The very first blues album I ever purchased was Albert King’s Born Under a Bad Sign. Forty-two-years later, I still have it and play it. It’s been through three years at a distant college, a move here from Canada, a divorce and Katrina. That album is on the same podium with Bobby “Blue” Bland’s Two [...]
Initially, this one blew me away, but this could have been so much better. There’s no way to understate Dave Bartholomew’s contribution to popular music, so many musicians are included to demonstrate the breadth of his influence. Local favorites are naturally included. Smiley, Fats, Bobby Mitchell, Roy Brown, the Pelicans, as well as Shirley and [...]
Although Henry Gray has resided in Scotlandville for the past four decades, he is the obvious heir to the Chicago blues piano throne. Gray lived in the Windy City from 1946 to 1970, when he recorded under his own name as well as with Billy Boy Arnold, Little Walter, Jimmy Reed and most memorably, Howlin’ [...]
Big Joe is a rarity in the blues world. He’s a drummer who doubles as a vocalist. That’s about as rare as a left-handed baseball catcher. His sound is akin to Roomful of Blues, but more stripped down (less horny, you can say). He relies on well-chosen vintage material, but he’s also capable of writing [...]
Lookie, lookie—this here’s a real cookie. While the early 1980s spawned such musical atrocities as Ratt, Milli Vanilli and Bananarama, it was also an era that produced several great “retro roots” bands, including Los Lobos, the Blasters, the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Rockpile, Stevie Ray Vaughan and the LeRoi Brothers. It was also a period when the [...]
While these tracks have been around the block more times than the mailman, it’s great to know they’re available again, conveniently on two discs. Although Ace was based in Jackson, Mississippi, it was a New Orleans label for all intents and purpose, one which, from the mid-1950s to early 1960s, took advantage of the abundance [...]
Roomful of Blues’ latest continues a string of outstanding albums that stretches back nearly four decades. The New England-based band’s trademark sound is again evident here—lots of punchy horns and plenty of crisp guitar. Featuring Phil Pemberton on vocals, this one contains a few nods New Orleans’ way. Not only is the title a Dave [...]
Appropriately, on Gregg Allman’s first solo outing in over a decade, he’s chosen to record a CD that’s essentially a blues “tribute” album. To his credit, Allman sounds absolutely miserable here which, if you’re recording blues, is most beneficial. (He’s not the picture of contentment on the cover either.) Outside of one original, the rest [...]
Raymond Jones, a.k.a. Ray J, a New Orleans music educator, arranger, bandleader and recording artist, died February 6, 2011. He was 71. Jones was born in New Orleans on August 17, 1939, and grew up in the Magnolia (C.J. Peete) Housing Project, directly across the street from the Dew Drop Inn on Lasalle Street. “I [...]
[UPDATED] Walt Boatner, a pioneer in black New Orleans broadcasting and music retailing, died January 12, 2011. He was 72. Born in Centerville, MS, November 10, 1938. Boatner moved to New Orleans in the early 1960s after a stint in the Air Force. He landed his first job at WYLD spinning the hits on the [...]
