THE BLUES FOUNDATION 2016 BLUES HALL OF FAME INDUCTION AND 37TH BLUES MUSIC AWARDS SET FOR MAY 4 AND 5

THE BLUES FOUNDATION 2016 BLUES HALL OF FAME INDUCTION AND 37TH BLUES MUSIC AWARDS SET FOR MAY 4 AND 5  Best in blues recording, songwriting, and performance to be celebrated at the Memphis' Cook Convention Center.  All six living Hall of Fame inductees will be in attendance MEMPHIS, Tenn. — On Thursday, May 5, 2016, the Blues Foundation will present its annual Blues Music Awards at the Cook Convention Center in downtown Memphis, Tennessee. The Awards are universally regarded as the highest accolade afforded to blues performers, and the awards ceremony is widely recognized as the premier event for professionals, musicians and fans from around the world. The mission of the celebration is to honor the rich cultural tradition of the blues by recognizing the past year’s outstanding achievements in performance, songwriting and recording.  On May 4, at the Halloran Centre for Performing Arts, the Blues Foundation will induct five legendary artists into the Blues Hall of Fame: Elvin Bishop, Eddy Clearwater, Jimmy Johnson, John Mayall, Memphis Jug Band, and Malaco Records' Tommy Couch Sr. and Wolf Stephenson. Elected by a select group of respected blues scholars and industry veterans, Hall of Fame inductees are recognized for their musical achievements and their contributions to blues history.  Leading this year’s award nomination count are James Harman with five, and Anthony Geraci and Sugaray Rayford, who each have four. Harman and Geraci will go head to head in three categories: Best Song, Best Album, and Best Traditional Blues Album. Harman’s gift for musical storytelling, combined with the soulful sound of his newest release, Bonetime, propelled him to a nomination as Best Traditional Male Blues Artist, and his strong musicianship set the stage for his nomination as Best Instrumentalist — Harmonica. Geraci's piano finesse led to a nomination for the prestigious Pinetop Perkins Piano Player award. Vocalist-songwriter Rayford is nominated for Contemporary Blues Album and Contemporary Blues Male Artist, as well as Best Song and the B.B. King Entertainer Award.  Cedric Burnside and Shemekia Copeland, 2016 Grammy nominees, each have three nominations here, as do Doug MacLeod, the Cash Box Kings, Victor Wainwright and Wee Willie Walker (see below for a complete list of nominees).  The five new Blues Hall of Fame inductees have all had long and influential careers that have elevated each to seminal status in the blues world. Elvin Bishop was honored with the 2015 Blues Music Awards for Song of the Year. Bishop and his fellow 2016 inductees Clearwater, Johnson and Mayall all have bodies of work spanning more than half a century, and each continues to create new music and perform for new audiences. The legendary Memphis Jug Band’s music crossed racial divides during the first half of the 20th century, and inspired countless musicians to follow in their footsteps.  For their behind-the-scenes contributions, Malaco Records partners Tommy Couch Sr. and Wolf Stephenson, who founded a Southern R&B empire that continues to be an influential force, are also Blues Foundation honorees this year.  This year’s literature entry into the Blues Hall of Fame is Jeff Todd Titon’s book Early Downhome Blues: A Musical and Cultural Analysis, which has been widely recognized as one of the most important analytical studies of the blues ever written.  The Blues Hall of Fame is also honoring several historic blues recordings: The classic Big Bill Broonzy/Memphis Slim/Sonny Boy Williamson album Blues in the Mississippi Night (Nixa, 1957: United Artists, 1959), and the vintage singles “Crazy Blues” by Mamie Smith (OKeh, 1920), “That’s All Right” by Jimmy Rogers (Chess, 1950), Billy Boy Arnold's “I Wish You Would” (Vee-Jay, 1955), “Blues Before Sunrise” by Leroy Carr and Scrapper Blackwell (Vocalion, 1934) and “Merry Christmas Baby” by Johnny Moore’s Three Blazers (Exclusive, 1947). The last disc, with Charles Brown on vocal and piano, is the first Yuletide song inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame.  The Memphis-based Blues Foundation is internationally renowned for its tireless efforts in preserving blues heritage, celebrating blues recording and performance, expanding worldwide awareness of the blues, and ensuring the future of this uniquely American art form. Founded in 1980, the Blues Foundation has approximately 4,000 individual members and 200 affiliated local blues societies, representing another 50,000 fans and professionals around the world.    The Blues Foundation’s signature honors and events — the Blues Music Awards, Blues Hall of Fame, International Blues Challenge and Keeping the Blues Alive Awards — make it the international capital of blues music. The recent opening of the Blues Hall of Fame Museum in Memphis, Tenn., now adds the opportunity for music lovers of all ages to interact with the music and its history.   Major funding is provided by ArtsMemphis and the Tennessee Arts Commission. The 37th Blues Music Awards is also sponsored by AutoZone, BMI, First Tennessee Foundation, Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise, Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Sierra Nevada Brewing Company and Sony Legacy Recordings.  HOF tickets are $100 each, reception at 5:30pm with ceremony beginning at 6:30 p.m. BMA tickets are $150 each, tables of 10 for $1500; a special pre-party will begin at 5:30 p.m.; the BMA begin at 6:30 p.m.. For more information, log onto http://www.blues.org; tickets and membership details are available at http://blues.org/blues-music-awards/2016-blues-music-awards/ # # # 37th Blues Music Award Nominees  Acoustic Album  Doug MacLeod - Exactly Like This Duke Robillard - The Acoustic Blues & Roots of Duke Robillard Eric Bibb - Blues People Guy Davis - Kokomo Kidd The Ragpicker String Band - The Ragpicker String Band  Acoustic Artist  Doug MacLeod Eric Bibb Gaye Adegbalola  Guy Davis  Ian Siegal  Album  Anthony Geraci & the Boston Blues All-Stars - Fifty Shades of Blue Buddy Guy - Born to Play Guitar James Harman - Bonetime The Cash Box Kings - Holding Court Wee Willie Walker - If Nothing Ever Changes  Band  Andy T - Nick Nixon Band  Rick Estrin & the Nightcats  Sugar Ray & the Bluetones  The Cash Box Kings  Victor Wainwright & the Wild Roots  B.B. King Entertainer  John Németh Rick Estrin  Shemekia Copeland  Sugaray Rayford  Victor Wainwright  Best New Artist Album  Eddie Cotton - One at a Time Igor Prado Band - Way Down South Mighty Mike Schermer – Blues in Good Hands Mr. Sipp - The Blues Child Slam Allen - Feel These Blues Contemporary Blues Album  Buddy Guy - Born to Play Guitar Eugene Hideaway Bridges - Hold on a Little Bit Longer Shemekia Copeland - Outskirts of Love Sonny Landreth - Bound by the Blues Sugaray Rayford – Southside  Contemporary Blues Female Artist  Beth Hart Karen Lovely Nikki Hill  Samantha Fish  Shemekia Copeland  Contemporary Blues Male Artist  Brandon Santini Eugene Hideaway Bridges  Jarekus Singleton Joe Louis Walker Sugaray Rayford  Historical Album  The Henry Gray/Bob Corritore Sessions, Vol. 1, Blues Won't Let Me Take My Rest on Delta Groove Records  Hawk Squat by J. B. Hutto & His Hawks on Delmark Records  Southside Blues Jam by Junior Wells on Delmark Records  Buzzin' the Blues by Slim Harpo on Bear Family Records Dynamite! The Unsung King of the Blues by Tampa Red on Ace Records  Instrumentalist-Bass  Charlie Wooten Lisa Mann Michael “Mudcat”  Ward Patrick Rynn  Willie J. Campbell  Instrumentalist-Drums  Cedric Burnside  Jimi Bott June Core Tom Hambridge  Tony Braunagel  Instrumentalist-Guitar  Anson Funderburgh  Kid Andersen  Monster Mike Welch  Ronnie Earl  Sonny Landreth  Instrumentalist-Harmonica  Billy Branch  Brandon Santini  James Harman  Jason Ricci  Kim Wilson  Instrumentalist-Horn  Al Basile  Doug James Kaz Kazanoff  Sax Gordon  Terry Hanck Koko Taylor Award (Traditional Blues Female)  Diunna Greenleaf  Fiona Boyes  Ruthie Foster  Trudy Lynn  Zora Young  Pinetop Perkins Piano Player  Allen Toussaint  Anthony Geraci  Barrelhouse Chuck  John Ginty  Victor Wainwright  Rock Blues Album of the Year  Joe Bonamassa - Muddy Wolf at Red Rocks Joe Louis Walker - Everybody Wants a Piece Royal Southern Brotherhood - Don't Look Back  Tinsley Ellis - Tough Love Walter Trout - Battle Scars Song  “Bad Feet/Bad Hair” written and performed by James Harman  “Fifty Shades of Blue” written by Anthony Geraci and performed by Anthony Geraci & the Boston Blues All-Stars  “Gonna Live Again” written and performed by Walter Trout  “Southside of Town” written by Sugaray Rayford and & Ralph Carter and performed by Sugaray Rayford  “You Got It Good (and That Ain’t Bad)” written and performed by Doug MacLeod  Soul Blues Album  Bey Paule Band - Not Goin' Away Billy Price & Otis Clay - This Time for Real  Jackie Payne - I Saw the Blues Tad Robinson - Day into Night Wee Willie Walker - If Nothing Ever Changes  Soul Blues Female Artist  Bettye LaVette  Dorothy Moore Missy Anderson Toni Lynn Washington  Vaneese Thomas  Soul Blues Male Artist  Frank Bey Jackie Payne  Johnny Rawls Otis Clay Wee Willie Walker  Traditional Blues Album  Andy T - Nick Nixon Band - Numbers Man Anthony Geraci & the Boston Blues All-Stars - Fifty Shades of Blue Cedric Burnside Project - Descendants of Hill Country James Harman - Bonetime The Cash Box Kings - Holding Court Traditional Blues Male Artist  Cedric Burnside Dave Alvin & Phil Alvin  James Harman Jimmy Burns John Prime

Forty Below Records artist: John Mayall's Bluesbreakers - Live In 1967 - Volume Two - New Release Review

I just received the second installment from Forty Below of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Live in 1967 in it is spectacular! Like the earlier Volume 1 , this release (May 6, 2016) is the band made up of Mayall along with Peter Green, John McVie and Mick Fleetwood, the core of the later, Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac.

Opening with Mayall composition, Tears In My Eyes, these guys waste no time showing you why this release is important. It is hot, explosive and vital! Mayall's vocals are at his best and Green was disputably the best white blues player in the world. McVie laying down a solid bottom and Fleetwood handling the drums, Green literally scorches the stage with incredible riff and incredible riff. If there is anything wrong with this track, it's too short at over 7 and a half minutes. Excellent!! Sonny Boy Williamson track, Your Funeral and My Trial really hits the groove and Mayall is on it on vocal and harp. This is a great track with that Mayall magic! Classic, So Many Roads, fits so perfectly into this band's style that it's unbelievable. Clocking in at over 8 minutes, Green literally tears it up. Mayall leads the way on vocal and McVie and Fleetwood support strongly but Green is just unbelievable. Excellent! On Dixon/Williamson composition, Bye Bye Bird, Mayall is back up front on harp and shows why he is considered the father of modern blues. His harp playing is inspired and tight. Another original track, Please Don't Tell sets the early British rock sound made popular by the Yardbirds and Foghat. Super rocker. Sure, Green comes in a rips it up but it's the rocking groove that makes this track what it is. Next up is a super BB King track, Sweet Little Angel, and Mayall slides into a real nice vocal groove cushioned by his own keyboard work. Easy paced guitar work by Green is respectful of King's own style, thoughtful and expressive yet compelling. JB Lenoir's Talk To Your Daughter has a rockin' shuffle and balanced instrumentals throughout. Featuring the lead vocal of Mayall and fleet guitar work of Green, a cool track. Eddie Taylor's Bad Boy has a cool Chicago shuffle feel with highlights on harp responding to Mayall's vocals. Green bursts loose with a nice solo as does Mayall on electric keys. T-Bone Walkers well known classic, before it was broadly known, Stormy Monday, is an ideal track to feature Ronnie Jones on vocal as well as Green cutting in. Greeny is a Freddy King style shuffle instrumental with Green just laying it out there.... a 6 plus minute guitar jam with Mayall on keys. Very cool! Riding on the L&N is a great rocker a la Chuck Berry. Without getting too flashy, this track is a rocker! Mayall original, Chicago Line is up next and has classic Mayall sound. McVie takes a great bass solo on this track, an unusual feature and well done. Wrapping the release is Otis Rush's Double Trouble. Mayall is made to sing and play these slow blues tracks and there's no secret that Green knows how to blow them up. His phrasing and emotional output on guitar is spectacular, leading to his ultimate formation of his own band. Excellent show and one that you should definitely hear.



  If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues news and Fathers of the Blues, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

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Big Jake Records artist: Paul Filipowicz - Rough Neck Blues Live! - New Release Review

I just received the newest release, Rough Neck Blues Live!, from Paul Filipowicz and I really like it! A few years back I reviewed another release by Filipowicz, Saints and Sinners and this release, being live, gives Paul an opportunity to take an already great formula and blow it out and that he does. Opening with shuffle track, Gambling Woman, Filipowicz is cranking with his trademark raw vocals and rowdy guitar riffs. Backed by Rick Smith on bass and Brian "Tito" Howard on drums, this is a hot opener! Most Dogs is up next and Filipowicz brings down the tempo but not the heat. His guitar phrasing is masterful and engaging with traces of Magic Sam, Johnny Winter and Buddy Guy. Black Spider is a blues rocker with a solid bottom. Chuck Berry like construction but with less spring and more blues is complimented by Benny Rickun on harp. Slowing things way down, Santa Fe Windows is a hot potato with really hot, Albert King like phrasing but without King trademark riffs. Smokey guitar attack and honest vocals make this a scary cool track. Hi energy, Junk In The Trunk, visits Freddy King territory with a really cool shuffle. With a little Bo Diddley injection, this track rocks out. Excellent! Jackson Transfer has a hard Chicago edge and Muddy Waters feel. Filipowicz's vocals on this track are particularly cool and with a slack sounding guitar rhythm and super cool harp on the top by Rickun, this track has legs. Breaking into a clean, electric solo run, Filipowicz shows patience and taste. Very nice! Midnight At The Nairobi Room has a super bottom with a diminishing bass line by Smith and a seductive drum rhythm by Howard. His own guitar work is excellent with wide vibrato further adding to the tension which is ultimately broken into a cool instrumental shuffle. Excellent! Chickenwire steps up with a cool rockin' boogie featuring a blend of call and response between vocals, guitar and harp. With it's solid drive...Hooker style...it's hard not to love and when Filipowicz opens up the guns, he shows he knows the ropes! Your True Lovin' has the feel of Waters, Winter and Rush. A great Chicago style blues number, Filipowicz shows his positive mastery of this style. His guitar tone is warm and radiant and his phrasing really nice. Excellent! My favorite track on the release, Hootin' and Hollerin' is an excellent loose jam with a blend of everything that I liked about TJ White's Polk Salad Annie and CCR with the raw honesty of Jimbo Mathus. This track is excellent! Wrapping the release is Where The Blues Comes From has a solid R&B bottom reinforced by Rickun on harp. Jamming out for over 8 minutes Filipowicz has an engaging voice and trading riffs with Rickun, makes this a super closer for a really strong release!




  If you support live Blues acts, up and coming Blues talents and want to learn more about Blues news and Fathers of the Blues, Like ---Bman’s Blues Report--- Facebook Page! I’m looking for great talent and trying to grow the audience for your favorites band! -  ”LIKE”

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Eric Bibb Is "The Happiest Man in the World" on New Stony Plain Records CD, Coming May 6

Tasty Country Blues Musical Gumbo Teams Award-Winning Roots Musician and North Country Far with Legendary Bassist Danny Thompson

EDMONTON, AB – Stony Plain Records has set a May 6 release date for The Happiest Man in the World, the latest album from award-winning roots musician Eric Bibb, which teams him up with the group North Country Far and legendary bassist Danny Thompson.

The Happiest Man in the World is a 14-track tasty gumbo of country blues songs recorded in the English countryside with an exuberant, soulful spirit that feels like the perfect soundtrack for relaxing on the back porch or the front parlor. Led by multiple Blues Music Award-winner Eric Bibb, this stellar acoustic band is made up of musicians who have known each other for years. It features famed upright bassist Danny Thompson, whose resume includes work with such acclaimed artists as Alexis Korner, Donovan, Richard Thompson (no relation), Pentangle and John Martyn.  The album also includes a bonus instrumental track, “King Size Bed,” which is available only in the Deluxe digital edition.

To celebrate the release of the new CD, Eric Bibb and the band created a special video EPK about its making that can be viewed bekow:

In the liner notes for The Happiest Man in the World, Eric Bibb talks about how the album came together. “Some years ago, when I was living in Helsinki, I had the good fortune of meeting the Haavisto brothers – Janne, a very groovy drummer, and Olli, a wonderful dobro and pedal steel player. In addition to being fine musicians, both of them are experienced recording engineers. We became friends and began working together on various recording projects. Olli introduced me to Petri Hakala. He not only plays great mandolin & mandola, he also makes his own instruments! We started playing gigs advertised as Eric Bibb and North Country Far. Like most musicians, we began sharing road stories, telling tall tales and name-dropping. At some point I mentioned that a few years back I’d had a chance to tour with Danny Thompson, the legendary bassist. Fast-forward. One day, during a recording session, Olli said, ‘It would be great to make a record with Danny – he’s one of my heroes. Any chance?’

“And it happened - because it was meant to be! We met at The Grange (a residential studio where I’d recorded an album years before) near Norfolk, England. Together, for a few days in the month of July, with veteran sound engineer Dave Williams at the console, we experienced something beautifully friendly and elevating. I’d do it again in a heartbeat!”

The Happiest Man in the World continues Eric Bibb’s tradition of versatility in expressing his musical craft. His last album, the universally-acclaimed Lead Belly’s Gold, was a tribute to the iconic bluesman that saw Bibb join forces with French harmonica master JJ Milteau for an album of songs recorded at famed Paris jazz club, The Sunset, as well as five new studio recordings.

Eric Bibb’s career spans over five decades, 36 albums, countless radio and TV shows and non-stop tours, making him one of the leading bluesmen of his generation. Bibb tours regularly throughout the world and already has dates booked at both showcase venues and festivals throughout the spring and summer in the USA and Canada.

The Happiest Man in the World – Track Listing

1.      The Happiest Man In The World / Words & Music by Eric Bibb, BMG/Chrysalis

2.      Toolin’ Down The Road / Words & Music by Eric Bibb, BMG/Chrysalis

3.      I’ll Farm For You / Words & Music by Eric Bibb, BMG/Chrysalis

4.      Tossin’ An’ Turnin’ / Words & Music by Eric Bibb, BMG/Chrysalis

5.      Creole Café / Words & Music by Eric Bibb & Ulrika Pontén Bibb, BMG/Chrysalis

6.      Born To Be Your Man / Words & Music by Eric Bibb, BMG/Chrysalis

7.      Prison Of Time / Words by Eric Bibb & Wendell Berry, Music by Eric Bibb, BMG/Chrysalis

8.      King Size Bed / Words & Music by Eric Bibb, BMG/Chrysalis

9.      On The Porch / Words by Wendell Berry (from The Sabbath Poems 1979-1997 “They Sit Together On The Porch”, 1994), Music by Eric Bibb, BMG/Chrysalis

10.  1912 Skiing Disaster (instrumental) / Music by Olli Haavisto & Petri Hakala

11.  Tell Ol’ Bill / Traditional/Arr. by E. Bibb

12.  Wish I Could Hold You Now / Words & Music by Eric Bibb, BMG/Chrysalis

13.  Blueberry Boy (instrumental) / Music by Eric Bibb, BMG/Chrysalis

14.  You Really Got Me / Words & Music by Ray Davies, Sony/ATV Songs LLC

15.  (Bonus track: King Size Bed - Instrumental bonus track)

www.ericbibb.net / www.stonyplainrecords.com