Bman's Blues Report

The Siegel–Schwall Band is an American electric blues band from Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1964 by Corky Siegel (harmonica and piano) and Jim Schwall (guitar), and still tours occasionally. Corky Siegel and Jim Schwall met each other when both were music students at Roosevelt University. Siegel, originally a saxophonist, was interested in blues, while Schwall's background was mostly in country music. They combined these two genres, producing a lighter sounding blues as compared to Butterfield Blues Band or John Mayall. The Siegel–Schwall Band included Shelly Plotkin on drums and Rollo Radford on bass. Radford had previously played with Martha and the Vandellas and Sun Ra. They were the house band at Pepper's Lounge on Chicago's South Side. Every important Chicago blues musician sat in with Corky and Jim at Pepper's, including Junior Wells, Buddy Guy, Billy Boy Arnold, Little Walter, Muddy Waters, Magic Sam, Otis Spann, Bo Diddley, Lazy Lester and Sam ...