Bman's Blues Report

This was my fifth Blues Cruise and this marks the third review of the LRBC I’ve done for Bman’s Blues Report .   I’m not sure if it’s because I’ve become a well-seasoned cruiser by now, or if it’s because I had some close friends join me on this cruise, or if the music was any better, or if the islands were more friendly, but this was the best Blues Cruise yet for me! If you haven’t heard me say it before, I’ll start off with these words of wisdom.   A Blues Cruise vacation is exactly what you make it. You don’t even have to be a fan of blues music to have the time of your life, but it helps!   You can listen to as much music as you want starting as early as 10:30AM and going non-stop somewhere on the ship until 6:00AM.   One night I wandered into the Crows Nest at 5:00AM and listened to JP Soars jam until 5:30AM when they finally called it a night… except for one thing, it was already 6:30AM because we had crossed from the Eastern time zone to the Atlanti...

THE CASH BOX KINGS, SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY WIN BLUES BLAST MUSIC AWARDS! The Cash Box Kings and Southern Hospitality both won 2013 Blues Blast Music Awards for their Blind Pig albums at ceremonies held at Buddy Guy's Legends club in Chicago on October 31st. The Cash Box Kings' Black Toppin' was named the best "Traditional Blues Album" and the debut release from Southern Hospitality, Easy Livin' , was the winner of the "Best New Artist Debut" award.                                                  Joe Nosek (Photo: Jim Netter ) Before being announced winners of the Blues Blast Music Award, The Cash Box Kings performed two songs for the crowd at Legends, skillfully displaying their uncanny ability to deli...

THE CASH BOX KINGS, SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY WIN BLUES BLAST MUSIC AWARDS! The Cash Box Kings and Southern Hospitality both won 2013 Blues Blast Music Awards for their Blind Pig albums at ceremonies held at Buddy Guy's Legends club in Chicago on October 31st. The Cash Box Kings' Black Toppin' was named the best "Traditional Blues Album" and the debut release from Southern Hospitality, Easy Livin' , was the winner of the "Best New Artist Debut" award.                                                  Joe Nosek (Photo: Jim Netter ) Before being announced winners of the Blues Blast Music Award, The Cash Box Kings performed two songs for the crowd at Legends, skillfully displaying their uncanny ability to deliver au...

NEW SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY VIDEO "Kind Lies & Whiskey" "Well, I've got scars, from cars, b ars and women. And I feel, Lord, I've earned them all." Great lyrics, from a great song, from a great band.  The song, "Kind Lies & Whiskey," exemplifies the compelling mix of Southern soul, rootsy rock, and swampy blues of Southern Hospitality that has critics comparing the group to the Allman Brothers, Little Feat, Marshall Tucker, Dr. John, and Willie Nelson. Led by a trio of young virtuosos - Damon Fowler (composer of "Kind Lies") on lap steel, JP Soars on guitar, and Victor Wainwright on keyboards - Southern Hospitality is taking the Americana and roots music world by storm with their "neo-postmodern Southern rock" with echoes of Muscle Shoals and Macon. Elmore magazine said of the tune, "Tracks like Fowler's 'Kind Lies & Whiskey' breathe new life into southern rock 4...

 BLUES BLAST MUSIC AWARD VOTING ENDS TOMORROW Blues fans can vote for their favorites Tomorrow, Saturday, August 31st, is your last chance to vote for the 2013 Blues Blast Music Awards.  Voting is open to anyone who is a Blues Blast magazine subscriber. Subscriptions are FREE and an automatic part of the voting process on the website. To see the list of nominees and to hear songs by the artists nominated, please click HERE .   To cast your ballot, please click here: VOTE . Blind Pig artists are well represented on the ballot: THE CASH BOX KINGS - Blues Band of the Year - Traditional Blues Album  ( Black Toppin' ) The Cash Box Kings have been extolled by no less an authority than Charlie Musselwhite for their uncanny ability to faithfully capture the essence of post-war 1950's Chicago and Memphis blues while adding their own bravado, energy, and freshness to the mix.  In a review of their latest release,  Black Toppin' , L...

NEW SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY VIDEO! "Don't Feel Like Going There Today"   Southern Hospitality , the all-star roots-blues/Americana ensemble that's creating a musical stir in the Deep South and beyond, has just released a video of a song from their new Blind Pig album, Easy Livin.'  The group is fronted by guitar and lap steel whiz Damon Fowler, another guitar ace from Florida, JP Soars, and pianoman extraordinaire Victor Wainwright from Memphis, and backed by a sterling rhythm section of Chris Peet on drums and Chuck Riley on bass. The video features a live performance of  "Don't Feel Like Going There Today ," where the band splashes a tasty helping of sweet Southern soul sauce over the inviting reggae-inflected tune written and sung by Fowler.  No Depression described the song as a "Marley lope overlaid with some twisted, wiggly guitar work by Soars and Fowler, backed by some itchy organ from Wainwright." ...

I just received the new release, Easy Livin' by Southern Hospitality and it's quite enjoyable. This band features three well known blues artists, Damon Fowler, JP Soars and Vistor Wainwright as well as bassist Chuck Riley and drummer Chris Peet. This release has a number of flavors of music due to the diverse but related styles of each artist. Opening with Southern Livin' , a funky little easy going pop blues, the band sets a baseline for music to come. This is a well written track with some of the commercial blood of Wet Willie or Little Feat, with a soul twist, but with life of it's own. Long Way Home , a Soars penned track has a bit more rock to it and features a short instrumental break featuring each of the players giving a taste of what is to come. Kind Lies & Whiskey is a really cool Fowler penned swing almost country blues. I really like this track with it's laid back attack. Wainwright plays a nice piano solo on this track. On another Soars penned ...

NEW VIDEOS FROM SENA EHRHARDT AND SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY Singer Sena Ehrhardt and blues-based Americana group Southern Hospitality have released new videos in conjunction with the March 12th release of their new albums. Sena's video is "Buried Alive," the lead track from her new album entitled All In .  To watch the video, click HERE . Ehrhardt is one of the freshest and most dynamic young voices on the blues scene today.  Roots Music Report just said, "Few musical kicks rate with listening to talent on the rise and it appears that Ms. Ehrhardt is taking two stairs at a time on her way to joining the contemporary blues elite."  For more info on All In , please click here .    The video from Southern Hospitality features the song "Southern Livin'" (which some critics find reminiscent of Little Feat), live performance footage and short interview clips.  To watch the video, please click HERE . The t...

BLIND PIG SIGNS SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY The South has long been known for its hospitality and down home music.   Recently the region has seen the emergence of a musical group of young musicians who are masters of their craft and embody the soul and spirit of Dixie. Or as Blues Revue said, "There's a new entity in the blues world, a diverse, powerful group with enormous potential." The Band creating all the buzz, called Southern Hospitality , is comprised of lap steel guitar master Damon Fowler , guitarist extraordinaire JP Soars , and keyboard wizard Victor Wainwright . Blind Pig Records is proud to announce the signing of Southern Hospitality, which is about to record what promises to be one of the most exciting CDs in 2013.   The album will be produced by Tab Benoit, winner of three Blues Music Awards this year, including the prestigious "B.B. King Entertainer of the Year."  Said Tab, "I'm looking forward to working wit...