Candye Kane has passed - My thoughts and prayers are with her family

This was written and posted by Evan Caleb Yearsley:

This is the hardest thing to ever have to deal with let alone write, I'm really sorry to have to inform everyone that my mother Candye Kane Passed away last night at 10p. She went peacefully and pain free, and Laura Chavez was there by her side. Mom will continue to live in all of us and give us all her strength, and her love that she so willingly gave to everyone that was touched by her. She was and always will be the most amazing mother in the world and I can't begin to express how much our family, friends and her fans all truly love her and are going to miss her! So please light a candle, play her records, love big, and celebrate her life because that's what she would want us all to do. I just want to say I know you are looking down on all of us, and I can't wait to be with you again someday. Heroes live forever. I Love You Mom, Godspeed and Rest In Paradise Candye Kane.


Candye was accepted into the USC's music conservatory's junior opera program in 1976 but disliked opera and dropped out. She became part of the punk rock music scene of the early 1980s. She started country punk bands and befriended and shared the stage with musicians as diverse as Black Flag, Social Distortion, James Harman, The Circle Jerks, Los Lobos, The Blasters and Lone Justice. In 1985, she caught the attention of CBS/Epic A&R Head, Larry Hanby. She was signed to a developmental deal and recorded her first demo with Grammy Winner Val Garay. Kane was initially marketed as a country singer but CBS dropped her when they found out about her controversial past.
At 17 she got pregnant with her first son. When she turned 18 she turned to adult modeling and stripping to make some cash, appearing in videos and over 150 magazines from 1983 to 1985. Eventually she worked as a columnist for Gent magazine as well.
In 1986, Candye moved from Los Angeles to San Diego. She married bass player Thomas Yearsley (of rockabilly power trio The Paladins, with whom she had another son. Ms. Kane majored in women's studies at Palomar Community College. She continued to write songs and accidentally discovered the brash blues stylings of Big Maybelle, Ruth Brown, Big Mama Thornton, Etta James and Bessie Smith.
In 1991, Candye self-released Burlesque Swing, her first recording since A Town South of Bakersfield. In 1992 was signed by Clifford Antone to a record deal with Antones Records. Her first CD, Home Cookin', was produced by Cesar Rosas (of Los Lobos) and Dave Gonzales and Thomas Yearsley (of the Paladins). It was released in 1992 followed by Knock Out. She then signed with Discovery Records, releasing Diva La Grande, produced by Dave Alvin and Derek O'Brien. Next, she was signed by record mogul Seymour Stein to Sire Records during the height of the swing revival.
Candye released Swango which was produced by Mike Vernon for Sire/London Records (her only major label debut to date.) This was followed by her Rounder/Bullseye release, The Toughest Girl Alive, produced by Scott Billington. Next she released four CDs on the German Label Ruf Records. Subsequent titles include Whole Lotta Love produced by Val Garay and White Trash Girl^[ produced in Austin by Ruf Records and Mark Kazanoff. In 2007, she released Guitar'd and Feathered on the RUF records label. The CD was produced by former Muddy Waters guitarist Bob Margolin. In 2009, she signed to Delta Groove records and released Superhero in June 2009.
A stage play about Kane's life debuted at San Diego's Diversionary Theatre in January 2009, directed by Javier Velasco. The play is called The Toughest Girl Alive and is based on Kane's memoir about her turbulent life.
She was included on the 30 Essential Women of the Blues CD set released by the House of Blues record label and the Rock for Choice compilation. She appears with Lucinda Williams and Dwight Yoakam on Town South of Bakersfield on Enigma Records.


In 2011, Kane was nominated for two Blues Music Awards by the Blues Foundation, BB King Entertainer of the Year, and Best Contemporary Blues Female.
Kane was nominated for four Blues Music Awards,^[ for the BB King Entertainer of the Year Award, Best Contemporary Blues CD for Superhero, and Best Contemporary Blues Female of 2010. She has won numerous awards, including the Best Blues Band award at the San Diego Music Awards seven times.
Other recent honors include Best Blues CD of 2005 at the San Diego Music Awards; the Trophees France International Award 2004 for Best International Blues Chanteuse and Artist of the Year. She unseated Jewel for Artist of the Year at the San Diego Music Awards and won the California Music Award for Best Swing-Cabaret Artist. In May 2007, Kane won an award for Best Original Blues composition by the West Coast Songwriters Association for her song, "I'm My Own Worst Enemy". In 2012, Miss Kane received a special Courage in Music Award at the San Diego Music Awards ceremonies.
In 2014, Kane was nominated for a Blues Music Award in the 'Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year' category.

Karen Carroll, one of the top voices of our times, has passed. My prayers are with her family and friends.

I received some very sad news this week. My blues friend and dynamic singer Karen Carroll has passed. Karen had been working in Europe for quite some time and we became friends.  In 2014 Karen became ill and moved back to Atlanta to recuperate. I spoke with her a few times and she was making progress but unfortunately on March 9th after years of trouble with her health in the hospital she went peacefully. This week I spoke with Ronnie Templin, her manager/promoter, who had a very special relationship with Karen. "The most special thing I can think of is how selfless she was and how music moved her in a way that moved other people into a place of fun and all in a spiritual way. I appreciate that she was a dear friend of mine who I called my sister and she was my best friend in the world and I miss her much "

 Karen was nominated for a German Grammy for singing Vicksburg Blues that her mother, Jean Carroll, started in the family with Little Brother Montgomery. She played in the 1996 Chicago Blues Fest and also played in the 2008 Chicago Blues Festival opening for BB King. Karen had a daughter and a son, four grandchildren and one great-grandchild. She was from the south side of Chicago and died in Macon Georgia.
Born in Chicago, Illinois, United States, Carroll started singing in church at the age of six. In her first appearance on stage, she played guitar with her mother's band at age 14. Early in her career she worked with Katie Webster and Albert King. She recorded her first song with Carey Bell on his album Son of a Gun in 1983.Ca rroll went on to tour with Eddie Lusk in Canada after performing on his album Professor Strut in 1989. She went on to play in prominent Chicago blues clubs. In 1995, she contributed to an album with five other female blues artists, entitled Women of Blue Chicago; which is still played on the radio today. She was offered a recording contract by Delmark Records in 1995, subsequently making the album Had My Fun. This was followed by another album, Talk to the Hand, in 1997. She wrote and held copyright to some of the tracks on this album.
She worked with many Chicago blues musicians, including Carey and Lurrie Bell, Rudy Rotta, Otis Grand, Angela Brown, Billy Branch, Melvin Taylor, Eddy Clearwater, Lonnie Brooks, Alvin Lee, Byther Smith and Sugar Blue.
Her album Be My Guest! was released by Indigoteam Records in 2008.
The BBC Radio 2 blues programme, the "Paul Jones Show", played several of her tracks by way of an obituary during the 28 March 2016 edition. The DJ said he had been informed of her death by the blues singer, Deitra Farr.

A member of the Chicago Blues Hall of Fame as a Master Artist. Her mother was Jeanne Carroll who was named the first lady of Blues by the mayor of Chicago in the fifties. Karen was one of those special artists with an especially rich voice. If you never had the opportunity to hear her, please check out some of her music. She was a super talent.

Pop star Prince has passed. My prayers are with his family

Pop superstar Prince, widely acclaimed as one of the most inventive and influential musicians of his era with hits including "Little Red Corvette," ''Let's Go Crazy" and "When Doves Cry," was found dead at his home on Thursday in suburban Minneapolis, according to his publicist. He was 57.
His publicist, Yvette Noel-Schure, told The Associated Press that the music icon died at his home in Chanhassen. No details were immediately released.
The singer, songwriter, arranger and instrumentalist broke through in the late 1970s with the hits "Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad?" and "I Wanna Be Your Lover," and soared over the following decade with such albums as "1999" and "Purple Rain." The title song from "1999" includes one of the most widely quoted refrains of popular culture: "Tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999."

 The Minneapolis native, born Prince Rogers Nelson, stood just 5 feet, 2 inches tall, and seemed to summon the most original and compelling sounds at will, whether playing guitar in a flamboyant style that openly drew upon Jimi Hendrix, switching his vocals from a nasally scream to an erotic falsetto or turning out album after album of stunningly original material. Among his other notable releases: "Sign O' the Times," ''Graffiti Bridge" and "The Black Album."

 He was also fiercely protective of his independence, battling his record company over control of his material and even his name. Prince once wrote "slave" on his face in protest of not owning his work and famously battled and then departed his label, Warner Bros., before returning a few years ago.
"What's happening now is the position that I've always wanted to be in," Prince told the AP in 2014. "I was just trying to get here."
In 2004, Prince was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which hailed him as a musical and social trailblazer.
"He rewrote the rulebook, forging a synthesis of black funk and white rock that served as a blueprint for cutting-edge music in the Eighties," reads the Hall's dedication. "Prince made dance music that rocked and rock music that had a bristling, funky backbone. From the beginning, Prince and his music were androgynous, sly, sexy and provocative."
Rarely lacking in confidence, Price effortlessly absorbed the music of others and made it sound like Prince, whether the James Brown guitar riff on "Kiss" or the Beatle-esque, psychedelic pop of "Raspberry Beret."
He also proved a source of hits for others, from Sinead O'Connor's "Nothing Compares 2 U" to Cyndi Lauper's "When You Were Mine." He also wrote "Manic Monday" for the Bangles
Prince had been touring and recording right up until his death, releasing four albums in the last 18 months, including two on the Tidal streaming service last year. He performed in Atlanta last week as part of his "Piano and a Microphone" tour, a stripped down show that has featured a mix of his hits like "Purple Rain" or "Little Red Corvette" and some B-sides from his extensive library.
Prince debuted the intimate format at his Paisley Park studios in January, treating fans to a performance that was personal and was both playful and emotional at times.
The musician had seemed to be shedding his reclusive reputation. He hosted several late-night jam sessions where he serenaded Madonna, celebrated the Minnesota Lynx's WNBA championship and showcased his latest protege, singer Judith Hill.
Ever surprising, he announced on stage in New York City last month that he was writing his memoir. "The Beautiful Ones" was expected to be released in the fall of 2017 by publishing house Spiegel & Grau. The publishing house has not yet commented on status of book, but a press release about the memoir says: "Prince will take readers on an unconventional and poetic journey through his life and creative work." It says the book will include stories about Prince's music and "the family that shaped him and the people, places, and ideas that fired his creative imagination."
A small group of fans quickly gathered in the rain Thursday outside his music studio, Paisley Park, where Prince's gold records are on the walls and the purple motorcycle he rode in his 1984 breakout movie, "Purple Rain," is on display. The white building surrounded by a fence is about 20 miles southwest of Minneapolis.
Steven Scott, 32, of Eden Prairie, said he was at Paisley Park last Saturday for Prince's dance party. He called Prince "a beautiful person" whose message was that people should love one another.
"He brought people together for the right reasons," Scott said.

CHANHASSEN, Minn. (AP)


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Glenn Frey has passed - My thoughts are with his family

Glenn Frey, a founding member and guitarist for Eagles, died Monday. He was 67.
“It is with the heaviest of hearts that we announce the passing of our comrade, Eagles founder, Glenn Frey, in New York City on Monday, January 18th, 2016,” the band said in a statement. “Glenn fought a courageous battle for the past several weeks but, sadly, succumbed to complications from Rheumatoid Arthritis, Acute Ulcerative Colitis and Pneumonia. The Frey family would like to thank everyone who joined Glenn to fight this fight and hoped and prayed for his recovery. Words can neither describe our sorrow, nor our love and respect for all that he has given to us, his family, the music community & millions of fans worldwide.”
Frey wrote and provided vocals for many Eagles hits, including “Heartache Tonight,” “Lyin’ Eyes,” “Tequila Sunrise” and “Take It Easy.”
The musician, with Don Henley, also co-wrote “Hotel California” and “Desperado.” Eagles won six Grammys and five American Music Awards during its run, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998.
Frey also had a successful solo career after Eagles broke up in 1980. His debut solo album, 1982’s “No Fun Aloud,” contained such Top 40 hits as “The One You Love,” “Smuggler’s Blues,” “Sexy Girl,” “The Heat Is On,” “You Belong to the City,” “True Love,” “Soul Searchin’,” and “Livin’ Right.”
He had an acting career as well, landing a role in the first season of “Miami Vice.”

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Texas Blues Legend Long John Hunter 1931 - 2016

TEXAS BLUES LEGEND LONG JOHN HUNTER

JULY 13, 1931 - JANUARY 4, 2016

Internationally known Texas guitar legend Long John Hunter, 84, died in his sleep at his home in Phoenix, Arizona on Monday, January 4. His signature Texas blues were fueled by his single-note solos and melodic, drawling vocals. The Los Angeles Times called him "a top notch singer, guitarist and unbridled wildman performer...a raw, feral talent bursting with energy." During a 60-year career, he recorded seven solo albums and a number of 45s.

Long before Hunter became a world-renowned recording artist, he was already a major draw in the Beaumont/Port Arthur, Texas region, where he cut his first 45. In 1957 he headed to Juarez, Mexico where he led the house band at the rough and tumble Lobby Bar for the next 13 years. There he played for locals, cowboys, soldiers, tourists and touring musicians, including Buddy Holly, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, Lightnin' Hopkins, Etta James, Albert Collins and many others. He became a mentor to a young Bobby Fuller (I Fought The Law). Twice James Brown brought his band to witness Hunter in action. The second time Brown surprisingly took the stage during a set break. Unfazed, the audience screamed for Brown and company to move on and clear the way for the return of their hero, Long John Hunter.

Hunter became regionally famous not only for his musicianship, but for his showmanship. One of his favorite tricks was to hold his guitar by the neck in one hand while continuing to play. With his free hand, he'd reach up, grab a rafter above the stage and start to swing, never missing a beat. The Lobby Bar crowd delighted in Long John's antics, and they inspired the title of his 1997 album, Swingin' From The Rafters.

John T. Hunter, Jr. was born in Ringgold, Louisiana on July 13, 1931 and grew up in Arkansas and Texas. He had no interest in being a professional musician until, when he was 22, co-workers at the Beaumont, Texas box factory where he worked took him to see B.B. King perform at the Raven Club. Hunter later said he was amazed at the reception King got from the crowd, especially the frenzy of the women in the audience. The next day Hunter went out and bought a guitar. That very week he put a band together and before long developed his own style, mixing swinging blues and razor sharp guitar playing reminiscent of fellow Texans Albert Collins and Gatemouth Brown, with a definite nod towards B.B. King. Less than a year later, Hunter was headlining at the Raven Club, the very same place he first saw B.B.

Hunter's growing reputation spread to Houston, where Don Robey of Duke Records (home of Gatemouth Brown, Bobby Bland and Junior Parker) released Hunter's first single, Crazy Baby b/w She Used To Be My Woman, in 1954. The record didn't win Hunter a national audience, but it did generate enough interest to keep him working full time as a musician. Hunter headed for Houston in 1955 to try and capitalize on his Duke single. He played shows with Little Milton, Johnny Copeland and many others. Two years later, he moved west to El Paso. The very night Hunter arrived, he crossed the border into Juarez, Mexico and found work at the Lobby Bar where he stayed for the next 13 years. "If it didn't happen at the Lobby Bar," Long John often said, "it just didn't happen in life."

Releasing only a small number of 45s, Hunter didn't record a full album until 1993's Ride With Me (Spindletop, reissued by Alligator). He signed with Alligator in 1996. His label debut, Border Town Legend, brought his music and his story to the masses. With his 1997 follow-up Swingin' From The Rafters, Hunter went from being a locally revered Texas bluesman to being an internationally touring festival headliner. In 1999 he joined his old Beaumont friends Lonnie Brooks and Phillip Walker for the Texas rave-up CD, Lone Star Shootout. The Chicago Tribune said, "Hunter embodies Texas blues in all its varied, roustabout glory like no one on the scene today."

As his stature grew, so did his tour calendar. He played numerous high-profile concerts including The Chicago Blues Festival, South By Southwest, San Antonio Cultural Festival, Long Beach Blues Festival, as well as multiple tours of the U.S and Europe. Hunter continued to perform and record, releasing independent CDs in 2003 and 2009.

Hunter is survived by his wife Gayle and brother Tom.

Funeral information is pending.

Allen Toussaint has passed - My thoughts and prayers are with his family

MADRID (AP) — Legendary New Orleans pianist, songwriter, producer and performer, Allen Toussaint, who penned or produced such classics as "Working in a Coal Mine" and "Lady Marmalade," has died after suffering a heart attack following a concert he performed in Spain. He was 77. Rescue workers were called to Toussaint's hotel early Tuesday morning and managed to revive him after he suffered a heart attack, Madrid emergency services spokesman Javier Ayuso said. But Toussaint stopped breathing during the ambulance ride to a hospital and efforts to revive him again were unsuccessful, Ayuso said. Toussaint performed Monday night at Madrid's Lara Theater. "He was a legend in the music world," said Quint Davis, who produces the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Toussaint performed there so often — frequently as a headliner — that Davis said he referred to it as his "annual concert." Toussaint was born in New Orleans' Gert Town, a working class neighborhood where he lived in a "shotgun" house — so-called because you could stand at the front door and fire a shotgun through to the other side of the house. He went on to become one of the city's most legendary and celebrated performers and personalities. At first he worked as a producer for the New Orleans-based Minit Records in 1960 before being drafted in the Army for two years. He later went on to create his own recording studio in 1973 with fellow songwriter Marshall Sehorn, called Sea-Saint Studio. There he worked with a succession of musicians including Paul Simon, Paul McCartney, Patti LaBelle, the late Joe Cocker and Elvis Costello. Toussaint has hundreds of hits to his name and received the Recording Academy Trustees Award during the 2009 Grammy Awards. He penned the 1966 Lee Dorsey classic "Working in a Coal Mine" and produced Dr. John's 1973 hit "Right Place, Wrong Time" and 1975's "Lady Marmalade" by the vocal trio Labelle. In 1998, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He's also a member of the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame. In 2013 he was awarded the National Humanities Medal by President Barack Obama at a ceremony in Washington. He worked with some of the greatest names in music: Irma Thomas, the Meters, Cocker and the late Ernie K-Doe. Approaching 80, he was still active touring and performing. He had been expected to perform a benefit concert along with longtime friend Paul Simon in New Orleans on Dec. 8 at Le Petit Theatre to raise money for the organization, New Orleans Artists Against Hunger And Homelessness. Hurricane Katrina in 2005 flooded not only his home but his legendary studio, forcing Toussaint to flee to New York. Davis, from the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, said during Katrina he also lost most of his manuscripts, his gold records and the often elaborate outfits in which he performed onstage. "You always saw Allen with a coat and tie and wearing sandals," Davis said. In New York, Toussaint focused largely on performing, often taking the stage at Joe's Pub on Lafayette Street in solo concerts. But like many New Orleanians, Toussaint was not able to stay away forever. Nearly eight years after Katrina, Toussaint returned permanently to the city of his birth and so much of his musical inspiration.

   

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NEWS: James "Hot Dog" Lewis, Bobby Rush's keyboardist: 1955-2015

James "Hot Dog" Lewis: Bobby Rush's longtime keyboardist LONGTIME BOBBY RUSH KEYBOARDIST  JAMES “HOT DOG” LEWIS DIES Burial fund established for 27-year veteran of Rush’s band; celebration of life scheduled for October 29-31 in Jackson, Mississippi JACKSON, Miss. — Keyboardist James “Hot Dog” Lewis died in his sleep after a battle with lung disease on Friday, October 23, at his home in Jackson. Lewis, who was 60 years old, was a beloved, respected figure in the Mississippi and international blues community. Lewis was best known as the keyboard player in Bobby Rush’s band, where he earned his nickname with his zesty, freewheeling style on and off the stage for 27 years. He played on many albums with Rush and performed internationally as part of the Bobby Rush Band.  Lewis’ life will be celebrated with a concert on Thursday, October 29 at Jackson’s Metro City Complex at 7 p.m. Visitation at Jackson Memorial Funeral Services will be from 1 to 7 p.m. on Friday, October 30, and the funeral service will take place at 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 31. Contributions to help pay for funeral arrangements can be sent directly to Jackson Memorial Funeral Services, 922 Woodrow Wilson Avenue, Jackson, MS 39213. Call (601) 969-9457 for more information. “‘Hot Dog’ played with me for about 30 years,” says Rush. “He was the most wonderful-hearted guy you would ever want to meet. He was a great musician who played in a lot of good bands. He will be missed by many friends and fellow band members. He was a dear friend, musician and player. He played on 25-30 of my records and we traveled on a lot of road together.”  “Hot Dog” was born on May 4, 1955 in Grand Rapids, Michigan and moved to Jackson, Mississippi when he was a child, after being adopted by his grandparents. He grew up and attended high school in Jackson, where he played locally with a band called Two-Three. Lewis traveled to Japan for about a year, and when he returned to Jackson, drummer Bruce Howard introduced him to Rush. He played exclusively with Rush for several years following. Lewis’ work with Rush took him across the United States, Europe and Asia, including a performance for 40,000 people at the Great Wall of China. He will be remembered by his bandmates as an exceptional musician, solid friend and uplifting personality who always made them laugh and looked out for those close to him.  Journalist David Whiteis recalls: “He was an excellent blues and R&B pianist, obviously, but I’ll never forget hearing him in the green room before various shows, sitting at a piano playing Broadway show tunes, standards from the Great American Songbook and classical selections for his own satisfaction and for that of the people gathered around him.”   Pictured: Bobby Rush, Bruce Howard, Mizz Lowe, Jazzii A, various folks in China, and Hot Dog

NOTED GUITARIST "SMOKIN'" JOE KUBEK PASSES AT AGE 58

NOTED GUITARIST "SMOKIN'" JOE KUBEK PASSES AT AGE 58

Acclaimed guitarist Smokin' Joe Kubek passed away yesterday while on tour in North Carolina.   He was 58.  There's no question why he was given the nickname "Smokin’."  He was one of the hottest electric guitar players on the blues scene, with the technique and the chops to burn up any stage.

Kubek was born in Grove City, Pennsylvania in 1956 but grew up in Irving, Texas. He was leading his own bands and gigging in clubs all around Dallas when he was a teenager.  By the time he was 19, he was backing many famous blues players in the area, including playing rhythm guitar behind legend Freddie King for a while, until King's death in December 1976.

Kubek next worked with R&B singer Al "TNT" Braggs and made a host of new friends, including Albert King, Stevie Ray Vaughan (with whom Kubek became close), B.B. King and many other blues icons.

Kubek didn't hit his stride, however, until he teamed up with jazz guitarist and singer Bnois King (no relation to Freddie) of Monroe, Louisiana, in 1989.  They developed into a dynamic musical tour de force, one of the most talented guitar tandems in any genre, who thrilled music fans all around the world with their red-hot Texas rockin' blues for twenty-six years.  Beginning in 1991 they released a number of highly-acclaimed recordings, their most recent being Fat Man's Shine Parlor, released earlier this year on Blind Pig Records.

Bnois said, "He loved the blues. He was always very serious about the music and the presentation of the music.  He had a modern style but he really studied those old cats.  And, he would literally give you the shirt off his back.  He was a great friend."

Label President Edward Chmelewski said, "Joe was truly one of the good guys, a humble, kind person and an immensely gifted musician. It's a great loss for all of us.  We feel privileged to have known him and documented his music."

Label co-founder Jerry Del Giudice added, "He was one of the best guitarists I ever worked with.  His playing was flawless and soulful.  I not only considered him an excellent guitarist, but also a friend. He will be sorely missed."

Blind Pig publicist Debra Regur, who's worked with Kubek since 2003, said, "It is with such great sorrow that I write these words for my dear friend. Joe was an amazing guitar player, producer, and more importantly - a great friend. Joe was an inspiration to all that met him. He always had a positive outlook on life. He played every note with passion - there will never be another like Joe."

To watch Debra's iPhone video of Joe playing guitar at Biscuits and Blues in San Francisco several months ago, please click HERE.