved to Chicago in 1946. With Earl Hooker teaching him a few key licks, Brown matured quickly; he was playing in south suburban clubs -- his main circuit -- by the early '50s. His 45s for USA (1962's "You Better Stop") and 4 Brothers (the mid-'60s sides "You Ought to Be Ashamed" and "Can't Let You Go") were well-done urban blues. But it wasn't until 1980, when Alligator issued three of his songs on its second batch of Living Chicago Blues anthologies, that Brown's name began to resonate outside the Windy City. Producer Dick Shurman was responsible for Brown's only two albums: the Handy Award-winning Big Brown's Chicago Blues for Black Magic in 1982 and On the Case for Double Trouble three years later. But Brown was already suffering from lung cancer when the second LP emerged. He died a short time later. ~ Bill Dahl, Rovi

  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!

Midnight Stomp - Jimmy Yancey

James Edwards "Jimmy" Yancey (February 20, 1894 – September 17, 1951) was an African American boogie-woogie pianist, composer, and lyricist. One reviewer noted him as "one of the pioneers of this raucous, rapid-fire, eight-to-the-bar piano style" Yancey was born in Chicago in (depending on the source) 1894, or 1898. His older brother, Alonzo Yancey (1894 – 1944) was also a pianist, while their father was a guitarist. Yancey started performing as a singer in traveling shows during his childhood. He was a noted pianist by 1915, and influenced younger musicians, such as Meade Lux Lewis and Albert Ammons. While he played in a boogie-woogie style, with a strong-repeated figure in the left hand and melodic decoration in the right hand, his playing was delicate and subtle, rather than hard driving. He popularized a left hand figure which became known as the 'Yancey bass', and was later used in Pee Wee Crayton's "Blues After Hours", Guitar Slim's "The Things That I Used to Know" and many other songs. Part of Yancey's distinctive style was that he played in a variety of keys but ended some pieces in E flat, even if it was in another key. And he favored keys atypical for barrelhouse blues, like E flat and A flat. Most of his recordings were of solo piano, but late in his career he also recorded with vocals by his wife, Estelle Yancey, under the billing 'Jimmy and Mama Yancey'. They appeared in concert at the Carnegie Hall in 1948.In 1951, the twosome recorded the first album that was released by Atlantic Records the following year. During World War I, Yancey played baseball in a Negro league baseball team, the Chicago All-Americans. Throughout his life, Yancey kept a job as groundskeeper for the Chicago White Sox. Yancey died of a stroke secondary to diabetes in Chicago on September 17, 1951. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986

  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 favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

 

Where (Blues) Legends Are Made: Howard and the White Boys Return To Buddy Guy's Legends

            "Chicago's Hardest-Working Blues Band...For Over Two Decades!"

  

 

                        
 WHERE BLUES LEGENDS ARE MADE:

Howard & The White Boys Return To Buddy Guys Legends - Sun, Feb. 24

                             

   (CHICAGO,, IL)  - One of the first venues that Howard and the White Boys were fortunate enough to perform at regularly when they first formed was Buddy Guys Legends in their hometown of Chicago. Indeed, the blues guitar master not only became the band's unofficial mentor, but also took them on a major Midwestern tour in 1995 as his opening act, followed by a special appearance on their 1999 album Made In Chicago, where he dueted with lead vocalist Howard McCullum and contributed some scorching lead licks on the Sam And Dave classic, "I Thank You" (listen to the song here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztnrL8antQM).
      Howard and the White Boys return to perform at Buddy Guys Legends, 700 S. Wabash Ave., Chicago, Sunday, February 24. 9 pm. $10. Info: (312) 427-1190 or www.buddyguy.com.

   Known for a long time now as "Chicago's Hardest-Working Blues Band," the veteran blues quartet continue to perform through out the U.S., bringing audiences to their feet and out onto the dance floor - much as they have done for over twenty years - while getting ready to record the follow up to their critically-acclaimed most recent recording, MADE IN CHICAGO (Evidence Records).Most recently, band member Rocco Calipari has branched out with his side project Head Honchos', who have released a well-received debut CD.   

   MADE IN CHICAGO represents the zenith of the group's recorded output, and it's certainly the disc that Howard & the White Boys are most proud of. While the band hadn't recorded in six years, they've been gigging continuously throughout the U.S. and Europe; this, in turn, has lent their trademark brand of contemporary blues an indomitable tightness brimming with raw power. All of this comes through on the new disc, proving that the wait was well worth it.           

                                  

      
   Here's a live rendition of H&TWB's popular song "Booty And Barbeque" from the group's Spring 2012 U.S. Tour.

                

     The members of Howard And the White Boys first met at Northern Illinois University in Dekalb in 1988 and began jamming together just for fun, but their fast-growing popularity soon convinced them they could make a career of it. After only a few months, they got their first big break by opening for Blues legend, B.B. King. The band soon made the move to Chicago and began performing with the biggest names in Blues: Koko Taylor, Albert King, Junior Wells, Lonnie Brooks, Luther Allison, Bo Diddley, and Chuck Berry (the latter whom they were the backing band for in a headlining capacity at the 2002 Long Beach Blues Festival in Long Beach, Calif.).

www.howardandthewhiteboys.net 

                                                               

THE ALTERNATE ROOT (CD Review) 

CHICAGO EXAMINER  

BLUES REVUE (CD Review)

Hoochie Coochie Man - Vinir Dóra And Chicago Beau

CHICAGO BEAU Bandleader, Vocal, Harmonica, Percussion, Author

Chicago Beau (L Beauchamp), was born on the south-side of Chicago on 13 February 1949, into a house of music. The recordings of Dinah Washington, Coleman Hawkins, Miles Davis, Billy Holiday, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald and others inundated his senses from the beginning. From the age of 10 until 15, Beau studied tap-dancing with the great Afro-Cuban dancer and choreographer, Jimmy Payne. He participated in many Cabaret-type shows that were popular during that era. A show could consist of performances by Afro-Cuban dancers, magicians, tap dancers, Jazz and Blues performers, and drill teams. These shows gave young people the opportunity to participate with professionals in a community setting. There was little distinction in the taste of the audience, people of all ages appreciated the same talent. Beau was becoming quite a tap-dancer (sometimes still used in his shows), but it was the Blues and Jazz elements of these shows that really held his interest. He became so interested in Blues that he began sneaking around to Blues clubs after school to listen to Blues bands rehearse. On famous 47th street, he would slip into the 708 Club which sizzled at night with artists like Muddy Waters, Howling Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson, Big Mama Thornton, Little Walter, and Billy Boy Arnold. Up the street from there was the Sutherland Lounge which featured Jazz and Blues acts as Ella Fitzgerald, Joe Williams, Esther Philips, Von Freeman, E Parker McDougal, Louis Armstrong, Dexter Gordon, Dizzy Gillispie, Chico Hamilton, Philly Joe Jones, and nearly everyone that had a name. Little did Beau know at the time that some of these performers he watched and listened would have a permanent impact on his life: Billy Boy Arnold gave him harmonica lessons (they later recorded together), and Muddy Waters gave him his name, ‘Chicago Beau.’ After spending three years from the age of 17 playing harmonica and singing in small clubs, mining and logging camps, and on street corners from Chicago, to Boston, to Nova Scotia, to Amsterdam, he moved to Paris where he met, performed and recorded with Archie Shepp in August, 1969, at age 20. Beau considers the first recording with Shepp to be the beginning of his professional career. For over 30 years Chicago Beau has recorded and performed with some of the most respected names in music including Memphis Slim, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Cal Massey, Anthony Braxton, Sunny Maurry, Pinetop Perkins, Anthony Braxton, Jimmy Dawkins, Johnny Shines, Billy Boy Arnold, Fontella Bass, Habib Koite, James Carter, Lester Bowie, Philly Joe Jones, Famoudou Don Moye, Jeanne Lee, Willie Kent, E. Parker McDougal, Amina Claudine Meyers, Zulu Chorus of Soweto, Frank Zappa, Sunnyland Slim, and others. Chicago Beau has received the CLIO award, the American advertising industry’s highest honor, for his music which was used in the 1991-92 National Basketball Association Champions, Chicago Bulls, cable television campaign. Chicago Beau is committed to the literary side culture. In 1988 he founded Literati Internazionale, a publishing company dedicated to multi-culturalism. To date his company has published over ten journals, books, and magazines. As a writer, Chicago Beau has written numerous articles and two books, Great Black Music-The Art Ensemble of Chicago, and Blues Stories. He was working with trumpeter Lester Bowie on his Autobiography at the time of his death. Excerpts from this work will be published soon. Chicago Beau also lectures in Universities, Schools, and music festivals on the topics: The Evolution of Blues as Language and Literature,’ and ‘History of Music Along the Mississippi River.’ Beau is currently touring with his BLUZ-MULTI-GROOVE BAND: CHICAGO BEAU AND HIS WONDERFUL TIME BAND 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 favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

Rubbin' My Root - Big John Wrencher & His Maxwell Street Blues Boys

Big John Wrencher (February 12, 1923 - July 15, 1977), also known as One Arm John, was an American blues harmonica player and singer, well known for playing on Maxwell Street Market, Chicago in the 1960s, and who later toured Europe in the 1970s.John Thomas Wrencher was born in Sunflower, Mississippi, United States. He became interested in music as a child, and taught himself to play harmonica at an early age, and from the early 1940s was working as an itinerant musician in Tennessee, Missouri, Indiana, and Illinois. By the mid 1940s he had arrived in Chicago and was playing on Maxwell Street and at house parties with Jimmy Rogers, Claude "Blue Smitty" Smith and John Henry Barbee. In the 1950s he moved to Detroit, where he worked with singer/guitarist Baby Boy Warren, and formed his own trio to work in the Detroit and Clarksdale, Mississippi areas. In 1958 Wrencher lost his left arm as a result of a car accident outside Memphis, Tennessee. By the early 1960s he had settled in Chicago, where he became a fixture on Maxwell Street Market, in particular playing from 10am to 3pm on Sundays. In 1964 he appeared in a documentary film about Maxwell Street, titled And This Is Free; performances by Wrencher recorded in the process of making the film were eventually issued on the three CD set And This Is Maxwell Street. During the 1960s he recorded for the Testament label backing Robert Nighthawk, and as part of the Chicago String Band. In 1969 he recorded for Barrelhouse Records, backed by guitarist Little Buddy Thomas and drummer Playboy Vinson, who formed his Maxwell Street band of the time. The resulting album, Maxwell Street Alley Blues, was described as "superlative in every regard" by Cub Koda at Allmusic. Wrencher toured Europe with the Chicago Blues Festival in 1973 and with the American Blues Legends in 1974, and during the latter tour recorded an album in London for the Big Bear label, backed by guitarist Eddie Taylor and his band. During a trip to Mississippi to visit his family in July 1977, Wrencher died suddenly of a heart attack in Wade Walton's barber shop in Clarksdale, Mississippi 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 favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

I Can't Stand The Rain - Grana`Louise and Troublemaker

Internationally known Graná Louise has delighted countless music fans around the world with her outstanding shows. Whether belting out Blues classics, rock ‘n roll or soul, her music will move and inspire you. She is the quintessential female voice of Chicago. Grana’s show brims with all the elements that make a performance a great one! Her rich voice belts out music that makes your spine tingle and heart ache. Her impeccable timing and keen staging gives an audience something to remember! She engages everyone watching her. Graná and her stellar band are a regular act at Chicago's hottest Blues Clubs and she is a repeat act at the famed Chicago Blues Fest. Graná Louise has rocked the house at the Apollo Theater in New York and prestigious venues worldwide. She has headlined internationally acclaimed festivals from Detroit to Mexico, Reykjavik to the French Riviera, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, France, Brazil & beyond. From festival to corporate event, Graná Louise will bring her brand of Chicago style to your next event! 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!

Good Morning Blues - Blind Arvella Gray

The only album by Blind Arvella Gray, a nearly forgotten street singer who spent the latter part of his life performing folk, blues and gospel music at Chicagos Maxwell Street flea market and at rapid-transit depots, received a deluxe reissue on August 2, 2005. The album, The Singing Drifter, was originally released in 1972 on vinyl and fewer than 1,000 copies were sold. Unavailable for more than 30 years, the album has now been released as a CD with full liner notes, extensive photography and four bonus tracks. The reissue kicks off the new Conjuroo Recordings label, an indie record company headed by Cary Baker, president of the music publicity company called conqueroo based in Sherman Oaks, Calif. Conjuroo is marketed by Emergent Music Marketing and distributed through RED Distribution. As a teenager in Chicago in the 70s, Baker made several forays to Maxwell Street to watch Gray, and was even responsible for connecting the artist with the label that released Drifter, the Wilmette, Ill.-based Birch Records. Until it recorded Gray, Birch had specialized in traditional country artists of the WLS Barndance lineage, including Doc Hopkins and Patsy Montana. Birch Records only released a handful of vinyl LPs, and had gone dormant by the inception of the CD. The Blind Arvella Gray album became a hot item, on collectors want lists for years. Finally, in 2004, Baker developed a strong desire to reissue the recording. It was not easy to find Birch Records founder David Wylie, who maintained no web site, nor even an email address. To reissue the album, Baker set upon launching Conjuroo Recordings and enlisted the services of Grammy Award-winning art director Susan Archie of w0rld of aNarchie, who oversaw innovative packages for Revenant reissues by Charley Patton and Albert Ayler. Additionally, Wylie found four unreleased tracks, which have been added to the release. Arvella Gray (real name James Dixon) was born in Texas in 1906 and was blinded in the 30s, possibly while holding up a bank, possibly in Peoria (he never told the story the same way twice). Arriving in Chicago in the 40s, he brought the music of the cotton fields and chain gangs to the industrial North, proving an unheralded missing link to the origins of American folk music, blues and gospel. His repertoire included many standards, such as the chain gang standard John Henry and the traditional country song More Pretty Girls Than One, while touching on the gospel tradition with songs like Take Your Burden to the Lord and Leave it There. He accompanied himself on slide National steel guitar an instrument that was later sold on eBay. His fans included Bob Dylan, whose 1961 song He Was a Friend of Mine was said to have been borrowed from Gray. Arvella Gray died in Chicago in 1980. My father took me to the Maxwell Street flea market to show me where his Eastern European immigrant parents had shopped in the 30s and 40s, says Baker. In the ensuing years, it had become a hotbed for blues artists including Muddy Waters and Big Walter Horton, whose music was heard under the din of CTA buses and flea market hawkers on bullhorns augmented by the aroma of Polish sausages and onions grilling nearby. By the time I visited, Gray was among a handful of surviving buskers who continued to hold forth on Sunday mornings. I was taken by the unique sound and authenticity of his music. In historical perspective, Grays wailing slide Dobro stands in a category with Hound Dog Taylor, R.L. Burnside or Junior Kimbrough wild, unruly and imperfect. This album quietly slipped between the cracks and it is my privilege and honor to turn a new generation on to this unforgettable street singer. 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!

VANCE KELLY

Vance Kelly (born January 24, 1954) is an American soul blues singer and guitarist, who has performed regularly at various music venues in the Chicago area, chief among them being the 1815, Checkerboard Lounge, Rosa's Lounge, Kingston Mines, Buddy Guy's Legends, and B.L.U.E.S. As a music journalist noted of Kelly, "Like Primer, he combines an enquiring eye for a song with a moderately conservative taste in sound, producing music that lives by the principles of classic Chicago bar blues yet is not enslaved by the past" Kelly was born in the Near West Side community area of Chicago, Illinois, United States. His father was a gospel musician, and his uncle, LeRoy McCauley, was a part-time blues musician. Kelly's own interest in and talent for performing music were on display at an early age; he was playing guitar by the age of seven, despite never having had a formal lesson. Then, at the age of 10, Kelly performed blues for the first time at a Chicago school. As a teenager, he sat in at various clubs on Chicago's South Side and later appeared both as a solo artist and as a sideman in those clubs, backing such artists as the West-Side singer Mary Lane when he was 15. It was during this time that Kelly developed his unique "ringing" guitar sound, which raised his profile among members of Chicago's blues community Kelly experimented with disco music during the late 1970s, but he had rekindled his interest in blues music by the end of the decade. Major influences on Kelly's playing style during this stage of his musical development included B.B. King, Muddy Waters, and Johnny Christian. In 1987, Kelly was invited to become a member of saxophonist A.C. Reed's Sparkplugs. Kelly's tenure with this group influenced his vocal style, while allowing him to refine his guitar skills, and provided him with road experience. After playing with Reed's band for three years, however, Kelly decided to strike out on his own. One reason for this decision was his eagerness to cultivate his own style, which has come to be characterized as a mixture of electric blues, R&B, funk, and disco. Kelly's urge to leave Reed's band also stemmed from his desire to adapt his blues playing to the perceived tastes of a particular audience. With regard to the latter point, Kelly has said, "If the older folks come in, I want to take them back to the Delta blues. When the middle-aged folks come in, they just want to hear regular-type blues. If a younger crowd comes in, they want to hear up-to-date type blues Kelly formed the Backstreet Blues Band soon after he ended his tenure with Reed, and signed a recording contract with the Vienna, Austria-based Wolf Records International in 1992. Members of Kelly's band included John Primer on guitar; David Honeyboy on harmonica; Eddie Shaw on the saxophone; Erskine Johnson on the keyboard; and Johnny Reed playing bass. In 1994, Kelly and his band had a breakthrough when his debut album, Call Me, earned critical acclaim and introduced Kelly to audiences beyond the Chicago area. The album went on to win the Best Album of 1994 (New Recording) as well as the Living Blues Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album in 1995. The following year, Kelly released Joyriding in the Subway, which featured assistance on lyrics and vocals by Vivian Kelly, Vance Kelly's daughter. As with Kelly's debut outing, Joyriding in the Subway also included the guitarwork of John Primer, bass playing of Johnny Reed, and keyboard music of Erskine Johnson. Critics largely praised the album and noted its "stylistic breadth," citing influences on the songs such as A.C. Reed, Tyrone Davis, and Little Milton Kelly has worked steadily since these two hit releases of the 1990s, producing a string of well-received albums that showcased his signature mix of blues, soul, and funk styles. He continues to record with the Backstreet Blues Band, most recently releasing the album Bluebird on October 2008. He has also played at numerous blues gatherings, including the annual Chicago Blues Festival. Between 1999 and 2002, Kelly took part in three separate European concert tours. While Kelly remains relatively unknown outside of the Chicago blues community, his fan base is loyal and has expanded considerably over the years. His daughter, Vivian Kelly, is a blues musician in her own right who released her debut album, Hit Me Up, on October 10, 2006. A musical documentary 'Someplace Else' made by filmmakers Kai-Duc LUONG & Avisheh MOHSENIN portraying Vance Kelly and featuring many of his trademark songs, was released in 2008 and played at international film festivals such as Hawaii International Film Festival, Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (VC Film Fest), Rhode Islan>d International Film Festival.

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The Prodigal Son - Harold Ousley

Harold Lomax Ousley (born January 23, 1929, Chicago, Illinois, United States) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist and flautist. Ousley began playing in the late 1940s, and in the 1950s recorded behind vocalists such as Billie Holiday and Dinah Washington. He played as a sideman with Gene Ammons in the 1950s and with Jack McDuff and George Benson in the 1960s. He released his first record as a leader in 1961. In the 1970s he played with Lionel Hampton and Count Basie in addition to releasing further material as a leader. After 1977 he did not release another album under his own name until his most recent effort, 2000's Grit-Grittin' Feelin' 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 favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

Mojo Boogie - Robert "Big Mojo" Elem

When talking about deep bluesmen who are also great entertainers, the conversation will eventually get around to the coolest bassman/singer/showman the Windy City has in its blues arsenal, Big Mojo Elem. As a singer, he possesses a relatively high-pitched voice that alternately drips with honey and malice. As a bassist, his unique approach to the instrument makes him virtually one of a kind. Unlike most bass players, Elem seldom plays standard walking bass patterns, instead using a single-note groove that lends to any band he's a part of a decidedly juke-joint groove. And as a showman, he possesses an energy that makes other performers half his age look like they're sitting down. Born in Itta Bena, Mississippi, Elem grew up in fertile blues territory. Originally a guitarist, he soaked up licks and ideas by observing masters like Robert Nighthawk and a young Ike Turner first-hand. By his 20th birthday, he had arrived in Chicago and was almost immediately pressed into professional service playing rhythm guitar behind Arthur "Big Boy" Spires and harmonica man Lester Davenport. By 1956, Elem had switched over to the newly arrived (in Chicago) electric bass, simply to stand out from the pack of guitar players searching the clubs looking for work. He formed a band with harp player Earl Payton and signed on a young Freddie King as their lead guitarist, playing on King's very first single for the El-Bee label in late 1956. After Freddie's success made him the bandleader, Big Mojo stayed with King off and on for the next eight years. The '50s and '60s also found him doing club work -- mostly on the West side -- with Magic Sam, Junior Wells, Shakey Jake Harris, Jimmy Dawkins, and Luther Allison, with a short stint in Otis Rush's band as well. Aside from a stray anthology cut and a now out of print album for a tiny European label, Elem's career has not been documented in much depth, but he remains one of the liveliest players on the scene. 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 favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

Ahmad's Blues - Ahmad Jamal Trio w/ Israel Crosby

Israel Crosby (January 19, 1919 – August 11, 1962) was an African-American jazz double-bassist born in Chicago, Illinois, best known as member of the Ahmad Jamal trio from 1957 to 1962. A close contemporary of Jimmy Blanton, Crosby is less considered as a pioneer, but his interactive playing in Jamal's trio and that of George Shearing shows how easily and fluently he displayed a modern approach to jazz double bass. He is credited with taking the first recorded bass solo on his 1935 recording of 'Blues for Israel' with drummer Gene Krupa (Prestige PR 7644) when he was only 16. He died of a heart attack two months after joining the Shearing Quintet 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!

Cherry Red Wine - Rob Blaine

Rob Blaine- Born in Chicago 1981, moved to Michigan, grew up listening to Blues, R&B, Funk, Rock, Soul, because of his father. Began playing guitar at 15, started giging and playing out by age of 17 with his guitar teacher, Charlie Schantz's band.Playing the blues standards. Started his own band with his brother Buck and other friends, playing around Grand Rapids for the next couple of years. He moved back to Chicago in 2003, where since has been on 3 U.S tours, and one European tour. Touring with Little Milton before his untimely passing, and currently touring with the Chicago Rythme & Blues Kings (formerly Big Twist and the Mellow Fellows) featuring Gene Barge a.k.a. Daddy G., and his own band. Big Rob Blaine plays at Kingston Mines every tuesday and at B.L.U.E.S. on Halsted once a month. 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!