Interview - Pinetop Perkins and Willie "Big Eyes" Smith

Joseph William Perkins (July 7, 1913 – March 21, 2011), known by the stage name Pinetop Perkins, was an American blues musician, specializing in piano music. He played with some of the most influential blues and rock and roll performers in American history, and received numerous honors during his lifetime including the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and induction into the Blues Hall of Fame.
Perkins was born in Belzoni, Mississippi. He began his career as a guitarist, but then injured the tendons in his left arm in a fight with a choirgirl in Helena, Arkansas. Unable to play guitar, Perkins switched to the piano, and also switched from Robert Nighthawk's KFFA radio program to Sonny Boy Williamson's King Biscuit Time. He continued working with Nighthawk, however, accompanying him on 1950's "Jackson Town Gal".

In the 1950s, Perkins joined Earl Hooker and began touring, stopping to record "Pinetop's Boogie Woogie" (written by Pinetop Smith) at Sam Phillips' studio in Memphis, Tennessee. ("They used to call me Pinetop," he recalled, "because I played that song.") However, Perkins was only 15 years old in 1928, when Smith originally recorded "Pinetop's Boogie Woogie".

Perkins then relocated to Illinois and left music until Hooker convinced him to record again in 1968.

When Otis Spann left the Muddy Waters band in 1969, Perkins was chosen to replace him. He stayed for more than a decade, then left with several other musicians to form The Legendary Blues Band with Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, recording through the late 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s.

Although he appeared as a sideman on countless recordings, Perkins never had an album devoted solely to his artistry, until the release of After Hours on Blind Pig Records in 1988. The tour in support of the album also featured Jimmy Rogers and Hubert Sumlin.

His robust piano is fairly presented in On Top (1992), an easy-going recital of blues standards with his old Waters' associate, Jerry Portnoy on harmonica. In 1998 Perkins released the album Legends featuring guitarist Hubert Sumlin.

Perkins was driving his automobile in 2004 in La Porte, Indiana, when he was hit by a train. The car was wrecked, but the 91-year-old driver was not seriously hurt. Until his death, Perkins lived in Austin, Texas. He usually performed a couple of nights a week at Nuno's on Sixth Street. In 2005, Perkins received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

In 2008, Perkins received a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album for Last of the Great Mississippi Delta Bluesmen: Live In Dallas together with Henry James Townsend, Robert Lockwood, Jr. and David Honeyboy Edwards. He was also nominated in the same category for his solo album, Pinetop Perkins on the 88's: Live in Chicago.

The song "Hey Mr. Pinetop Perkins", performed by Perkins and Angela Strehli, plays on the common misconception that Perkins wrote "Pinetop's Boogie Woogie":

Hey Mr. Pinetop Perkins
I got a question for you
How'd you write that first boogie woogie
The one they named after you

Perkins played a brief musical cameo on the street outside Aretha's Soul Food Cafe in the 1980 movie The Blues Brothers, having an argument with John Lee Hooker over who wrote "Boom Boom." He also appeared in the 1987 movie Angel Heart as a member of guitarist Toots Sweet's band.

At age 97, he won a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album for Joined at the Hip, an album he recorded with Willie "Big Eyes" Smith. Perkins thus became the oldest-ever Grammy winner, edging out comedian George Burns who had won in the spoken word category 21 years earlier (he had tied with Burns, at the age of 95, in 2004). A little more than a month later, Perkins died on 21 March 2011 at his home in Austin, Texas. At the time of his death, the musician had more than 20 performances booked for 2011. Shortly before that, while discussing his late career resurgence with an interviewer, he conceded, "I can't play piano like I used to either. I used to have bass rolling like thunder. I can't do that no more. But I ask the Lord, please forgive me for the stuff I done trying to make a nickel." Along with David "Honeyboy" Edwards, he was one of the last two original Mississippi Delta blues musicians, and also to have a personal knowledge of and friendship with Robert Johnson.

Willie "Big Eyes" Smith (born January 19, 1936, Helena, Arkansas) is a Grammy Award-winning American blues vocalist, harmonica player, and multi-award winning drummer. He is best known for several stints with the Muddy Waters band beginning in the early 1960s.Born in Arkansas in 1936, Smith learned to play harmonica at age seventeen just after moving to Chicago, Illinois. Smith's influences included listening to 78s and to KFFA King Biscuit radio shows, some of which were broadcast from Helena's Miller Theater, where he saw guitar player Joe Willie Wilkins, and harmonica player Sonny Boy Williamson II. On a Chicago visit in 1953 his mother took him to hear Muddy Waters at the Zanzibar club, where Henry Strong's harp playing inspired him to learn that instrument. In 1956, at the age of eighteen he formed a trio. He led the band on harp, Bobby Lee Burns played guitar, and Clifton James, who was the drummer. As "Little Willie" Smith he played in the Rocket Four, led by blues guitarist Arthur "Big Boy" Spires, and made recordings that were later reissued on the Delmark label. In 1955 Smith played harmonica on Bo Diddley's recording of the Willie Dixon song "Diddy Wah Diddy" for the Checker label.[citation needed] Drummers were in more demand than harp players, so Smith switched to drums and starting playing with Muddy Waters band. In 1959, Smith recorded with Waters on the 1960 album Muddy Waters Sings Big Bill Broonzy a tribute to Big Bill Broonzy

In 1961 Smith became a regular member of Muddy Water's band, which then consisted of George "Mojo" Buford, Luther Tucker, Pat Hare, and Otis Spann. By the mid '60s he'd left the band for more steady work as a cab driver. In the late '60s he rejoined Muddy's band and remained a permanent member until 1980. Smith appears on all of Muddy's Grammy Award winning albums, Hard Again, I'm Ready, They Call Me Muddy Waters, Muddy "Mississippi" Waters Live, The London Muddy Waters Session, and The Muddy Waters Woodstock Album, were released between 1971 and 1979. During his tenure with Waters, Smith is estimated to have participated in twelve sessions yielding eighty-four tracks.

In June 1980 Smith and other members of Muddy's band, Pinetop Perkins (piano), , Calvin Jones (bass), and Jerry Portnoy (harmonica), and Smith on drums, stuck out on their own, also recruiting veteran Chicago blues man Louis Myers (harmonica/guitar) to form The Legendary Blues Band, with the vocals shared by all. Later that year, Smith and the Legendary Blues Band appeared backing John Lee Hooker in the movie The Blues Brothers (1980). Smith was the only band member, besides Hooker, to appear onscreen in close-up. With varying personnel over the years, the Legendary Blues Band recorded seven albums, Life of Ease, Red Hot 'n' Blue, Woke Up with the Blues (nominated for a W. C. Handy Award), U B Da Judge, Prime Time Blues, and Money Talks, were recorded between 1981 to 1993. By the time Money Talks came out in 1993, Smith had become a very credible singer. The Legendary Blues Band toured with Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones, and Eric Clapton.

His first solo recording started in 1995 with Bag Full of Blues, with Pinetop Perkins, harpist Kim Wilson, guitarists James Wheeler, Nick Moss, and Gareth Best, sticking with the Chicago blues sound. In 1999, Smith recorded with Muddy Waters son Big Bill Morganfield on his album Rising Son. Smith's album Way Back (2006), has 11 songs here, half of which he wrote. Backed by Bob Margolin and Frank Krakowski on guitar, Pinetop Perkins on piano, and guest shots by James Cotton and others. Willie's CD, Born in Arkansas, utilizes some of the best old-school blues players out there, including bassman Bob Stroger, pianist extraordinaire Barrelhouse Chuck, in-demand-by-everyone guitarist Billy Flynn, under-the-radar guitarist Little Frank Krakowski (who has worked with Willie for years) and top-notch drummer (as well as being Willie's son) Kenny "Beedy Eyes" Smith. In June 2010, Willie released Joined at the Hip with Pinetop Perkins. Joining these two in the studio were bassist Bob Stroger, Smith's son Kenny on drums, John Primer who was another Muddy Waters band alum, joins on lead guitar along with Frank Krakowski.

On February 13, 2011, he won a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album for Joined at the Hip, an album he recorded with Pinetop Perkins.
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Stovall Farms Home of Muddy Waters - Pretty Interesting

This cabin is one of several still standing on the property of the Stovall Irrigation Company, formerly Stovall's Plantation, outside of Clarksdale, Mississippi. McKinley Morganfield (aka Muddy Waters) lived here as a child. It was a former slave cabin. From this humble beginning, Muddy went on to "invent electricity," meaning that he brought the electric guitar to the fore in the blues, and laid down the basic format for what was to become the Rock and Roll combo; drummer, lead, bass and rhythm guitars.

Bill Wyman's Blues Odyssey - Part 5

Next to last clip from Bill Wyman's Blues Odyssey. Check out the film. You'll like it.
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Tech Talk - Gibson GA-20 (1956)

Gibson GA20 (1955)
Speaker Config: Jensen P12R
Wattage: 12w
Tube Setup: 5Y3, 2x6V6, 12AY7s

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You Can Get What You Want - Johnny B. Moore

Johnny B. Moore (born Johnny Belle Moore, January 24, 1950, Clarksdale, Mississippi)
is an American Chicago blues and electric blues guitarist, singer and songwriter.
He was a member of Koko Taylor's backing band in the mid 1970s, but has recorded nine solo albums since 1987. Moore's music retains a link to the earlier Chicago blues of Jimmy Reed and Muddy Waters, who also travelled to the Windy City from the Mississippi delta.


"If Johnny B. Moore isn't a star in the making," stated Allmusic's Bill Dahl, "there's no justice in the world." The European blues historian Gérard Herzhaft commented that "[Moore's] albums reflect a strong Delta flavor that is refreshing in the present blues scene, dominated by rock or funk overtones." However, the blues historian, Tony Russell, noted in 1997 that Moore "was still one of Chicago's interesting secrets".

Tech Talk - Building A Cigar Box Guitar Part 5

Installation 5 of building your own cigar box guitar.

Enjoy!

7th Annual Alabama Cigar Box Guitar Festival - June 3rd and 4th, 2011 – Huntsville, Alabama

The 7th Annual Cigar Box Guitar Festival will take place in the Flying Monkey Arts Center located at Lowe Mill. The address is 2211 Seminole Drive Southwest Huntsville, AL 35805.

Here is a schedule of events during the festival:

6/3 – Friday – Hymn for Her, Admission FREE Concerts on the Dock (6pm – 9pm)

6/4 – Saturday – Artist Market 2nd floor, handcrafted instruments and more… (Noon – 4pm)

Demonstrations: How to Build a Cigar Box Guitar with John Nickel (1pm & 3pm)
1st floor studios : Nickel Cigar Box Guitar

Workshops:
12:30 & 2pm – “Build a One- String CBG with Steve Webb
1st floor classroom – $30. materials & tools provided questions or registration: backpocketcrafts@yahoo.com

1:30 & 2:30pm – “Learn to Play a Cigar Box Guitar” with Pat Nickel
1st floor lounge near Nickel’s CBG Studio

Jam Sessions: 1st floor lounge area / 2nd floor connector / on the dock
Special Guest, Max Shores, documentary filmmaker
“Songs Inside the Box” and “Hill Country Troubadour”
2nd floor Film Co-op / Don Tingle studio near theater

Flymo Theater Extravaganza – Saturday – 4th (4pm – 12am)
4pm – “Hill Country Troubadour” film screening, Admission $5
“Live” Cigar Box Guitar Music ’till midnight, Admission $10
6pm – Pat Nickel
7pm – Seven Hills Stomp
8pm – Microwave Dave
9pm – John Lowe
10pm – Earl Williams
11pm – Nadaband

Bill Jehle’s Cigar Box Guitar Museum will be on display throughout the festival.

I'm Tore Down - Jeff Healey band

Norman Jeffrey "Jeff" Healey (March 25, 1966 - March 2, 2008) was a blind Canadian jazz and blues-rock vocalist and guitarist who attained musical and personal popularity, particularly in the 1980s and 1990s.
Over the years, Healey toured and sat-in with many legendary performers, including Dire Straits, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Buddy Guy, BB King, ZZ Top, Steve Lukather, Eric Clapton and many more. In 2006, Healey appeared on Deep Purple vocalist Ian Gillan's CD/DVD Gillan's Inn.

Healey discovered and helped develop the careers of other musical artists, including Terra Hazelton and Amanda Marshall.


In early 2009, Healey's album of Blues won in The 8th Annual Independent Music Awards for Best Blues Album.
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Crossroads (Not the typical stereotype) - Bill Perry

This is one guy I missed out on. He was only around a few months after I found out about him...pity!

William Sanford Perry, (December 25, 1957 - July 17, 2007) born in Goshen, New York, was an American blues musician. The guitarist, songwriter and singer toured throughout the U.S. and Europe. In the 1980s, he was the main guitarist for Richie Havens. He also toured with Garth Hudson and Levon Helm around the same time.

In 1995, he was signed for an unprecedented five-album deal with the Pointblank/Virgin label. The Bill Perry Blues Band consisted of Bill Perry (lead vocals, lead guitar), John Reddan (guitar and vocals), Tim Tindall (bass guitar), and Rob Curtis (drums). The band released a total of seven albums between 1995 and 2006.

He died in Sugar Loaf, New York on July 17, 2007, at the age of 49. He is survived by a son Aaron and a large family.
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Someday After A While - Matt Taylor Band

You Upset Me Baby - Jimmy Thackery

Jimmy Thackery (born May 19, 1953, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)
is an American blues singer and guitarist.

Thackery spent fourteen years as part of The Nighthawks, the Washington, D.C. based blues and roots rock ensemble. After leaving the Nighthawks in 1986, Thackery toured under his own name.

Born in Pittsburgh and raised in Washington, Thackery joined The Nighthawks in 1972 and went on to record over twenty albums with them. In 1986 he began touring with The Assassins, a six-piece original blues, rock and R&B ensemble which he had previously helped start as a vacation band when The Nighthawks took one of their rare breaks. Originally billed as Jimmy Thackery and The Assassins, the band toured the U.S. Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, South, and Texas regions. The Assassins released a variety of recordings on the Seymour record label, two on vinyl (No Previous Record and Partners in Crime) and the 1989 CD Cut Me Loose.

In the wake of the Assassins 1991 break-up, Thackery has been leading a trio, Jimmy Thackery and the Drivers, whose early recordings were for the San Francisco, California based Blind Pig Records. In 2002 Thackery released, We Got It, his first album on Telarc and in 2006, In the Natural State with Earl and Ernie Cate on Rykodisc. In 2007, he released Solid Ice again with The Drivers.
His latest album 'Feel the Heat' was released in April 2011.

Tech Talk - Masco MA-17 (1946)

Masco Amplifiers were largely a mail order brand available through LaMasco heads with custom speaker cabinets or make a combination amp cabinet. They amps often have multiple speaker outputs to accomodate a variety of speaker combinations. The microphone input is perfect for a high impedance mic such as the JT-30.

MASCO stands for Mark Alan Sampson Company and the amps were produced on Long Island, NY during the 1940s and 1950s. The circuits in Masco amps were often incuded in SAMS photofacts and appear regularly on eBay.

These are almost always amps with two 6V6 tubes and older preamp tubes.
1x10" LANEY model "Disco Cabinet" (closed back)
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MY BLACK MAMA - Son House - Buddy Guy

Nice to see old films with two of my alltime favorite players together... Buddy as a young punk.
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Enjoy!

Meet Me In The Bottom - Chester Burnett (Howlin Wolf)

Chester Arthur Burnett (June 10, 1910 – January 10, 1976), better known as Howlin' Wolf, was an influential American blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player.

With a booming voice and looming physical presence, Burnett is commonly ranked among the leading performers in electric blues; musician and critic Cub Koda declared, "no one could match Howlin' Wolf for the singular ability to rock the house down to the foundation while simultaneously scaring its patrons out of its wits."
A number of songs written or popularized by Burnett—such as "Smokestack Lightnin'", "Back Door Man", "Killing Floor" and "Spoonful"—have become blues and blues rock standards.

At 6 feet, 6 inches (198 cm) and close to 300 pounds (136 kg), he was an imposing presence with one of the loudest and most memorable voices of all the "classic" 1950s Chicago blues singers. This rough-edged, slightly fearsome musical style is often contrasted with the less crude but still powerful presentation of his contemporary and professional rival, Muddy Waters. Howlin' Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson (Rice Miller), Little Walter Jacobs, and Muddy Waters are usually regarded in retrospect as the greatest blues artists who recorded for Chess in Chicago. Sam Phillips once remarked, "When I heard Howlin' Wolf, I said, 'This is for me. This is where the soul of man never dies.'" In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked him #51 on their list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time".

Catfish Blues - Big Jack Johnson

Johnson was born in Lambert, Mississippi. His father was a local musician playing both blues and country ditties at local functions. At the age of 13, Johnson junior was playing guitar with his father's band. By 18, Johnson followed B.B. King's electrified lead. His break came when he sat in with Frank Frost and Sam Carr at the Savoy Theatre in Clarksdale, Mississippi. The trio were seldom apart for the next 15 years, recording for Phillips International and Jewel Records with Frost as the bandleader.

In 1979, Rockin' the Juke Joint Down, was released (as by the Jelly Roll Kings) and marked Johnson's first recordings as a singer. Johnson's subsequent 1987 album for Earwig Music, The Oil Man, included his recording of "Catfish Blues." He has recorded both solo and as a member of the blues groups the Jelly Roll Kings and Big Jack Johnson and the Oilers (with poet/musician Dick Lourie).

He performed and wrote "Jack's Blues" and performed "Catfish Medley" with Samuel L. Jackson on the Black Snake Moan, film soundtrack. Daddy, When Is Mama Comin Home?, his ambitious 1990 set for Earwig, found him tackling issues as varied as AIDS, wife abuse, and Chinese blues musicians.

Johnson died from an undisclosed illness on March 14, 2011. According to family members, he had struggled with health issues in his final years, worsening to the point that there were erroneous reports of his death several times in the weeks prior to his death.
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When The Sun Goes Down - Gary Clark Jr.

Gary really came into my vision during the Crossroads Festival this year when he was one of the most exciting players on board.

Gary Clark Jr., acclaimed as the savior of blues, is an American guitarist and actor considered by some to be the leader of the Austin, Texas rock scene, offering a style that has at times been compared to Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan. As a musical prodigy, Clark has established a well renowned resume, which has helped place him on a tier with musicians who have enabled him to share the stage with various legends of rock & roll. His live performances, as well as recordings, freshly blend rock, soul and blues, infusing fluid, powerhouse guitar with a guttural howl and a seamless falsetto trill that melts itself together somehow. Despite his roots, Clark comes across as someone who is forging something that is uniquely his own in the music world. More specifically, his latest EP debuts his ability to explore the full spectrum of genres of music, while demonstrating his independence and distinctiveness from the heavily saturated music industry.


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King Edward - I'll Play the Blues

King Edward, Edward Antoine, was born in Rayne, Louisiana. Teaching himself to play the guitar, King became known as “The Blues Picking King”.
King Edward lived in Chicago for 15 years where he performed at the Regal Theater and toured with his brother Nolan Struck and the great McKinley Mitchell.
King later moved to Jackson, MS where he recorded his first album, “Genuine Mississippi Blues” with ACE Music Company and was later featured in the documentary The Last of the Mississippi Jukes, filmed at the famous Subway Club in Jackson, MS. He has become a legendary blues artist in Mississippi playing festivals and venues across the state, as well as festivals in St. Louis and Chicago. King Edward leads his own band, The King Edward Band, and is also the lead guitar player in the Central Mississippi Blues Society Band. King can be seen on a regular basis in Jackson, MS at the Queen of Hearts , the 930 Blues Café and Underground 119. He has been honored on 3 blues markers , the Queen of Hearts , the Subway, and the Ace Records marker, all in Jackson, Mississippi on the State of MS Blues Trail. King has received a Peavey Award for his contribution to Mississippi music. He is a member of the Central MS Blues Society and the Blues Foundation.

Crowd Pleaser - Guitar Shorty

Guitar Shorty (born David William Kearney, September 8, 1939, Houston, Texas) is an American blues guitarist. He is well known for his explosive guitar style and wild stage antics. Billboard magazine said, “his galvanizing guitar work defines modern, top-of-the-line blues-rock. His vocals remain as forceful as ever. Righteous shuffles...blistering, sinuous guitar solos.”

Guitar Shorty plays at the Bulleit Sessions in Maggie May's Glasgow.

Shorty was born in Houston but grew up mainly in Kissimmee, Florida where he began playing the guitar at an early age and began leading a band not long after. During his time in Tampa Bay, Florida, at age 16 he received his nickname, Guitar Shorty, when it mysteriously showed up on the marquee of the club he was playing as 'The Walter Johnson Band featuring Guitar Shorty.' He steadily began to garner accloades from his peers and, soon after, he joined the Ray Charles Band for a year. He recorded his first single in 1957, "You Don't Treat Me Right", for the Cobra label under the direction of Willie Dixon after Dixon saw him playing with the Walter Johnson Orchestra. Eventually, he joined Guitar Slim's band and move to New Orleans, Louisiana. Slim inspired Shorty to incorporate more showmanship into his live performance style. Before long, Shorty was doing somersaults and flips on stage.

While in New Orleans, Shorty also fronted his own band which played regularly at the Dew Drop Inn where he was joined by special guests such as T-Bone Walker, Big Joe Turner and Little Richard. Not one to stay in one place long, Shorty next moved to the West Coast at 19 in order to play with Sam Cooke. He played up and down the west coast and Canada until he met his future wife, Marcia, in Seattle, Washington Marcia was the half-sister of Jimi Hendrix. Jimi was so enthralled with Shorty’s playing, he attended several of Shorty's gigs in the Seattle area. As Shorty’s popularity grew, he recorded three singles for the Los Angeles-based Pull Records label in 1959.

Shorty gigged steadily through the late 1950s and 1960s. During the 1970s he worked as a mechanic, playing music at nights and on weekends. He again became a full-time musician in 1975, struggling at times to make ends meet. In 1976 he made an appearance on Chuck Barris' Gong Show, winning first prize for performing the song "They Call Me Guitar Shorty" while balanced on his head.

In 1985, he released his first album On the Rampage on Olive Branch Records. He went on his first tour to the UK in 1991, and there he recorded “My Way or the Highway” with Otis Grand which came out on JSP Records that year. This won him a W.C. Handy Award and garnering him interest from labels in the United States. Shorty soon got a record deal with New Orleans based Black Top Records.

Topsy Turvy, his first on Black Top, came out in 1993. The album featured some fresh new songs as well as remakes of three classic numbers from his Pull days back in 1959. He released two more albums on Black Top in the 1990s. When Black Top folded in 1999, Shorty moved to Evidence Music, and released I Go Wild! in 2001.

In 2002, he was featured on the Bo Diddley tribute album Hey Bo Diddley - A Tribute!, performing the song "Don't Let It Go (Hold On To What You Got)". He joined Alligator Records in 2004. His album that year, Watch Your Back and his 2006 album We the People both charted on the Billboard Top Blues Albums at numbers eleven and twelve, respectively. Billboard said of We The People, "it’s difficult to imagine that he ever tracks a better album than this one."

A new Alligator Records CD ' Bare Knuckles was released in March 2010.

Another blues musician, John Henry Fortescue (1923–1976) on Trix Records was also named Guitar Shorty.

Honeysuckle - Corey Harris

Corey Harris (born February 21, 1969, Denver, Colorado) is an American blues and reggae musician, currently residing in Virginia. Along with Keb' Mo' and Alvin Youngblood Hart, he raised the flag of acoustic guitar blues in the mid 1990s. He was featured on the 2003 PBS television mini-series, The Blues, in an episode directed by Martin Scorsese.

Harris was born and raised near Denver, Colorado. He graduated from Bates College in Lewiston, Maine with a Bachelors Degree in 1991, and was awarded an honorary doctorate in 2007. Harris received a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship for language studies in Cameroon in his early twenties, before taking a teaching post in Napoleonville, Louisiana under the Teach For America program. On his debut solo album Between Midnight and Day (1995) he investigated the repertoire of Charlie Patton, Booker White, Fred McDowell, Muddy Waters and Sleepy John Estes.

In 2002, Harris collaborated with Ali Farka Toure on his album, Mississippi to Mali, fusing blues and Toure's music from northern Mali. In 2003, he contributed to the Northern Blues release, Johnny's Blues: A Tribute To Johnny Cash.

Harris has lived and traveled widely in West Africa, an influence that has permeated much of his work. Harris has toured extensively throughout Europe, Canada, West Africa, Japan and Australia. He is known for his solo acoustic work as well as his electric band, formerly known as the '5 x 5'.

He helped Billy Bragg and Wilco to write the music for "Hoodoo Voodoo" on Mermaid Avenue, an album consisting entirely of songs for which the lyrics were written by the late Woody Guthrie. He also appeared as a musician on the album and its sequel, Mermaid Avenue Vol. II.

In September, 2007 The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation announced that Harris was among 24 people named MacArthur Fellows for 2007. The Fellowship, worth $500,000, is payable over five years.

Jack of Spades - Mance Lipscomb

Mance Lipscomb (April 9, 1895 – January 30, 1976) was an influential blues singer, guitarist and songster. Born Beau De Glen Lipscomb near Navasota, Texas, he as a youth took the name of 'Mance' from a friend of his oldest brother Charlie (Mance short for emancipation).

Lipscomb was born April 9, 1895 to an ex-slave father from Alabama and a half Native American (Choctaw) mother. Lipscomb spent most of his life working as a tenant farmer in Texas and was "discovered" and recorded by Mack McCormick and Chris Strachwitz in 1960 during the country blues revival. He released many albums of blues, ragtime, Tin Pan Alley and folk music (most of them on Strachwitz' Arhoolie label[1]), singing and accompanying himself on acoustic guitar. He had a fine finger-picking guitar technique, and an expressive voice well suited to his material. Lipscomb often honed his skills by playing in nearby Brenham, Texas, with a blind musician, Sam Porter Norman. His debut release, Texas Songster (1960) revealed how broad his repertoire was. and further sets for Arhoolie made that point in greater detail. Lipscomb happily performed old songs like "Sugar Babe," the first song he ever learned, to pop numbers like "Shine On, Harvest Moon" and "It's a Long Way to Tipperary".

Trouble in Mind was recorded in 1961, and released on a major label, Reprise. In May 1963, Lipscombe appeared at the first Monterey Folk Festival in California. Also on the bill were Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, Peter, Paul & Mary and The Weavers.

Unlike many of his contemporaries, he did not record in the early blues era, but his life is well documented thanks to his autobiography, I Say Me for a Parable: The Oral Autobiography of Mance Lipscomb, Texas Bluesman, narrated to Glen Alyn, which was published posthumously, and also a short 1971 documentary by Les Blank, A Well Spent Life.

He died in his hometown of Navasota in 1976, two years after suffering a stroke.
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Stretchin Out - Lynwood Slim Band featuring Kid Ramos

Born on January 13, 1959, in Fullerton, CA, blues-rock guitarist David "Kid" Ramos inherited his love of music from his parents, who were both professional opera singers. When his father grew tired of life on the road, he settled down with his family, buying a gas station in Anaheim. One day, when Kid was eight, he bought his son an electric guitar and amplifier from a customer passing through. By his teenaged years, Ramos was playing friend's parties and nightclubs on a regular basis, joining harmonica expert James Harman's blues-based band in 1980 (all its members sported sharkskin suits), playing up and down California alongside such punk bands as X, Oingo Boingo, the Blasters, and the Plimsouls. Kid played with the Harman Band for most of the '80s, until his departure in 1988, and although he filled in as the guitarist for the outfit Roomful of Blues, decided to put his musical career on the backburner to focus on his home life and start a family (for the next seven years, Ramos was employed as a water delivery man).

Eventually though, his desire to play music returned and Ramos formed the Big Rhythm Combo with singer Lynwood Slim (issuing The Big Rhythm Combo in 1994), in addition to releasing his first-ever solo album, Two Hands One Heart, in 1995. The same year, Ramos was invited to join one of his favorite all-time bands, the Fabulous Thunderbirds, at the personal request of their singer, Kim Wilson. Ramos promptly accepted and he returned back to the road. In addition to his work with the T-Birds, Ramos has continued to issue solo albums on a regular basis, including 1999's self-titled sophomore effort, 2000's West Coast House Party, and 2001's Greasy Kid's Stuff.
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Jelly Roll Blues = Bukka White

Born Booker T. Washington White between Aberdeen and Houston, Mississippi, he gave his cousin B.B. King, a Stella guitar, King's first guitar. White himself is remembered as a player of National steel guitars. He also played, but was less adept at, the piano.

White started his career playing the fiddle at square dances. He claims to have met Charlie Patton early on, although some doubt has been cast upon this; Regardless, Patton was a large influence on White. White typically played slide guitar, in an open tuning. He was one of the few, along with Skip James, to use a crossnote tuning in E minor, which he may have learned, as James did, from Henry Stuckey.

He first recorded for the Victor Records label in 1930. His recordings for Victor, like those of many other bluesmen, fluctuated between country blues and gospel numbers. His gospel songs were done in the style of Blind Willie Johnson, with a female singer accentuating the last phrase of each line.

Nine years later, while serving time for assault, he recorded for folklorist John Lomax. The few songs he recorded around this time became his most well-known: "Shake 'Em On Down," and "Po' Boy."

Bob Dylan covered his song "Fixin' to Die Blues", which aided a "rediscovery" of White in 1963 by guitarist John Fahey and ED Denson, which propelled him onto the folk revival scene of the 1960s. White had recorded the song simply because his other songs had not particularly impressed the Victor record producer. It was a studio composition of which White had thought little until it re-emerged thirty years later.

White was at one time managed by the experienced blues manager, Arne Brogger. Fahey and Denson found White easily enough: Fahey wrote a letter to "Bukka White (Old Blues Singer), c/o General Delivery, Aberdeen, Mississippi." Fahey had assumed, given White's song, "Aberdeen, Mississippi", that White still lived there, or nearby. The postcard was forwarded to Memphis, Tennessee, where White worked in a tank factory. Fahey and Denson soon travelled to meet White, and White and Fahey remained friends through the remainder of White's life. He recorded a new album for Denson and Fahey's Takoma Records, whilst Denson became his manager.

White was, later in life, also friends with fellow musician, Furry Lewis. The two recorded, mostly in Lewis' Memphis apartment, an album together, Furry Lewis, Bukka White & Friends: Party! At Home.
"Parchman Farm Blues" is about the Mississippi State Penitentiary

One of his most famous songs, "Parchman Farm Blues", about the Mississippi State Penitentiary (also known as Parchman Farm) in Sunflower County, Mississippi, was released on Harry Smith's fourth volume of the Anthology of American Folk Music, Vol. 4. The song was covered by The Traits/aka Roy Head and the Traits with Johnny Winter in the late 1960s. His 1937 version of the oft-recorded song, "Shake 'Em On Down," is considered definitive, and became a hit while White was serving time in Parchman.

White died in February 1977 from cancer, at the age of 67, in Memphis, Tennessee.[1][8] In 1990 he was posthumously inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame (along with Blind Blake and Lonnie Johnson).
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Acoustic Blues - Keith Richards

Keith Richards (born 18 December 1943) is an English musician, songwriter and founding member of the Rolling Stones. He was ranked by Rolling Stone magazine as the "10th greatest guitarist of all time" in 2003. One year later, the same magazine listed fourteen songs written by Richards and partner and band vocalist Mick Jagger on the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".

Multiple Songs (Great!) - B B King

Riley B. King (born September 16, 1925), known by the stage name B.B. King, is an American blues guitarist and singer-songwriter acclaimed for his expressive singing and fluid, complex guitar playing.

Rolling Stone magazine ranked him at #3 on its list of the "100 greatest guitarists of all time". According to Edward M. Komara, King "introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending and shimmering vibrato that would influence virtually every electric blues guitarist that followed." King has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Instinct Blues - White Stripes

Really great to see some bands try to create the rawness of the original blues...and successfully!!

The White Stripes was an American alternative rock duo, formed in 1997 in Detroit, Michigan. The group consisted of the songwriter Jack White (vocals, guitar, and keyboards) and drummer Meg White (drums and occasional vocals). Jack and Meg White were previously married to each other, but are now divorced. After releasing several singles and three albums within the Detroit music scene, the White Stripes rose to prominence in 2002, as part of the garage rock revival scene. Their successful albums White Blood Cells and Elephant drew them attention from a large variety of media outlets in the United States and the United Kingdom.

The White Stripes used a low-fidelity, do-it-yourself approach to writing and recording. Their music featured a melding of punk rock and blues influences and a raw simplicity of composition, arrangement, and performance. The duo was also noted for their fashion and design aesthetic which featured a simple color scheme of red, white, and black. The band's discography consists of six studio albums, one live album, two extended plays (EP), one concert film, one tour documentary, twenty-six singles, and fourteen music videos. Their last three albums each won the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album. After a long hiatus, The White Stripes formally announced their split on February 2, 2011.
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Rollin and Tumblin - R. L. Burnside

R. L. Burnside (November 23, 1926 – September 1, 2005), born Robert Lee Burnside, was a North Mississippi hill country blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist who lived much of his life in and around Holly Springs, Mississippi. He played music for much of his life, but did not receive much attention until the early 1990s. In the latter half of the 1990s, Burnside repeatedly recorded with Jon Spencer, garnering crossover appeal and introducing his music to a new fanbase within the underground garage rock scene.
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Building A Cigar Box Guitar Part 4

A quick update on the project... I carved a butterfly onto the body. I probably shouldn't be so concerned with aesthetics on cbg #1 but as an artist I can help it! I also used a program to make a template for the fret scales. It's called WFRET. Find it here: http://europa.spaceports.com/~fishbake/soft/wfret.zip

Fat Man in the Bathtub - Little Feat

Undoubtedly one of the tastiest contemporary slide guitar players...Lowell George!!
Lowell Thomas George (April 13, 1945 – June 29, 1979) was an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer, who was the main guitarist and songwriter for the rock band Little Feat
Lowell George was born in Hollywood, California the son of Willard H. George, a furrier who raised chinchillas and supplied furs to the movie studios.

George's first instrument was the harmonica. At the age of 6 he appeared on the Ted Mack's Original Amateur Hour performing a duet with his older brother, Hampton. At Hollywood High School Lowell took up the flute in the school marching band and orchestra. He started to play guitar at age 11, continued with the harmonica, and later learned to play the saxophone and sitar. He played guitar with fellow schoolmate, and future bandmate, Paul Barrere.
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Tech Talk - Dynacord Jazz (1964)

This tube combo-type amplifier was made by Dynacord , called JAZZ (simple but greatest naming!!). Tube's composition are 2 x ECC83, 1 x EZ81, 2 x EL84. 20w simple amplifier but sounds warm and great. Not BOOMY on the mid-range, very clear tone. inputs are : 1 x Microphone, 1 x Pickup, 1 x radio. each has the volume pot and 1 x tone-control pot effects overall sounds. Dynacord-JAZZ has the several version. One is the simplest 1 x 10inch speaker (8 ohm). This is the 2 x 10inch speakers (15ohm each). Speaker units was made by Dynacord with Alnico-Magnets. The Amp-head model was also available. This is the red-light gray colored model, but the simple black model also released.

In the 50-60s era, German audio-equipment company used the 3pin DIN plug or 2pin socket for their electrical connections.
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Mr Domestic - Jr Boy Jones

Andrew was born October 16, 1948 in Dallas Texas. Both parents loved music. His mother Gladys was a vocalist with an orchestra headed by close family friend Adolphus Sneed who his brother, sister, and he would call uncle. Andrew’s mother bought his first guitar when he was seven years old. After seeing his potential his uncle Adolphus bought him a better one. Andrew began his professional career at age 16 playing with Freddie Kings backing band, the Thunderbirds. In 1967 Jones join R&B, soul singer Bobby Patterson and the Mustangs. They signed with Abnak Records and recorded several 45 singles on the Jet Star label. During this time he saw and met session guitar great Cornell Dupree. Dupree use to sit in with Jones and the other musicians on Andrew’s guitar. In 1973 blues great Freddie King asked Jones to join his band again. King had recorded the (Going Down) album, and they were touring excessively with rock groups such as Grand Funk Railroad, Rare Earth, Tower of Power, Marshall Tucker Band, etc…. In the 80’s Andrew was working with local artist R.L. Griffin, and also R&B singing great Johnny Taylor. In late 1987 Andrew went to California to join Russell Jackson, and Tony Coleman as the Silent Partners. Jackson and Coleman are both known for their work with B.B. King. Jones, Jackson, and Coleman did extensive session work and touring with different artist such as Katie Webster, Charlie Musselwhite, and opened for the Neville Brothers, and Leon Russell with Edgar Winter. In mid 1988 Jones along with Jackson and Coleman recorded with Katie Webster on her critically praised Alligator Records album, (Swamp Boogie Queen). In late 1989 Andrew and Charlie Musselwhite were recording on Sonny Rhodes album, and they hit it off. Later Musselwhite talk to Jones about starting a band and would like Jones to be a part of it. In the early to mid 1990’s they recorded three albums together: (Ace of Harps), (Signature), and (In My Time). Andrew co-wrote two songs with Mussewhite, River Hip Mama, on (Ace of Harps), and It’s Getting Warm In Here, on Signature. The band won a W.C. Handy award for best band in 1995. Andrew return to Dallas in 1996 and later that year signed and recorded his first CD for J.S.P. Records, (I Need Time). In 1998, Rounder Records released Andrew’s second CD, (Watch What You Say), and was also nominated for a W.C. Handy award for best new blues artist. In 2001, Andrew’s third CD, (Mr. Domestic) was released on his own label Galexc Records. In 2005, Andrew signed and recorded his fourth and his first live CD, (Jr. Boy Live). Up to date 2009, Andrew signed with Electro-Fi Records, and released his fifth CD, (Gettin’ Real).

BLUES WHY DO YOU WORRY ME - Charlie Musslewhite

Charlie Musselwhite (born January 31, 1944 in Kosciusko, Mississippi) is an American blues-harp player and bandleader, one of the non-black bluesmen who came to prominence in the early 1960s, along with Mike Bloomfield and Paul Butterfield. Though he has often been identified as a "white bluesman", he claims Native American heritage. Musselwhite was reportedly the inspiration for Dan Aykroyd's Blues Brothers.

You Were Never Mine - Janiva Magness

Award-winning vocalist Janiva Magness is among the premier blues and R&B singers in the world today. Her voice possesses an earthy, raw honesty and beauty born from her life experience. A charismatic performer known for her electrifying live shows, Magness is a gutsy and dynamic musical powerhouse. She received the coveted 2009 Blues Music Awards for B.B. King Entertainer Of The Year and for Contemporary Blues Female Artist Of The Year, an honor she also received in 2006 and 2007. She has received eleven previous Blues Music Award nominations. Magness has been performing for almost three decades, logging thousands of miles on the road and appearing 150 nights a year at clubs, theatres and festivals all over the world.

Her rise to the top was far from easy. Born in Detroit, Magness was inspired by the blues and country she heard listening to her father’s record collection, and by the vibrant music of the city’s classic Motown sound. By her teenage years, though, her life was in chaos. She lost both parents to suicide by the age of 16 and lived on the streets, bouncing from one foster home to another. At 17, she became a teenage mother who gave up her baby daughter for adoption. One night in Minneapolis, an underage Magness sneaked into a club to see blues great Otis Rush, and it was there that she found her salvation and decided that the blues were her calling. Magness recalls, “Otis played as if his life depended on it. There was a completely desperate, absolute intensity. I knew, whatever it was, I needed more of it.” She began going to as many blues shows as possible, soaking up the sounds of her favorite artists, including Johnny Copeland and Albert Collins. She immersed herself in records by James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Etta James, and all the other R&B greats.

Listening to these blues and soul artists and watching them live, sparked Janiva and gave her life direction. Her first break came several years later, while working as an intern at a recording studio. She was approached by her boss to sing some supporting vocals on a track. Finding her voice, she soon began working regularly as a background singer.

By the early 1980s, Magness made her way to Phoenix and befriended Bob Tate, the musical director for the great Sam Cooke. With Tate’s mentoring, she formed her first band, Janiva Magness and the Mojomatics, in 1985 and before long the influential Phoenix New Times named her group the city’s Best Blues Band. She moved to Los Angeles in 1986 and slowly began finding work. She recorded her second studio album, “It Takes One To Know One,” in 1997. After three more independent releases, Janiva signed with Northern Blues and recorded “Bury Him At The Crossroads” in 2004 and “Do I Move You?” in 2006.

Magness signed with Alligator in 2008 and released her stunning label debut, “What Love Will Do,” to massive critical acclaim, putting her in front of an audience of millions and expanding her ever-growing fan base. Her 2010 CD, “The Devil Is An Angel Too,” is where she cuts to the heart and soul of each song with grit, heart and fierce passion, making it her most compelling release yet.

Janiva Magness’ deeply emotional music, sung with passion, conviction and soul, and her ability to connect with an audience, assures her place among the blues elite. With “The Devil Is An Angel Too” and her explosive live shows hitting cities across North America and Europe, Janiva Magness continues to spread her empowering message of hope through music.

I Smell Trouble - Derek Toa - Brad Faucher - Phil Pemberton - Ron Levy

Four guys with individual reputations for the capabilities to make good music. Phil with Roomful of Blues, David Toa, a guitar slinger from Pittsburgh, Brad Faucher a guitarist and song writer from Boston and Ron Levy, keyboardist and also from Roomful of Blues and his own band. This is a cool track and we'll follow up on further info.

New Release from David Gogo - Soul Bender - Review

Been waiting to listen to this new cd since it was first announced. I've only recently become acquainted with Davids work and really like his sound. This recording is made up of 10 songs, a number of them written by Gogo. The opening track, Please Find My Baby, is an old Elmore James tune and really comes on strong. Track 2, Slow it Down, demonstrates the bands tight feel as they play Texas style but without overplaying the "modern" cliche guitar riffs. The 4th track on the cd, Time Is Killing Me, is nicely a written original and has a haunting quality to both melody and his unique playing. Track 5, a cover of Wilson Pickett's I Found A Love, is nicely handled and shows some tasty soloing. Track 6, the cover of the Doors "Changling" is nicely done but Gogo doesn't take the chance to take it over the top with his soloing. I'm sure this will play out nicely in concert. Track 9, Do You Know How It Feels, another Gogo original is a good strong rocker and will keep you moving. I'm sure it will again play out very nicely in concert. The final track, Whiskey Train, has a nice gritty sound and Gogo does take some time with a little experimental interlude at the end which is pretty nice. I know I'm old but do they still sell cowbells for drummers?

Overall the cd is fairly consistent although I haven't been able to find David's unique signature on this cd so that I would be able to pick his individual playing out anywhere.The cd shows a real solid effort and I'm certain that new and existing fans will not be disappointed.

Great old interview of Clapton during time of the Cream

Cream were a 1960s British rock supergroup consisting of bassist/vocalist Jack Bruce, guitarist/vocalist Eric Clapton, and drummer Ginger Baker. Their sound was characterised by a hybrid of blues rock, hard rock and psychedelic rock, combining the psychedelia-themed lyrics, Eric Clapton's blues guitar playing, Jack Bruce's voice and blues bass playing and Ginger Baker's jazz-influenced drumming. The group's third album, Wheels of Fire, was the world's first platinum-selling double album. Cream is widely regarded as being the world's first notable and successful supergroup. In over two years, they sold over 35 million albums.

Cream's music included songs based on traditional blues such as "Crossroads" and "Spoonful", and modern blues such as "Born Under a Bad Sign", as well as more eccentric songs such as "Strange Brew", "Tales of Brave Ulysses" and "Toad". Cream's biggest hits were "I Feel Free" (UK, #11), "Sunshine of Your Love" (US, #5), "White Room" (US, #6),[8] "Crossroads" (US, #28), and "Badge" (UK, #18).

Cream made a significant impact upon the popular music of the time, and along with Jimi Hendrix, they popularised the use of the wah-wah pedal. They provided a heavy yet technically proficient musical theme that foreshadowed and influenced the emergence of British bands such as Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, and The Jeff Beck Group in the late 1960s. The band's live performances influenced progressive rock acts such as Rush, jam bands such as The Allman Brothers Band, Grateful Dead, Phish and heavy metal bands such as Black Sabbath.

Cream was ranked #16 on VH1's 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock and Rolling Stone named them the sixty-sixth greatest artist of all time. In 2010 VH1 also ranked them #61 on their 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.

Best Damn Fool - Buddy Guy

Best blues performer currently on the planet. If you haven't seen him...do it before he quits!

George "Buddy" Guy (born July 30, 1936) is an American blues guitarist and singer. He is a critically acclaimed artist who has established himself as a pioneer of the Chicago blues sound, and has served as an influence to some of the most notable musicians of his generation. Guy is known, too, for his showmanship on stage, playing his guitar with drumsticks, or strolling into the audience while playing solos. He was ranked thirtieth in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time". His song "Stone Crazy" was ranked seventy-eighth in list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time also of Rolling Stone.[3]

Serves Me Right To Suffer - John Lee Hooker

The real deal... not a modern cut...you gotta watch this!! This is the real Hooker!!

John Lee Hooker (August 22, 1917 – June 21, 2001) was an American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist, born near Clarksdale, Mississippi. Hooker began his life as the son of a sharecropper, William Hooker, and rose to prominence performing his own unique style of what was originally closest to Delta blues. He developed a 'talking blues' style that was his trademark. Though similar to the early Delta blues, his music was metrically free. John Lee Hooker could be said to embody his own unique genre of the blues, often incorporating the boogie-woogie piano style and a driving rhythm into his masterful and idiosyncratic blues guitar and singing. His best known songs include "Boogie Chillen'" (1948), "I'm in the Mood" (1951) and "Boom Boom" (1962), the first two reaching R&B #1 in the Billboard charts.

Hooker's life experiences were chronicled by several scholars and often read like a classic case study in the racism of the music industry, although he eventually rose to prominence with memorable songs and influence on a generation of musicians.
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The Last Ride - Duane Allman - Berry Oakley

Duane Allman was killed in a motorcycle accident only months after the release and initial success of At Fillmore East. While in the western part of Macon on October 29, 1971 during a band break from touring and recording, Allman was riding his motorcycle toward an oncoming truck that was turning well in front of him. The truck suddenly stopped in mid-intersection. Allman lost control of his Harley Davidson Sportster motorcycle while trying to swing left, possibly striking the back of the truck or its crane ball. He was thrown from his motorcycle, which landed on him and skidded ninety feet with him under it, crushing his internal organs. Though he was rushed to the hospital and operated on, he died several hours later, just weeks before his 25th birthday.

Duane and Berry shown here, Duane in Eric Clapton's hand made Peacock shirt given to Duane during the Layla session. Duane so loved this shirt that he claimed to want to be buried in it.



On November 11, 1972, Oakley was involved in a motorcycle accident in Macon, Georgia, just three blocks from where Duane Allman had his fatal motorcycle accident the year before. Oakley was driving around a sharp right bend of the road on Napier Avenue at Inverness when he crossed the line and collided at an angle twice with a city bus making the bend from the opposite direction. After striking the front and then the back of the bus, Oakley was thrown from his bike, just as Allman had been, and struck his head. Oakley said he was okay after the accident, declined medical treatment, and caught a ride home. Three hours later, he was rushed to the hospital, delirious and in pain, and died of cerebral swelling caused by a fractured skull. Attending doctors stated that even if he had gone straight to the hospital from the scene of the accident, he could not have been saved.
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Don't Keep Me Wonderin' - Duane Allman and Berry Oakley ABB

It is downright pitiful that this is the best we have of one of the best guitar players that ever walked the planet. Had it not been for Duane Allman I may never had been interested in the guitar or the blues. At least we have this!

Howard Duane Allman (November 20, 1946 – October 29, 1971) was an American guitarist, session musician and the primary co-founder of the southern rock group The Allman Brothers Band. He is best remembered for his brief but influential tenure in that band, his expressive slide guitar playing and improvisational skills.

A sought-after session musician both before and during his tenure with the band, Allman performed with such established stars as King Curtis, Aretha Franklin, Wilson Pickett, and Herbie Mann. He also contributed heavily to the 1970 album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs by Derek and the Dominos.

In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Allman at #2 in their list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time, second only to Jimi Hendrix His tone (achieved with a Gibson Les Paul and two 50-watt bass Marshall amplifiers) was named one of the greatest guitar tones of all time by Guitar Player.

He died in October 1971 in a motorcycle accident.

He is still referred to by his nickname "Skydog," which may be a reference to his signature guitar sound and tone. Many consider "Skydog" a variant of the nickname "Skyman" given to him by Wilson Pickett during the recording of Pickett's cover of the Beatles' "Hey Jude." Jim Dickinson was quoted in Keith Richards' autobiography Life as saying he was given the name because he was high much of the time.
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Pistol Slapper Blues - Rory Gallagher

Rory Gallagher born William Rory Gallagher (2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995) was an Irish blues-rock multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and bandleader. Born in Ballyshannon, County Donegal, Ireland,[3] and raised in Cork, Gallagher recorded solo albums throughout the 1970s and 1980s, after forming the band Taste during the late 1960s. A talented guitarist known for his charismatic performances and dedication to his craft, Gallagher's albums have sold in excess of 30 million copies worldwide. Gallagher received a liver transplant in 1995, but died of complications later that year in London, England aged 47.

Born For Hard Luck - Peg Leg Sam

Peg Leg Sam (December 18, 1911 – October 27, 1977) was an American blues harmonicist, singer and comedian.Born Arthur Jackson in Jonesville, South Carolina, to David Jackson, a farmer and native of Virginia, and Emma Jackson, Arthur was the fourth of six children. His fraternal great-grandmother, Racheal Williams, was born 1810 in Virginia, and was commonly referred to as a mulatto. Arthur went on to marry Theo S. Jackson, who was 18 years older than him, and the mother of Herbert Miller and Katherine Miller, both natives of Tennessee. In South Carolina, Arthur made his living busking on the street and performing in patent-medicine shows. Peg Leg Sam gave his last medicine-show performance in 1972 in North Carolina, but continued to appear at music festivals in his final years.

He died in Jonesville in October 1977, at the age of 65.

Tech Talk - Seydel Hyper-Amp (2007)

Technical data - Hyperamp HA 1510 REV

Output: 15VA an 4 / 8 Ohm (switchable) *

Speaker: 10'' Jensen P10R 8 Ohm -SPECIAL DESIGN-

Power amplifier: Class A (2 x EL84)

Level indicator: EM84 (magic eye), at the front

Input1: Guitar socket 6,3 mm (mono), -10 dBu at 1 MOhm

Input2: XLR-socket, -30 dBu at 200 Ohm

Effects: parallel, with Level-(Reverb-) control **

DI-output: XLR with transformer (magnetically shielded)

Sound control: 3 bands

Controls at the front: INPUT 1, INPUT 2, BASS, MIDDLE, TREBLE, VOLUME, EFFECT/REVERB, Stand By-switch, line-switch, operation light

Controls at the back: Electric supply with fuse and spare fuse, sockets EFF RET and EFF SEND, XLR-socket DI OUT, socket for ext. speaker EXTERN, socket for int. speaker INTERN, Impedance switch 4 / 8 Ohm

Tube assembly: 1 x EZ81, 2 x EL84, 1 x ECC81, 2 x ECC83, 1 x EM84

Spring reverb: Accutronics, 3 springs
If you like what I’m doing, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! - ”LIKE”

Mississippi Blues - Johnny Winter

John Dawson "Johnny" Winter III (born February 23, 1944) is an American blues guitarist, singer and producer.

Johnny and Edgar Winter were nurtured at an early age by their parents in their musical pursuits. Johnny Winter is known for his southern blues and rock and roll style, as well as his physical appearance. Both he and his brother were born with albinism.

In 2003 Winter was ranked 74th in Rolling Stone magazine list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" (Travesty)

Must have album... Johnny Winter And - Live
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Mississippi Blues - Stefan Grossman

Stefan Grossman (born 16 April 1945) is an American acoustic fingerstyle guitarist and singer, music producer and educator, and co-founder of Kicking Mule records.


Born in Brooklyn, New York, to Herbert and Ruth Grossman. Grossman described his upbringing, in Queens, New York, as "lower middle-class", and his parents as "very leftist", valuing education and the arts. He began playing guitar at the age of nine, when his father bought him a Harmony f-hole acoustic guitar. Later he moved on to an archtop Gibson guitar which he played between the ages of nine and eleven, taking lessons and learning to read music. For a few years, he gave up playing but resumed again at the age of 15.


Grossman's interest in the Folk revival was sparked by attending the Washington Square Park "Hoots", and he started listening to old recordings of artists such as Elizabeth Cotten, Big Bill Broonzy, Lightnin' Hopkins and Woody Guthrie. He took guitar lessons for several years from Rev. Gary Davis, whom he later described as "one of the greatest exponents of fingerstyle blues and gospel guitar playing" and "an incredible genius as a teacher".
He spent countless hours learning and documenting Davis's music, recording much of it on a tape recorder, and developing a form of tablature to take down his teacher's instructions.

In the folk and country blues revival of the 1960s he was listening to Broonzy, Brownie McGhee and Lightnin' Hopkins and beginning to collect old 78 rpm records from the 1920s and 1930s. This brought him into contact with other collectors, including John Fahey, ED Denson, Bernie Klatzko, Tom Hoskins and Nick Perls. Collecting the 78s developed into searching for the artists who had recorded them, with many successes: during the mid-60s, Grossman met, befriended and studied guitar with Mississippi John Hurt, Son House, Skip James, Mississippi Fred McDowell and other major blues artists.
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Tin Can Guitar - Tin Can Pete

Tech Talk - African Oil Can Guitar

Dani plays a african oil can guitar at Cape Town waterfront craft market.
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Tech Talk - Frontier Acoustic Resonator

In case nobody noticed, I'm intrigued with primitive instruments ..especially in use for blues.

Check this one out!

Sweet Sixteen - T- Bone Walker and B B King

My first introduction to T - Bone Walker was through the Allman Brothers Live at the Fillmore Album. Have been a great fan ever since. This is a great little video of Tbone Walker playing with B B King on BB's birthday. At this point BB was quite agile at playing and T-Bone was in top form.
Check it out!

Aaron Thibadeaux "T-Bone" Walker (May 28, 1910 — March 16, 1975) was a critically acclaimed American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who was one of the most influential pioneers and innovators of the jump blues and electric blues sound.[1] He is the first musician recorded playing blues with the electric guitar. In September 2003, Rolling Stone ranked him at #47 in their list of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".