- NOTABLE EVENTS
The eighteenth annual Mark Hummel Blues Harmonica Blowout was held in late January of 2008. This year this event was eight gigs in six venues. Performers were John Mayall, Kenny Neal, Fingers Taylor, Lazy Lester, and Mark Hummel and the Blues Survivors.
Occasional guests played at different venues, including the 2007 Inter-national Blues Challenge winners, Nathan James and Ben Hernandez. Lazy Lester recently won the title of “Blues Harmonica Player of the Year” at the West Coast Blues Award Show.
After these events, Mark went on a brief tour with Mayall, Neal, Taylor, Lester, and Billy Branch. Mark had played with Branch, as well as Magic Dick, on the Legendary R&B Cruise earlier in the month.
The theme for the March Sacramento Heritage Festival program was “Godsons of Soul.” Featured were Curtis Salgado, Earl Thomas, and Ellis Hooks. According to blues fan, Dorothy Hill, Hooks is a dynamite performer and definitely a star in the making.” Opening the show was Jeff Watson, a local band. The audience always enjoys this afternoon event and BBQ.
Velma’s, a San Francisco venue, was a busy place in February. First there was the big three-day celebration of owner Velma’s sixtieth birthday. That included a bus with party goers that stopped at five bars between Vallejo and San Francisco for some entertainment at Velma’s on Friday; an Acquarius big birthday bash on Saturday; and an after party on Sunday.
Then there was a fund raiser for KPOO Radio 89.5 FM, a non-commercial radio station in San Francisco. At a quick glance through the schedule, there were at least ten different programs with some blues music. At least three of them were during daylight hours, Monday through Wednesday, from 9am-noon, pacific daylight time. You can tune in to this station on the internet in two ways:
www.kpoo.com or www.ustream.tv/kpooradio.
Then click on “hear us.” The successful benefit featured music all afternoon, including Fillmore Slim, Kenny Neal, Pat Wilder, and Malik, and many other varied musicians.
A West Coast Musicians Career Goals Seminar was held in February.
It was presented by The Bay Area Blues Society and the East Bay Law School. Its purpose was to assist Bay Area and West Coast Musicians on how to move forward in their careers, understand contract law, how to publish songs, how to market, and conflict resolution.
- MUSICIANS IN THE NEWS
It was sad to hear of the passing of the legendary drummer, Francis Clay, in late January. He had long suffered from asthma, crippling arthritis, and knee problems. At the age of 84, he died in his sleep in his San Francisco apartment. Clay grew up in Rock Island, Illinois where he began drumming as a boy with sticks and drums he made for himself. By the age of 14, he was playing professionally.
He had an innovative, jazz-inflected style which enabled him to play with numerous well-known jazz ensembles, such as Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, John Coltrane, and more in the forties and fifties. It took about a week to learn to play downhome blues when he connected with Muddy Waters and his band in 1957. He helped propel this great band into its heyday, with numerous classic recordings and a 1960 appearance at the Newport Jazz Festival. This was the first appearance by a blues performer, and the album, “Live at Newport,” attracted world-wide attention. Clay played drums with Muddy off and on for fifteen years.
Clay also played drums behind such blues greats as James Cotton,Jimmy Reed, Otis Rush, Buddy Guy and many more. With his unique style of imaginative and masterful blues, he helped musicians broaden their scope about a drummer being more that just a machine. They learned that a drummer could enhance what the other musicians were playing by allowing him to express himself. To learn more about Clay, check out:
http://www.bluespower.com/a-fc.htm. This link has a brief bio, some of his poetry, an essay of his, and an interview with him.
Francis Clay was buried in his hometown of Rock Island, Illinois. There will be a memorial service in the Bay Area for him in a few months. The Mississippi Blues Society in Davenport, Iowa is in the process of setting up an account called the Francis Clay Memorial Fund. The purpose for establishing this fund is to purchase a headstone for Francis’ grave, and to create a scholarship in his name to fund music lessons in jazz and blues drumming for a student who would not otherwise have the means to pay for such. Another idea for the fund is to provide assistance with funeral costs for a fellow blues musician in need. Checks can be made out to the Francis Clay Memorial Fund and mailed to: Mississippi Valley Blues Society, 102 South Harrison Street, Suite 300, Davenport, Iowa 52801. Their telephone number is 563-322-5837; their email is:mvbs@ mvbs.org and their website is: www.mvbs.org.
Several columns ago, I mentioned two tv shows produced by Bay Area musicians. Both shows have gained popularity. In Kenny Neal’s show, called Neal’s Place, he interviews local and international blues and gospel musicians and offers an opportunity for them to play unplugged. This show is now shown in 30,000 households six days per week on community access tv. For more information, check out his website, www.kennyneal.net
and click on Neal’s Place to get the schedule and to see a webcast of one of his shows.
Kenny was excited to learn he won the Wave Award for “Top Entertainer of the Year.” This is out of the Los Angeles area and entrees were from all over California. He will also be on the cover of the U.S.“Blues Review” magazine with an interview soon. He is also working on a book covering his 30 years of performing and maybe even more.
E.C. Scott’s blues video show, a compilation of videos of blues musicians, is also growing. She now has 134 affiliates, some 7 days a week, on community access television. Her website is: www.ecsproductions.com.
E.C. won the category of “Blues Electronic Media of the Year” at the recent West Coast Blues Awards Show.
In case you haven’t been able to find www.aworldofblues.com that I mentioned a few columns ago, that’s because the website has changed to
www.theworldofblues.com. It features blues music 24/7/365 and you can hear these blues on your computer while you are elsewhere on the computer. There are several links to check out here, including one which mentions when DJ broadcasts are happening.
Several Bay Area musicians traveled out of the states. Mark Hummel toured Italy, Germany, and France. J.C. Smith played gigs in Poland and Ireland. Mitch Woods and his Big Easy Boogie Band, featuring members of the original Fats Domino Band, performed with Irma Thomas at the Bern International Jazz Festival in Switzerland. He also, with his Rocket 88’s, had a “tour of da islands mon,” where they played several gigs at St. John, in the Virgin Islands. This included playing at the St.John Blues Festival.
- MUSICIANS PLAYING IN BAY AREA
Visitors performing in the Bay Area included: Marvin Sease, Johnny Winter Band, Marcia Ball, Henry Butler, Carlos Montoya, Kelly Joe Phelps, Gene Taylor Blues Band, Jackie Green, Frank Bey, Rod Piazza and the Mighty Flyers, Phillip Walker, Edna Love, Tab Benoit, Lil’ Dave Thompson, Lee Rocker, Candye Kane, Eric Lindell, and John Nemeth.
The spotlight was on two shows. Tommy Castro played an entertaining show as he opened for 14-time Grammy winner, B.B.King, in Marin County, just north of San Francisco. This was the only Bay Area concert for B.B. At the age of 82, B.B. is still going strong. He put on a great show to a sold-out audience.
Los Angeles-based Janiva Magness is a talented and recognized blues and roots vocalist. In May of 2006, she aced out contemporaries Susan Tedeschi, Shemekia Copeland, and Marcia Ball to win the 2006 Blues Music Award for “Contemporary Female Artist of the Year.”
She was also winner of this award in 2007. Her voice is smoky, sultry, and strong with blues, jazz, and soul overtones. This 51-year-old grandmother has an earthy showmanship. She is best known for her sauciness and the bold, brazen beauty of her recordings and performances.
- UPCOMING EVENTS
Blues Hall of Fame – May 7, 2008 in Tunica. Mississippi. Jimmy McCracklin and late Jimmy Witherspoon will be two of the inductees. Blues Music Awards (formerlyW.C. Handy Awards) – May 8, 2008 in Tunica, Mississippi.
Lineups are posted for both the Santa Cruz Blues Festival, May 24 & 25, 2008, and The Monterey Bay Blues Festival, June 27-29, 2008. For details, consult their websites: www.santacruzbluesfestival.com
and www.montereyblues.com.
The 14th annual California Blues Festival will be May 26 at the bandshell in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. For further details, check out: www.bobbiewebb.com, email bobbiespiderwebb@yahoo.com or call 415-810-1867.
- CD INFORMATION
Blind Pig Records issued two CDs: Poppy Chubby: “Deliveries After Dark,” and Webb Wilder and the Beatnecks: “Born to be Wilder.” Readers of “BluesWax,” the largest subscribed Blues publication in the world, voted their CD, “Painkiller,” by Tommy Castro as the “BluesWax” Album of the Year. He holds the distinction of being the first two-time Album of the Year award winner. Blind Pig will issue “Painkiller” as a high-quality, 180 gram virgin vinyl LP on May 6, 2008 as part of the label’s Master Vinyl Series. Yes, vinyl is coming back!
And speaking of Tommy Castro, he has a new CD out called “Command Performance” on the Delta Groove Music label. This live recording spotlights many of the highlights of their recent Legendary Rhythm and Blues Revue tour as well as some performances from the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise. There is a stellar lineup of performers on the CD: Tommy Castro, Deanna Bogart, Magic Dick, Ronnie Baker Brooks, and special guests: Marcia Ball, Elvin Bishop, and Curtis Salgado. For more information, contact: www.deltagroovemusic.com or email: deltagroovemusic@earthlink.net.
Mitch Woods had new CD out in March on El Toro Records, called “Jukebox Drive.” It is now available in Europe and will be in the U.S. soon. For more information, check www.mitchwoods.com
or www.myspace.com/mitchwoodsrocket88s
or email: rocket88@gte.net.
Bobbie Webb is working on a new CD that will be produced by Kenny Neal.
The long-awaited CD, “Life Goes On,” by vocalist/guitarist/songwriter, Monica Dupont, is finished and will be released before summer. It is produced by the multi-talented musician, Gary Novak. It features such gifted musicians as Ron Thompson, Mitch Woods, Mark Hummel, Bobbie Webb, Wolfie Witcher, Microwave Dave and many more.
For further information, email:
modernbluesrecords@earthlink.net.
As soon as it is released, it will be on Cd-baby.com.
That’s it for now. Here’s a thought from Francis Clay: “In beautiful music, you can feel a “together” person, who has gained and maintained a peace of mind through his dedication to his art.” Take time to think about all the dedicated musicians you hear when you listen to the blues.
----- Maria Bainer
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