Bman's Blues Report

Larry Davis (December 4, 1936 – April 19, 1994) was an American electric Texas blues and soul blues musician. He is best known for co-composing the song "Texas Flood", later recorded to greater commercial success by Stevie Ray Vaughan. Born in Kansas City, Missouri and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas, Davis swapped playing the drums to learn to play the bass guitar. In the mid 1950s, Davis had a working partnership with Fenton Robinson, and following the recommendation of Bobby Bland was given a recording contract by the Duke label. Davis had three singles released, which included "Texas Flood" and "Angels in Houston". Thereafter, Davis had limited opportunity in the recording studio. He resided in St. Louis, Missouri for a while, and played bass in Albert King's group. He also learned conventional guitar at this time, as the original guitar playing on Davis's recording of "Texas Flood" was by Robinson. Several single releases on the ...

Abe Reid was born in Statesville, North Carolina in 1972. His first foray into music started at a mere 8 years old when his mom's then current boyfriend, Tim bought him a guitar, introduced him to blues music and began teaching him how to play. Eventually, he expanded his repertoire with harmonicas, kazoos, and various other instruments. Aside from Tim's instrument coaching, Abe never had any formal training or lessons. He says, "We didn't have a radio in our car so my mom would always sing songs to me." Abe made his first public appearance at the early age of 12, playing at a fiddler's convention with Tim. He knew then that he wanted to be a musician. At age 16 he met Tim Duffy, founder of Music Maker Relief Foundation, at a blues festival. Duffy told him that he knew where to find "a real live bluesman" and introduced Abe to the infamous Guitar Gabriel. Abe played harmonica with him and Gabe told him he was good. That gave Abe the confidence he ...

Ruff Kutt Blues is the name of the project started by James Goode, a Rockabilly Hall of Fame bass player and fan of Texas Blues. The other name you need to know on this project is the name of Texas Blues guitar legend Anson Funderburgh. James and Anson go way back. And together, they have recruited an all-star cast of musicians to work on a special CD called Mill Block Blues. I was going to include a favorite picture of mine with a few of Anson's fans (Elmo James - contributor and yours truly) but there is just way too much to cover here. This is a really strong recording that a lot of people have been waiting for some time to come out. I was first introduced to Anson on a late night show with David Sanborn. He has his own guitar style with that perfect attack. This guitar playing along with the fine artistry is well showcased throughout this fine recording. My favorite takes are "Cut Like a Knife", "Now You See Me" and the title track, "Mill Rock Blues...

Jimmy Johnson (born James Earl Thompson, November 25, 1928, Holly Springs, Mississippi) is an American blues guitarist and singer. Several of Johnson's brothers had careers in music; among them are soul musician Syl Johnson and Magic Sam bassist Mack Thompson. In his younger years he played piano and sang in gospel groups. He and his family moved to Chicago in 1950, where he worked as a welder and played guitar in his spare time. He began playing professionally with Slim Willis in 1959, changing his last name to Johnson like his brother Syl. As a guitarist he was influenced by both Buddy Guy and Otis Rush and he played with Freddy King, Albert King, Magic Sam and Eddy Clearwater among others. In the 1960s he played more R&B music, working with Otis Clay, Denise LaSalle, and Garland Green. He also had his own group from the early sixties, and by the late sixties he had released his first single. By 1974 he had returned to blues playing, working with Jimmy Dawkins and touring Jap...

Stephen Ray "Stevie Ray" Vaughan (October 3, 1954 – August 27, 1990) was an American electric blues guitarist and singer. He was the younger brother of Jimmie Vaughan and frontman for Double Trouble, a band that included bassist Tommy Shannon and drummer Chris Layton. Born in Dallas, Vaughan moved to Austin at the age of 17 and began his music career. Later, producer John H. Hammond arranged a deal with Epic Records in 1983. Alcohol and drug abuse severely affected his health before he became sober in late 1986. After three years without a new album, he returned to the studio, releasing In Step. The album produced the single "Crossfire" in July 1989, which became a number one hit. On August 26, 1990, Vaughan performed at Alpine Valley Music Theatre as part of his In Step Tour in a triple bill along with Eric Clapton and Robert Cray before an audience of approximately 25,000. Leaving the concert that evening, his helicopter crashed into a nearby ski slope. He was ...

In 2011, Washington, DC based blues rock band Moonshine Society was given the amazing opportunity to bring American roots music overseas. From January 2011-April 2011, the band performed six nights a week at the House of Blues and Jazz in Shanghai, China, owned by Chinese movie actor Lin Dong Fu. Joining them on stage was legendary harmonica player Charlie Sayles (WC Handy award nominee who has performed at Carnegie Hall, the White House, and been the focus of a BBC documentary after being discovered in New York City). They delivered sounds of classic and original blues, jazz, and R&B to a truly international audience including locals, business executives, music lovers, students, tourists, and more from around the world. While in Shanghai, the band recorded 18 live shows which have been condensed to a 10 song album. They're looking to release a truly unique album that crosses continents, generations, social differences, and language barriers and gives live witness to keep...

James Milton Campbell, Jr. (September 7, 1934 – August 4, 2005), better known as Little Milton, was an American electric blues, rhythm and blues, and soul singer and guitarist, best known for his hit records "Grits Ain't Groceries" and "We're Gonna Make It." Milton was born James Milton Campbell, Jr., in the Mississippi Delta town of Inverness and raised in Greenville by a farmer and local blues musician. By age twelve he had learned the guitar and was a street musician, chiefly influenced by T-Bone Walker and his blues and rock and roll contemporaries. In 1952, while still a teenager playing in local bars, he caught the attention of Ike Turner, who was at that time a talent scout for Sam Phillips' Sun Records. He signed a contract with the label and recorded a number of singles. None of them broke through onto radio or sold well at record stores, however, and Milton left the Sun label by 1955. After trying several labels without notable success, inc...