Looking good so far…
http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/5day.shtml?world=0461
Monthly Archive for September, 2008
A triplet of great gigs in the Towerblues region coming up in October. Here’s the news from Alan Pearson.
Three great rockin’ blues nights in store this month. So good I can’t wait to see them all!!! This Friday Oct 3rd at The Marine Hall, Fleetwood, the marvellous Ian Siegal Band headline the first night of the Fleetwoodstock festival.
“The Closest thing I’ve ever heard to Chester Burnett” – Jeff Beck
“If my Daddy were alive today he’d say “That’s my boy” – Big Bill Morganfield (son of Muddy Waters) If you’re not familiar with Ian Siegal, check out www.iansiegal.com then come & see him on Friday. Tickets £10 from the Marine Hall on 01253 770547 or £12 on the door.
Saturday Oct 25th sees the return to Poulton YMCA Hall of the Nimmo Brothers. Stevie & Alan Nimmo need no introduction as they’ll be bringing their own brand of twin guitar rockin’ blues back to the Fylde Coast. Support is from the excellent Tin Pan Alley who’ll be treating us to some fine SRV, ZZ Top & Hendrix tunes. Tickets are £10 from 01253 890927 or email me on towerblues@btinternet.com.
And, last but not least is the first visit to town of Aussie guitar ace Rob Tognoni who’ll be bringing his own brand of power blues rock to The Raikes on Thursday Oct 30th.
“Rob Tognoni is one of the finest guitar players around today. His work is a combination of classic rock, blues & blues rock and is done with utmost passion and precision…” Bandit Blues Radio USA
We’re gonna need a lie down in November!!
There’s a Kim Wilson interview in the Ventura Star.
http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2008/aug/14/hangin-tuff/
The text says that the band are from Benelux but on checking out the band’s website. I can tell you that they are Belgian. Pretty tight. Good stuff!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoYqoyB9E3Y
CLASSIC CLAPTON
Mart Theatre, Skipton – Saturday 4th October
CLASSIC CLAPTON The World’s No1 Eric Clapton Tribute Band, featuring front-man Mike Hall will be making their first ever appearance in Skipton in October.
The band will be performing at The Mart Theatre, Cargrave Road, Skipton, North Yorkshire on Saturday 4th October. Doors open at 7.00pm. Band on stage at 7.30pm. Tickets priced £12 are available from the box office at Craven College – Tel: 01756 791411 and also on-line at www.themarttheatre.org.uk Fans are advised to book early.
They will perform all of EC’s classic songs including Layla, Badge, Bell Bottom Blues, Cocaine, I Shot The Sheriff, Crossroads, Hoochie Coochie Man, Hideaway, Motherless Children, San Francisco Bay Blues and many more.
There will even be an “UNPLUGGED” segment.
NEARLY 2 HOURS OF CLASSIC CLAPTON
The band was formed in 1985 in Newcastle upon Tyne long before the term “tribute band” was invented, and named themselves ”After Midnight” after Eric Clapton’s first solo hit. In guitar/vocalist Mike Hall, they have a front man who not only looks like Eric, he sings and plays guitar like him too!
Mike has met Slowhand twice, and even received a message of encouragement from the guitar maestro (written on a Concorde menu).
In 2001 CLASSIC CLAPTON embarked on an extensive tour of UK Theatres. They called the tribute show “CLASSIC CLAPTON”. Since then, they have performed all over the UK including The Royal Festival Hall and Glastonbury Festival. The band have toured Ireland, Scotland and Wales numerous times. They headlined an international music festival in Estonia in 2004 and were invited back for another successful concert in 2007. They also appeared at the prestigious Sotogrande Blues Festival in Spain in 2007 and were invited back to perform in Madrid in January 2008.
CLASSIC CLAPTON comprises 4 excellent musicians:- Founder members Mike Hall (lead vocals/guitar) and Vince Mason (drums). John Forster (bass guitar/backing vocals. On keyboards/backing vocals is Paul Warren.
You have probably noticed that I post quite a few Freddie King videos. There’s a reason for this – they are damn good. This one is no exception – in fact it’s damn damn good.
An absolute lesson in blues guitar from Freddie and after the guitar intro he slays us with his spine tingling vocals.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdPD1rcQlig
Freddie King bonus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEs3s1b9_9M
BIG BOY BLOATER
The Academy, Buckley: 27/09/08
The first gig of a new venture from Ray and Barbara O’Hare of the Warrington Blues Club, saw the excellent Big Boy Bloater and his fine band rock the house at The Academy in Buckley – a lovely-looking retro dance hall, which attracted a good turnout of local jive dancers who filled the floor from the first number until the last!
Big Boy Bloater describes himself on his business card as ‘Red Hot Jump Blues, Boogie & Rock ‘n’ Roll’, and that is pretty much what we got over two sparkling sets, with his Ike Turner influenced guitar dominating proceedings, but always allowing the two-sax horn section and Deacon Turner’s piano plenty of scope to solo.
The vocals were shared with ‘Lil’ Lisa Jan – his good lady wife - whose honking baritone saxophone was also a treat. Material came from the brand new “That Ain’t My Name” release, and also his ‘other’ band, the more blues-orientated The City Shakers.
Bloater is one of the finest exponents of the guitar whammy bar, as seen on a rollicking version of Ike Turner’s “Matchbox” and his own “Whammy”, an instrumental on the new album that Mark Lamarr has fallen in love with and is bringing out as a vinyl 45 single.
The band swung like crazy all night, with “Man Or Monkey?” featuring one of ‘Lil’ Lisa Jane’s vocals; and “Hey Little Girl” and the title cut of “That Ain’t My Name” being particularly well received from the packed dance floor.
One of the highlights of the night was a storming cover of the late, great Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson’s “Gangster Of Love”, and Bloater showed his blues prowess on a second-set opener – just him and some boogie guitar; and then delivering some raucous slide guitar on the Elmore James chestnut “Shake Your Moneymaker”.
This must be one of the best British bands on the live circuit, what a pleasure to catch them so close to home at a new venue for live music – a great night, and well done to all concerned!
GRAHAME RHODES
MORELAND & ARBUCKLE
“1861″
(NorthernBlues Music: NBM0044)
Here’s another gem from the good folk at NorthernBlues Music, some raw, ass-kicking hill-country blues from Kansas! Aaron Moreland and Dustin Arbuckle’s debut for the Canadian label is a treat from start to finish – the title, “1861″, coming from the year their home state joined the Union.
Moreland’s array of guitars, with Arbuckle on vocals and harmonica are joined by drummer Brad Horner, together the trio create a powerful sound, which is rooted mainly in the blues, but would probably appeal to a cross-over rock audience.
They get down to business with a thundering opening track, a romp through Hound Dog Taylor’s “Gonna Send You Back To Georgia”; followed by the original “Fishing Hole”, featuring Aaron Moreland’s homemade cigar-box guitar, made by a friend in Memphis and with a mighty tone.
Dustin Arbuckle is no slouch on the harmonica and the excellent “Diamond Ring” features his playing, before a cover of RL Burnside’s hill-country classic, “Jumper On The Line” – titled “See My Jumper Hangin’ Out On The Line – in fact the whole album has echoes of the Mississippi greats, such as the aforementioned Burnside, Junior Kimbrough and other Fat Possum artists, and is none the worse for it.
“The Legend” has a western feel to it, and a true story of life, love and loss, based on a real person; “Never Far Behind” rides along on a great slide guitar groove, with Horner’s drums kicking the song along in an ode to Kansas life, with a nod to the late, great Jimmy Reed on “Please, Please Mammy”, a lazy shuffle with a wheezy first harmonica solo, and tougher second one, from Arbuckle, and rip-roaring guitar solo from Moreland – very nice indeed, and one of the album highlights.
Oklahoma City songwriter Ryan Taylor, a friend of the band, contributes the stomping “Pittsburgh In The Morning, Philadelphia At Night”, followed by the beautiful acoustic “Wrong I Do”, dominated by Moreland’s resonator guitar and haunting vocal from Arbuckle. The album closes with “Wiser Jam”, apparently made up on the spot, and probably not like anything else before it – a meandering, almost hypnotic piece with an almost Eastern feel, with Chris Wiser guesting on Hammond B3 organ.
GRAHAME RHODES
Here’s the late Nappy Brown in great form.
Note also the late Sean Costello
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MH7N6urQZko
Ian Siegal has a new CD called The Dust.
It’s a collection of solo and duo recordings prompted by the many fans who come to Ian’s solo shows and ask for a CD of solo material. It’s kinda below the radar. You wont find this in the shops (except in Benelux), nor at web retailers, and it’s not available digitally. There are only two ways to obtain this CD….from Ian personally at his shows, or direct from nugenerecords.com.
Oh, and it’s blindingly good!
For more information and sound clips: The Dust
Today I received an email from organiser Barry Townsend telling us that due to circumstances beyond his control he is postponing the 2009 Colwyn Bay Blues Festival that was planned for February.
Barry hopes to re-schedule for May 2009.
Watch this space for news.
All-new Delta Blues Documentary Set For Premiere in Clarksdale, Mississippi
(CLARKSDALE, MS) – A hotly anticipated new film celebrating the raw, raucous spirit of Mississippi’s surviving blues scene will have its worldwide premiere at 6:45 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 11 at the Delta Cinema at #11 Third Street in downtown Clarksdale, Miss. The film, M for Mississippi: A Road Trip through the Birthplace of the Blues, follows blues producers – Roger Stolle of Cat Head Delta Blues & Folk Art and Jeff Konkel of Broke & Hungry Records – on a weeklong journey across Mississippi visiting a dozen of the state’s most fascinating blues figures in rustic environments ranging from juke joints to cotton fields.
“We planned this road-trip movie for two years,” said Stolle. “We avoided big concert stages and rock-star narrators in favor of intimate houseparties and rockin’ Delta juke joints. The results speak for themselves.”
The premiere screening of the 94-minute film will be both preceded and followed by live music from artists featured in the film. Blues guitarist Bill Abel and 81-year-old harmonica player “Cadillac” John Nolden will perform a brief set at the Delta Cinema at 6 p.m., prior to the film’s inaugural showing. After the screening, the action heads down the street to the world-famous Ground Zero Blues Club where the line up will include such renowned bluesmen as T-Model Ford, Robert “Bilbo” Walker and Wesley “Junebug” Jefferson.
The premiere will be held as tens of thousands of blues lovers converge on the Delta for the Arkansas Blues & Heritage Festival (www.bluesandheritagefest.com) held in nearby Helena, Ark. “The former ‘King Biscuit’ is one of the region’s biggest festivals,” Konkel said. “And there are always plenty of related events going on that week which makes it all the more special. It’s a perfect time to visit the Delta.”
M for Mississippi, which was filmed early this spring, is a co-production of Broke & Hungry Records, Cat Head Delta Blues & Folk Art and Mudpuppy Recordings. The motion picture follows Konkel and Stolle as they travel the dusty highways and byways of Mississippi, calling on such seminal blues figures as James “T-Model” Ford, Robert “Wolfman” Belfour, Terry “Harmonica” Bean, Wesley “Junebug” Jefferson, Jimmy “Duck” Holmes, Pat Thomas, L.C. Ulmer, Robert “Bilbo” Walker and more. Joining Stolle and Konkel on the journey were filmmaker Damien Blaylock and co-producer Kari Jones of Mudpuppy Recordings. Recording engineer Bill Abel followed in his weathered Volvo station wagon packed with recording equipment. Over the next week, the tiny caravan traversed the state of Mississippi visiting some of the state’s most original blues figures while the camera rolled.
The resulting film shines a long-overdue spotlight on these men, their music and the land from which the blues sprang. More than just a collection of concert performances, M for Mississippi collects the sounds, the images and the feel of both the performers and their native landscape – an environment essential to their livelihoods and inseparable from their art.
“We aimed to capture the essence of the Delta’s blues survivors and show why the blues simply had to come from a place like Mississippi,” explained Konkel.
The film is being released on DVD this fall along with a companion CD soundtrack. Pre-orders are being accepted through the film’s official Web site at www.mformississippi.com. Items pre-ordered through the Web site are expected to ship by mid-October. A larger international rollout will follow with the DVD and CD soundtrack expected in stores beginning November 18. The DVD’s bonus features include deleted/extended scenes, closed captioning, behind the scenes footage and more.
Well well well! Who would have thought that bluesinthenorthwest was three years old, but it’s true. We celebrate our third birthday today 24 September. During that time we have moved from a small hobby site hosted on the blogger site to a fully hosted Wordpress driven site.
The vintage blogger site is still up and running and for some reason still gets three or four hits per day despite not being updated since 6th November 2006. http://bluesinthenorthwest.blogspot.com.
Since we moved to a the hosted site and began to use Wordpress we have gone from strength to strength; a quick look at the archives page will show almost 2000 posts with over 450 gigs previewed and almost 180 reviews. Many internet searches now list bluesinthenorthwest.com in the top few places and about half of our traffic comes from the big search engines.
For example if you do a search for blues gig manchester in Google you will find bluesinthenorthwest.com in positions two and three and a similar search for blues gig lancashire will put us in the top two places.
We own a number of domains all of which point towards http://www.bluesinthenorthwest.com, we have…
http://www.bluesinthenorthwest.co.uk
http://www.bluesnw.co.uk
http://www.nwblues.co.uk
We don’t have http://www.nwblues.com, that points towards NORTHWEST BLUES located in the Pacific Northwest area of the United States. Washington, Oregon, Canada and Idaho. Good luck to our US colleagues.
The site only works with input and contribution from others. If I don’t get sent the gig information by the artists and promoters then I cannot promote the events.
bluesinthenorthwest.com is a non-profit making enterprise that costs me hard earned money to run, all for the benefit of the blues community in this region. We carry no adverts; all that we ask is that you continue to support this music by going to gigs and buying CDs.
I welcome contributions from other writers and reviewers. Feel free to contact me if you would like to be a regular writer, or just send me articles that I can publish. Finally a big thanks to the regular contributors Grahame Rhodes and Lionel Ross, without their contribution, this site would be significantly less interesting.
Thanks for the support
Ken
One of the finest blues outfits in the UK will be making a rare trip up north this Friday. It’s the first time north of Birmingham with the new regular line-up featuring Mal Barclay on guitar (wait til you hear THIS guy!!!) plus the 23 year old boogie-woogie sensation that is Henri Herbert on piano, (the fire brigade in Monaghan, Ireland is still damping down the flames on the pianos he played at the Harvest Time Blues Fest two weeks ago).
The Cadillac Kings – The Ironworks, Oswestry – Friday 26th September.
£5 on the door or £4 in adv.
http://www.the-ironworks.co.uk/
http://www.myspace.com/thecadillackings
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