If you’re looking for a prescription to help get by in these darkish times, perhaps some unbridled optimism to offset the rancor that is so prevalent today, then Southern Avenue’s new Family might be just what the doctor ordered. When blues guitarist Ori Naftaly left his native Israel to compete in the International Blues Challenge […]
Merry Mulligans
I haven’t played golf in 20 years, and when I did play, I was terrible at it. But I gotta say that when I did play I was the master of one particular stroke – the “Mulligan.” That’s when your shot off the tee is so bad you either miss it all together or you […]
Arlen Roth – Playing Out the String
With Arlen Roth, it’s all about the guitar. Having shared stage or studio with Bob Dylan, John Prine, Paul Butterfield, Loudon Wainwright III, Ry Cooder, Rory Block, Eric Andersen and many others, Roth has been long established as a “go to” session man or sideman on tour. Originally from New York City, Roth started a […]
Blue Moon Marquee – New Orleans Sessions
Going to sound like my dad here, but I’ll challenge anyone not to tap your toes listening to the new upbeat, old-timey New Orleans Sessions from Canadian duo Blue Moon Marquee. The duo, which features A.W. Cardinal on vocals and guitar and Jasmine Colette on vocals and upright bass, captures a unique feel they’ve dubbed […]
Eric Bibb – In The Real World
Happy Halloween! All right, now that’s out of the way let me say that there are different kinds of blues musicians. There are blues rockers who make their reputations with searing guitar solos and there are blues bar bands who may be great musicians but whose focus is making sure you have a good time. […]
Ronnie Baker Brooks – Blues In My DNA
Ronnie Baker Brooks plays such a serious guitar, one might say it’s in his DNA. The son of Chicago blues great Lonnie Brooks, Brooks (whose birth name was Rodney Dion Baker), along with his brother Wayne Baker Brooks, is one of a number of gifted blues offspring, including the likes of Shemekia Copeland (daughter of […]
Guy Davis – The Legend of Sugarbelly
For Guy Davis, keeping the blues alive means keeping it alive even its most stripped-down form. The Legend of Sugarbelly is a throwback to the blues’ purest, simplest acoustic form, so reminiscent of Lead Belly and the earliest masters one almost expects to hear the crackle of an old 78-inch record. Davis is a great […]
Colin James – Chasing the Sun
To say that Colin James is big in Canada is an understatement. With eight Juno Awards (Canadian Grammies) and 31 Maple Leaf Blues Awards, James might be the most prominent member of a healthy Canadian blues scene that has included the likes of Steve Dawson, Colin Linden, Sue Foley, Jim Byrnes, JW-Jones, Big Dave McLean […]
Monday Morning Video – John Mayall, 1933-2024
John Mayall, OBE, died last week at 90. Often called the “Godfather of British blues,” Mayall was so much more than just a pioneer of British blues. By introducing a generation of rock fans to the blues, he arguably had a hand in saving blues as a viable commercial music form at a time in the […]
The Fabulous Thunderbirds – Struck Down
The Fabulous Thunderbirds have persevered for roughly 50 years, and their new album Struck Down shows why. The origins of Kim Wilson’s band date back to 1970s Austin, Texas, and though Wilson is the constant in all those years, former members include Jimmie Vaughan, Duke Robillard and Nick Curran. Always known as lively concert performers, […]