Orange County Blues Society Holiday Food Drive at House of Blues/Anaheim

  

Real Blues Festival/Orange County Blues Society founder Papa J (pictured below) hosts a Holiday Food Drive at the House of Blues Anaheim next Thursday, December 27. Proceeds benefit the Orange County Food Bank. https://www.facebook.com/events/311340218970429/

"Bring a can or box of food and help those that cannot help themselves during the holidays" - Papa J

  (Anaheim, Calif.) -  The holiday season is a great time for giving, and that's precisely what the Orange County Blues Society has in mind with their Holiday Food Dive taking place at House of Blues/Anaheim, Voodoo Lounge, Thursday, December 27.  Doors 8 p.m. Showtime 10 p.m. HOB is located at 1530 S. Disneyland Ave. Info: https://www.facebook.com/events/311340218970429/. Blues harpist/vocalist Papa J and Delta Blues guitarist K.K. Martin are among the scheduled performers that evening.

    Harpist, vocalist, founder/creator of both the Real Blues Festival of Orange County and the Orange County Blues Society - Papa J (Jeffrey Hudson) has been one of the hardest-working and most influential people on the Orange County blues scene for the better part of the last two decades. This past August alone, Papa J presided over two successful multi-band events: The Muck Roots Blues Revue at The Muckenthaler Cultural Center in Fullerton; and the Real Blues Festival of Orange County 3 at Malone's in Santa Ana. 

    
    Papa J was again honored this year with  a "Best Americana, Blues, or Roots Artist" nomination for the 2012 Los Angeles Music Awards. Last Fall saw the release of "The Big Show" (Houndog Records) by Papa J and Friends to great reviews:

"Great CD chock full of Blues standards performed with energy and enthusiasm!"    - Barrelhouse Blues

"The Big Show'' is absolutely first-rate with great performances by all involved including Papa J...a big winner that I have no problem highly recommending to Blues enthusiasts."  - Blues Underground

"On 'The Big Show' Papa J and Friends are winning over music aficionados with mental images of smoke-filled, Old-School Blues where people celebrate in sharing this fine music genre."    

L.A. Examiner

                                        

www.papajandfriends.com 

  

Papa J - ORANGE COUNTY BREEZE 

The Big Show CD Review - L.A. EXAMINER 

Papa J - Live Show Review ENCINO PATCH 

 

Lipstick, Power & Paint - Billy T Band

William Troiani, Bill or Billy among friends, was born in New York City, NY in 1949. He started playing the bass when he was 11, and was quickly turned on to RnB and Blues. By the time he reached his twenties, he was playing music full time. While still situated on the American east coast he toured and/or recorded with such diverse artists as Eddie Kirkland and Tom Russell..... Since moving to Norway, just over a decade ago, Bill Troiani has established himself as one of Scandinavia's premier bassplayers for RnB, Blues and Roots Music. He has played with virtually the entire Norwegian music elite, and has been a permanent member of both Amund Maarud's and Vidar Busk's touring bands. In '99, Bill Troiani founded the Muddy Waters Blues Club's houseband together with Kid Andersen, Charlie Musselwhite's current guitarist. He led the houseband until the fall of '06. Backing international artists like Nappy Brown, Homesick James, Lazy Lester, Marva Wright and Bill Sims Jr. to name a few..... Today Bill Troiani plays regularly with young RnB and Blues talent Joakim Tinderholt in addition to his own Billy T Band. The Billy T Bands 2nd album "L.O.V.E. (just a silly notion)" was released January 25th 2010. It's a great follow up to the first release "A little mixed up" from 2007 , and it has already gotten a lot of positive response. See the blog for rave reviews! 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 favorite band!

Classically Blue Live - Geoff Achison and Adrian Keating - New Release Review

I have just received the newest release, Classically Blue Live, a new CD/DVD live recording from Geoff Achison and Adrian Keating. This recording is much more fusion and ballad than blues but interesting just the same. The first track, Each Long Day is a well composed track with very clean classically executed guitar intro, smooth fusion oriented violin work by Adrian Keating and further electric guitar exchanges with Achison and Keating. Julia Day plays flawlessly on drums and Tim Sampson plays driving articulated bass lines. You And I is a strong ballad accompanied primarily by acoustic guitar with orchestral backing. One Ticket, One Ride is a rock style track with a bit of funk making it a catchy track. Bridge gets back to the more sophisticated time signatures of a fusion track but with a bit more vocal that is typically associated with this type of music. It is really quite well orchestrated and instrumentally interesting. Apparatus opens with a very unusual funky guitar riff which continues throughout with guitar pyrotechnics. Very interesting. Kissing Angels is again a solid ballad backed with violin and articulated acoustic guitar. My Little Bag takes a walk in the Steeley Dan vein with a poppy track and danceable rhythm with some flashy guitar riffs dashed in here and there. There are some obtuse guitar solo's on this track that I really think are quite daring and exciting. Blew My Top has a strong rock beat held down by Achison's vocals. There is a slower instrumental break in this track adding theatrics and dynamics. Stepping Stones is a bluesy jazz track with some cool guitar harmonics on the intro. It's Over closes the recording, opening with a really luscious violin solo. The track morphs into a pop style rock track which could easily garner a lot of airplay. This track has a particularly strong guitar and violin lead making it one of the strongest tracks overall. I also had the opportunity to review the DVD which accompanies this recording and the band is very entertaining to watch with huge warmth with the strings backing the vocal/guitar unit.
  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”

$10 Fat Possum Sale / Al Green Christmas

Al Green "Feels Like Christmas"
 

Available now on iTunes

"Feels Like Christmas" features legendary soul singer Al Green performing ten holiday classics.  It's a wonderful run-through of songs like "Jingle Bells," "Silent Night," "Winter Wonderland," "White Christmas," and so on.  Al Green gives these songs new life with his soulful charisma.

 

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$10 Fat Possum Sale
 

Sale Ends December 31

CDs and LPs are $10 storewide.
Double LPs and Picture Discs are $15.

Visit the Fat Possum Store to begin shopping.

 

 

  

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Darker Blues Books Are Back

We just found a limited number of Darker Blues books.  This has been sold out for some years, but a stash has been uncovered and we think they should be sold  to the public. Darker Blues is a 100+ page limited edition book featuring the work of award-winning photographer David Raccuglia, as well as classic Fat Possum photos.

-Darker Blues comes with a TWO CD set packaged in the back cover of the book. One of the CDs is a 7 track EP of remixes and previously unreleased tracks from R.L. Burnside. The other CD contains an hour of classic Fat Possum music featuring Solomon Burke, Junior Kimbrough and more.

-As if that isn’t enough, the package also comes with an 8 page pull-out comic book by Joe Sacco; a history of the Fat Possum label as well as the life story of T-Model
Ford.

BUY YOUR BOOK TODAY FOR YOURSELF OR A FRIEND

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”

A Little More Love - Kim Weston

Kim Weston (born December 20, 1939) is an American soul singer, and Motown alumna. In the 1960s, Weston scored hits with the songs "Love Me All the Way" and "Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me a Little While)". Born Agatha Nathalia Weston in Detroit, Michigan, she was signed to Motown Records in 1961, scoring a minor hit with "Love Me All the Way" (R&B #24, Pop #88). Weston's biggest solo hits with Motown were "Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me a Little While)" (R&B #4, Pop #50, 1965, later covered by The Isley Brothers, Blood, Sweat & Tears and The Doobie Brothers, and "Helpless" (R&B #13, Pop #56, 1966, previously recorded by The Four Tops on their Second Album LP). Her biggest claim to fame was singing the classic hit "It Takes Two" with Marvin Gaye in 1966 and her later recording of the Black National Anthem, "Lift Every Voice and Sing". It was the success of "It Takes Two" that caused Motown to partner Gaye with Tammi Terrell, spawning even more success for the label. Weston left Motown in 1967 and later sued the label over disputes about royalties. She and her then-husband William "Mickey" Stevenson (former A&R head at Motown) both went to MGM Records. Weston cut a couple of singles for MGM, "I Got What You Need," and "Nobody," which went largely unnoticed due to lack of airplay and promotion. She made an album for the label, This Is America, which included her popular version of the Black National Anthem, "Lift Every Voice and Sing." This was released as a single and featured in the movie Wattstax. All the money from the single was donated to the United Negro College Fund. She recorded several more albums for various labels, Stax/Volt among them, and also made an album of duets with Johnny Nash. None of these recordings charted, and Weston reportedly relocated to Israel, where she worked with young singers. Weston made a guest appearance on The Bill Cosby Show (1969–1971), in episode #50 in March 1971. Along with many former Motown artists, she signed with Ian Levine's Motorcity Records in the 1980s, releasing the single "Signal Your Intention", which peaked at #1 in the UK Hi-NRG charts. It was followed by the album Investigate (1990), which included some re-recordings of her Motown hits as well as new material. A second album for the label, Talking Loud (1992), was never released, although all the songs were included on the compilation The Best Of Kim Weston (1996). Today Weston is a disc jockey on a local Detroit radio station, where she sponsors the summer events at Hart Plaza. She also tours sporadically, often alongside former Motown colleagues Mary Wilson, Martha Reeves and Brenda Holloway. She is also featured on the 2006 four-CD release of the Motortown Revue series. 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”

You Can Stay (But The Noise Got To Go) - Walter"Wolfman"Washington & The Roadmasters

Walter “Wolfman” Washington has been an icon on the New Orleans music scene for decades. His searing guitar work and soulful vocals have defined the Crescent City’s unique musical hybrid of R&B, funk and the blues since he formed his first band in the 1970s. Washington began his career during the fertile heyday of the 1950s Rhythm and Blues period that spawned dozens of Number 1 songs and made New Orleans the recording destination of choice for hit makers like Ray Charles and Little Richard. Born in 1943, Washington was on the road by his late teens spending over two years backing the great vocalist Lee Dorsey who was touring in support of his smash hits, “Ride Your Pony” and “Working in a Coalmine.” His tenure with Dorsey took him to all of the great music halls in America including appearances at the famed Apollo Theater in Harlem. Before he went out on his own with his Solar System band, he also did stints with acclaimed New Orleans songstress Irma Thomas as well as with the legendary jazzman David Lastie’s Taste of New Orleans band. During the 1970s, Washington began a 20-year association with one of the most important vocalists to hail from Louisiana- the late, great Johnny Adams. Dubbed “the Tan Canary” for his peerless vocal stylings, Adams was a mentor of sorts to Washington who developed his singing style while the two worked together at back-of-town clubs including a long stint at the famed Dorothy’s Medallion in the Mid City section of New Orleans. When Washington formed his first band as a leader he was often pigeonholed into the blues genre. But by taking his cues from the likes of Dorsey, Thomas, Adams and the jazzman Lastie, his sound reflects the full range of music from New Orleans. He certainly can howl the blues, hence his nickname, but his musical talents have always defined pure Crescent City soul. In later years, with the second rise of funk, Washington fully embraced that genre as well. Seeing Walter “Wolfman” Washington perform with his current outfit, the Roadmasters, is akin to taking a history lesson on black music in America with the exception that sitting down and taking notes is not an option. With his breadth of experience and seemingly endless repertoire, each of his highly danceable shows is one-of-a-kind. Like the greatest jazzmen, Washington channels his everyday life into his music. Depending on the setting, the band plays the blues, R&B, soul, funk, jazz and everything in between with pure heart. Washington, like Adams before him, is a great interpreter of song. He inhabits each number whether it’s a soulful ballad or a funk rave up. His gift of interpretation allows him to bring his own spirit to the composition while always exposing the true sentiments of the lyrics to the audience. While Washington had to hone his vocal gifts learning phrasing and presence, his guitar playing has been without compare since the early days of his career. As a rhythm player he provides just the right tension to support his band members when they take their solos. But it is during his moments in the spotlight that Washington really shines. When he plays lead guitar, jaws often drop in the audience as he spins out highly nuanced solos that build in intensity or spiral around a central theme. Of course, that’s before he even begins to play with his teeth! Walter “Wolfman” Washington has earned numerous accolades over his long career, but he is not one to sit back on his laurels. He maintains a heavy schedule playing with the Roadmasters as well as with his trio, the Chosen Few. As if that were not enough, he also recently began a successful collaboration with some local jazzmen including the trumpeter James Andrews. So the circle of New Orleans music comes full. Equally adept in virtually any genre, Washington stands out in a city full of great musicians for his unique style and uncommon grace as a guitarist, bandleader and vocalist. 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”

I Wish - Efrem Towns and Warren Haynes Band with the Dirty Dozen Brass Band

Dirty Dozen Brass Band trumpeter Efrem Towns is recovering at home in New Orleans from a vicious attack by a dog in an Atlanta motel. He missed performances in Colorado and New Orleans after the attack on Nov. 18, and tells The Times-Picayune that he doesn't know if he'll make the band's next scheduled gig on Dec. 28. He and baritone sax player Roger Lewis say the dog surged from an open door after Towns knocked at Lewis' room. Towns was transported to Grady Hospital, where he received 30 stitches in his groin. The Dirty Dozen Brass Band formed in 1977, and is credited with creating the contemporary, funk-infused brass band sound. It's been featured on albums with David Bowie, Elvis Costello and the Black Crowes. The Dirty Dozen Brass Band is a New Orleans, Louisiana, brass band. The ensemble was established in 1977 by Benny Jones together with members of the Tornado Brass Band. The Dirty Dozen revolutionized the New Orleans brass band style by incorporating funk and bebop into the traditional New Orleans style, and has been a major influence on the majority of New Orleans brass bands since. 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”

Got My Mojo Working - Pat Hare with Muddy Waters

Auburn "Pat" Hare (December 20, 1930 - September 26, 1980) was an American electric Memphis blues guitarist and singer. His heavily distorted, power chord-driven electric guitar music in the early 1950s is considered an important precursor to heavy metal music. His guitar work with Little Junior's Blue Flames had a major influence on the rockabilly style, while his guitar playing on blues records by artists such as Muddy Waters was influential among 1960s British Invasion blues rock bands such as The Rolling Stones and The Yardbirds He was born in Cherry Valley, Arkansas. He recorded at Sun Studios in Memphis, Tennessee, serving as a sideman for Howlin' Wolf, James Cotton, Muddy Waters, Bobby Bland and other artists. Hare was one of the first guitarists to purposely use the effects of distortion in his playing. In 1951, he joined a blues band formed by Junior Parker, called Little Junior's Blue Flames. He played the electric guitar solo on "Love My Baby" (1953), which later inspired the rockabilly style. One of their biggest hits was "Next Time You See Me" which in 1957 reached #5 on the Billboard R&B charts and #74 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart He was born in Cherry Valley, Arkansas. He recorded at Sun Studios in Memphis, Tennessee, serving as a sideman for Howlin' Wolf, James Cotton, Muddy Waters, Bobby Bland and other artists. Hare was one of the first guitarists to purposely use the effects of distortion in his playing. In 1951, he joined a blues band formed by Junior Parker, called Little Junior's Blue Flames. He played the electric guitar solo on "Love My Baby" (1953), which later inspired the rockabilly style. One of their biggest hits was "Next Time You See Me" which in 1957 reached #5 on the Billboard R&B charts and #74 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart His guitar solo on James Cotton's electric blues record "Cotton Crop Blues" (1954) was the first record to use heavily distorted power chords, anticipating elements of heavy metal music. According to Robert Palmer: "Rarely has a grittier, nastier, more ferocious electric guitar sound been captured on record, before or since, and Hare's repeated use of a rapid series of two downward-modulating power chords, the second of which is allowed to hang menacingly in the air, is a kind of hook or structural glue. The first heavy metal record? I'd say yes, with tongue only slightly in cheek." The other side of the single was "Hold Me in Your Arms"; both songs "featured a guitar sound so overdriven that with the historical distance of several decades, it now sounds like a direct line to the coarse, distorted tones favored by modern rock players." According to Allmusic, "what is now easily attainable by 16-year-old kids on modern-day effects pedals just by stomping on a switch, Hare was accomplishing with his fingers and turning the volume knob on his Sears & Roebuck cereal-box-sized amp all the way to the right until the speaker was screaming." Reported to have been an unassuming man in private (once married to Dorothy Mae Good, with whom he had three children — a son and two daughters); however, he had serious, and ultimately fatal, drinking problems. Shortly after the "Cotton Crop Blues" recording, he recorded a version of the early 1940s Doctor Clayton song "I'm Gonna Murder My Baby" on May 14, 1954, which has since been released on the 1990 Rhino Records compilation album, Blue Flames: A Sun Blues Collection. The record also features power chords, which remains "most fundamental in modern rock" as "the basic structure for riff-building in heavy metal bands." According to Robert Palmer, the song is "as heavy metal as it gets." According to the album liner notes, "I'm Gonna Murder My Baby", "is doubly morbid because he did just that". In December 1963, Hare shot his girlfriend dead, and also shot a policeman who came to investigate. At the time of his arrest, he was playing in the blues band of Muddy Waters. He was replaced in the band by guitarist James "Pee Wee" Madison. Hare spent the last 16 years of his life in prison, where he formed a band named Sounds Incarcerated. Hare succumbed to lung cancer inprison, and died in 1980 in St. Paul, Minnesota 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”

ARTIST/VOCALIST JANIVA MAGNESS UNDERGOES SUCCESSFUL SURGERY

Award-winning artist and vocalist Janiva Magness underwent successful surgery on Thursday, December 13 to repair damage to discs in her neck. Magness will be off the road for four to six weeks while she recovers, but will be back with a full touring schedule in early 2013. According to Magness, "I am feeling much better now (post surgery) and looking forward to sharing performances with friends and fans. It seems 2013 is going to be a very successful and exciting year!"
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 favorite band! Just last week, Magness was honored with five Blues Music Award nominations, including the coveted B.B. King Entertainer Of The Year Award, a distinction Magness has won once before. She is the only female blues artist to receive this award other than blues legend Koko Taylor. Magness was also nominated for Contemporary Blues Female Artist Of The Year, Album Of The Year and Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year for her 2012 Alligator CD, Stronger For It. In addition, Magness, for the first time in her career, was recognized for songwriting, with her composition (co-written with Dave Darling) I Won't Cry, getting the nomination for Song Of The Year. The 34th Annual Blues Music Awards will be presented by The Blues Foundation in Memphis on May 9, 2013 at the Cook Convention Center.

Stockyard Blues - Floyd Jones

Floyd Jones (July 21, 1917 – December 19, 1989) was an American blues singer, guitarist and songwriter, who is significant as one of the first of the new generation of electric blues artists to record in Chicago after World War II. A number of Jones' recordings are regarded as classics of the Chicago blues idiom, and his song "On The Road Again" was a top ten hit for Canned Heat in 1968. Notably for a blues artist of his era, several of his songs have economic or social themes, such as "Stockyard Blues" (which refers to a strike at the Union Stockyards), "Hard Times" or "Schooldays" Jones was born in Marianna, Arkansas. He started playing guitar seriously after being given a guitar by Howlin' Wolf, and worked as an itinerant musician in the Arkansas and Mississippi area in the 1930s and early 1940s, before settling in Chicago in 1945. In Chicago, Jones took up the electric guitar, and was one of a number of musicians playing on Maxwell Street and in non-union venues in the late 1940s who played an important role in the development of the post-war Chicago Blues sound. This group included Little Walter and Jimmy Rogers, both of who went on to become mainstays of the Muddy Waters band, and also Snooky Pryor, Floyd's cousin Moody Jones and mandolin player Johnny Young. His first recording session in 1947, with Snooky on harmonica and Moody on guitar, produced the sides "Stockyard Blues" and "Keep What You Got", which formed one of the two records released by the Marvel Label, and was one of the first examples of the new style on record. A second session in 1949 resulted in a release on the similarly short-lived Tempo-Tone label. During the 1950s Jones also had records released on JOB, Chess and Vee-Jay, and in 1966 he recorded for the Testament label's Masters of Modern Blues series. Jones continued performing in Chicago for the rest of his life, although he had few further recording opportunities. Later in his career the electric bass became his main instrument. He died in Chicago in December 1989. 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 favorite band!

Asking Around For You - HARLESS BROTHERS BAND

Nick Harless is the lead guitarist and songwriter of the band. At 21 years of age Nick has been playing guitar for only 6 years, but in those few short years, he has progressed at an alarming rate. Nick's older brother Tony is the bass guitarist. Tony has been playing guitar for over 20 years. Tony quit playing on six strings, and went to four when Nick got to where his licks were better than Tony's. Tony said, “I'm better on four than I ever was on six”. Both Tony and Nick were taught to play the guitar and perform by their father Tony Sr., a long time musician. The band was formerly known as The Midnight Sun Blues Band, but after losing long time drummers Dave Huff, and Russell (Steamroller) Shelby, in addition to other bands having the same name The Midnight Sun, the band decided it was time to change their name. Now together with Kacy Perry on drums the three are known as the Harless Brothers Band. With a great foundation in Tony, Kacy, and the awesome lick's on the guitar and songwriting prowess from Nick, the three are pumping out their own distinctive and unique sound. With influences such as Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Joe Bonamassa, Johnny Guitar Watson, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Ten Years After, Rare Earth, and Robert Cray just to name a few. The Harless Brothers want to play for anyone and everyone who wants to listen, get their music out there, and let everyone know they were born to Rock N' Roll. 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 favorite band!

TAS CRU TO PRESENT BLUES IN SCHOOLS FOR BLUES FOUNDATION

The Blues Foundation, Memphis TN has just announced that TAS CRU will present a Blues in the Schools program as part of its International Blues Challenge (IBC) events in Memphis, TN this coming January/February. I will present to 4th graders at Downtown Elementary School of Memphis City Schools on Friday morning, February 1st. "It is well known that I firmly believe that blues education must be a vital part of the blues performer’s overall efforts and mission. I am honored to be chosen to lead this program as part of the 2013 IBC." 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 favorite band!

TEA BOX - SIMTEC SIMMONS

Walter "Simtec" Simmons (b. Chicago, December 23, 1944) was raised in Orrville, Alabama but moved back to Chicago at age 14, where he played guitar in local outfit the Vermaharms. Simtec's brother, Ronald, played bass, and after a chance meeting with DJ Herb Kent, Kent asked them to record a single over a drum machine. The resulting 45, "Tea Box" b/w "Tea Pot", was a local hit and convinced Simmons to put together his own band, the T-Boxes. This outfit eventually became the backing band for Simtec as a vocalist along with new vocalist and King Records veteran Wylie. As Simtec Simmons & Wylie Dixon, they issued "Socking Soul Power" in 1969, then became Simtec & Wylie for the 1970 Shama Records singles "Do It Like Mama" and "Gimme Some of What You Got". The group signed with the Mercury-distributed label Mr. Chand and issued a full-length, Gettin' Over the Hump, in 1971, which proved to be their only album; however, the track "Gotta Get Over the Hump" became a hit single on the R&B charts, reaching #29 on the Billboard Soul Singles chart. They appeared on Soul Train on Christmas Day 1971. The group released singles together through the mid-1970s but saw no further success, and Simtec released a few solo singles in 1975 and a self-titled album in 1977. Simtec also did some work as a producer and songwriter; after his career in music he worked in Chicago in real estate. 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 favorite band!

Deep Rush Records artist - Bobby Rush -Down In Louisiana - New Release Review

I just received the new recording, Down In Mississippi, by Bobby Rush. This is a smokin' hot funky blues set. The set, which is to be released on February 19, 2013 opens with the title track, a modern funky style blues track. Rush has a smooth rich voice and the band shows flavor of funk, soul and zydeco blended into the blues mix. Outstanding drums and percussion work by Pete Mendillo shines brightly on this track right out of the gate. Next up is You Just Like A Dresser, with a double-entendre reminiscent of 60's blues and a real cool funky rhythm and blistering guitar work from Rush and Lou Rodriguez. Terry Richardson holds down the bottom on this track giving it just the right touch of um-pf. I Ain't The One has a lighter feel opening with a cool little harp riff from Rush and tight little guitar riffs by Rodriguez holding down a reggae inspired tune. Don't You Cry has a real smooth blues base along the lines of Come Into My Kitchen or Sitting On Top Of The World. I really like this track with a nice blend of vocal, harp, blues guitar and richness. Tight Money has a strong soul basis and solid bottom. This is a really rhythmic track with Bill Preston like funky keys by Paul Brown and Rush on harp. Boogie In The Dark is a real slick boogie along the lines of Sweet Home Chicago. Rush shows strong vocal skills as a band leader and Brown holding down multiple key chores really shines. Sweet guitar riffs from Rodriguez and harp runs by Rush really takes this track up another notch. Raining In My Heart has a more primitive opening but develops into a funky soul track. April Brown brings in some really solid backing vocals on this track adding nicely to the groove. Paul Brown again adds a really nice piano solo on this track. Rock This House steps up the tempo quite a bit and Brown is back again with the funky key work. Rodriguez adds scratchy rhythm guitar and some cool guitar riffs brightening the entire arrangement. Rush uses some harp riffs that add not only texture but also some George Clinton like vocals making this into a funky party jam. What Is The Blues opens with spoken word and shimmering guitar riffs. I really like this. Rush keeps the pace simple and effective on this track making it the most authentic sounding stripped down blues track on the recording. Bowlegged Woman is a simple pop track with all of the funky support from the band members to make it a nice bluesy groove. Swing Low is a really solid but funky gospel track with vocal harmonies adding a lot of richness. This is a really nice track to end the recording. 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”
This is not a track from the release but does represent Rush's current work.

Blues - Cornell Dupree

Cornell Luther Dupree (December 19, 1942 – May 8, 2011) was an American jazz and R&B guitarist. He worked at various times with Bill Withers, Donny Hathaway, King Curtis and Steve Gadd, appeared on David Letterman, and wrote a book on soul and blues guitar: Rhythm and Blues Guitar ISBN 0-634-00149-3. He reputedly recorded on 2,500 sessions Dupree was born and raised in Fort Worth, Texas, where he graduated from I.M. Terrell High School. Dupree began his career playing in the Atlantic Records studio band, recording on albums by Aretha Franklin (Aretha Live at Fillmore West) and King Curtis as a member of Curtis's band "The King Pins" (having grown up with King Curtis in Fort Worth). He appeared on the 1969 Lena Horne and Gábor Szabó recording, and on recordings with Archie Shepp, Grover Washington, Jr., Snooky Young and Miles Davis. He was a founding member of the band Stuff, which featured fellow guitarist Eric Gale, Richard Tee on keyboards, Steve Gadd and Chris Parker on drums, and Gordon Edwards on bass. Dupree and Tee recorded together on many occasions. Notable albums include the aforementioned Aretha and King Curtis records, plus Joe Cocker's Stingray and Luxury You Can Afford, plus Cornell's solo albums Teasin', Saturday Night Fever (instrumental), Shadow Dancing, Can't Get Through, Coast to Coast, Uncle Funky, Child's Play, Bop 'n' Blues, and Unstuffed. He played on Brook Benton's "Rainy Night in Georgia" and "Please Send Me Someone to Love", and is featured on two tracks of Peter Wolf's 1998 album, Fool's Parade. He is also known for playing the opening guitar riff on Aretha Franklin's "Respect". In December 1972, the UK music magazine, NME, reported that Dupree, along with Roberta Flack and Jerry Jemmott, had been injured in an auto accident in Manhattan. In later years, Dupree used a Fender "red-knob" Twin Reverb and played a Yamaha signature guitar called the Dupree Super Jam (it used to be a model similar to the SJ-550 HM, but now is closer to a three-pickup Pacifica with a maple neck).[citation needed] In 2009, Dupree appeared in a documentary entitled Still Bill, which chronicled the life and times of Bill Withers. He appeared on stage playing a guitar-led version of Grandma's Hands. Bill Withers, at first, was sitting in the audience, but ended up joining him on stage to sing the lyrics to the song. In this part of the documentary, Dupree played his guitar on a stool, breathing using an oxygen machine, which foretold his suffering from emphysema. Dupree died on May 8, 2011 at his home in Fort Worth, Texas. He had been waiting for a lung transplant as a result of suffering from emphysema 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”

Swingin' Peter Gunn - I - Jimmy Nolen

Jimmy Nolen (April 3, 1934 – December 18, 1983) was an American guitarist, known for his distinctive "chicken scratch" lead guitar playing in James Brown's bands. In its survey of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time," the English magazine Mojo ranks Nolen number twelve Born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, Nolen took up the guitar at the age of 14, teaching himself on a Harmony Acoustic guitar. Having played the violin since the age of 9, Nolen already had a sound musical foundation upon which to base his T-Bone Walker-inspired guitar playing. Nolen was "discovered" in a club in Tulsa, Oklahoma by Jimmy Wilson, a blues singer famous for his 1953 hit "Tin Pan Alley." Soon afterward, Wilson offered Nolen a job in his band. He took Nolen back to Los Angeles, California to play in a studio band with popular southern California players Monte Easter (trumpet) and Chuck Higgins (tenor saxophone). During this period Nolen recorded his own commercially unsuccessful singles, mostly for King Records' Federal subsidiary, on which he both sang and played period-inspired blues songs. In 1957 Nolen began to play for Johnny Otis, replacing the ailing Pete "Guitar" Lewis. He was the principal behind Otis' hit "Willie and the Hand Jive." He remained in Otis’ band until 1959 when he formed his own group, The Jimmy Nolen Band. They performed in small clubs and ballrooms in California and Arizona's "chitlin' circuit", backing many of the blues greats that passed through California. The principal influences that inspired his guitar technique were, T-Bone Walker, B.B. King and Lowell Fulson. The Jimmy Nolen band was popular but never released any records since their primary purpose was to work as live backup for more famous acts. In the early 1960s Nolen began playing with the backing band for harmonica legend George "Harmonica" Smith. In 1965, Nolen joined the James Brown band at the recommendation of Les Buie, Brown's guitar player at that time. Buie had grown tired of the road and recommended Nolen as a replacement when the band was in Los Angeles. Like saxophone player Maceo Parker, trombonist Fred Wesley and drummers Clyde Stubblefield and John "Jabo" Starks, Nolen was a staple in James Brown's band. He played with James from 1965 until 1970, when the entire band quit in response to Brown’s erratic behavior, withholding of wages, and demeaning treatment. During this time Nolen began to tour with Maceo Parker’s group Maceo & All the King’s Men. James replied to the mass resignation of his musicians by hiring a then-juvenile band called the Pacemakers who were based out of Cincinnati, Ohio. This band was composed of the young but heavy-hitting William "Bootsy" Collins on bass, his brother Phelps "Catfish" Collins on guitar, Robert McCullough on saxophone, Clayton Gunnels on trombone, and Frank Waddy on drums. The new band was named The J.B.'s and marked a new era for James Brown. Months after this new band was formed Starks and Stubblefield returned; this lineup can be heard on Brown’s album Soul Brother Number One. Despite this band's undeniable talent for playing breakneck funk, it were relatively short-lived as a group, as the Collins brothers soon left to join George Clinton's Parliament-Funkadelic organization. In 1972 Nolen returned to play with The J.B.'s. Nolen remained with Brown until December 18, 1983, when he died of a heart attack in Atlanta, Georgia 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 favorite band!

Cleanhead Blues - Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson

Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson (December 18, 1917 – July 2, 1988) was an American jump blues, jazz, bebop and R&B alto saxophonist and blues shouter. He was nicknamed Cleanhead after an incident in which his hair was accidentally destroyed by lye contained in a hair straightening product Vinson was born in Houston, Texas. He was a member of the horn section in Milton Larkin's orchestra, which he joined in the late 1930s. At various times, he sat next to Arnett Cobb, Illinois Jacquet, and Tom Archia, while other members of the band included Cedric Haywood and Wild Bill Davis. After exiting Larkin's employment in 1941, Vinson picked up a few vocal tricks while on tour with bluesman Big Bill Broonzy. He then moved to New York and joined the Cootie Williams Orchestra from 1942 to 1945, recording such tunes as "Cherry Red". Vinson struck out on his own in 1945, forming his own large band, signing with Mercury Records, and enjoying a double-sided hit in 1947 with his R&B chart-topper "Old Maid Boogie", and the song that would prove to be his signature number, "Kidney Stew Blues". Vinson's jazz leanings were probably heightened during 1952-1953, when his band included a young John Coltrane. In the late 1960s, touring in a strict jazz capacity with Jay McShann, Vinson's career took an upswing. In the early 1960s Vinson moved to Los Angeles and began working with the Johnny Otis Revue. A 1970 appearance at the Monterey Jazz Festival with Otis spurred a bit of a comeback for Vinson. Throughout the 1970s he worked high-profile blues and jazz sessions for Count Basie, Johnny Otis, Roomful of Blues, Arnett Cobb, and Buddy Tate. He also composed steadily, including "Tune Up" and "Four", both of which have been incorrectly attributed to Miles Davis. Vinson recorded extensively during his fifty-odd year career and performed regularly in Europe and the U.S.. He died in 1988, from a heart attack whilst undergoing chemotherapy, in Los Angeles, California. 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 favorite band!