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Joe's Blues Blog October 2023

9/26/2023

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Some October Blues Births:
  • October 1st.,1910 -- Cary Tate
  • October 17th.,1929 -- Ernestine Jermany, aka Tina Mayfield (Percy's wife)​
  • October 26th., of either 1937 or 1938 -- John Henry "Jabo" Starks
Answer To The September 2023 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/ is Johnie Lewis, born to parents Jimmie and Roxane, sharecroppers, on October 8, 1908, on a farm near Eufaula, Alabama. He was raised there up to 14 years old, when he left home to work different jobs in Alabama and Georgia, as the state line is only a short distance from Eufaula. He taught himself guitar in the late '20's, but continued to work outside the music field. In the '30's, still working at whatever job he could find, he was playing at house parties throughout the South. By '33 he was married, and was working as a house painter after, on a whim, he bought a paint brush. Shortly after that he moved to Chicago with some encouragement from relatives who lived there. After the move, he started doing house painting again, and he'd gotten good enough at it that he was getting referrals for it. One of those was for the Cokliss family, who had a son, Harley. When he and Harley met, and Harley heard his guitar playing and singing, he told Johnie that he was making a movie about blues in Chicago. He featured Johnie in his film, "Chicago Blues", which was filmed in 1969 (though some sources show it as 1972). That film role got Johnie the recognition he deserved, and led to Chris Strachwitz, founder/ owner of Arhoolie Records, to record him. Chris did so on August 13,1970, as the supervisor, 12 tracks, and again on January 9,1971, with Charlie Musselwhite as the supervisor, 6 tracks. In 1971, Arhoolie Records released an album, #1055, with 6 tracks from the '71 session (one with Charlie Musselwhite - "My Little Gal", on harmonica), on the "A" side, and 6 tracks on the "B" side from the '70 session. In '97, Arhoolie released a c.d. with all 18 tracks on it - #ACD 9007. On the c.d., Johnie plays harmonica on track #13, and kazoo on track #14, and guitar and vocals on all. Johnie (sometimes shown as Johnnie) passed away on October 6,1992, in Chicago. Some say that his playing and singing were average, which, in some ways, is true, BUT this is how the real blues sounded to most folks in it's early days -- primitive, raw, telling life's stories as they were, even without an amp !!
Blues Question For October 2023: This bluesman is a "sideman" who only recorded/ released 2 songs under his own name, but is on many other artist's recordings, though sometimes uncredited. When you start digging, you'll find him not only on many of the big names of the blues recordings, you'll also find him performing with them at their live gigs. If you haven't heard of him, I won't be surprised. Any faint idea who this bluesman might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For October 2023: The song is "20% Alcohol", and the artist is Joseph Benjamin "J.B." Hutto. It's from Delmark Records #DS 617, titled "J.B.Hutto and His Hawks-- Featuring Sunnyland Slim -- Hawk Squat". The Hawks were J.B. on lead guitar and vocals, Lee Jackson on rhythm guitar, Sunnyland Slim on either piano or organ, Junior Pettis on bass, and Frank Kirkland on drums. I thought that since the Bluesman Johnie Lewis was in the basic Alabama slide guitar, rough but good, that I should give you the same raw, imperfect, sometimes off key recording of a live performance in the true Chicago electric blues, so -- ENJOY ! (and learn)   
Blues Trivia For October 2023: Everything in this particular Trivia is the kind of trivia you find when you study the histories of the early blues performers. Ever heard of Rosa "Rose" Henderson ? She was also known as (aka) Flora Dale/ Rosa Green/ Mae  Harris/ Mamie Harris/ Sara Johnson/ Sally Ritz/ Josephine Thomas/ Gladys White/ and/ or Bessie Williams, but she was born as Rosa Deschamps. She's not related to Edmonia/ Fletcher/ or Katherine Henderson. Sally Ritz was her sister's name that she used on some of her recordings. She shouldn't be confused with Viola McCoy who also used the "Bessie Williams" pseudonym. Katherine Henderson shouldn't be confused with her aunt, Eva Taylor, who also used the "Catherine Henderson" pseudonym. Viola McCoy's birth name was Amanda Brown, which she sometimes used. Eva Taylor was born as Irene Gibbons, one of 12 children. She used the psuedonyms Catherine Henderson/ Irene Williams/ and/ or Irene Gibbons. She used her sister's given name -- Eva, and the Taylor name from the Taylor family she lived with in her youth. I hope you can see from this that, when studying the early blues artists to learn all you can, it sometimes gets a little crazy and/ or confusing. Hope you have enjoyed the tidbits in this section. Just remember -- try to learn about the basics -- you'll enjoy todays artists even more when you can see or hear from them who their influences in the blues were.
Some October Blues Passings:
  • October 3rd.,1976 -- Victoria "Vicky" Regina Spivey, aka Jane Lucas
  • October 11th.,1977 -- John Arthur Lee​
  • October 23rd.,1985 -- Joe Banashak
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Joe's Blues Blog September 2023

8/31/2023

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Some September Blues Births:
  • September 4th.,1930-- Jerry Ragovoy
  • September 15th.,1921-- James Edward "Snooky" Pryor
  • September 27th.,1927-- "Earring" George Mayweather
Answer To The August 2023 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/ is James "Son" Thomas, aka "Cairo", "Son/ Sonny Ford", born on October 14,1926, on an Eden, Mississippi farm. Don't have father's first name, but his mother was Annie Mae Estes. He got the Son/ Sonny Ford nickname as a child because he used the red "gumbo" clay of Yazoo County to make/ mold models of Ford tractors. With little money to be made in Eden, the family moved to Leland,  which was west and slightly north, about 60 miles away. Son worked as a field-hand, picking cotton. There's conflicting info on at what age he did this: some sources say he was in his teens, while others show that he moved in 1961, with his wife and 7 children. At any rate, during his tenure as a field-hand he started listening to blues on the radio. Then he heard his grandfather, Eddie Collins, and his uncle, Joe Cooper, playing blues at house parties. He has said that the 2 Mississippi bluesman who influenced his style of playing were Elmo Davis and Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup. He'd been learning, self- taught, the guitar. He'd gotten good enough with it to start performing in the Leland/ Greenville areas, at barrelhouses, juke joints, house parties, fish fries, or wherever he could get a gig. To supplement his income from that, he worked as a gravedigger. His mother got him a job as a porter at the Montgomery Hotel, where she worked. He worked at a furniture store for a while. He was also a sculptor, using unfired red clay from the banks of the Yazoo River, making figures of local animals, such as birds,  rattlesnakes, and alligators, but the ones he's best known for were/ are funerary figures and busts, sometimes using real teeth and hair, adding beads, wire, and other items, as he saw fit. He always lived in run-down, rickety "shotgun" houses, because he said it fit his personality.Though well- known in his local area of Leland and Greenville, he didn't get more widely known until 3 films made by The Center for Southern Folklore that featured him, and 1 by Rust College in Holly Springs, Mississippi -- "Gateway to The Delta: Delta blues singer James ("Sonny Ford") Thomas", which was based on his life, and it won the Mississippi Arts Film Festival award in 1972. He did some recording in 1968, for some small, local record labels, but I haven't seen any of those. Because of his new-found recognition, he toured and performed in several European countries, where he did most of his recordings: France, Germany, Italy, and others. Most all of those can be found, but the prices for most of those L.P.'s is usually somewhere between $200.00 and $400.00, depending on condition and rarity. A couple of those have been made available on cd's. The cd that I prefer is "Beefsteak Blues", on the Evidence label, #26095-2, as it is a compilation featuring his best songs, with him mostly playing acoustic guitar, but also with him on the electric guitar, which was rare for him.  Sadly, he passed away on June 26,1993, after battles with a brain tumor, emphysema, and the main cause, a stroke, in Greenville, Mississippi.
Blues Question For September 2023: This bluesman was born in Alabama, spent some time in Georgia, and then settled in Chicago. He was known as a guitarist, but he also played harmonica and kazoo. He only recorded one album. Not famous, just good, as he can be found on many other recordings featuring a different lead artist. Any idea who this bluesman might be ??
 Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) for September 2023: The song is "Going Fishing(ain't got no pole)", and the artist is Jimmy Reed. It was on an album titled: "Jimmy Reed at Soul City: His first Honest-to-Goodnes Live In-Person Recording!". It was VeeJay records album #1095. It was recorded in 1964, most likely in either July or August. Jimmy did the vocal, played guitar, harmonica, bass, and drums on it.
Blues Trivia For September 2023: Often when you look at the offspring of some of the big name bluesmen, you find that their sons and/or daughters have followed in their footsteps, such as: Muddy Water's sons Big Bill Morganfield and Mud Morganfield; Carey Bell and Lurie Bell, etc-- you get the idea. One that you hear nothing of is Jimmy Reed and Jimmy Reed Jr. Those two actually played and recorded together on occasion, with Jr. on either guitar or electric or stand-up bass. That's trivia, but here's a little more: James "Son" Thomas has that in common with one of his sons, Raymond "Pat" Thomas. Not only does he play and sing some of his father's songs, in the same, traditional Delta style, he also sculps like his father, the same types of animals, birds, etc, though he is mostly known for his extremely detailed cat's faces drawings. His singing and guitar playing aren't the best, by any means. But-- what they are is the true, deep Delta blues, telling stories of centuries past and up into the present, but in that honest, deep Delta style. His are the real blues !!
Some September Blues Passings:
  • September 6th.,2020-- Sterling Magee,aka "Mr. Satan"
  • September  13th.,1981-- Helen Elizabeth Humes
  • September 21st.,1974-- Jewell "Babe" Stovall
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Joe's Blues Blog August 2023

7/31/2023

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Some August Blues Births:
  • August 8th.,1926-- Alvin K. Smith, aka Al Smith and/or Al King
  • August 17th.,1936-- Johnny Jones (NOT Johnny "Yard Dog" Jones, born 1941)​
  • August 29th.,1927-- Marion Williams
Answer To The July 2023 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/ is Herman Villere "Roscoe" Ernest III, born August 12, 1951, in New Orleans, Louisiana. I couldn't find any info on how he got started drumming, but his first job/gig as a professional drummer was in the touring band Rhythm Masters, of King Floyd, a vocalist, in 1971. When Floyd left the band, it was re- named World Blues, and they continued to play gigs around New Orleans. After some time, that group dissolved, Roscoe (as he was known), along with Teddy Royal, formed another club band called Cypress. Roscoe would also work at Sea- Saint Studios, for many years. His first recording, working as a studio musician, was with Patti LaBelle, on her album "Night Birds". Having known him for years, he started recording with Dr. John in the early '90's. In '96 he recorded with and became a member of the band, on the Dr. John album "Trippin' Live". Shortly after that he became the band leader,  the position he held until his death. He was known for his playing, but also for his humourous introductions and running commentary on Dr. John's performing actions at that time. He spent most of his time recording with many different artists, but he was also the drummer at his mother's church, the Greatest Liberty Baptist Church. He was a deputy sheriff with/ for the New Orleans Police Dept. during Mardi Gras and Thanksgiving, to make sure that they were peaceful and safe. Some of the other musicians he recorded  and/or performed with you might recognize are Marcia Ball, Junior Wells, Shemekia Copeland, Etta James, Earl King, and "Blind" Snooks Eaglin, just to name a few. He had also helped Dr. John through his myriad problems-- he was always there to help him. They had mutual respect for each other. Dr. John said that before he  would record a song/ album, that he'd give each musician a copy of what he wanted. When Roscoe was given his copy, he'd immediately shift it around, and it always came out better. That's respect. Dr. John gave him the nickname "Herman the German". Roscoe passed away at home, in New Orleans, on March 6,2011, of head and neck cancer. After his passing, Dr. John said, and I quote, "He was a cat that always lived. He wasn't one of those guys that was a survivor. He was a guy that lived. We're going to celebrate the cat's life to the max".
Blues Question For August 2023: This bluesman was a field worker when he first heard the blues on a radio. Shortly after that, he became a gravedigger. Besides being a bluesman, he was also a folk artist whose works are on display yet. His recorded works span roughly 30 years. Any thoughts on who this bluesman might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For August 2023: The song is "Mr. Tom Green's Farm", and the artist is Johnny "Shoeshine Johnny" Shines. The album it's on was/ is "Masters of Modern Blues, Vol.1", by the Johnny Shines Band, recorded in June of 1966, at One-derful Studios, in Chicago. The artists were: Johnny on guitar and vocal, Big Walter Horton on harmonica, Otis Spann on piano, Lee Jackson on bass, and Fred Below on drums. Picked this one just to be different.
Blues Trivia For August 2023: As with many "sidemen", their names are not always shown. Roscoe Ernest's name was always included. There was another sideman who worked that way with many of the "big names" in the blues. This one was working in his early days in bar bands, mainly with Sunnyland Slim (Albert Laundrew) and John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson (the first). He did some of the drumming, vocals, and guitar work for them, before he joined Muddy Water's band. On recorded tracks, he's always been listed as Leroy Foster, Baby Face, or Baby Face Leroy. The trivia is that on 2 sides where he played guitar backing Sunnyland Slim, on a recording for the Opera label, he is listed only as "Delta Joe". As I've said many times, if you're looking for a particular recording, ya better have all the info you can find on it.
Some August Blues Passings:

  • August 7th.,1984-- "Harmonica Frank" Floyd
  • August; 16th.,1925-- Edna Hicks, (possibly born as Edna Landreaux or Lucille Landry) aka Edna Landry​
  • August 30th.,2009-- Marie Knight (birth name Marie Roach)
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Joe's Blues Blog July 2023

6/24/2023

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Some July Blues Births:
  • July 7th.,1913-- Joe Willie "Pinetop" Perkins
  • July 14th.,1935-- Dick Waterman​
  • July 23rd.,1942-- Linsey Alexander, aka "Hoochie Man"
Answer To The June 2023 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/ is Arthur Neal Gunter, born May 23,1926, in Vesta Georgia. I know in the June Blog I stated that he was born in Nashville (Tennessee), but further research indicated that the Vesta, Georgia location is correct. You can look on the 'net' and see some pictures of different buildings, built with local granite in the '20's and '30's, with the wooden parts long gone. One picture that is clear shows the Vesta Baptist Church (name shown on sign in edge of picture), built in 1912, and still in service (?). These pics are by Brian Brown. Point of the church shot  is that Arthur's father, William, was a preacher. That church is most likely where Arthur, brothers Al "Little Al" and Jimmy, along with cousin Junior Gunter, sang gospel songs as the Gunter Brother's Quartet. I believe the Gunter family moved to Nashville sometime in the '40's, where the brothers quartet continued to sing in various local churches, using the same name as before. Having learned guitar from older brother Larry, Arthur was playing with many blues bands in and around Nashville, and building a reputation. In '54 he was heard by Ernie Young, who thought he had a unique sound. If you're not familiar with Ernie, he was the owner of Ernie's Record Mart in Nashville, which in '51 was the largest mail order source for "Black" music of all genres. He sponsored a radio show that played all those types of musics, but specialized in blues and R & B/ soul types. It was one of only two stations with 50,000 watts of power, in Tennessee, both in Nashville. It was WLAC (1510 AM). The other was WSM (650 AM), which broadcast country- western music, and was, at one time, the original home of the Grand Ole Opry. But, I digress, so-- Ernie founded Nashboro Records in '51 to record Black gospel groups and individual artists who didn't have the connections to record for the major labels. In '52 he started Excello Records to do the same for those performing blues and R & B musics. So having heard Arthur in early '54, he brought him in to record some cuts. One of those was "Baby, Let's Play House", with the flip side being "Blues After Hours", recorded in November of '54, by Excello, #2047, A and B sides respectively   Arthur had written it in answer to Eddy Arnold's country song "I Wanna Play House With You".  When Arthur's song was played on WLAC, the requests started rolling in--"where can I get a copy" & "play it again". Sales of it really took off from there.It was Arthur's biggest hit, as well as being the first real hit for the Excello label. In '55, Elvis Presley did a cover of it, and it too was a big hit, bigger than Arthur's. Arthur later said his first royalty check from RCA was for  $6,500.00. From then up into '61 he recorded a total of 24 cuts for Excello. His brother, "Little Al" recorded 4 cuts for the label too. He'd have recorded more, but he was murdered in a bar fight shortly after the release of his last recordings. He'd done 2 in '56 and 2 in '58. During those times, obviously before Little Al's death, the two brothers frequently worked gigs together. In '55 Arthur had moved to Port Huron, Michigan, but continued to tour and perform with the Kid King Combo, all over the South and into Arkansas, in the late '50's and into the '60's. He worked mostly outside of the music field, around Port Huron, from '66 into the '70's. In '73 he won $50,000.00 in the Michigan State Lottery, and quit the music field altogether. He passed away at his home on March 16,1976, of pneumonia. A little further note about his biggest hit song , "Baby, Let's Play House": the last line of that song, recorded word for word on both his and Elvis's version was  "I'd rather see you dead, little girl, than to be with another man". That line was "borrowed" by John Lennon for use in the Beatle's song "Run For Your Life", released on the Rubber Soul label in 1965.
Blues Question For July 2023: This is a Blues (and other genres) sideman. He's recorded with most of the greats in all genres of music. He's a band leader, a song writer, a vocalist, and a musician. It's amazing that he's performed/ recorded with so many blues musicians that most blues fans have never heard of him, though they've heard him on hundreds of recordings. Any idea who this bluesman might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For July 2023: The song is "Sunny Land", and the artist is Elmore James, recorded in August of 1954, in Los Angeles. It was recorded and released on the Flair label, a subsidiary of Modern Records, # 1057 on the A side, with "Standing At The Crossroads" on th B side. The performers were: Elmore on vocals and guitar, James Parr on trumpet, Maxwell Davis on tenor sax, Jewell Grant on baritone sax, Willard McDaniel on piano, Ralph Hamilton on bass, and Jesse Sailes on drums. This is the original quiet countryfied version. You sometimes will see it listid in one word-- Sunnyland. Also, there's another version of the full-bore Elmore style you're more familiar with, but you'll find it titled "Sunnyland (Train)", which was recorded on the CBS label, #66218 in '61 (sometimes shown as '63).
Blues Trivia For July 2023: This is just for a point of information, using the above song as an example. I showed the Sunnyland (Train) version as being on CBS label, but as you would search for it, you'd also find it listed as being recorded on the Fire/ Fury label, owned by Bobby Robinson, located in Harlem. Further digging shows that it was done at a session that Bobby managed but not necessarily recorded on his label. This is why, when you're looking for an older recording, you must try to get/ have as much info about it that you can, to make sure you're getting the version you want.  Just tryin' to help people to understand that it isn't that easy sometimes, to get it right.  Good luck in your hunting !!
Some Blues Passings for July:
  • July 7th.,2011-- Frederick "Fred" Neal
  • July 18th.,1983-- James Scott Jr.​
  • July  22nd.,1978-- Lillian Glinn
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Joe's Blues Blog June 2023

5/29/2023

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Some June Blues Births:
  • June 9th., 1926-- Calvin "Fuzz" Jones
  • June 19th, 1930-- Jerry "Boogie" McCain​
  • June 24th.,1956-- Tad Robinson
Answer To The April & May Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/ is Lowell Fulson, aka "Tulsa Red", born March 31, 1921, in Atoka, Oklahoma, a Choctaw Indian Reservation. He claimed that he was of Cherokee ancestry on his father's side, but also said he was part Choctaw. His father was killed when Lowell was just a youngster, and a few years after that, he and his brothers, moved with their mother, to Clarita, Oklahoma. At the age of 18, he moved to Ada, where he joined up with Alger "Texas" Alexander, but only for a few months in 1939 and 1940, touring in western Oklahoma and eastern Texas. He worked mostly as a field hand, but also performed with some local bands, groups, and by himself at parties and juke joints. He then moved to California, where he would remain throughout his life. He was drafted in '43 and served in the U.S. Navy until '45. After his discharge, he formed a touring band that included a young Ray Charles (Robinson Sr.), along with  17 year old Stanley Turrentine, a tenor sax player, who would later become great in the jazz genre. In the '40's he recorded on the Swing Time Records label, in the '50's for Chess Records (released on the Checker subsidiary label), in the '60's  on Kent Records, and in the '70's and later on Rounder Records (released on the Bullseye subsidiary label). Those were his main contracts, but you can find his many recordings on other labels, under any one of his "assumed" names. Lowell was a good song writer: he wrote " Three O'Clock Blues" (B.B.King's first hit), "Reconsider Baby" ( a cover of it by Elvis Presley was a hit for Presley), and "Tramp", co- written with Jimmy McCracklin, which, when covered by Otis Redding with Carla Thomas (yes, Rufus' daughter), became a hit also. The songs that are now blues standards were, recorded in '48, "Three O'Clock Blues" on the Swing Time Records label- #2002; "Reconsider Baby", recorded in '54, released on Checker Records- #804; and "Tramp", in '67, on the Kent Records label- #456. You have to remember that he wrote and recorded many others, many of which have been covered by others, and that he also wrote for others. You must also realize that, as have many other artists, record under different spellings of his name or use other names, so they could record on different labels, without "breaching" their contracts with labels. Lowell was considered to be second only to Aaron Thibeaux "T-Bone" Walker in his influence on the West Coast blues genre. I only got to meet and talk with Lowell, and his traveling companion, Tina Mayfield (yes, Percy's widow), once. Spoke with Tina a couple of times after Lowell had passed. He passed away on March 7, 1999, in Long Beach, California.
Blues Question For June 2023: This bluesman was from Tennessee, with his father being a preacher. He was one of at least 13 children. He started out musically, in a gospel group, a common happening with blues performers. He was basically a "side-man" in his early career, but did go on to write another "blues standard". Any idea who this bluesman might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For June 2023: The song is "Strange Angel", and the artist is (correct spelling on his first name) Admirl Amos Easton, aka Bumble Bee Slim. On this recording, done on August 15,1951, in Los Angeles, on the Specialty label, #SP410, on the A side, the musicians were Amos on vocals and lead guitar, Mithcell "Tiny" Webb on rhythm guitar, Maurice Simon on alto sax, Maxwell Davis and Jewell Grant on tenor saxes, Billy Hadnott on bass, and Oscar Lee Bailey Sr. on Drums.
Blues Trivia For June 2023: Most of the people listed in the above Song Of The Month, were session players for whatever label or studio needed them for backing of the main artist they were recording. Let's take a look at Oscar Lee Bailey Sr., the drummer listed there. He also recorded with a young Ray Charles, Hadda Brooks, Percy Mayfield, Jay McShann, and many others. The trivia is that one of the artists he recorded with in 1947 & 1948 (12 songs), two more songs in '49, and 1 in '59, was someone you should definitely know. The ones in '47 were on the Black & White label; the ones in '48 & '49  were on the Comet label; the one in'59 was a compilation album on the Atlantic label. All of these that I've referred to here featured as the main artist, the #1 influence in the West Coast blues: T-Bone Walker. One of those early songs he recorded on was and still is a blues standard: "They Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday's Just As Bad)". Bradley also recorded with many others in the blues, jazz, and R & B genres.
Some June Blues Passings:
  • June 1st., 2011-- Rudy Williams​
  • June 24th., 1989-- Albennie or Albinia Jones
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Joe's Blues Blog April/May 2023

4/26/2023

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First off, I've also sent the March 2023 Blues Blog, as it included the answer to the February 2023 Blues Blog Question, and secondly I'm combining the April & May Blues Blogs into 1, as there wasn't/ isn't time to do 2 seperate ones. Hoping to get computer problems all solved, so I can get back to some degree of normalcy.
Some April  Blues Births:
  • April 16th.,1917-- Bobby Robinson

  • April 29th.,1926-- Joseph Benjamin "J.B." Hutto.   
  
Some May Blues Births:

  • May 18th.,1900-- Ernest Lawlers,aka "Little Son Joe" (the husband of Memphis Minnie [Lizzie Douglas])
  • May; on the 25th.,1912-- Willie B. Thomas.
Answer To The March 2023 Blues Blog Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/is Charles Warner "Charlie" Sayles, born January 24, 1948, in Woburn, Massachusetts. He was from a "broken home", and as his parents split when he was 2 years old, he spent his early years in foster homes. In 1968 he joined the U.S.Army, where he was in the 101st. Airborne Division (known as "The Screaming Eagles", who were trainad and based at Fort Campbell, Kentucky). Sent to South Vietnam to serve, he heard another soldier playing the harmonica, and, at a later time, heard a B.B.King record on the radio. He taught himself how to play the harmonica by trying to copy Sonny Boy Williamson's songs and playing style. His Army enlistment was up in '71, and he returned to the U.S., where he improved his playing by doing so on the streets and subways in New York City, Atlanta, St.Louis, and other cities. He'd work a regular job when he was down on money, but he hasn't had a regular job since '74. In that period, in New York City, he met Ralph Rinzler, who was the organizer of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, held in Washington, D.C. Arranged by Rinzler, he played that festival paired with Pete Seegar, and they did other shows together, also set up by Rinzler. In '76, he made his first recording, "Goin' Up- Goin' Down - The Raw Harmonica Blues of Charlie Sayles", on the Dusty Roads record label. By '79, he had his own backing band. Charlie lost his right eye and several teeth when he was attacked on the street. He'd been married to a woman for 8 years, and she was the one who played bass in his band. When they divorced, the band ended too, so, here he was, back to playing on the streets. It wasn't until 1990 that he would again record, this time on the J S P label, out of England. He recorded 3 albums with them, and these are considered to be his best; 1 in '91, 1 in '95, and 1 in 2000. He recorded another one in 2015, on the Fetal Records label, titled "Charlie Sayles And The Blues Disciples", with Charlie on vocals and harp, Greg Phillips on drums, and Tony "the Legend" Fazio on rhythm and bass guitars (Tony's also Charlie's landlord). Sayles style is said to combine New Orleans funk, Chicago blues, some jazz, and bits of Rock & Roll. Yes, he writes his own "stuff", and yes, he's still with us.
Blues Question For April & May 2023: This bluesman was not from any of the usual geographic areas from where most of the old bluesman came. He had a really light touch with the guitar. In his younger days he formed a band that included a young Ray Charles. He recorded on 4 different labels. He wrote and recorded several songs that are now considered to be blues standards. Any idea who this bluesman might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For April & May 2023: The song is "Somebody Loan Me A Dime", and the artist is Fenton Robinson. It's from Alligator Records, # 4705, which has the same title. It was recorded/ released in 1974. The true original recording of it was on the Palos Records label, #1200-A, released in 1967. On the record itself, which was issued with either a pale yellow or white label, as a 7" 45 rpm, on that label it shows the title being "Somebody", with "Loan Me a Dime", in parenthesis, below it. The version on the Alligator album featured Fenton as the composer, the main artist, doing the vocal and lead guitar, with Mighty Joe Young on rhythm guitar, Cornelius Boyson on bass, Bill Heid on keyboards, and Tony Gooden on drums. Other personnel also used on that album were Elmer Brown and Norval D. Hodges on trumpet, Dave Baldwin on tenor sax, and Bill McFarland on trombone. Of note also, Alligator is releasing a new pressing of that album, on 140 grain vinyl, on June 2, 2023.
Blues Trivia For April & May 2023: Basically, just some random thoughts by me,  since being without my computer's use. Many thanks to Andy Pressler for stepping in to fill that void, using some of the history of The Sound of Blue's earliest days. In those early days I had a blues question for our mailing list members. If answered correctly by anyone, they would get an additional discount over their regular member's discount. I had one person, a lady from Cleveland, who almost always knew the answer, Shirley Wren. Here's a little trivia from her 'phone calls with the answers. In her younger days she'd had a record store in Cleveland, so knowing most of those artist's names was easy, but she also listened to the "Blues With Fitz" radio shows on WCPN. She also spoke of her neighborhood's kids, and one of those in particular. That was a boy who was on the ornery side, often in trouble, but not of the serious type. That young man's name was Jalacy Hawkins. You might know him too, as he went by the stage name of "Screamin' Jay" Hawkins, the wild man of the blues to this day.
Some April Blues Passings:
  • April 12th.,2012-- Andrew Love
  • April 29th.,2002-- Esau Weary.
Some May Blues Passings:
  • May 14th.,1976-- William Keith Relf
  • ​May 24th.,1997-- Eddie Lee Watson, aka Lovie Lee.  
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Joe's Blues Blog March 2023

4/26/2023

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Computer issues resolved! Here is the Blog for March 2023
Some  March Blues Births:
  • March 3rd.,1924-- Reverand Houston H. Harrington, owner of Atomic H Records
  • March 4th.,1930-- Maurice Reedus, sax man extrordinaire in Robert Lockwood Jr.'s band for many years (his son, Maurice Jr., used to be found blowin' sax outside Cleveland Stadium- not sure of it's correct name of the stadium, before he passed away).
  • March 16th.,1936-- Frederick "Fred" Neil
I said in the January Blues Blog that I'd explain why I chose the January Song, in the February Blues Blog. Well, that Blog was written and sent before I received some info I wanted/ ordered about that song had arrived, so, here's that explanation. If you read the January Blog, I gave you all the numbers under which it was recorded, and then sold, in 1958. In '59, an album was released on the Checker (Chess) record label. It's a collection of all the songs that Sonny Boy Williamson II wrote and recorded for Checker, after Chess had bought the rights to them from a creditor who had gotten them in a settlement of debts by Trumpet Records. There are 12 tracks on it, with Otis Spann on the 8 tracks that featured piano, Fred Below on drums on all tracks, and Willie Dixon on the 10 tracks that also feature Robert Lockwood Jr. and Luther Tucker on guitars. That vinyl album was issued in '59, with the first c.d. issue of it in '87. It was to tie in with the January Blues question, which was answered in the February Blues Blog. I picked it because of the personnel on it. By the way, the 2 tracks that don't have Lockwood and Tucker on giutar on that album, have , instead, on guitars, Muddy Waters and Jimmy Rogers. 
Answer To The February Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/ is Francis Clay, born November 16, 1923, in Rock Island, Illinois. In his youth he played on/ with sticks and drums that he made for himself. By the age of 14 he was playing professionaly. When he was 16 (some sources say 15) he was hired to play in the Jay McShann band, with some of the other members being Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. After that, he went on to form his own group and performed on riverboats, in the circus, and in Chicago area jazz bands. He married Connie Knight Zia in '47. He was in New York when he heard that Muddy Waters needed a drummer. In last month's Blog, I listed a "cooperative band" that was put together, and was known as the James Cotton Blues Band, a name they used to be announced at their first gig. In that band the drummer was Sam Lay. After some time and a lot of travelling/ touring, which he no longer wanted to do,  he left the band. That's when Francis Clay took over that spot, and bacause of his extensive carreer and his abilities, took that band in new directions. In the blues side of his career he performed with Jimmy Reed, Otis Rush, Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy, John Lee Hooker, Big Mama Thornton, Howlin' Wolf, Jimi Hendrix, and many others. He suffered with asthma and arthritis, so he decided to live in San Francisco, California when he was out there, where the weather was better for his health.  He was considered to be the elder statesman of the blues in the Bay area, by all the other musicians. He passed away, in his sleep, in his apartment, on January 21, 2008. He was 84.
Blues Question For March 2023: This bluesman is still alive and kicking. He's one of those who's had a long, hard road to get to where he's at today, and he still has to deal with some of those problems, but that's made him work harder than most other musicians to be really good at his craft. Any idea who this bluesman might be, with the scarce info you're given ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For March 2023:The song is "Midnight, Midnight", and the artist is Mchouston "Mickey" Baker. This track features Baker on lead guitar, Everett Barksdale on rhythm guitar, Abie Baker (Mickey's father) on bass, Herman Foster on piano, and Samuel "Sticks" Evans on drums. There are 12 tracks on the album, and the personnel aren't the same on all the tracks, but they're all good. This is from the original Atlantic Records album, # SD-8035, from 1959, titled "The Wildest Guitar. It's all instrumental, and it's on vinyl. It was issued on c.d., the first time, on the Sepia Tone label, # STONE-13, in 2003, in the U.S. It was re-issued as a "Limited Edition" in 2012 by Warner Japan (shown as an Atlantic release), # WPCR-27587. both of the c.d.'s are "pricey", if you find one or the other.
Blues Trivia For March 2023: How many of you know the supposed last words of Sonny Boy (John Lee) Williamson I ? Do you know that Howlin' Wolf carried a .22 pistol in his hip pocket. He was big enough without that, just by physical size. How about this: Blind Lemon Jefferson took a break from the music work, in 1917, to work as a wrestler. Quite a few of the "old timers" in the blues, always carried some sort of weapon, usually a small caliber pistol, or knife. That's how many of them stayed alive, considering a lot of the places where they performed were a "little rough and rowdy".  I knew a Chicago harp player, who, over the years, was shot 5 different times. He ended up passing away from heart failure. I knew another old- timer, a guitar player who had the softest touch on his "axe", a 1957 Fender, that was never in a shop for repairs. He always was a sharp dresser, always in a suit. I noticed that he always leaned a little bit to his right side, and I came to find out that that was because of the weight of the pistol he carried in his coat pocket. Oh, and the trivia I started out with, asking about Sonny Boy's last words. On June 1, 1948, he was walking home from a gig at the Plantation Club, a tavern just a block and a half from his home, when he was killed in a robbery. As I stated, supposedly his last words were "Lord, have mercy".
Some March Blues Passings:
  • March 3rd.,2012-- Ronald Douglas "Ronnie" Montrose
  • March  11th.,1997-- George W. "Harmonica George" Robinson

  • March 29th.,1999-- Joe Williams, born Joseph Goreed.
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Joe's Blues Blog April 2023

3/30/2023

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Due to ongoing computer access issues we are sharing a copy of Joe's Blues Newsletter from April 1998. Hope you enjoy it!
april_1998_blues_newsletter_.pdf
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File Type: pdf
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Joe's Blues Blog March 2023

2/25/2023

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Due to computer problems this is a "Best of" from March 2015
March Blues Births: 
  • March 1,1928-- Laurence Willie Mitchell (best-known for his association/ managing of HI Records in Memphis)
  • March 14, 1914-- Robert Pete Williams
  • March 27, 1915-- Robert Lockwood Jr ( that’s the way he preferred to have his name written, rather than the way some do--Robert Jr. Lockwood). He was/is and will continue to be one of the main reasons for starting our store and we will always remember him as a good man and a good friend.
March 2015 Blues Question: This blueswoman’s father was a drummer in the W.C. Handy Band. Early in her career she worked as a singer, dancer or both. A little later on she learned guitar from one of the greats of the time. From that time she taught herself to also play banjo, ukulele and mandolin. She, at this time, is known to have only recorded on two labels, though that may not be correct, judging by the people and/or bands with whom she performed. Any idea who this woman is/was??
The Answer to The February 2015 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for is/was “Boogie” Bill Webb. He performed with Tommy Johnson, Ishmon Bracey, Bubba Brown and Chuck Berry while he lived in the Jackson, Mississippi area While first living in New Orleans, he worked with the Fats Domino Band. After moving to Chicago he worked local house parties and, at various clubs, sat in with Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Jimmy Reed and others. When he moved back to New Orleans, he recorded with Roosevelt Holts, in Bogalusa, on the Arhooli label. It’s unclear, but rumor has it that he was arrested for selling his records on the streets of New Orleans. Supposedly he was only jailed for a short period. He passed away August 23rd.,1990, in New Orleans.
March 2015 Blues Trivia: If anyone is a fan of Bonnie Raitt, you should know that one of her main influences of her career was a lady by the name of Sippie Wallace. She was born Beulah Thomas, one of the thirteen children of George Washington Thomas Sr. and Fanny Bradley. Beulah got the nickname of Sippie because of sipping her food and would be best- known by that name for the rest of her life. She got the Wallace part of her name when, in 1917, she married Matt Wallace, a gambler. Born November 1st, 1898, in Plum Bayou, Arkansas. Shortly after that, the family moved to Houston, Texas, where her father was to become the deacon of the Shiloh Baptist Church. Sippie sang and played the organ in that church up to about age 12 At that age she moved to New Orleans to stay with her older brother, Goerge w. Thomas Jr., for a short time. She then moved back to Houston, where she stayed until 1923, when she then moved to Chicago. She stayed there until late in 1929, when she moved to Detroit, Michigan, which would be home for the rest of her life. Though living in Detroit, she did a considerable amount of recording in Chicago. Some of the people with whom she recorded with were Eddie Haywood, Clarence Williams, King Oliver, Louis Armstrong and Albert Ammons. While home in Detroit she also did some recording, but worked mostly outside the music field. She worked as a singer/ organist at the Leland Baptist Church from 1929 up into the 1970’s. Also while living in Detroit she served as director of National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses, Inc., Chicago, forward from the mid-1930s. She met then toured and performed with Bonnie Raitt from the mid-1970’s into the 1980’s. Sadly, she passed away on November 1st.,1986, her 88th. birthday, in Detroit after suffering a massive stroke while performing at a concert/ festival in Germany. There are several parts of the trivia related to her. Two of her brothers, George Jr. and Hersal were composers and performers. Her niece, Hociel Thomas, daughter of George w. Jr. was also a singer/ pianist. The main part of the trivia is that her younger brother, Hersal, wrote, then, for his first recording a song called “Suitcase Blues” at the age of 15. That song, by the way, has been recorded by many other since including Sippie. He was performing in Detroit, Michigan at the age of 19, in a place called “Penny’s Pleasure Inn”, where he died of food poisoning. The circumstances of that poisoning were never resolved.
Some March Blues passings:
  • March 1, 1970 – Lucille Hegamin, aka Fanny Baker
  • March 16, 1975 – Aaron Thibeaux “T-Bone” Walker
  • March 30, 1981 – Edith Wilson, aka “Aunt Jemima” of Quaker Oats fame
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Joe's Blues Blog February 2023

1/30/2023

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 Some February Blues Births:

  • February 8th.,1929-- Floyd "Skeet" Dixon, aka "Mr. Magnificent" (some sources say birth name was Jay Riggins Jr.)
  • February, 16th.,1946-- Marvin Sease
  • February 24th.,1950-- George Thorogood
Answer To The January 2023 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/ is Luther Tucker, born January 20th.,1936, in Memphis, Tennessee. His father, who was a carpenter, made him his first guitar. His first store- bought guitar, a Sears Silvertone, was given to him by his mother, as a way to keep him out of trouble. His mother, a boogie- woogie style piano player, would later introduce him to Big Bill Broonzy and Robert Lockwood Jr.. From those intro's, Tucker became Lockwood's student, much like our own Cleveland Fats (Mark Hahn) and Jerome Freeman did. When you listen to Luther's playing, though his style is his own, you can hear Lockwood's influences. When Luther's family moved from Memphis to Chicago in 1945, some of his friends in his teenage years were Freddie King, Otis Rush, and Magic Sam (Maghett). In '52 he started performing with his uncle, John Thomas "J.T.", "Boogie" Brown. Since he was now in Chicago, he got back together with Lockwood (Luther was 16 at the time). Robert, being in the Musician's Union and strong supporter of it, asked if they would allow Tucker to play in the blues clubs, if he, Robert, would take responsibility as the guardian of the 16 year old. Robert would play lead guitar, and Luther played bass on a down- tuned 6 string, since the Fender bass wasn't yet invented, and he'd sometimes play rhythm guitar. The pair worked, off and on, for seven years, with Little Walter. Tucker went on to record as lead guitarist on many of the classic blues recordings of Little Walter, Sonny Boy Williamson II, Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Jimmy Rogers, Snooky Pryor, and Otis Rush. When he later moved to California, he also worked with John Lee Hooker, Robben Ford, and Elvin Bishop. In the mid to late '60's, he worked in Muddy Waters' band, along with James Cotton. In '68 a "cooperative" band was put together, with Luther on guitar, Sam Lay on drums, Bobby Anderson on bass, Alberto Gianquinto on piano, and James Cotton on harmonica and vocals. At their first gig, the announcer asked them what the band's name was, and one of them replied "the James Cotton Blues Band". Between that start and 1973, the band travelled and performed from the West Coast to the East Coast, and then on to Great Britain, Europe, and several other countries. In '73, Luther left the band and moved to San Anselmo (Spanish for "Saint Anselm"), California, where he started his own band. Once there, he also worked with John Lee Hooker's band, L.C. (Louis Charles) "Good Rockin' " Robinson, Elvin Bishop, and the Grayson Street Houserockers. He was a house musician at Antone's in Austin, Texas. He would also perform backup with visiting friends, such as Fenton Robinson, Freddie King, and Jimmy Reed. Sadly, he passed away on June 18, 1993, in Greenbrae, California, of a heart attack.
Blues Question For February 2023: This bluesman is not real well- known, as he's seldom out in front of the big name players. He is well thought of by other bluesmen, and respected for his abilities. Been around a long time, and recorded with many leaders. I know, not much info for you with which to work, but that's all part of the fun in this. Any idea on who or what this player might do or be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For February 2023: The song is "Rough Dried Woman", and the artist is "Big Mac", believed to be Willie McNeal, b 1901, d 7/18/1972, a truck driver by profession, out of Arkansas. The base for this was one of four instrumentals by Howlin' Wolf's band members in '63, featuring Hubert Sumlin on lead guitar, Eddie "Playboy" Taylor on guitar, Little Johnny Jones on piano, and Willie Williams on drums. The Big Mac vocal was over- dubbed later by Don Clay, a Chicago record man, who owned the Dawn label. If you see a copy of it on vinyl, you'll notice that the writing credit is by (B.)Earle,(Don) Clay, (Willie) Williams. Yes, it's the drummer on the record. If you listen to it, you might want to lower your volume a bit -- this is not a "blues shouter", it's a "blues screamer". The recording was leased to Stan Lewis, owner of the Jewel, Paula, and Ronn labels, out of Shreveport, Louisiana, who released it there, and it was a hit in the area, before it went national. The flip side of both releases following is the original instrumental version by Wolf's band members. The Ronn records version is # R-8. It was also released on the Dawn label, # 102, both in '66 (other sources say '67). Yes, it's been covered by others, including Magic Slim and Charlie Musselwhite. Whatever, just hang on & listen ! Enjoy !

Blues Trivia For February 2023: Stan Lewis set up Stan's Music Shop in Shreveport, Louisiana, the town in which he was born. Over the years, it grew into 6 locations, over 200 employees, and a huge mail order business. In '72, the business sold over 2.5 million singles, and 470,000 albums. In '64, he had started Jewel Records, to record and sell some local talent, along with some national artists. Here's some trivia: he, shortly after starting the Jewel label, he started two subsidiaries of it: Paula, named for his wife Pauline, and Ronn, named after his brother, Ronnie. Another little bit of trivia: some of his earliest customers at his original record shop were Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, and Buddy Holly. He had an employee at the record store, Dale Hawkins. You might remember his hit song from '57, "Susie Q", which was to honor Lewis' daughter Susan. That original store was about 10' x 12', and before too many years, Lewis owned and used the whole block it was on, to expand.
Some February Blues Passings:
  • February 5th.,1997-- Robert "Big Mojo" Elam
  • February 16th.,1991-- Robert L. Geddins
  • February 10th.,2015-- Calvin Jackson, the drummer, not the piano player.
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Joe's Blues Blog January 2023

12/23/2022

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Some January Blues Births:
  • January 7th.,1916-- John Pickens "Bobo" Jenkins
  • January 17th.,1949-- Micheal Kevin "Mick" Taylor
  • January 30th.,1958-- Karen Lynn Carroll
Answer To The December 2022 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/is William Lorenzo "Weep" Robinson, aka Weepin' Willie, born July 6, 1926, in Atlanta, Georgia. His sharcropper parents picked cotton, potatoes, beans, and tomatoes, going up and down the East Coast, when he was a youngster. His mother died when he was 10, so he and his father continued to do the same type of work, travelling from Florida to Virginia, but with vegetables, rather than cotton. When he was 15, his father sent him, with a friend,  James Henry, to Trenton, New Jersey, telling him he'd be there with him,  in a "few weeks", but Willie never saw him again. Willie tried several "careers" after that, picking vegetables, sewing potato bags, milking cows, and washing dishes. After convincing a recruiter that he was 18, he joined the Army, serving 3 years, driving a truck. After his discharge, he returned to Trenton, delivering milk in the Princeton, N.J. area. His musical career started when he got  jobs as an emcee and comedian, in various clubs, where he met a lot of the big name bluesmen who performed in them. Some of those booked at the club where he mostly worked, were B.B.King, Jackie Wilson, and Little Richard. B.B. encouraged him to sing, but he told B.B. that he only knew 4 songs, and that they were all King's, to which King responded "then sing em". That started his career. In '59, a woman from Louie's Lounge in Roxbury, a neighborhood in Boston, had heard him in Trenton, and after his set, she said to him "I like your band, do you want to go to Boston ?". He went, and he remained there for the rest of his life. In 1999, at the age of 73, he recorded and released his only album: "At Last, On Time", featuring "Mighty" Sam McClain, who put everything together to make the recording, and Susan Tedeschi, who at that time, was a rising star. If you listen to that album, you'll find two things about it. First, his singing on the slow blues tunes is good, but, second, some of the songs with the others playing, just about drown out his singing, so that you can barely hear him. Of course, that also shows off the talents of the others. By 2005, he was on the street, living in a homeless shelter. When local blues musicians heard about this, they put on a benefit concert, in his honor, to make sure he was getting better care, ie- food, and clothing. Later, he moved to Mount Pleasant Home, in Boston's Jamaica Plain area. He and his band were still performing, and Willie worked a benefit concert with Steven Tyler. He and his band did their last performance on December 25, 2007, at the Mount Pleasant Home. Willie was a smoker, and the Home kept reminding him not to smoke in bed, which was a habit of his. They even put a sign in his room to remind him. On December 30, 2007, he smoked his last cigarette, in bed, fell asleep, and died as a result of the ensuing fire. 
Blues Question For January 2023: This bluesman's name should be familiar to you, as he's played in bands and/ or with individuals, darned near every big name in the blues, especially in Chicago. His discography shows only two solo albums, and three more backing others. That'd be incorrect, as he's been recording with others for many years. He's hardly ever even mentioned by casual blues fans, as they don't know his work. Any idea who this bluesman might be ?
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For January 2023: The song is "Your Funeral and My Trial", and the artist is Sonny Boy Williamson II. It was recorded in 1958 on the Checker label (a subsidiary of Chess Records), and sold both in 10" shellac 78 rpm, and 7" vinyl 45 rpm. The record number was #894, on both sides. The flip (B) side was "Wake Up, Baby". The BMI numbers were ,on the A side, #8753, and the B side was #8755. It's been covered by many performers since then. I'll tell you why I picked this song, in the February 2023 Blues Blog. 
Blues Trivia For January 2023: Sonny Boy Williamson was first recorded in 1951, then went on to record for the Chess- owned Checker label, and then on to Chess Records, where he did the largest quantity of his recording, roughly 70, between 1955 and 1964. His first LP to be released was "Down and Out Blues" in 1959, on the Checker label. It was a collection of his singles recorded earlier. In '72, Chess released "This Is My Story", a compilation album of his recordings on the Chess label. In the early the '60's, Sonny Boy toured Europe several times. Here's the trivia: on one of those tours, while in England, he set his hotel room on fire, by trying to cook a rabbit in a coffee percolator. Also, it's been said that at one of his shows, a fellow known as Robert Plant stole one of Sonny Boy's harmonicas.
Some January Blues Passings:
  • January 3rd.,1979-- Walter Miller
  • January 17th.,1985-- Jimmy DeBerry
  • January 30th.,1976-- Mance Lipscomb
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Joe's Blues Blog December 2022

11/30/2022

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Some December Blues Births:
  • December 1st.,1926-- Earl Lacy Forest
  • December 13th.,1931-- Wayne Talmadge Bennett​
  • December 29th.,1947-- Calvin Trevor "Cozy" Powell
Answer To The November 2022 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/is Joe "Guitar" Hughes, birth name Maurice Hughes, born September 29th.,1937, in Houston, Texas. His style of playing was inspired by both Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, and Johnny "Guitar" Watson, because of their shuffles on the guitar, and their fiery style of playing them. Those two influencers, though, played different styles at different times, so Joe's liking their styles was, I think, only for certain songs or performances and recordings. First band that Joe was in, in the '50's, was The Dukes of Rhythm. There was another guitarist in that band, a lifelong friend of his, a fellow Texan, Johnny Copeland. At different times in the '60's, he worked with Little Richard (Penniman), and with Bobby "Blue" Bland. In the '80's, he started touring/ performing in Europe, where, in '86, he recorded "Texas Guitar Master", on the Double Trouble Records label, a Dutch record company. He would eventually record two more albums for that label. That first album, by the way, also featured a live recording of Joe and "Texas" Pete Mayes. He recorded on four more labels, mostly in the U.S., up to and including his last, in 2001. He passed away from a heart attack, in Houston, Texas, on May 20, 2003.
Blues Question For December 2022: This bluesman started his career in the '50's, when he was in his 30's. Before that, and, sometimes, after that, he worked as a sharecropper, picking vegtables or whatever, a soldier, and, on occasion, a boxer. He worked with many of the big names in the blues, over the years, and you've probably never heard of him, or heard him perform. Any idea who this bluesman might be ???
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For December 2022: It's the month of Christmas, so It's gotta' be a Christmas song. The song is "Sonny Boy's Christmas Blues", and the artist is Sonny Boy Williamson II. This was recorded on Trumpet Records, in Jackson, Mississippi, on August 5, 1951, matrix # DRC 45, catalogue # 145, a 10" 78 rpm disc, the flip side being "Pontiac Blues", #DRC 46, same catalogue # 145.
Blues Trivia For December 2022: This ties in with the above listed record company-- Trumpet Records. In 1949, Willard and Lillian McMurry, bought a building that had housed a hardware store, with the intention of remodeling it and making it their furniture store. It was located at 39 North Farish Street, which was basically at the dividing line of the white owned and run business's, and those owned and run by African-Americans. They were working in the building, when Lillian heard some of the workers playing left- behind records on a record player, also left- behind. One song in particular, really impressed her, as she'd never heard an African- American or "race record" before. That artist was Wynonie Harris, and the song was "All She Wants To Do Is Rock". She had the workers make a list of what was there that she might be able to sell, of those records, and what to order if she chose to sell more. They sold out quickly, which told her they could make money selling records of this type. Before the end of 1950, they had converted an area of the furniture store into a record store, named "Record Mart". She then decided that they needed to record some of these people, who, up to that point, didn't have access to being recorded, or being paid for their work, or getting well- known, so that they could earn a living by playing their music. They added a recording studio in the back of the store, naming their record company Trumpet Records. You'll see on Trumpet's listings of records, the numbers are sometimes preceded by DRC-. The recording studio itself, which was the parent company of Trumpet, was named Diamond Record (sometimes shown as Recording) Company, hence the DRC letters. There's a ton of trivia here, but I'm only going to use some of it. Lillian and Trumpet started the recording careers of many of the big names. One of those was Sonny Boy Williamson II. He'd been on the radio, at KFFA, in Helena Arkansas, since 1941, but no one had recorded him. She tracked him down, and got a contract signed to do so. His very first recording was "Eyesight To The Blind", the A-side, and "Crazy 'Bout You, Baby", on the B-side. They were numbered DRC-15 and DRC-16, respectively. The backing players were: Willie Love on piano, Joe Willie Wilkins on guitar, Elmo (Elmore) James, also on guitar, with Joe Dyson on drums. That was recorded on January 4, 1951, released on a 10", 78 rpm shellac record. Here's another kicker- it was re-recorded on March 12, 1951, with the same players, Sonny Boy, Love, Dyson, James, but minus Wilkins,but adding Henry Reed on double-bass (stand- up bass). The re-recordings were DRC-15-2 and DRC-16-2. Lillian was known to be more than honest in all her business affairs, which was not the case with quite a few of the larger labels. She's also the one who paid for Sonny Boy's headstone, in 1965, long after he had worked with her. His wife, Mattie, also worked at the store back then, for Lillian. Two of his songs, "Pontiac Blues" and "309", were in reference to Lillian's car, which she sometimes let him use, and the 309 song for the address of Trumpet. In the session of August 5, 1951, for Sonny Boy (same session at which he recorded the above listed Song Of The Month and Pontiac Blues), he convinced Elmo James to record a song. As a young man, new to the recording methods of the time, James was afraid of the microphone, but Lillian assured him it was just for practise purposes. She secretly recorded it, at least as some have said, and it made him so mad that he then refused to record any more songs for her, so, no B-side. That song was "Dust My Broom". She then took a song, recorded on July 24, 1951, vocal by Bobo Thomas, "Catfish Blues", and made it the A-side, with James's "Dust My Broom" as the B-side. On the record's label, both sides are credited to Elmo James, incorrectly. She did, after that disagreement, provide a signed copy of the contract for that session and what was going to be done during it, dated before the session actually happened. Anyhow, the A-side was DRC-52, the B-side DRC-53, both under catalogue #146. There were and are some great recordings by some who went on to become well-known from the exposure that those Trumpet recordings gave them. As I said, lots of trivia , on both Lillian and Willard, and what all went into Trumpet's greatness in the music world. I found an out of print book that I've ordered that goes deep into Trumpet's story, including Lillian's work putting it all together.
Some December Blues Passings: 
  • December 3rd.,1949-- Albert Clifton Ammons
  • December 14th.,2006-- Earnestine Jermany, aka Tina Mayfield (Percy's widow)​
  • December 27th.,1969-- Lemoine "Lemon", "Papa Lemon" Nash, aka "Banjo Boy" (but he actually played a ukulele and kazoo !)
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Joe's Blues Blog November 2022

10/31/2022

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Some November Blues Births:
  • November 4th.,1915- Bradbury James "Brad" Taylor
  • November 15th.,1941 - James "Jim" Dickinson
  • November 26th.,1941 - Amos Garrett
Answer To The October Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/is Charles Henry "Baby" Tate, born January 28,1916, in Elberton, Georgia. I got this far before the discrepancies started showing up. A man who likes the American Musics, Stefan Wirz, has compiled a list of musicians, along with lots of other info, in the basic areas of American music, and part of it's called an "illustrated discography". He gets more in depth in researching his info than most, in his efforts to get it right. Under Baby Tate's listing, he shows that Tate was born in Magnolia Township, Abbeville, Georgia. Next--his birth date, and it's variances. The 1916 date is correct, but there's a group, WBSS Media, that shows the year as 1920. I have a picture of his burial plot stone, which has the correct dates, along with another picture showing his military (provided by) headstone, which shows the year as 1919. Oh, engraved on his plot stone is "See What You Done, Done", the title of the song he's best known for. The military headstone also says he was a PFC, in the 4086th. Quartermaster Service Company, when he was overseas during W.W. II, and yes, he performed in pubs in England when he was stationed there. Anyhow, it shows that in 1926, he was moved to Greenville,South Carolina, where he ran with Blind Boy Fuller (Fulton Allen), which is also, questionable. Fuller was born and raised in North, not South Carolina. Tate, as an adolescent, had seen and heard Blind Blake performing in Elberton, and that was his influence to learn to play guitar. By the late '20's, he had taught himself to play it, and with that ability, he formed a trio, including himself, Joe Walker (Willie Walker's brother), and Roosevelt "Baby" Brooks, and worked with them locally, in the Greenville area. Early in '30, up into '32, they performed as The Carolina Blackbirds, both at local spots, and on WFBC radio, which was broadcast from the Jack Tar Hotel. "Jack Tar" is a slang term for a sailor. I believe that, during Tate's time, that that hotel was named The Poinsett Hotel. During the rest of the '30's, Baby mainly worked as a mason, but also at other odd jobs. He was in the Army from c'42 to '46, after which he returned to the Greenville- Spartanburg area, performing in the "club circuit". He claimed that in the '50's, he recorded several tracks for Kapp Records, which were not released. He relocated to Spartanburg, where he performed solo, before he sometimes paired up with Pink Anderson. That working relationship lasted up into the '70's, until Pink was disabled as a result of a stroke. In '62, he recorded his only album -- "Blues of Baby Tate: See What You Done Done", on the Bluesville label. He recorded several tracks, at different sessions, for the Trix label of Peter Lowry, but they were never released. He did record an album with Peg Leg Sam for the Trix label, which was released. He has recorded with many other artists, so his music is out there, ya' just gotta' find it. Baby died from the effects of a heart attack, in the Veteran's Administration Hospital, in Columbia, South Carolina, on August 17, 1972. If you find that one album on c.d., it's a wee might pricey, but so's the one of Peg Leg Sam.
Blues Question For November 2022: Here's another relatively unknown bluesman, this one from Texas. He also worked a lot, as a sideman, for other well-known artists, in the blues, R & B, and R & R genres. He's recorded 7 or so albums of his own, some here in the States, some overseas. One of his good friends for many years, is another bluesman who is quite well-known. The one we're looking for can most definitely play some good blues. Any idea who this one might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) for November 2022: The song is "Flyin' High", (sometimes shown as "Flying High"), and the artist is Johnny Copeland, father of Shemekia, who's a great singer & song writer, on Alligator Records. I picked this one because, for Johnny, it's an oddball, as it's him on a video, sitting, playing an acoustic guitar. He's recorded and performed this particular song, both live and recorded, but always on an electric guitar. I went back and tried to find an acoustic recording he'd done, but no such luck. It's only on this YouTube video. Whatever--Just enjoy it !!

Blues Trivia For November 2022: Well, here we are, again, the Fall season, with lots of color displayed by the trees, as they put on their Winter coats. Also, there are 2  holidays this month: Veteran's Day, on the 11th., and Thanksgiving, on the 24th., the latter aka "Turkey Day:. While I was looking for a suitable song to recognize that day, I found only 1 with Thanksgiving in the title. It was "Thanksgivin' Blues", by Roosevelt Sykes, but it had nothing to do with Turkey Day. Then I ran across a list, well, actually, 3 lists, each one with songs the writer felt had some bearing to or about that holiday. In the third list, which had the largest number of songs listed, was a song -- "Turkey Trot", by Little Eva (Eva Narcissus Boyd), released in 1962. That record made it to #20 on the national charts here in the U.S. You might remember her better for her song that went to #1, both here and in the U.K., a spot it held for awhile, "The LoCo Motion". That song was titled that way to describe her dancing style. The original Turkey Trot was a song and dance from 1908, done in a fast ragtime style, and it had its own dancing style. There have been many cover versions of Little Eva's version done over the years, both by individuals and bands, and I looked/listened to quite a few of them. One that I enjoyed watching was a parody of it, done by a pop-punk group, actually, a band, the Dollyrots, titled "Let's Turkey Trot". What makes it good is that people, and some teachers, sent in videos of their children and/or their students (and some adults, too) doing the dance steps/motions like the ones from 1908. The trivia part is that those 3 lists were put together and posted by one Joe Bonamassa. If you watch-- ENJOY !!

Some November Blues Passings:
  • November 4th.,1998-- Sonny Boy Nelson, born as Eugene Powell
  • November 18th.,2015-- Robert "Mack" McCormick
  • November 27th.,2014-- Curley Nilson Bridges
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Joe's Bues Blog October 2022

9/28/2022

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Some October Blues Births:
  • October 3rd.,1985-- Layla McCalla
  • October 18th.,1941-- William "Billy" Cox​
  • October 29th.,1946-- Peter Green, born Peter Allen Greenbaum
Answer To The September Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/is David Maxwell,aka "Mad Dog" Maxwell, born March 10, 1943, in Waltham, Massachusetts ( where the Waltham Watch Co. started out). I've got nothing on his earliest years, but when in high school, he was friends with Alan "Blind Owl" Wilson (later, one of the two founders of "Canned Heat"), and they performed locally at/for several different venues. He attended the University of Rochester, and then the Eastman School of Music, which was a private, exclusive branch school of the main, University of Rochester, both, of course, were/ are in Rochester, New York. By the late 1960's, he was into the blues scene in Boston (home of the original House of Blues, which really was a house!). His piano playing style was influenced by all the great blues piano players of that era and earlier times. He became friends with Otis Spann, who was one of his influencers. In the early '70's, he was spotted and recruited by Freddie King, who he accompanied and performed with.  In '74 & '75, he did the same with Bonnie Raitt. From '77 into '79, he did the same with James Cotton. Early '80's, he returned to Boston and formed a band -- "David Maxwell and the Blues Wizards". The performers in the band were: David on piano, Paul Richel on guitar, Ed Friedland on bass, Chuck Lair on drums, and "Weepin' Willie" Robinson on vocals. He toured and recorded with Otis Rush in the '90's. Also in '91, he performed on the soundtrack of the movie "Fried Green Tomatoes". He played on James Cotton's 1997 album "Deep In The Blues". He collaborated with Louisiana Red (Iverson Minter) and Otis Spann on the albums "You Got To Move" in 2009, and "Conversations In Blue" in 2010. His final album, recorded in 2012, was "Blues In Other Colors", done with non-Western instruments; in it he fused blues with "world musics". Over the years, he both recorded and performed with so many other musicians, it would be hard to put that list in the Blog-- there's only so much room for that type of info here. Sadly, he passed away in Massachusetts General Hospital, of prostate cancer, on February 13,2005.
Blues Question For October 2022: This bluesman influenced no one, and is, himself, barely known.This Piedmont- style artist was good at his craft, and he had two brothers who were also musicians. He performed in the U.S. and in the U.K.. He only recorded one album, and today, a copy of that album is a bit "pricey", but he did record with others on their recordings. Any thoughts on who this bluesman might be??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For October 2022: The song is "Black Cat Bone", and the artist is Johnny Winter. This one I took from the "Johnny Winter Live Bootleg Series, Vol.2"; Friday Music Studios label, # FRM-1083, released in 2008. The same song is on other releases in this series on Johnny Winter, and there are 14 releases in his series, from 2007 through 2017. This version is supposed to have Johnny on guitar and vocals, Jon P (Paris) on bass and harmonica, Bobby T (Torello) on drums. Other versions have Jon P on them, but may feature others on bass, drums, or guitar. Pat Rush is on guitar on some versions of this. Picked this song 'cause it's October--the month of Halloween, so just enjoy the cut, and hand out goodies for the neighborhood kids !
Blues Trivia For October 2022: Since this is the month in which we find Halloween, I'd just like to note that there are many songs about it, or are related to it. Some go back in time to the earliest jazz and blues recordings, usually referencing hoodoo or voodoo, in both of those genres. You'll also find these same types of songs in the Chicago - style, both early, later, and current styles. They can also be found in the rock, garage band, rap, hip- hop, R & B, soul, metal, and pretty much any type of music genre. It's definitely not limited in it's acceptance. Whatever genre or type of music you like, just listen to and enjoy it, as some of it can be interesting, funny, true to life, or sometimes, just garbage. There are hundreds from which to choose !
Some October Blues Passings:
  • October 6th.,2020-- Reverend John Wilkins
  • October 12th.,1972-- Walter Roland​
  • October  28th.,1983-- O.Z. "Ozzie" "Dee Dee" Saxton
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August 29th, 2022

8/29/2022

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Some September Blues Births:
  • September 3rd.,1977-- Nick Curran, born Nicholas Michael Curran
  • September 14th.,1889-- Thomas "Tom" Henry Delaney​
  • September 25th.,1910-- Rosa Lee "Rosalie" Hill
Answer To The August 2022 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/is Bob Stroger, born December 27, 1930, on a farm just outside of Hayti, Missouri. Some records show that the family moved to Chicago in 1955, which is probably correct. Some sources say that this was when Bob was 16, but with simple addition, 1930 + 16 would be 1946, not 1955. Anyhow, the family lived in an apartment in back of Silvio's, a blues and jazz nightclub. Bob's brother- in -law played in J.B.Hutto's band, and Bob was the one who drove him to their gigs. After he had learned how to play bass guitar, Bob formed a band, a family band, called The Red Tops. When Willie Kent was brought into the band, it was re-named: Joe Russell and The Blues Hustlers. Bob using the Joe Russell tag for gigs, however, didn't stick. After that ended, he was playing jazz with Rufus Forman, until he had the good fortune to meet Eddie King. That meeting was the start of a long- running blues career. He played bass on King's 1965 single recording, "Love Yoy, Baby". He backed King for 15 years, until King moved to Peoria, south of Chicago. Stroger quit playing for a couple of years, until he was recommended to Otis Rush. He backed, toured, and recorded with Rush, in the late'70's up into the mid- '80's. In the late '80's into the early '90's, he worked as a session musician. In '98, he performed at the Lucerne Blues Festival, with a group of musicians. This prompted the recording of his debut album: "In The House: Live At Lucerne, Vol.1". On this, he was accompanied by Ken Saydak on the keyboard, Billy Flynn on guitar, James "Big" Wheeler, alson on guitar, Ron Sorin on harmonica, and Marty Binder on drums. All of them, with the exception of Sorin and Binder, did vocals on different tracks. Sitting here, looking at this c.d., it was released in '02, and was manufactured in Switzerland, with an intro track, and 10 others. Ten years later ('08), Bob recorded his second album, "Bob Is Back In Town", on Airway Records. He recorded another in '22: "That's My Name", for Delmark Records. He was nominated, and won, in the Blues Foundation's Blues Music Award, for "Best Blues Bassist", twice, once in 2011, and again in 2013. He's still around, and will be 92 on December 27, this year.
Blues Question For September 2022: This bluesman was influenced by most all of the big names in Chicago blues. He's recorded quite a few albums under his own name, and accompanied or backed so many players on their recordings/ gigs, it'd take some serious space to list them all. He's won blues music awards for his work. Any idea who this bluesman might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) for September 2022: The song is "Let Me Down Easy", and the main artist is Gloria Hardiman, co- billed with Steve Freund. It features Hardiman on vocals, Freund on guitar, Ken Saydak on keyboards, Bob Stroger on bass (yes, the same as the featured artist above), Eddie Turner on drums, and Diane Holmes and Gail Washington on backround vocals. This was recorded in the first of three recording sessions, in 1983, in Chicago, released on Razor Records # R5103, a 12" L.P. album.
Blues Trivia For September 2022: This is on the above album, with some reference to others, about it's recording, the artists, and the later release of it on Delmark Records. In the first recording session, 3 songs were recorded: "Dr. Feelgood", "Let Me Down Easy", and "New Orleans Hopscotch Blues". The second session had 4 tracks recorded, and the third session had 3 tracks recorded, for the 10 total on the original L.P., 5 on each side. When Delmark released it on c.d., # DE837, they added 4 tracks to it, 2 by Hardiman, and 2 by Saydak. I didn't realize Bob Stroger on bass was on this recording. The trivia part is that Razor Records also released a 7" 45 RPM, # R5104, with "Dr.Feelgood" on the "A" side, and "Let Me Down Easy" on the "B" side. The label on the record shows the artist as being "The Blueprints". That group was originally made up of Gloria Hardiman on vocals, Steve Freund on guitar, Ken Saydak on keyboard, Bob Stroger and Harlan Lee Terson on bass (whichever one was available at any given time), and Eddie Turner on drums. There were others added on the Delmark release, but still from those same sessions. They were: Sam Burkhardt on tenor sax (on sessions 2 & 3), Fred Grady on drums (session 3), Gary Heller and Bob Levis on guitar (no sessions shown), Harlan Lee Terson on bass (session 2), and Sunnyland Slim (Albert Luandrew) on piano (session 3). I believe that "Let Me Down Easy" by Hardiman might possibly be based on the 1965 recording of the same name, on the Calla Records label, # C-102, by Bettye La Vette. Incidentally, that song was written by Dee Dee Ford, under/ behind the pseudonym Wreich- Holloway, and her real name was Wrecia Holloway. Also, as is usual, the "Blueprints" all went their seperate ways: as of 2020 they were: Freund is in San Francisco, Hardiman is doing festivals with Johhny Kilowatt, out of Iowa City (I've heard she's now back home and only performs in/ at her church), Terson and Stroger own "The Bass Chair" in Chicago music venues, And Turner is helping inner city kids, learn and stay out of trouble, as a coordinator at "off the streets club", a boys and girls club in Garfield Park, in Chicago's West Side. 
Some September Blues Passings:
  • September 3rd.,1970-- Alan Christie Wilson, aka "Blind Owl
  • September 21st.,2009-- Sam Carr
  • ​September 23rd.,1997-- Huey "Cookie" Thierry
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Joe's Blues Blog August 2022

7/30/2022

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First off, I need to apologize for not getting the info in the July Blog to transmit correctly. In the "Blues Passings" section, the first 2 names didn't come through, for some reason, so I'll give them to you now: On the 8th.,1991-- Willie Nix; on the 19th.,2002-- Alan Lomax. Hope that helps ! Then, on the Song and Artist section, I listed the live recording of "Linda Lou", made at the Knickerbocker Cafe, on the Fan Club label, out of France. The one that's in the Blog on the NEOBA site is actually on the Alligator label from an L.P. that was originally released in 1978. I'll cover that, in a reference mode, in the Trivia section of this blog. Now, on to the Blog.
Some August Blues Births:
  • August 6th.,1900 -- Willie Lee Brown
  • August 18th.,1921 -- Lee Jackson, aka Warren Lee​
  • August 28th.,1928 -- Lee Chester "L.C." Ulmer
 Answer To The July 2022 Blues Question:  The bluesman we were looking for was/ is Earl Lacy Forest, born December 1, 1926, in Memphis, Tennessee. Not much I could find on his early years, but by the late '40's he performed with a group known as "The Beale Streeters". This wasn't a formally formed band, but rather, a collection of different musicians, performing together sometimes, and backing others of the group in performances and/ or recordings. Some of those were Adolph "Billy" Duncan, Johnny Ace (John Alexander), Willie Nix, Herman "Little Junior" Parker, Riley "B.B." King, Bobby "Blue" Bland,  and Roscoe Gordon. Earl was the drummer on many of B.B.'s early recordings. Different members, at different times, would front the group, while the others made up the backing band. In '51, they recorded for the Modern Records label, owned by the 4 Bihari brothers. Earl backed Bland on his session, and that particular session also included, in various parts of the backing band, Billy Duncan on tenor sax, Matt Murphy on guitar, and Ike Turner on piano, who was also the "talent scout" for Modern, and was the one who had set up this session. Earl was a great songwriter who co- wrote, with Bill Harvey, the blues standard "Next Time You See Me", which has been recorded by many different artists, including James Cotton, Junior Parker (he was the one who first recorded it in '57, on the Duke label), and Frankie Lymon. In '53, Earl recorded several singles on the Duke label, one of which was his first credited recording: "Whoopin' And Hollerin'", with Johnny Ace on piano.That one made it up to #7 on  Billboard's R & B chart. Some of his singles records after that, listed his name as Earl "Whoopin' and Hollerin' " Forest. From '53 to '63 Earl also recorded singles that were released on the Duke, Meteor, and Flair labels, those last 2 being subsidiaries of the Modern Records label, owned by the Bihari brothers, and located in California. He's in backing band's recordings of many mainline artists. Earl passed away on February 26,2003, in the Memphis V.A. Med. Center, of cancer.
Blues Question For August 2022: This bluesman has been around a long time, and has nowhere near the recognition he should have. He's been a sideman on many mainliner's recordings, live performances, and tours. He only has 3 albums as the featured artist. Any idea who this bluesman might be ??
Blues Song(s) and artist(s) For August 2022: The song is "Another Cow Dead Tonight", and the artist is Eddie King. It's on Roesch Records, #RR035, from 1997. The performing artists are: Eddie on lead guitar & vocals, Tim DeHuff on rhythm guitar, Scott Spray on bass, Roger Young on piano & organ, "Blue" Lou Marini on tenor sax, Birch "Slide" Johnson on trombone, Alan "Mr. Fabulous" Rubin on trumpet, and Joe Roesch on drums. How's that for a different title ? Enjoy one from another under-recognized artist !!
Blues Trivia For August 2022: I made reference to this in the beginning of this Blog, so here we go. That Alligator recording was on an L.P., issued in 1978. It was also issued in the U.K., Italy, and France, at the same time, on the Sonet label, 13 tracks on all of those. There are some listings that show 12 tracks only, minus 1 of Eddie Shaw's Band's songs. There are a total of 18 different releases of that album, including L.P.'s, cassettes, and C.D.'s. The first re-release of it by Alligator, on c.d., was in 1991. There are indications that it was released first, with 16 tracks, having added 4 tracks by Carey Bell's Blues Harp Band, and removing 1 track of Shaw's band. It was supposedly released again in 1991, with the removed Shaw recording put back in, for a total of 17. It was re- released again (maybe ?) by Alligator in 2006. The whole point of this is that you need to research thoroughly when you're shopping for your favorite older recording, as what's being advertised is not always what you're going to get ! A lot of these vendors use "stock photos" and descriptions, not always what they really have. Just be careful when buying !, because changes like these are common for most large record companies materials, usually on older recordings, whether done by the company itself or others, trying to make a buck.
Speaking of Alligator Records, they have a new Shemekia Copelnd album, #ALCD-5010, due out on a Friday, August 19. It's titled "Done Come Too Far", and it's a really great album, with a couple modern sound blues, some earlier style blues, and even a slightly country tune. Check it out !  It's kind of an extension on the thoughts in/on her last album.
Some August Blues Passings:
  • August 7th.,1984 -- Esther "Little Esther" Phillips
  • August 12th.,2008 -- Hosea Leavey​
  • August 31st.,1947 -- "Brownsville" Son Bonds
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Joe's Blues Blog July 2022

6/28/2022

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A "Hi there" to T.J.Gassan, and thanks for your comments, and yes, I miss a lot of things about the old location. Hope you continue to enjoy the blog and find it, at least a little bit, entertaining, and also to let others know there's a lot for all to learn, including me !  Now, on to the Blog---
Some July Blues Births:
  • July 3rd.,1881-- "Blind" Simmie Dooley
  • July 14th.,1902-- Henry "Rubber Legs" Williams
  • July  26th.,1922-- Charles Wacker
Answer To The June 2022 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/ is Johnny Edward Jenkins, born March 5, 1939, in Macon (Bibb County) Georgia. There's not much info on his early life but in the late '50's he started a band, known as "The Pinetoppers", and through the years, had in it Johnny Jenkins on lead guitar and vocals, Samuel Davis on rhythm guitar, Ish Mosley on saxaphone, Willie Bowden on drums, and, of course, Otis Redding on vocals, who was an "unknown" at the time. Otis also served as Johnny's personal driver, as Johnny had no driver's license.  In 1962, the band's manager, Phil Walden, set up a recording studio date, with the recording managed by Jenkins. Johnny recorded 2 songs: "Spunky", an instrumental on the "A" side, and "Bashful Guitar" on the "B" side. They were released on the "Volt" label (Stax) #V-122, with recording numbers of V1134 & V1135, but not until 1964. There were 40 minutes of studio recording time left, and Otis used it to record "These Arms Of Mine" (A side) and "Hey Hey Baby" (B side). Those were released on #45-V103, with recording numbers V6511 & V6512, respectively, and were released in 1962. Otis's recordings of those songs featured Jenkins on guitar and Steve Cropper on piano. Redding's recordings were selling well, which led Walden to promote him, while putting Jenkins on the "back burner", as far as career development. Johnny stuck it out though, up until '70, when he recorded an album -- "Ton Ton Macoute !" (look that one up--you'll be surprised what it was named after). That album was recorded with members of the Allman Brother's Band, Including Duane, and it was Johnny's debut album. Johnny had had early success, both with the Pinetoppers, and as a solo performer, as he was quite the showman when performing. Remember, this was in the late '50's, and he was playing left-handed (normally), both in front and behind the back, with a right-handed guitar, not re-strung for a "southpaw". He also played using his teeth, which was kinda' never seen back then. Remember I stated in the Blues Question that he influenced a young player who had seen him perform when the youn man was in Macon visiting relatives. That young man was another "lefty", using the same basic set-up as Johnny, ie., right handed guitar not restrung for left- handed players, and he would use some of Johnny's showmanship too. That was a "kid" named Jimi Hendrix, who said that he was influenced by Johnny's playing. Anyhow, dissatisfied with the music business, Johnny walked away from it. He would work different jobs to support his family, and, on occasion, play a local gig. This would have been in the early '70's. Walden kept in touch with him, and finally convinced him in '96 or '97, to do another album, which he agreed to do. That one was titled "Blessed Blues", and had some of the blues standards on it, along with some of Johnny's tunes. Johnny recorded 2 additional albums, 1 in 2001, and 1 in 2005. Sadly, he passed away, from a stroke, on June 26,2006, in his hometown of Macon, Georgia.
Blues Question For July 2022: This bluesman was known for his work as a sideman, but he also did quite a few recordings of his own, either as a solo artist, or with a backing band. he's recorded on singles and on albums, as a sideman. He's also known to be a good songwriter, both for himself, and for other artists. Any idea who this bluesman might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For July 2022: The song is "Linda Lu", and the artist is "Left Hand Frank" (Craig). This version was recorded and titled "Left Hand Frank: Live At The Knickerbocker Cafe", in the late '70's, at the Knickerbocker Cafe, in Westerly, Rhode Island, which is now known as The Knickerbocker Music Center. The musicians on this song are: Left Hand Frank on guitar & vocals, Peter "Hi-Fi" Ward on rhythm guitar, Michael "Mudcat" Ward on bass (yes,they're brothers), and Ted "Houserocking" Harvey on drums. By the way, the "Knick" opened in 1933, and it was named after a train that went through Westerly. Also, it's where the Roomful of Blues band got started, and they're still the house band there. This albumis on bothFan Club cd # FCD-101, and Last Call cd # 42428, both of which are out of France.
Blues Trivia For July 2022: In the February 2021 Blues Blog Trivia section, I listed some of the differences between Hoodoo and Voodoo, and mentioned the "Voodoo Queen of New Orleans", Marie Laveau. I also gave you a description of one of the "charms" used in both practices-- the "gris -gris". Now, about that item: you've heard of Dr.John, a New Orleans musician, most likely. That was used as the title of his first album, "Gris Gris". There are cerrently 70 different releases of that album. He picked that title because he'd been interested in the New Orleans voodooist history after he'd moved there, which was/ is still prominent. Some of the practioners of some of those forms  were/are called "root doctors". The most famous of them was Dr. John Montenet, aka Bayou John, an African priest and freed slave, and he's a whole other story. Here's the trivia part: the Dr.John you know really studied up on the history of root doctors and all of the "problems and/ or ills" that they could cure, or , at least, help with, and admired Dr. John Montenet from that. Our Dr.John thought enough of the original Dr. John that he hunted down and aquired some of his things. Early in his performing career, he was sometimes called Dr.John, rather than Mac Rebennack, his real name. He eventually decided to keep and use the Dr.John moniker to also honor the memory of the "root Doctor John".
Some July Blues Passings:
  • July 8th.,1991-- Willie Nix
  • July 19th.,2002-- Alan Lomax

  • July 27th.,1991-- James David "J.D." Nicholson
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Joe's Blues Blog June 2022

5/30/2022

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First Off, I'd like to congratulate the winners of the NEOBA Blues Challenge of 2022: in the single/ duo class, Chris Yakopcic, and in the band category, The Nate Lupi Band. They will now move on to the International Competition in Memphis. About that -- I'd like to say good luck there, and remember that you're going up against the best offerings from all over, so practice, make the best effort you can to be the best you can, and it'll work out. But remember also that they're not going to just hand it to you, you gotta' earn it !   Secondly, I'd like to give a shout out to Ritchie Braziel, and his son, David. I've learned a lot about the R & B genre of years past, and I'd like to think that he and David have learned , at least a little bit, about the blues from me ! Now, on to the Blog.
Some June Blues Births:
  • June 9th.,1902 -- Nehemiah "Skip" James
  • June 18th.,1938 -- Don "Sugarcane" Harris (he was 1/2 of the Don & Dewey duo in the 1950's Rock & Roll)
  • June 26th.,1948 -- Steve Nardella
Answer To The May 2022 Blues Question: The artist we were looking for was/is Ronald James Taylor, born October 16,1952, in Galveston, Texas, to parents Marian and Robert "Bruno" Taylor. He had two sisters --  Roberta and Frances. After he finished high school, he attended Wharton County Junior College, where he played football (he's a BIG guy), and participated in the school's choir and theater. His choir teacher had suggested that Ron join the choir, after he'd heard him singing The Temptations. At 19, he moved to New York, where he attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, with the intention of becoming a singer. As he was a "barrel-chested bass- baritone", he had an extensive "career" in musical theater productions. Oddly, when he graduated from the Academy, he couldn't read a musical note, and could barely play the piano, but he did find work as a singer. In '77, he played the Cowardly Lion in the touring show of "The Wiz". By '82 he was doing the voicing of Audrey II, the funky, conniving, street- smart, talking killer plant in an off- Broadway production of "The Little Shop of Horrors", which ran till '87, with over 2,000 performances. Also in '87, Ron played Rufus Payne, a blues musician, in a production of "Lost Highway", which was a story about singer Hank Williams. While on this production, he came up with the idea of a musical revue, "It Ain't Nothin' But The Blues". It was intended to chart the development from it's African origins to it's American success. He finally convinced the director of the "Lost Highway" production, Randal Myler. In '94, Myler accepted the idea to do it with Taylor. Taylor co- wrote the revue with Myler, Lita Gaithers, Charles Bevel, and Dan Whetman. Ron was the show's associate producer and lead singer, and was it's narrator. It started out as a 45 minute show and was performed at 25 local high schools.That was so well accepted that it was moved to The Denver Center For The Performing Arts, made 2 hours long , now featuring 50 songs, with 3 people added to the original 4. In '95 the revue ran at The Cleveland Playhouse, tied in, time-wise, with the initial opening of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. He won several awards for that revue he'd written, and was nominated and won a few others in his various career paths. As I said in the Blues Question, he was a busy man, and that's putting it mildly. I could probably fill 8 to 10 more pages with the info, and still not have all of it listed. He was in over 20 films from '83 to 2002. He also did a lot of television, sometimes several episodes of a series (he even played a Klingon in Star Trek), sometimes only a single appearance.  He sang The Star Spangled Banner at many pro baseball games. He would only do that in a straight-up rendition, as it was meant to be done when it was written, unlike some of the song's butchers. He was part of the blues group The Nervis Bros, and toured with them, performing all over the U.S.A. He also sang with notables, such as Etta James, Sheila E, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, and others. A c.d. of the original cast performing the numbers in "It Ain't Nothin' But The Blues", complete with some video attached, is still available. On it are some of his versions of blues standards, and they're well done !  He had a stroke in '99. He passed away on January 16,2002, of a heart attack, at his home, in Los Angeles, at the young age of 49.
Blues Question For June 2022: This bluesman, a guitarist, is best known for being the guitarist on recordings of another artist. He did influence another player though, who came to be far more recognized and famous than himself. He did do some albums under his own name, though. Any idea who this bluesman might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For June 2022: The song is (Night Time Is) The Right Time, and the artist is Napolean Brown Goodson Culp, known much better as Nappy Brown, recorded on the Savoy label, #1525/14025, on October 1,1957. The musicians on it were: Nappy on vocals, Buster Cooper on trombone, Hilton Jefferson on alto sax, Bud Johnson on tenor sax, Kelly Owens on piano, Skeeter Best on guitar, Leonard Gaskin on bass, and Bobby Donaldson on drums.
Blues Trivia For June 2022: This is on the above song, and it's variations. It was first recorded by Roosevelt "The Honeydripper" Sykes, on April 29,1937. It was recorded again by Big Bill Broonzy, on March 21,1938, with the same title wording, but with a "#2" on the end of it. Some say it was "borrowed" from a Leroy Carr song, with a changing of some of the words, "When The Sun Goes Down", which Carr recorded on February 25,1935. The next good version recorded was Nappy's, in '57. It didn't do all that well on the charts, so in '58, Ray Charles "borrowed" it, recorded it with the Raelettes as the "response" artists. That's the only version that charted well. It has been recorded since that time by many players, but none that good. You just can't beat the earlier versions, so don't even try. Here's a little bit of the trivia: Nappy's career was born in gospel singing, and progressed into the blues and R & B. When he was 16, he started a gospel group -- "The Golden Crowns". After that he had "The Golden Bell Quintet", then on to the "Selah Jubilee Singers". The group that went with him to record for Savoy were "The Heavenly Lights". It was his gospel group that did the response end of the "call and response" type of song that is (Night Time Is) The Right Time. It was not a "studio group" who backed Nappy. Listen to his version, and you'll hear the gospel overtones in it.
Some June Blues Passings:
  • June 2nd.,2008 -- Ellas Otha Bates, who went by Ellas McDaniel, aka "Bo Diddley"
  • June 18th.,2007 -- Richard "Rich" Griffith
  • June 23rd.,2004 -- Raymond L. Dobard, who owned the Music City Record Shops and recording studio in Berkeley, California
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Joe's Blues Blog May 2022

4/29/2022

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First off, let me wish all performers who are vying for a spot or shot at making it to the National Blues competition, via a win here, at home, with the help and backing of NEOBA, and all of it's hard-working people, the best of luck (that's read "a quality performance") in your efforts.
Some May Blues Births:
  • May 8th.,1979-- "Smokin' " Joe Bonamassa
  • May 17th.,1922-- Vance "Tiny" Powell​
  • May 28th.,1917-- John Henry Creach, aka Papa John Creach
Answer To The March/ April Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/ is Jimmy Johnson, born as James Earl Thompson, on November 25,1928, in Holly Springs, Mississippi. In his youth he sang in gospel groups and played piano. His family moved to Chicago around 1950, where he worked as a welder, and played guitar in his spare time.  Two of his brothers were also musicians, and they were all influenced by their neighbor, one "Magic Sam" (Samuel Gene Maghett). In '59 Jimmy also changed his last name to Johnson, as did his brother Syl (Sylvester Thompson, who was advised to do so by a record producer with whom he was working). The third brother kept his name as it was-- Mac Thompson. Jimmy liked the styles of both Buddy Guy and Otis Rush, and that's what influenced his playing.He performed with people such as both Freddie and Albert King, Magic Sam, Otis Rush, Eddy Clearwater, and many other of the big names in the Chicago blues area. In the early '60's he went more toward the soul end of the music, where he performed with notable people, such as Otis Clay, Denise LaSalle, Garland Green, and others. By '74 he was back to playing the blues, with Jimmy "Fast Fingers" Dawkins, and toured Japan in '75 with Otis Rush. In '80 Jimmy was awarded at the first annual Blues Music Awards, in Memphis. His career kept growing after that until December 2,1988, when his touring van crashed in Indiana, killing his band's keyboardist St. James Bryant, and Larry Exum the band's bassist. Jimmy was also injured, and took an extended break from performing. In '94 he returned to it, and did a recording for Verve Records, album titled "I'm A Jockey". In 2002 he and brother Syl recorded an album on Evangeline Records, titled "Two Johnson's Are Better Than One". He was inducted into The Blues Hall of Fame in 2016. In 2020, he was honored as "the Best Blues Guitarist", by Living Blues Magazine, and a year later he was named "Best Blues Artist of The Year". A year after that, he passed away at his home in Harvey, Illinois, on January 31,2022, just six days before his brother Syl also passed away. The third brother, Mac, born January 28,1934, had passed away, earlier, on October 10,1991.
Blues Question For May 2022: This person isn't a bluesman, per se, but is known as an actor, but he is an excellent writer (songs included) and singer. For someone with his abilities he's not well known by most, but he sure has a long list of credits. He did do some touring with an unknown blues band, as the vocalist. Any ideas who this person might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For May 2022: The song is "Crying At Daybreak", and the artist is Howlin' Wolf. This was the "b" side of an RPM recording , with the "a" side being "Passing By Blues", RPM #340, recorded October 2,1951, at KWEM radio in West Memphis, Arkansas. The artists on this were: Howlin' Wolf on harmonica and vocals, Ike Turner (yes, that Ike) on piano, Willie Johnson on guitar and bass, and Willie Steel on drums. This is the first recording of the Wolf's where he mentions "smoke stack lightning" in the lyrics. The song "Smokestack Lightning" was recorded in February of '56, on Chess Records, #1618. Incidentally, the "smoke stack lightning" referred to in the songs is the description of the sparks being emitted  from the smoke stack of a locomotive, in the darkness of night.
Blues Trivia For May 2022: The radio station mentioned earlier, KWEM, was a leading station that started broadcasting on February 9,1947,(990AM) on the dial, officially opened two weeks later. It was started by the owners of a Little Rock area station, KXLR,(1450AM), who wanted to build a network of radio stations, to broadcast Arkansas Razorback's Football. Howlin' Wolf had a show on KWEM(990AM) from 1949 to 1952. The people who got their music careers started at or through this station were many, such as Paul Burlinson (rockabilly guitarist), B.B.King, on a show that was run by Sonny Boy Williamson II, Jim Stewart, who founded STAX records, and also James Cotton and Hubert Sumlin. Johhny Cash's first radio broadcast was on this station, as was also the first for an unknown performer who wasn't very well received by the station's audience because he didn't have a band. You might have heard of him: Elvis Presley. The station has gone through a lot of changes over the years since those days-- moving the offices to Memphis (on the other side of the river) while keeping the transmitter in West Memphis, changing call letters, ownership of it, and on and on. It is now still functioning again as KWEM-LP (low power)FM (93.3). It is now owned by Arkansas State University. It broadcasts blues and gospel musics, and is used as a "training ground" for the community college's digital media program, as it's on-line also.
Some May Blues Passings:
  • May 2nd.,1975-- Milton Morse Love, aka Billy "Red" Love
  • May 16th.,2002-- James Dewar​
  • May 20th.,2012-- Carrie Louise Smith
A Footnote re the March/April Blues Blog:  There was an album listed/ provided for your entertainment, "Heartbreakin' Woman", by Marva Wright. The one that was chosen/is pictured is the third and the last, to this date, re-issue of the album, and it's on Mardi Gras Records, # MG1038, released in 1998. The original on Tipatina's label, # T-007, shows Marva in black leather slacks and jacket, astride a blue motorcycle (possibly a Harley or other V-twin),outside the front of Tipatina's, and was issued in 1990. The second re-issue is on Sky Ranch Records (out of France), # SR652307, released in 1991 (France only). That has a cover with what I'd call a "ghosted picture" of Marva, looking to the left, and singing. Just thought I'd let you know !!
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Joe's Blues Blog March/April 2022

3/28/2022

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First of all, let me wish all a Happy St.Paddy's Day (Yeah, I know I'm late), a Happy April Fool's Day, and most of all, a Happy, Safe, And Blessed Easter (even for the marshmallow Peeps and the Cadbury Bunny).
Since I couldn't get the March Blog out on time, even though I had it almost finished, I've decided to re-do it and combine it with the April Blues Blog, as I've used the info combined to do so. I've added a little and scrapped a little to do this.Some March Blues Births:
  • March 7th.1962-- Vernon Chico Banks
  • March 12th.,1896-- Jesse "Lone Cat" Fuller
  • March 21st.,1902-- James "Son" House
Some April Blues Births:
  • April 9th.,1917-- Woodrow Wilson Adams
  • April 13th.,1922-- Roy Sidney Dunn
  • April 26th.,1908-- Shirley Griffith. (Yes, it's a man named Shirley !!)
Answer To The February 2022 Blues Question: The blues artist we were looking for was/is Marva Wright, born Marva Maria Williams, on March 20,1948, in New Orleans, Louisiana. Her mother was Mattie P. Gilbert, and her father was Rev. Arthur Williams. Marva graduated from Booker T. Washington High School, then attended Southern University in Baton Rouge. Her musical "career" started with her singing gospel, in church, with her mother, who was a pianist and gospel singer there too. Her mother was a big influence in her singing, as was a family friend by the name of Mahalia Jackson. Marva's very first singing on a recording was "I Walk With The King", a gospel song, accompanied by her mother, at the age of 9. Marva didn't turn professional until 1987, at almost 40 years of age. She was working a second job to support her then family. The song that got her noticed was her performance of "Dr. Feelgood', an Aretha Franklin tune. In 1989, she was at Tipatina's, along with several other local artists, doing a show, when she recorded "Mama, He Treats Your Daughter Mean", a song originally recorded in 1952 and released in '53, by none other than Ruth Brown. That night's performances were recorded, and later in 1989, released on the Ooh-La-La label, #1401, as "Tipatina's Proudly Presents Live And In Person". It's 10 great tracks, recorded in Dec. 1988 & Jan. 1989, all by different artists. The first tune on it is Marva, doing the song I just listed earlier. Later in '89, she recorded/released her first album, "Heatbreakin' Woman", on the Tipatina Records label, #T-007. She wrote that title song, and if you get a chance to hear this c.d., you'll see why and how she got the title "The Blues Queen of New Orleans". There are 2 other c.d.'s worth mentioning here. One, under her own name, is "After The Levees Broke", done in 2007, her extremely heartfelt album, done after she lost everything she and her family had, when hurricane Katrina broke the levees, and destroyed so many lives. It took her bandleader quite awhile to convince her to record this heartbreak, and yet, have a positive outlook for the future album. The man who recorded it was also from New Orleans, and he too, lost everything to the flooding, including his recording studio and all it's equipment. He recorded this c.d., with Marva, her band leader--Benny Turner, and the rest of the musicians, in his new studio location and place of residence-- Australia. The other one worth noting, is a compilation c.d., put together and distributed in Germany, in 1993, of New Orleans musicians. It was sponsored by Tabasco Sauce, released on the ARIS / Ariola BMG label, and has 14 tracks, all by different artists. If you want that c.d., you're going to have to get it from Germany (yes, I have that one too). She has 12 albums under her own name, and quite a few compilation albums. Marva has 4 children from her previous marriages: Gerry and Elizabeth Martin, and Jeanne and James Kelly Jr. The daughters all have different last names now, as they're all married. She also has quite a few grand-babies. After a series of strokes, from which she never fully recovered, she had the last one, which was fatal, on March 23, 2010, a few days after her 62nd. birthday, at her daughter's house, in New Orleans.
Blues Question For March And April 2022: This bluesman was quite a versatile player/singer/writer in the blues genre. He has a younger brother, also a gifted bluesman. Both of them are well-known in their own areas of the music. Both have shared the stage with the big names in the blues, and have also been the lead act(s). Any idea who this bluesman might be  ???
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For March And April 2022: Referring to the Blues Question & Answer sections on Marva, it's her song-- "Heartbreakin' Woman", on Tipatina's Records album, # T-007. Also on this album is her doing "St.James Infirmary", and it's the only album of hers that that particular song is on. Also on it is "Born Under A Bad Sign". If you get on youtube, you can get either just the individual songs, or the full album. I'd personally opt for the full album (but I have the c.d.). The other musicians on that album are: Ronald Jones-- backing vocals,, drums, piano; Juanita Brooks-- backing vocals; Marva Wright-- backing vocals,,lead vocals; Sammy Perfect-- organ,,piano; and Daryl Johnson-- bass.
Blues Trivia For March And April 2022: If you have Amazon Prime (I don't, but I borrowed it), they made a movie/series (8 episodes so far), titled "Jack Reacher", after the main character in the Lee Child series of books (there are 26 published, with the 27th. due out in October 2022), and I've read all but #25- The Sentinal (I'm part way through it), and #26-BetterOff Dead, which I have on order. Anyhow, this first movie series is based on the first book- "Killing Floor", with the tv series titled simply "Jack Reacher". The story is set in Margrave, Georgia (a fictional town, as there is no Margrave town, township,city or county anywhere that I could find). Reacher's older brother, Joe, had told him that it was in that town that bluesman Blind Blake had possibly died. That actually was a clue from Joe that there were some problems in Margrave that needed looking into by a qualified investigator, since Jack was just that, in the Army, up until he retired. The whole story revolves around the fact that, once there, Jack's arrested for murder, with an unidentified victim. It's discovered by Reacher when he's at the Morgue, that this "victim" is his brother, Joe. From that point, his entire being and purpose is to eradicate all/ anyone connected to Joe's murder. Reacher originally went there to check the story about Blake. (Arthur "Blind" Blake actually died in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) As you go through all the episodes in the series, you'll hear a lot of bluesmen on the soundtrack, such as Blake, Howlin' Wolf, Mississippi Fred McDowell, Corey Harris, and others. You'll hear Blind Blake doing "Police Dog Blues", at least in part, Howlin' Wolf doing "Spoonfull", again, in part, as are all the tunes. Child mentions Blake in 2 or 3 of the other books in the Reacher series. That Police Dog Blues tune was recorded on the Paramount label, in Richmond, Indiana, on August 17,1929. Blake recorded exclusively on and for the Paramount label. If you've read any Dean Koontz or Stephen King books, you will also find that they both, at times, mention some early and also current bluesmen, and/or their songs. There's  some trivia items here: the actor who plays Reacher in this series is Alan Ritchson, who is listed, in different places, as being either 6'3" or 6'2" in height, and in the books he's shown to be 6'5". The actor Tom Cruise, who played Reacher in 2 movies, is 5'7", a long way from Reacher's description. Want to guess who comes off better in the role ? Another item is what I mentioned earlier-- that there's a lot of great cuts on the soundtrack. A third item is that Ritchson read all the books in this series, in their order, to prepare himself for the role. Yes, I know, it's not straight-up blues, but it should tell you that you can find the blues almost everywhere you choose to look, or you may just stumble into them. Don't ever complain--just enjoy !!
Some March Blues Passings:
  • March 2nd.,1988-- Roy Sidney Dunn
  • March 19th.,2011-- Archie "Aashid" Himmons
  • March 23rd.,1988-- Moody Jones.
   Some April Blues Passings:
  • April 12th.,1979-- Pernell Charity
  • April  14th.,1954-- Lillian "Lil" Green
  • April 26th.,1976-- Mable Hillery


​Also, by the way, Alligator Records has 3 artists on the Blues Chart: Tinsley Ellis, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, and Shemekia Copeland, and mentions of several other of their artists, including Chris Cain, Tommy Castro, Curtis Salgado, and others.
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Joe's Blues Blog February 2022

1/19/2022

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First, Some Info On Where We've Been: Due to some family health issues, which caused some nasty financial issues, we were forced to shut down the parent company, Balista & Associates, which, by law, had to also first shut down any & all susidiary companies, one of which was The Sound of Blue. Well, I'm still here, but with a new name: Blues Hipp-O. To reach me you'll have to go through NEOBA, who will get in touch with me, to answer questions, or whatever. The Hipp-O thing was chosen because the Blues is a lot like the animal: most times peaceful and quiet, other times, up to 8,000 pounds of bad attitude, with no sense of humor when tampered with. I'll try to get the Blog written each month, as time and health permits.
Some February Blues Births:
  • February 8th.,1889-- Alonzo "Lonnie" Johnson, aka Jimmy Jordan,Tommy Jordan
  • February 17th.,1911-- John Tyler "J.T." Adams​
  • February 24th.,1952-- Bob Carter
Answer To The September 2021 Blues Question: (yes, I know I'm late) The bluesman we were looking for was/is Johnny Mars, born December 7, 1942, in Laurent, South Carolina. In his early years, his family moved frequently, as they were sharecroppers. At the age of 9, he got his first harmonica. When he was 14, after the death of his mother, Mars and his younger siblings moved to Paltz, New York. Having left high school, he began performing in various clubs in New York City. He signed a recording contract with Mercury Records in the early '60's, with the band "Burning Bush". By the mid-'60's he'd moved to California and started a band, got lots of gigs, but no recognition, other than in Northern California. He got some advice from Rick Estrin, of "Little Charlie and The Night Cats", to tour the U.K. (England). While there, he did some recording for/ with Big Bear Records, then re-located to Somerset, England. He taught for 15 years, at / for primay schools in England. He is still touring and performing in such places as The Bath Music Fest (in England), The Pocono Blues Festival (in the U.S.A.), and the Kastav Blues Festival (in Croatia), with Michael Roach, with whom he had partnered up with in 2008.
Blues Question For February 2022: This blues artist started out, as have many, singing in a church choir, eventually progressing to performing the blues, after listening to it for many years. She has a great blues voice, and is well- known in her native area. Any idea who this performer might be ???
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For February 2022: The song is  "(It) Wuden't Me" (sometimes shown as Wudn't Me), and the Artist is Chuck Berry. I know it's not strictly a blues song, but it's descriptive of how, years ago, a young Black man, might have been treated in Alabama. It was done on the ATCO label (a susidiary of Atlantic Records), on the L.P. # SD-38-118, in 1979. The other players on this record were Bob Wray and Jim Marsala on bass, Johnnie Johnson on piano, Kenneth Buttrey on drums, and, of course, Chuck Berry on guitar and vocals. It became available on c.d. in 2017, on the Varese Sarabande label. It's under the original album's name: "Rockit", with the same picture as the original L.P. cover.
Blues Trivia For February 2022:  Back in the early '70's, some musicians in the U.K. got together and formed a company called Magnum Music Corp.. Some sources list this company as the one that recorded & released that recording of Chuck Berry's Rockit L.P. in 1988. You ever heard backround music in an elevator, in a retail store, in a restaurant, in a doctor's office, or any other place ? Well, that's what was started by Magnum Music back then, re-releasing some of those old albums and/ or recording for the "backround" music that you hear today. The original of "Rockit" was, of course, on ATCO, which was released in 1979. Listen to the song  "Wuden't Me"'s lyrics  and pay attention. In it, you'll hear Chuck mention the "Delford County Jail". Nowhere could I find a Delford County itself, or an associated jail. What I did find was that in Chuck's hometown, St. Louis, there is an 8 block long area called the "Delmar Loop". On it there are are over 150 specialty shops/ businesses. It is located on the border of St. Louis (the city) and St.Louis County. It got that name because over  a hundred years ago, it's where the streetcars "looped around" for their return runs.  Some of the current notables are "Salt and Smoke", at 6525 Delmar Blvd., an "everything made from scratch" barbeque joint. Another is called "Blueberry Hill", at 6504 Delmar Blvd., founded in 1972, now known as an entertainment venue, with a restaurant. It has one area known as "The Duck Room", as Chuck played there for many years. Imagine going there and seeing/ hearing him live, while you're eating. By the way that album, "Rockit", was released on c.d. in 2017, on the Varese Sarabande label, featuring the artwork from the original L.P.. Little hard to find, but it is available. If you can't clearly hear the lyrics to the song, get on your computer, and type into your search browser: "Wudn't Me lyrics", and you'll get multiple choices to look at/ see them. There are quite a few other "artists" listed, but just disregard them. It also will bring up another similar song by Chuck:"It Wasn't Me", but that's from 1965(?), and is totally different.
Here's a little info for you: if you like Southern blues- rock, you'll like the January 21st. release  from Alligator Records,: Tinsley Ellis-- "Devil May Care".  If you like some good fret work and string- bending, and active vocals, have a listen !!
Some February Blues Passings:
  • February 7th.,2013-- Roscoe Chenier
  • February 12th.,1978-- Robert "Bob" Edward "Cyclone McCoy​
  • February 22nd.,2003-- Earl Lacy Forest
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Joe's Blues Blog September 2021

9/1/2021

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Some September Blues Births:
  • September 3rd.,1915-- Peter "Memphis Slim" Chatman,aka Leroy
  • September 18th.,1929-- Louis Myers, aka Louie Meyers
  • September  29th.,1937-- Joe "Guitar" Hughes, born Maurice Hughes
Answer To The August 2021 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/is Frank Edwards, aka Mr. Frank, Black Frank, and/or Mr. Cleanhead, born March 20,1909, in Washington, Georgia. He worked as a singer, guitarist, and/or a harmonica player for roughly 80 years. His day job(s), to pay the bills and allow him to play the blues, was as a carpenter, painter, and/or plumber, except for a two year stretch, when a house fire left him without a guitar. He left home at fourteen years of age, after an argument with his father, and headed to St.Augustine, Florida. Once there, he bought a guitar and was encouraged to learn how to play it by a local bluesman, one Tampa Red (Hudson Whittaker), who was only six years his senior. During that period he also learned to play the harmonica, influenced by listening to recordings by John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson (the first). He had also met and become friends with Tommy McClennan, who encouraged him to make some recordings. In his career he recorded for 4 labels: OKeh, on March 28,1941; Regal, in August 1949, but that one is shown to be done in May of 1950, which went unreleased at that time (those are now on several compilation c.d.'s); Trix, on September 27, November 17, and December 8, of 1972 (#3303, titled "Done Some Travelin'"); Music Maker Relief Foundation's recordings of him were done from 1996 to 2002, at different locations (venues), with a couple of his early recordings added in to showcase his talent. Those were released on a c.d. titled "Chicken Raid", named after one of his songs. He was being driven home from that last session, done on March 22, 2002, just two days after his 93rd. birthday. His driver was in Greenville, South Carolina, on the way to Frank's home in Atlanta, Georgia. when Frank had a heart attack. An ambulance was called to transport him to the hospital, but while in it, he passed away, March 22, 2002. There is one other recording of him, done live, at a blues festival in Georgia, on the Southland label, in 1984. You'd have to read his full bio, to get a true idea of how much he travelled while honing his craft.
Blues Question For September 2021: This bluesman was born in South Carolina, and now lives in England. He's a songwriter, singer, and harmonica player, who, at various times, lived in New York, the Carolina's, and good ole' northern California. Any idea who this bluesman might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For September 2021: The song is "Blue Midnight- Alternate Version", and the artist is Little Walter (Jacobs), recorded in October of 1952. The other players on it are Louis Myers Dave Myers on guitars, with Fred Below on drums. Nothin' like a good blues instrumental !!  So, ENJOY !!
Blues Trivia For September 2021: While digging for facts on Frank Edward's recordings, I wondered about the OkeH label, and how it came to be. Ah, yes--open another can of worms, please! It's a figure of speech and not meant to degrade the poor worms, just don't want to upset the word police. Anyhow, Otto K. E. Heinemann founded the Otto Heinemann Phonograph company in 1916. In 1918, he changed the "parent" company's name to The General Phonograph Corp., and began cutting records. The label's were changed to read OKeh. That label has been re-done many times over the years, in what's in caps, mixed with lower case letters. That company was sold to Columbia in 1926, and re-named The American Record Corp. (ARC). CBS bought the company in 1938. It's now owned by Sony Entertainment. Many things about OKeh have changed over all these years; the way the name is on the actual record or c.d. label, the types of musics recorded, the registered owner of the company, what label gets to distribute those recordin medias, and on and on. And, yes, it's name has been shut down/discontinued many times, by all the different owners, only to be resurrected for another time. You want to really scramble your brain, research the OKeh record label's full history, from it's inception in 1916, to the present day ! And people tend to think there's nothing to all this info being checked. Yeah, right !
Some September Blues Passings:
  • September 3rd.,1998-- Spike Ravenswood, born Uwe Gleich in Germany
  • September 18th.,1983-- Roy "Bunny" Milton

  • September 26th.,1976-- Louis Charles Robinson, aka Good Rockin' Charles
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Joe's Blues Blog August 2021

8/1/2021

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Some August Blues Births:
  • August 1st.,1953-- Robert Cray
  • August 19th.,1953-- Richard Dennis Duran, aka "Lynwood Slim"​
  • August 26th.,1978-- Cedric O. Burnside
Answer To The July 2021 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/is Curtis Ray, who was also known as Ray Curtis, and/or "Alabama Red", which is the one I'll use. He was born December 21, 1926, in Penola, Alabama (there's another bluesman of some fame from that town also-- Benjamin Joe "Bennie" Houston, aka "Boston Blackie"). Just to give you an idea of how small that "town" is, it is 0.72 square miles, with a 2010 census population of 144. By the age of 14 he'd learned how to play and sing, both piano and guitar. As he was growing up, he played for Sumter High School, some local churches, house parties, "box suppers", throughout the South. He moved to Birmingham, where he attended Parker Industrial High School. His first band included at least 3 other players/ singers. Sometime in the '40's he moved to Chicago, where he put another band together. They performed in many nightclubs, churches, many "senior citizen" affairs, and at both the Mississippi and Chicago Blues Festivals. Red recorded several 45 rpm records for some small Chicago labels. By '74, he was working at Florence's on Chicago's South Side. About '75, he recorded for the ACE/Westside and Palos labels. He also recorded for the Wasp label, #751-1 on the A side, "Going Back to Alabama, Part 1", which was the first time one of his recordings was credited to "Alabama Red". On the flip side, #751-2, was the same title, labeled as "Part 2". Later on in '75, he performed with others in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. By October, he was back in Chicago, playing at The South Park Lounge. From '79, up into '89, he recorded for several small labels again. Those recordings were credited, seemingly with no rhyme or reason, to Curtis Ray, Ray Curtis, or Alabama Red.He passed away on August 2, 2006, in Chicago. The only c.d. available of some of his work is "Alabama Red: Windy City Blues", on the Wolf label, out of Austria, of songs he wrote/ recorded in the '70's and '80's, which we have in stock.
Blues Question For August 2021: This bluesman, again, a not well-known figure, was adept with guitar, harmonica, jug, and washboard, but he also worked regular jobs, as blues wasn't his main source of income. He made his first recording in 1941, and his last in 2002. Any idea who this bluesman might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For August 2021: The song is "Blues After Hours",  and the artist is Connie Curtis "Pee Wee" Crayton. He first recorded it in 1948, for the Bihari Brothers' Modern Records label, a 10" shellac, 78 rpm record, #20-624, at  2:31 in length. On the flip side was "I'm Still in Love With You". On that first recording of Pee Wee's, the backing musicians were David Lee Johnson on piano, Bill Davis on bass, and Candy Johnson on drums. Though that's a good version, I prefer the one on Blind Pig Records, #5052, released in 1999, at 5:23 in length.
Blues Trivia For August 2021: This spins off the Song Of The Month (the prior entry). I gave you the info on the first version about the backing musicians, and the length, and listed my preferred version on Blind Pig's c.d. The Trivia part is what went into/on that c.d. It was a re-release compilation put together from 2 Murray Brothers L.P.'s. The tracks on the c.d. aren't in the same order as they were on those L.P.'s, so explaining this is a little difficult, but I'm workin' on it anyhow. Those albums were, first, #MB-1005, recorded on August 23, 1983. On it, besides Pee Wee, were Rod Piazza on harmonica, Doug MacLeod on rhythm guitar, Don Fredman on bass, Honey Alexander (later to become Piazza) on keyboards, Claude Williams on trumpet, Bill Clark and Marshall Crayton Jr. on tenor sax (on different tracks), Fred Clark on alto, tenor, and baritone sax, and Soko Richardson on drums. The second L.P.#MB-1007, used on this c.d., was recorded in December of 1984, and released in 1985. The players on that L.P. were, of course, Pee Wee, Llew Matthews on keyboards, Fernando Harkles on sax, Eric Ajaye on bass, and Lee Spath on drums. Both of those L.P.'s were produced by Bob Murray and Rod Piazza. They were recorded at Vinnick Studio, in Riverside, California, with Wayne Vinnick as the recording engineer. For the c.d., some of the mixing/mastering was done by Steve Savage, at Different Fur Recording, in San Francisco. We have that c.d. in stock here.
Some August Blues Passings:

  • August 2nd.,2009-- Billy Lee Riley
  • August 14th.,2014-- Andy Rodgers, aka "Midnight Cowboy", "Grand Daddy of The Blues"
  • August 29th.,2007-- Kipling Taquana "Kip" Anderson
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Joe's Blues Blog July 2021

6/30/2021

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First, a note about the June 2021 Blog. In the Blues Births section, I listed Robert "Rockin' Robin" Montgomery, and I should have added to that entry that he was Wallace Coleman's keyboardist, and besides blues he was also a knowledgeable player of folk and rockabilly music, and these music's histories.
Some July Blues Births:
  • July 4th.,1965-- Jimmy D. Lane
  • July 17th.,1939-- Samuel Moore, aka "Ironing Board Sam"​
  • July 26th.,1943-- Sir Michael Philip "Mick" Jagger
Answer to The June 2021 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/is Jim Jackson, born June 1876, but, as usual, other sources show other possible years being either 1884 or 1890, though no specific date has been found, in Hernando, Mississippi. While being raised on a farm, he learned to play guitar. By 1905, he was working as a dancer, singer, and musician, in visiting traveling medicine shows, and also at local parties and dances. Before long, he was traveling and performing with the Rabbit Foot Minstrels, who featured "Ma Rainey" (the original) and Bessie Smith. I said, in the June Blog, that he landed an early gig at a "prestigious" spot, and that was at the Peabody Hotel, in 1919 (ever seen the hotel's duck walk?). With his abilities, he became a popular attraction there. On October 10, 1927, with a contract agreement with Vocalion Records, he recorded "Jim Jackson's Kansas City Blues", which became a hit for him, along with being a best-seller both for him and Vocalion. It has since been covered many times in both the blues and Rock&Roll genres, by many artists, who have also had hits with it. Over the next couple of years, he would record more versions and/or additional titles to the original "Kansas City Blues", creating a "series" of them. One of his recorded songs, which is my favorite of his work, is a medicine show song -- "I Heard the Voice of a Pork Chop". In late '29 and early '30, he ran a traveling medicine show, "The Red Rose Minstrels", throughout Mississippi, Arkansas, and Alabama. In February of '30, he recorded his last session, in Memphis. Then he moved back to Hernando, where he continued to perform locally, until his death, on December 18, 1933.
Blues Question For July 2021: This bluesman, born in Alabama, ended up in Chicago, where he would become a fixture in the blues clubs. He played both piano and guitar, but is best known for his vocals. Any idea who this bluesman might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For July 2021: The song I'm going to show is how to type it in to get the correct recording. The song is "Big Chief: Parts 1 & 2-Watch", and the artist is Henry Roland "Roy" Byrd, aka "Professor Longhair" or "Fess". I listed this song this way because there are several different versions of that he recorded, but this is the original, recorded in 1964, on the Watch label, with Part 1 on one side and Part 2 on the flip side of a &" 45 rpm record. When you listen to this, realize that this is the man who influenced so many New Orleans keyboard players, be it on the piano or organ, such as Dr.John, James Booker, and Fats Domino.
Blues Trivia For July 2021: This is kind of an expansion of last month's Trivia section. If you read it, then you know that I briefly touched on slavery's early days and the fact that it included Blacks (African- Americans) and Indians (the only true Native Americans). The two races were often grouped together in the "slave camps", and would eventually "co-mingle", from or out of which came their offspring. The decendents of those would eventually start the beginnings of the Mardi Gras Indian Tribes. At the time I wrote that, I only knew of two tribes who had recorded: The Wild Tchoupitoulas and The Wild Magnolias. Boy, was I wrong !! Never satisfied that my research is complete, I started digging further into the Mardi Gras Indian tribes and their music. I found at least six more tribes who've recorded a full album or c.d. Then I found quite a few compilations c.d.'s that had other tribe's recordings, sometimes only one song or up to four or six. In June's Trivia, I mentioned Big Chief Bo Dollis and The Wild Magnolias. Here are some of the other chiefs: Chief Smiley Ricks, Big Chief Victor Harris, Big Chief Monk Boudreaux (the person who founded the Wild Magnolias), and Big Chief Alfred Doucette, to name a few. Some of the other Tribes are: Fi Yi Yi, The Treme Brass & Indian Band, Cha Wa, Hundred & One Runners, 79rs. Gang, Fi Yi Yi & The  Mandingo Warriors, and The Flaming Arrows. There are more of them, but, you get the picture. My whole point being, never stop learning about all of the aspects of the blues and it's influence and interaction with other music genres, over all these years.
Some Blues Passings For July:
  • July 3rd.,1972-- Mississippi Fred McDowell
  • July 16th.,2013-- James Lewis Curtis Ford, aka "T-Model Ford

  • July 25th.,1984-- Willie Mae "Big Mama" Thornton
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Joe's Blues Blog June 2021

5/25/2021

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Some Blues Births For June 2021:
  • June 1st. 1948-- Robert Paul Montgomery, aka "Rockin' Robin"
  • June 17th. 1985-- Matt Hill​
  • June 30th. 1961-- Michael Lewis "Mike" Wheeler
Answer To The May 2021 Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/is Cornelius Green III, aka "Lonesome Sundown", born on the Dugas Plantation (near Donaldsonville) Louisiana, on December 12, 1928. Growing up there, while in gradeschool, he taught himself how to play piano.  When he was 18, in '46 or '47, he moved to New Orleans, to work outside the music field, as a porter. He returned to Donaldsonville in '48, where, after listening to records by Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker, he decided to get serious about his music career, and took guitar lessons from a cousin. In '52, he moved to Jeanerette, where he took a job as a truck driver. In '53, he moved to Port Arthur, Texas, where he worked at the Gulf Oil refinery. While living there, he took some gigs playing in some local clubs and bars. In '55, he was listening to a band at the Blue Moon Club. He was asked, by the band's leader, if he'd like to sit in with them. That was Clifton Chenier, with his new band, The Zydeco Ramblers. He ended up touring with Chenier and the band, as the second guitarist, next to the first guitarist-- one Phillip Walker. They toured/performed throughout the South, then up to Chicago. From there, across the country, to play the West Coast. He recorded with Chenier, in '55, in Los Angeles, on the Specialty label. He also got married that year. Later in '55, he moved to Opelousas, Louisiana. He put together a demo tape, and took it to Jay Miller, in Crowley. Miller, after hearing the tape, gave him the "Lonesome Sundown" name, because of the melancholy tone in Green's vocals, tempered with the strongly-influenced Chicago style of his guitar work. Another strong influence to the sound of swamp blues recordings that Miller made, and then leased to Excello Records, which was based in Nashville.Sundown wrote most all of his own songs, which he recorded with Miller, over an 8 year period. By 1965, he was "disillusioned" with the music business and his lack of success in it. About this same time, he was going through a rough divorce, and missing his seven children. He joined The Apostolic Faith Fellowship Church, where he would eventually become a minister. In '77, he was persuaded to go back into the recording studio, where he recorded an album, titled "Been Gone Too Long", on the Joliet label. It would be released a second time on the Alligator Records label, but the sales of either/both of these releases were never that great. My own copy is on the Hightone label, released 1n 1991. In '79, he played at the New Orleans Jazz Heritage Festival, and also toured and performed with Phillip Walker, in Sweden and Japan, then walked away, completely, from the music business. In '94, he suffered a stroke, and could no longer speak. He died April 23,1995, from the effects of that stroke.
Blues Question For June 2021: This bluesman, like Leadbelly, knew and played hundreds of songs in the blues, folk, country, and gospel genres. Though he travelled and performed extensively, one of his earliest "gigs" was a residency at a famous spot. Any idea who this bluesman might be ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For June 2021: The song is "It Hurts Me Too", and the artist is Jimmy Nolen, recorded May 4, 1956, in Los Angeles, on the Federal label (a subsidiary of King Records), #12278, in both 78 and 45 rpm versions. The musicians on this recording are: Jimmy Nolen on vocals and guitar; Eldee Williams on tenor sax; Kenny Battle on baritone sax; Devonia "Dee" Williams on piano; Johnny Parker on bass, and Earl Hyde on drums. I'm guessing, but I think that these people were "borrowed" from Johnny Otis' band, since he was bandleader, talent scout, etc, for King Records. We have a c.d. in stock titled Jimmy Nolen "Before The Funk", which has all his Federal sides, from the time, before he joined the James Brown band. Incidentally, this song was originally written and recorded in 1940, by Hudson Whittaker, aka "Tampa Red", even though the writing credit on the record's label shows Nolen as the writer.
Blues Trivia For June 2021: How do you feel about paying restitution to whomever, for things that our forefathers may or may not have done 300 or so, years ago? Where does this "political correctness" stop, so we can get back to reality? We have it "right here in River City" (Cleveland Oh.), with the Cleveland Indians, "The Tribe". The images and name are "demeaning to Native Americans". O.K., so you want to do away with the "Tribe" name, pictures, portraits, or anything else that might be offensive. Think about this: how long will it be before one of these morons wants to get rid of the memories of "Bo "Big Chief" Dollis and The Wild Magnolias", a New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian tribe. There are currently 38 Mardi Gras Indian tribes, where, at one time, there were 61. They are 1 of 2 Tribes who recorded their music, the other being "The Wild Tchoupitoulas", formed by George "Big Chief Jolly" Landry, and that album was self-titled. It wasn't a commercial success, but it was a critical one, and, as such, it's in the Library of Congress National Registry, with a designation of "cultural, artistic, and historic importance in the nation's aural legacy". You might be wondering how this particular recording relates to the blues, well, here's your answer: the musicians on this were put together by Big Chief Jolly, and 4 of them were his nephews, all musicians, but who had never before worked together. You know them as The Neville Brothers-- Art, Charles, Aaron (Tell It Like It Is), and Cyril. This album was done in '76, and the discography of the Neville Brothers recordings as starting in '78. All blues fans know that much of the blues was born in the Delta, with slaves working the fields. The part that they don't know, because you have to do some serious digging into the history of slavery, is that that "trade" was started by the Danes, with African people who they "purchased" from tribal chiefs. Now, when they arrived here, they were put into "slave camps", along with native (American) Indians, so, no, all slaves were not black. The mingling of the Africans and native indians is where the Mardi Gras Indians got their start. All of our history is not good, but we'd better start teaching the coming generations that because it's bad or reflects bad people, times, events, it should not be removed, but should be studied to keep from repeating the past. Stop removing monuments, places, memorials of our past, as it's what made us who we are, and right now, that's not a pretty picture. Now, Bo Dollis and the Wild Magnolias started to make recordings in '70, and made many singles and albums from that time forward. They got enough recognition and praise that they performed at Carnegie Hall, and the Capital Centre in Washington, D.C., at the height of their popularity. They have 1 c.d. titled "1313 Hoodoo Street", which showcases their talents in the blues, R&B, soul, funk, and the New Orleans sound. I don't stock either of these group's recordings, but I do have my own copies, which I'll be happy to show you if you stop in. I can still get these, new, if you want. You want to learn about the blues ? It's a lot of work, Bubba.
Some Blues Passings For June 2021:

  • June 6th.,2010-- Calvin James Leavy
  • June 13th.,2015-- Sarah Streeter, aka "Big Time Sarah"
  • June 29.,1979-- Lowell Thomas George
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    Joe Vassel

    Proprietor of The Sound of Blue record shop in Kent, Ohio. 

    You are probably familiar with the current crop of blues performers, so the next time you’re at a performance or listening to some sort of broadcast of them, you should wonder and find out what “old-timer” they were/ are influenced by!         

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