Pittsburgh: Christmas Connections by Monica Yasher

The holidays sometimes are not all joy for everyone. There are many that hurt. This past week, I had one of my dearest friends call me. She told me that her son wrecked the car two weeks in a row. They didn’t have money for repairs. She told me that her husband, being self employed during the holidays, was not getting paid by those that he worked for and she didn’t have money for Christmas. And, the kids today seem to expect so much. She also told me, she didn’t think she could make it through. My friend is also bipolar.

I’ve had my own set of problems this year, but I knew what she was saying. My friend and I are connected. She has been my friend for probably ten years now. She didn’t think she could make it through…. I told her that she needed to go to the hospital. She is there now and I know she is safe. I know that the people there will connect with her and pull her through. I also know that on the 26th of December, everything she was worrying about for December 25th, would be done and gone. Just one day in a life makes such a difference.

There is a blues artists named, Eric Bibb. I am a fan of Eric's. Eric is one of those blues artists that finds joy in the world and uses the blues genre to convey his message. As a songwriter, it is amazing how so few words being said can have such a huge impact on people. I don’t have to tell you that a word as simple as, “Yes“, to a question, can bring tears or joy to a person’s eyes. The power of words. The connection of a thought. The connection of a word.

Eric’s word power was so profound for Jeffrey Salovich. Jeffrey Salovich shared the following story on Eric’s Fan page. I am sharing this with all of you so that you may realize that though things may seem simply awful one day, there is a better tomorrow and time does fix things. This writing is for those of you worried about tomorrow and is a reminder that you need to live for today, because today is what is important. As you read Jeffrey’s story, you can see why it is important to live for today. And, this is an example how the blues can be a healer. Here is what he shared:

I still remember being treated at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester Minnesota, three years ago after under going brain surgery for an infectious abscess. During that time my wife, who was pregnant with our 4th child, just about lost him if not by the grace of God.

That time was uncertain for us as a married couple and for our three other children. Our trust was put in God, because we knew we could not do it by ourselves. We learned to let go and trust God, for better or worse.

During the spring of 2007, my wife was better and our child was growing strong in her womb. My treatment was working and I was feeling better. We took a trip up to Northern Minnesota along the shores of Lake Superior where we drove to Grand Marais, up the Gunflint Trail to a small cabin we rented for 3 nights. There we enjoyed being in the wilderness and in the quiet to reflect on life and enjoy one another as a family. We had much to be thankful for.

On that trip, we were searching radio stations in Grand Marais and came across WTIP- FM. It was on this station, that we first heard Eric Bibb. He was being broadcast from West Virginia and he was singing ‘Connected‘. His voice was so rich and the soul of the song caused me to ask my wife to write this man's name down so we could check him out at the music store when we hit the cities again. After ‘Connected‘, he sang 'For You', and 'I heard The Angels Singing'.





Fast forward to 2009. I graduated school. My family is healthy and our children are beautiful. My wife Amanda and I were finally able to see Eric perform live at the Dakota Jazz Club in Minneapolis, where he really and truly brought church to the Jazz Club scene. An amazing performance. We sat table side and were amazed and glad to be there. After, Eric took time to listen as we told him how we came about hearing of him. I told him, "Every time I hear you sing, I hear the gospel. And that's how I will always hear you." He smiled.



So, during this time of year where my family celebrates Christmas, I want to wish you all a Merry Christmas and to my Jewish friends out there, A Happy Hanukkah! Life is precious and life is sweet. Sometimes I need a rough day to keep me grounded to the fact that it’s here and gone so soon. I pray for you all much Grace, Mercy and Peace to you and your loved ones. In love, Jeffery


Just to offer support to what Jeffrey is saying, every Christmas I am reminded of the importance of seizing opportunities today because they may not be there tomorrow. I remember Christmas of 1997 when my kneeling wise man in the nativity set broke in half. Now my Dad was a great repairer of porcelain. He asked me if I wanted him to fix it. Always being in a hurry, I said, “No Dad, I just want to get things packed and put them away for next year. You can glue it when I take it out for Christmas next year.”

My Dad was diagnosed with Non Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in Spring of 1998 and passed away in September of 1998. Every year it is a constant reminder to me, when I take that wise man out, that I need to live the fullest for any given day. I find it interesting that it is a humble kneeling Wiseman that gives me that message yearly.

Take it from me, whatever you have worrying you, it will pass. And, I hope you find Eric’s song ‘Connected’ to be the blues healer that some of you may need this holiday season. Always keep in mind that you may be the connection that someone else needs.

So, this holiday season, connect with your family. Seize the day! Take care and may you and yours have a Happy Holiday!

Monica

Here is another great blues acoustic act American Blues News has covered:
Chris Smither

Copyright Jeffrey Salovich/Monica Yasher

Pittsburgh: Tinsley Ellis Interview by Monica Yasher

“As far as popular culture, I’m on the outside looking in. As an artist, I’m on the outside looking out.“

It was just announced last week that Tinsley Ellis was nominated for a Blues Handy award for the Blues Rock Album of the Year! This would come as no surprise if you had a chance to speak with Tinsley. Tinsley enjoys the songwriting process and used all of his own songwriting efforts on his new release, "Speak No Evil". He has also been performing the songs live across the United States and claims that the live shows will sound as good as the record. I saw Tinsley, and he is right on target with that statement!

When I saw Tinsley at Moondogs in Pittsburgh in October, the room was full. The crowd was patiently waiting for Tinsley to attack the songs via his guitar and give them that southern feeling only Tinsley can offer. And, he gave the crowd just what they were looking for. All the while Tinsley is performing with his guitar, he is also feeling the words he has written. And, the crowd responded to Tinsley and his music with a very warm reception. Tinsley is a great performer and I’m sure the crowd will be back around the next time he comes to town. Until then, let’s see what Tinsley had to say.

Tinsley: Hello.

Monica: Hello Tinsley! This is Monica Yasher, how are you!

T: Hey Monica, how are you?

M: I’m all right! Where are you today?

T: I’m in Atlanta where I live.

M: Still home? I checked some things out and you have an aggressive tour schedule.

T: Yes. And I have interviews in prep for the tour.

M: I’m looking forward to speaking with you Tinsley. Maybe we should get started. You seem so busy! Let’s talk about your new CD. How is this the same or different than your past works?

T: It’s a continuation of what we have been doing on studio albums since the year 2000 in terms of writing almost all of the material, or as much of it as I can. I wrote this whole album, which is not the case on the last one, where I wrote most of it-but not all of it. We’ve found that it works best for us to do original music that is a statement of where we are at musically and where I’m at lyrically.

So it’s going to be…we are very excited about the music in, "Speak No Evil". I don’t think the long time fans of the band will be surprised at all in terms of the style of guitar driven blues rock as we have always done. But, hopefully we will add some new fans to our crowd.

M: So when you so where you are lyrically, I take it you have all new writing and not things sitting around for years that you felt would meet the needs of the CD’s theme today? So, where are you when you say, where I am lyrically? What do you mean..in regard to life...or in songwriting...what does that mean?

T: Yes. I think my songwriting is getting better all time. I’ve had my own recording studio for six years now and that’s really helped me out in songwriting and I’ve been able to really spend a lot of time on this particular album. We were able to choose from over fifty songs to whittle it down to twelve so that is something kind of new. Never have we had that much choice.

M: Do you record eighteen or twenty and then work down toward your twelve?

T: On this particular album. No. We whittled it down from the fifty to the twelve based on the demos. But, I have gone in, in the past and recorded eighteen songs and then picked the best twelve out of those.

M: In regard to the writing, do you write everyday? Do you do practice songs? Is that your songwriting technique or is every song a viable completed song?

T:
T: I learned years ago that you can set time aside for songwriting and it just doesn’t work well. Songs come when they come. I could be driving down the road, and I have a telephone with a recorder in it, so...I find myself singing to my telephone. And, that replaces the hand held cassette I used for that purpose. Songs come when they come. I record them at my studio when I’m off-touring in Atlanta.

M: Acoustically?

T: No I play all the instruments.

M: Do you? Wow! So, you hear it all when it comes to you?

T: Yeah. I can hear it. And of course I’ll bring in the band to do the demos. They have their expertise and ideas on their individual instruments. I present the ideas to them as a band demo.

M; You haven’t been out on the road yet. But, when people hear you with this tour will they say, and I’m going to show my age here, he sounds just like his album!

T: Yeah. I think in terms of the new songs on, "Speak No Evil", it will sound just like the record. And, we will be doing a lot of songs on the previous CD, "Moment of Truth". We will be doing songs off of the Live album that we did in 2005 where we invited people to go to www.TinsleyEllis.com and tell us what songs they wanted to be on the LIVE album. That was kinda cool to involve the fans like that.

M: OK. What is your favorite part of being an artist? The writing, the touring, the recording? What’s your favorite part of it all?



T: Obviously, performing always comes first. A close second is the songwriting process where it’s just me and a song and I haven’t played it for anyone yet. It’s just a wonderful creative period. Because once you start playing it for people, everyone has ideas, which is good and necessary. But, I just love it when it’s just me and the song and I’m falling in love with it.

M: You fall in love with your songs? Wow.

T: Well..yeah..you fall in love with them and then people criticize them when you are working on them.

M: I have to agree with that. I wrote a song just for me once and someone else made a comment to change it all around to make it more commercial. That was one song that I just couldn’t do it, because I wrote it for me. It’s mine.

T: A lot of opinion out there. That’s fine too. But, when it’s me and the song in the studio it’s a fine time. Nobody has any say about it. But, my main love is to perform.

M: I can see that from your schedule, Tinsley, you are a busy man.

T: Very busy. That’s cool. It’s a good time when an album is new and you go out there and play the songs and have them appreciated, hopefully. A lot of good stuff happens when the album is new. A lot of stuff we are waiting for.

M: Let’s talk about some career things. You are a fabulous guitarist. If you could meet up with another guitarist in a room, who would you want that to be?

T: Eric Clapton.

M: Eric Clapton is your man, huh? Why? What do you want to learn from him?

T: I just love his music and if I had to narrow it down to one, he is it. All the different journeys he has taken in different styles of music with electric and acoustic, blues, psychedelic rock.

M: Did you meet him yet?

T: I almost met him a couple of times.

M: What about B.B. King? I see that B.B. impacted you. You have his guitar string still.

T: I have met him many times. I’ve opened for him and he is always so nice to me.

M: Is he?

T: Really a good guy. A great guy!

M: As much as B.B. impacted you, how do you feel you impact your audience? Or, do you have a story for me that you have done the same for someone?

T: Well it was a real honor when I met this kid. He was thirteen years old and he said he wanted to learn one of my songs and his parents brought him to my show. Backstage he seemed so interested in learning the chords to this song. I showed him some of the things to the tune. He then put out an album and recorded my song on it and that was nice because it was a different generation doing one of my songs. Then we watched the album sell one hundred thousand. Then we watched the album go gold. Then we watched the album go almost double platinum. That person was Jonny Lang.

M: I knew you were going to say his name once you started.

T: Naturally that was a big financial blessing for me and my family. But, to have someone from a different generation, someone who is a child pretty much thirteen- fourteen years old when he recorded it...he did a beautiful job on it. He used to be our opening act and now we are his opening act. He plays that song every time. I asked his manager does he play that song often or only when we open for him. His manager told me he plays that song at every concert. What an honor. What an honor.

M: I’m happy for you. You obviously impacted him and brought him along.

T: The trick is doing it a second time. I want to make sure it’s not a fluke. I pitched songs to the biggies, Eric Clapton, Bonnie Raitt, ZZ Top and many others. Haven’t had anyone bite just yet. The Jonny Lang thing come out of left field. Nobody anticipated that his "Lie to Me" album was going to sale like it did. You can try and try and try and I zig and they zag or it can just come together. The main thing is that we have songs out there that people can hear because Alligator Records sales an album everywhere they can sale a record so chances are that someone can hear it. That would be nice.

M: Do you think that by Jonny doing your song, in your mind, validated you a bit more as a songwriter?

T: It definitely got my attention. Right after that I got the recording equipment, and had it in my basement for a while and then I moved it into an office space so that I could do it anytime I wanted to, including four in the morning if need be. Yes, it got my attention and was a wake up call in many ways. I’ve had some other songs covered by people I really respect like Melvin Taylor and Michael Burkes. And the title song to my new album, "Speak No Evil", I wrote that one for Guitar Shorty. But, Alligator had me record it instead, so that was kind of cool. I wrote it for somebody else and low and behold I ended up doing it myself at the urging of Alligator Records and it ended up being the title song. Isn’t that sneaky?

M: No, that’s awesome! I’ve seen some songwriters perform the songs they wrote for major artists. There is something to be said for that songwriter performing their song. That songwriter will perform it totally different because it’s from their heart and it’s from the place where they were when they wrote it. It’s always so touching. It’s usually exceptional.

T: I know what you mean and I love it when songwriters become front people like Carole King. Carole King wrote all those hits and I loved her versions as much as the originals.

M: I rocked my kids to sleep with that song, 'You’ve Got a Friend'. It’s amazing how songs touch people. The power of five words or a few more words in a sentence can be very humbling. You have that wonderful guitar playing behind it. Let’s talk about that. Did you have your family’s backing in all of this?

T: No, they weren’t into it at ALL. They counseled against it at every opportunity.

But, when I got in the New York Times in the 1980’s all of a sudden it was a little better. That’s what it takes.

M: When you think about it when we grew up, music wasn’t thought to be a great career choice. You worked somewhere until you retired. Today music has so many more choices. So much you can do with it. I’m so glad you stuck with it!

T: At this juncture what else could I do? So…it’s too late to stop. I wonder if it’s easier or harder to do music.

M: What do you mean? Someone breaking in or where you are now?

T: Just doing a living at it. I wonder if it’s easier or harder because I’ve done it for so long. If somebody was starting now, it could be harder now than before. I’m grandfathered in. It’s tough. People are expecting free music on the internet and for those of us writing songs to make a living, it makes it tough.

M: Yeah it is.

T: But at the same token, there are more avenues for music, so maybe it evens out.

M: Somebody told me once that music will save the world.

T: Well...Maybe…(He laughs.)

M: I don’t know. (He laughs.)

T: That would set my expectations too high. I’m about entertaining people. Saving the world I will leave that to political and religious leaders. I would hope it would have done that already. We must be in a holding pattern. (We laugh.) I guess we have time.

M: Were you self taught or did you take lessons?

T: Self taught.

M: What would you recommend for the future artists of tomorrow?

T: Write your own material. Find your own voice. Learn to read music is well and fine. But, you have to put a feeling in people’s heart and I don’t think they teach you that at music school. I think they teach the mechanics of music. The nice mixture of the tune. I just think that writing songs, that helped me a lot. I always urge young bands to write their own material and find their own voice.

M: What do you think makes a good song?

T: A good song is something that you whistle at the water cooler at work. You just find yourself singing along to a song. It doesn’t have to be complicated. I like music that is simple and soulful. That puts me at 180 degrees from what most people like today. But, oh well. My favorite band is Booker T and the MG’s. They are a simple soulful band. I don’t like complicated music. As far as popular culture, I’m on the outside looking in. As an artist, I’m on the outside looking out.

M: That’s a line, I’m telling you. Anything you want to tell me?

T: Just thank you so much for your interest in the blues.

M: I wouldn’t be musically where I am without blues, and blues open mics, and my blues musician friends. I try to write country music. But, I wouldn’t be anywhere without the blues.

T: It’s the root of it all, isn’t it?

M: It is. You can sing the blues however you want. It’s how you are feeling and I would never sing the same song the same way twice.

T: You are right. The operative word is feeling. Feeling is what it’s all about.

M: I love the blues. And I look forward to actually meeting you.

T: See you tomorrow Monica.

M: Bye Tinsley.

T: Bye Monica.



You may also enjoy reading Tinsley's CD review by J. Blake: Tinsley Review

Thank you for reading American Blues News!

Copyright © 2009 Copyright Monica L. Yasher. All Rights Reserved.
Photograph Copyright © 2009 Maureen Ceidro. All Rights Reserved.

Los Angeles, Magic Sam and Otis Rush - Giants of the Blues, Jerry Rosen

I have to admit it; my favorite blues CDs were recorded before 1970. Most of the best blues band CDs were recorded between 1950 and 1970. The Cobra recordings, the Chess catalog and anything recorded by the three Kings, stand out at the pinnacle of recorded blues. However, I want to concentrate on two CDs that do not fall into this group. Magic Sam moved north to Chicago in the early 50’s and recorded a few sides before he was drafted. He went AWOL, spent some time behind bars, and then started tearing up the Chicago club scene in the early 60’s. Regardless of the quality of his early recordings, everything he did is inspirational and needs to be heard. Sam has influenced every important blues guitarist (and thousands of unimportant ones, like yours truly) from the 60’s to the present. I highly recommend Magic Sam Live one side was recorded (unprofessionally, on a tape recorder) in Chicago nightclubs during the early 60’s and the other side was recorded at the 69 Ann Arbor Blues festival. It is amazing to hear the material he recorded in the early 60’s and realize this was before Clapton, Bloomfield et.al If I had to recommend one electric blues CD, it would be Sam’s West Side Soul, which was recorded by Delmark in the late 60’s. This is a studio CD, but it captures, brilliantly, the essence of Chicago blues. Sam was at the top of his game for this session and his supporting players were the best. Aside from his outstanding gospel tinged vocals and his excellent guitar work, Sam conveyed a total joy for playing the music. The music moved him to another plane and he had the ability to take the listener with him. For my money, his version of “I Need You So Bad” is one of the best recorded blues shuffles in history.  It is a laid back, yet propulsive tune in which he expertly uses space to make his point.  Too many blues guitarists think that the more notes you play, the better.  But just the opposite is true.  It is the space between the notes and the vocals that creates the tension that gives blues its power.  His singing and soloing on this tune is nothing short of spectacular and every time I listen to it, I marvel at the natural brilliance of Sam’s playing.  Another classic song on the CD is his cover of “I Found a New Love.”  When he sings, “Well, I found a new love, I won’t have to cry no more,” you believe him.  Sam and Rush were absolute masters of minor key blues and this tune his a classic example.

Sam’s version of  “Sweet Home Chicago,” a song that has been covered to death, set the standard for this tune and his playing on his version has had an enormous influence on generations of blues guitarists.  Again, it is his mastery of space, mixed with lyrical riffs and his tremolo vocals that elevate this standard to heights that have not been reached since.  Every song on “West Side Soul” is a gem and if you don’t own this CD, I urge you to get on Amazon and buy it today.  Sadly, Sam died in 1969 and so this was his last CD.  Fortunately, a number of years ago, Universal released a series of DVDs called “The American Folk Blues Recordings.”  There is actually some footage of Magic Sam on one of these discs.  While I recommend buying the entire collection, if you can’t afford it, just go to You Tube and watch the live footage of Sam.  It starts with an interview he did, for German television, while on a bus in Europe.  Then it cuts to his performance.  I won’t try to describe it, but it is priceless.

Otis Rush is one of the true musical geniuses of the past hundred years.  Not only has he been an amazing guitarist and truly gifted vocalist, but he has also written some of the greatest, most influential songs.  Rush’s “All the Loving, I Miss Loving,” which was covered by Clapton and Mayall, on their famous “Beano” Bluesbreaker album, is perhaps the most significant electric blues song of the 20^th century.  Clapton and Mayall’s CD is considered to be the one that truly brought blues to the American masses and catapulted Clapton to God-like status.  But, the tune is 100% due to Rush and it is a travesty that he didn’t get more credit.  Rush also penned the classic “Double Trouble,” which, in two words, sums up what the blues is all about.  So many blues tunes are just of the variety – “my baby left me, now what am I going to do” – and while this certainly gives everyone the blues, from time to time, there is also economic blues.  In “Double Trouble” Rush sings  “some of this generation is millionaires, I ain’t got decent clothes to wear.”  People tend to forget that blues was a musical way of dealing with hard time.  The blues were not generic for Rush; he lived the blues every day of his life.  In his haunting “So Many Roads, so Many Trains to Ride,” Rush sings “ I was standing at my window, when I heard the whistle blow, I was standing at my window, when I heard that whistle blow, well it sounded like a Straight Line, but it was  B & O.”  When you listen to the song, you can literally picture Rush looking, forlorn, out at the train yard.  Folks, this is what elevates art to a level beyond what the average artist can accomplish.  There is a lot of Otis Rush on You Tube.  Check it out.

However, my purpose in this post is to write about Rush’s Right Place, Wrong Time CD,  which contains the excellent blues tune he wrote with the same name.   This CD was released in 1970, before Dr. John recorded a song with this very title.  Did Dr. John steal the title from Rush?  That is anybody’s guess, but he sure made a hell of a lot more money off it than Rush made from his tune.  The Rush CD features excellent musicians, tight arrangements and Rush at his very best.  There is little doubt that this CD is Otis Rush’s best, post 60’s work.  His playing on it is full of drive and passion.  His guitar work is both stinging and tortured.  His version of the Ike Turner tune “Tore Up” puts him at the very top of his (or anyone else’s) game.  There is no guitarist alive today who could touch Rush’s playing on this tune.  His instrumental cover of “I Wonder Why,” is basically a lesson on how to play blues with restraint and nuance.  His version of “A Rainy Night in Georgia” is as good as any that has been recorded.  Rush shows he is master of slow blues on “Right Place, Wrong Time” and “Three Times a Fool.”   This CD was supposed to give Rush a second chance at a bigger time career, but, alas, it wasn’t to be.  The CD was basically shelved by Capital Records.  Fortunately, the great indie label High Tone released it years later and can be bought on Amazon. 

In many ways, Sam and Rush are tragic figures in the blues.  Sam died of a bad heart at the age of 32, just as he was on verge of achieving wider success.  He had recently stolen the show at the Ann Arbor blues festival and had toured Europe and the west coast.  Soon after these successes, he died in bed, holding his guitar.  Rush is still alive, but he has never achieved anywhere near the fame and fortune he deserves.  Rush’s work has been covered by some of the most successful rock/blues artists and he has been an inspiration to Clapton and many others.  Rush is a musical genius and it is a travesty that he has gone unnoticed to all but the knowledgeable blues fans.  Fortunately, there are many You Tube videos featuring Rush, some of which capture him near his best.  The one Rush video that stands out above all  others, is also from the American Folk Blues series.  It features Rush singing his biggest hit “I Can’t Quit You” (written for him by Willie Dixon).  He holds the opening vocal note for, what seems like an entire minute, and it is riveting.  This is how blues, real blues (not the contemporary version with mind numbing soloing and mediocre vocals) was meant to be played.  I hope that young people, who are getting into blues, go back to Rush and/or Sam (or, of course, any of the greats from the 50’s and 60’s) and learn how to do it right.  As Isaac Newton said  “If I have seen father than others, it is because I was standing on the shoulders of giants.”  One neds to learn from the masters.

People who liked this article also liked: JT Ross, The Harmonica Boss
Copyright: If you wish to reprint a portion of this article please contact the author at jssrecords@aol.com

Los Angeles, My Successes and Failures Running a Blues Label, Jerry Rosen

I’m a 55 year old college math professor and my two main passions in life are blues and the New York (football) Giants.  In this article, I’ll speak to the first passion.  Why should you care?  As a complete neophyte in the independent music world, I started a blues label, got distribution, found a booking agency for two of my bands and learned about some of the hard cold realities of trying to make it in the record business with limited resources.

When I was a kid, I virtually lived in the Fillmore East.  My favorite bands were the blues rockers, such as Johnny Winter, Allman Brothers, Ten Years After, Paul Butterfield, Hendrix, Clapton, etc. Thanks to Bill Graham, I also got to see BB, Albert and Buddy (not at the same time) and was forever hooked on blues.  Blues is really the only music I listen to when I’m alone and there is no greater blues lover than me.  The fact that I play is secondary to my love for the music.

I played guitar through college, but put it down in the late 70's.  In 1995, I was in a music store in Santa Monica, browsing through the blues CDs, when a guy standing next to me suggested I buy Magic Sam’s West Side Soul and the Wells’/Guy Hoodoo Man CD.  That was it!  I was back into the blues in a major way.  I listened to those CDs over and over and over and couldn’t believe the sheer, raw power they were putting out.  I traded my old Martin (a huge mistake), for a so-so Les Paul and started playing again. For about three years I led my own band.   In 1998, I started attending weekend jam sessions at a club called the New Safari Club in the “hood” (aka South Central Los Angeles).  The master of ceremonies was a bass player named “Oklahoma” Ollie.  Ollie put me in the house band and every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, I spent six hours playing and watching blues.

                                                                                                                                     

LA had a booming blues and jazz scene in the 40’s and 50’s, which started slowing down in the 60’s.  Many musicians moved to LA from around the country and when they could no longer support themselves with music, they joined the working class.  But, on a typical night, at least a dozen people would come to the club to sing and/or play guitar. One of these people was a younger guy who went by the moniker Little Hank, later known as South Side Slim (I’ll refer to him as Slim).  He reminded me a bit of Magic Sam; he had a similar vibrato thing happening in his vocals and he played guitar a bit like Sam too.  Slim always put on a good show.  I put Slim in my band and we started playing together all over the greater LA/Long Beach area.  Eventually, we got the “bright” idea to start a record label.  I found a few investors and we were off and running.  The idea was to record some of the people I had met at the Safari Club.  Many of the people there had played with the likes of T. Bone Walker, Albert King, Albert Collins, Percy Mayfield, Pee Wee Clayton, and many others.  Two of the better-known names we recorded were Smokey Wilson (who owned the Pioneer Club in South Central) and Deacon Jones (who was Freddie King’s keyboardist in the 70’s).                                                                                                                                           

The label was called South Side Records and our first release was Slim’s “Five Steps.”  The CD featured Slim singing and playing his original numbers, but it also featured Deacon Jones and the backing band was also from the South Central area.  The CD received excellent reviews and we landed a distribution deal.  Our second release was called “More Blues From the South Side” and it had Smokey Wilson doing five numbers.  I also found a female singer Mary Dukes who joined my band and we also recorded a CD.  The distributor ordered enough copies of our releases to give us a decent start and the various blues magazines helped us with nice reviews and stories about our artists.                               

But there were problems.  I couldn’t get a national booking agent for Slim or Dukes and that proved to be frustrating.  There is a belief that you have to pay your dues in blues.  Meaning, you have to be “out there” doing endless numbers of gigs, for years at a time, gradually building a following, until bigger labels or booking agencies will consider you.  But things are considerably more expensive now than in the 50’s or 60’s, and opportunities for playing blues on the road are more limited.  I called every major booking agency, spoke to the head of each one of them, and the story was always the same:  they can’t take on a band that does not command a large salary, because the booking fee is 10%.  While I could understand this on an intellectual level, it seemed to me that it would restrict blues to people with enough money to weather the myriad of expenses necessary to record and tour.  I could see for myself from following the national blues scene that this was impacting the type of emerging blues artist.  One has read the stories of how Bruce Iglauer started Alligator on $1500 (in the early 70’s) by taking Hound Dog Taylor on the road, hitting a lot of college towns.  This is no longer feasible, unless you have huge financial backing.

However, I did manage to land a mid-level booking agency by offering them 20% (you have to be creative).  In the summer of 2002, they booked Slim and Dukes into a few major festivals on the east coast (N. Atlantic and Pocono) and also booked them on month-long tours along the Atlantic Coast.  As you can imagine, this was an enormous expense for my backers and myself, because vans had to be rented and blues clubs don't really cover motel expenses for no name bands.  But we did the tours (I toured with Dukes) and it was amazing to think that, just in a few years, people who had been playing in total obscurity were now being seen by thousands of people.  The tours went well and the bands were well received, but the expenses tended to diminish some of the excitement I felt.  By then, my investors were getting anxious and the financial fallout during the post 9/11 era was damaging. 

My distributor, City Hall Records, was a solid national one who got us into most of the chains and dealt with a large number of smaller regional distributors.  However, Tower Records was the only chain that took our CDs in nationally.  Borders, Best Buy, Barnes and Noble, Sam Goody, and others, only took us in regionally and so we didn’t have enough CDs in the stores to cover expenses.  My investors refused to put up more money if there wasn't enough product in the stores to at least have a chance of making back the investment.  I was caught between a rock and a hard place.  The distributor claimed that it was the label’s job to create interest and that it wasn’t necessary for product to be out there.  Eventually, Tower Records went under and that was pretty much the end of my financial involvement in the label.

But, one of our goals was to put out black blues and give deserving black blues artists a chance to play their music and get some publicity.  In this regard, we were successful.  Dozens of South Central artists played on our CDs, gigged with us, and were written up in blues publications.  Slim took ownership of the label in 2005 and has kept it going and carrying forth our original plan.  He has found people to help release CDs, but without a large amount of money, it is virtually impossible to make any.                    

Large retail chains that sell CDs won’t deal with you if you don’t have a huge budget for promotion.  Furthermore, blues radio is quite limited and doesn’t reach nearly enough people to have an impact on CD sales.  Of course, CD sales are down in general and so it is even harder than ever to sell CDs.  In blues, it is vitally important the artists tour because this obviously brings in publicity and is also the main way for bands to sell CDs.  But the number of blues clubs is shrinking and the pay scale is quite low.  Only very well known bands, on major labels such as Alligator, Blind Pig, Telarc, etc., are able to find booking agencies capable of booking decent tours.  So this Catch 22 of "no label = no publicity and no publicity = no label" permeates the blues world.  This means there is no chance of making money by playing blues unless you have a bunch of it to start off.  Consequently blues rarely attracts the type of people that made it so great in the 40’s and 50’s.  People like Muddy, the Kings, Wolf, Sam, Rush, James, Koko Taylor, Guy, et al, went into blues, in part, because they could make a living at it.  This is no longer possible for many talented people.  I believe that those who care about sustaining this art form need to think of ways to find and support talent in their formative years.  I believe there are ways to do this, and it would be interesting to continue this discussion.

Copyright This article is owned by Jerry Rosen

 

Los Angeles, Interview With Bob Margolin, By Jerry Rosen

Bob Margolin has been one of the most active blues musicians in the world during the past forty years. Here is a brief summary of his career. Many more details are available at his highly informative website www.bobmargolin.com. Muddy Waters invited Bob to join his legendary band in 1973. Muddy was impressed with Bob’s mastery of the “Old School Chicago Blues” style. Anyone who knows blues and has heard Bob play will testify to this. Bob was with Muddy until 1980.

Bob supported himself as an independent blues artist in the 80’s. During this time, he did special shows with the likes of James Cotton, Taj Mahal, Etta James, Stevie Ray Vaughn, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Johnny Winter, George Thorogood and many others. Starting in the 90’s, opportunities for independent blues bands were starting to decrease and Bob turned to recording as a means to maintain and elevate his career. He recorded well-received CDs for the labels: Power House, Alligator, Telarc and Blind Pig during this decade. In 1994, Bob began playing with some of Muddy’s old band members in the Muddy Waters Tribute Band. This enterprise produced award winning blues music; it also gave many deserving blues artists a chance to make some money and extend their careers. Bob has been nominated for and won many awards. Of particular note are his Handy Award for guitar in 2005 and his Blues Music Award for guitar in 2008. Bob was also instrumental in helping Muddy’s son Big Bill Morganfield launch his career in the late 90’s. Bob has played regularly with the legendary Pinetop Perkins who is still going strong (Pinetop was one of Muddy’s piano players). Bob can currently be seen with The Bob Margolin Allstars who, over the years, have featured James Cotton, Carey Bell, Jerry Portnoy, Willie “Big Eyes” Smith, Calvin “Fuzz” Jones, Bob Stroger, David Maxwell and Mookie Brill. Bob is also a regular columnist for Blues Revue magazine. One wonders how he finds the time for all this.

I would like to preface my interview with Bob with some personal experiences I have had with him because I believe these do a better job addressing his true character than merely listing his many accomplishments. I first met Bob over the Internet in the late 90’s. I had recently started playing blues (after a fifteen-year break) and had my own band. I was surprised that Bob took the time to communicate with a complete unknown. He gave me valuable advice about running a blues band and recording. When I started a blues label (South Side Records) in 1999, he was very generous with input on this endeavor as well. Bob invited me to come see his touring band at the Blue Café in Long Beach, California and he told me to bring my guitar. The place was packed with well over two hundred people. During his first set, I was mesmerized by the sheer power and professionalism of his trio. I was impressed with Bob’s ability to fill out the sound with only three players. His vocals, slide, rhythm and lead work gave the music a propulsive feeling that made it sound like a much larger band. There was a young guy playing bass who also sang a few songs; he played two solo numbers on slide guitar and played some harmonica too. It was clear that Bob was giving him a chance to show his stuff. In the second set, after a few numbers, Bob stepped up to the mike and said, “In the house is one of L.A.’s top blues guitarists, Jerry Rosen.” He then called me up and asked if I wanted sing a few numbers. I was too scared to sing, but Bob let me solo on four tunes. Up to that point, I had just been playing in dive bars in remote areas of Los Angeles. I got a standing ovation when I was finished (mostly because the backing band was amazing) and that had to be one of the high points in my life.

The next time Bob was in town, he was playing at the Café Boogaloo in Hermosa Beach, California with Pinetop Perkins. He invited me along with my band mate South Side Slim to sit in with his band. He let Slim sing two songs to a packed house and we were completely stoked having played with one of the greatest blues legends of the 20^th (and 21^st) century.

A few years later, Bob invited me, my singer Mary Dukes, and singer/harp player JT Ross to come see him play with the Muddy Water Tribute band at Pepperdine University in Malibu (probably the richest setting for a blues concert you’ll ever encounter). After their set, Bob invited us backstage, showed us the touring bus and spent at least an hour talking to us about blues. Anyone who reads Bob’s column in Blues Revue knows he often writes about undiscovered talents in an effort to give them some publicity. He started the VizzTone label group as a vehicle for helping artists release their own CDs. He is the personification of someone who has given back to the music that has given him such a successful career.

Below is a short interview I did with Bob. Even though he was on the road, and clearly busy, he took the time to answer my questions.

JR: What were some of the things you learned from your time with Muddy Waters that have helped you as a bandleader?

BM: Treat the band with respect and friendliness. Invite them to communicate. Never mess with anyone's money.

JR: What specific musical influences did Muddy’s music have on your own?

BM: Before I met him, he was my favorite musician. I wanted to play Old School Chicago Blues and I still do. But by getting into his band, I learned it directly from him onstage.

JR: What is your opinion of the blues music scene today?

BM: It is artistically exciting -- there are great Blues musicians emerging with talent and ambition. It is also economically challenging -- it is harder than ever to build a career and make a living.

JR: What are some of the pros and cons of recording for an indie label, such as Alligator (or any of the other ones you have been on)?

BM: A label may finance the recording, give the artist an advance, take care of distribution, advertising, promotion, and lend the artist any prestige that the label has accumulated from putting out good music. On the other hand, the label will want to recoup its money before the artists gets any, and take a big share of the profits. Also, some labels will try to influence the music and create uncomfortable pressures on the artist. That can be good if the artist needs the guidance or bad if he doesn't.

JR: Why did you form your label VizzTone? What have you learned from this endeavor?

BM: It started out having a partner in forming my own record company, Steady Rollin' Records, to put out my In North Carolina album in 2007. Then we took on another partner with more record company experience. Then we realized we could bring this service to other artists. VizzTone is not a label; it's a label group. The artist has his own label and produces his own CD, but we provide artist services in partnership and take less of a cut than a label would.

JR: I’ve heard it said that blues music must expand to stay alive. Some people say that the I IV V model is dead. What is your opinion on this?

BM: Who's counting? I doubt there's anyone analyzing the music for chords and rejecting anything with a simple Blues progression. Blues never was mainstream popular, and a lot of people either don't care for it or aren't even interested in hearing it. But those who love it really love it a lot and sustain the scene.

JR: Why do think there is such a limited market (even compared to jazz and classical) for blues music?

BM: Blues isn't marketed like rock or pop music. You still see almost no Blues on TV. The Internet provides great access to it but it's still a "limited market." It's amazing that Blues doesn't just fade away, but as in the last answer, those who love it really love it a lot.

JR: What are some of the difficulties for a working, touring blues band?

BM: It's much harder to book and play a tour that takes a musician from city to city with only a few days off and have the band make more money than they spend to travel and do business. There are less weekday gigs than there used to be. Some bands are able to do it. I prefer to work on weekends and then come home for weekdays anyway, and I've been out here long enough so that it sustains me.

JR: Can a band support itself from touring revenue?

BM: "A band" is general. If it's a huge band with a lot of people in it that needs expensive transportation and accommodations. If it's 3-5 people, maybe. And they have to be decently paid for gigs and sell lots of their CD's from the bandstand. If they become very popular and can draw people to their venues, a lot of money can at least pass through their hands on the way to paying their bills.

JR: What advice do you have for aspiring blues artists who have yet to land a label deal or secure a booking agency?

BM: Do it yourself. Try to use the Internet to stay as visible as possible. But most important is to play music that is so deep and powerful and exciting that the soulful Blues audience will want to hear them. That's the hardest part; they've got to really stand out artistically.

JR: What are some of the highlights of your career?

BM: Well, you could take a list of awards and big gigs from my website, but for me the highlight is living a life of playing my best music for soulful people.

copyright Jerry Rosen To purchase the rights to reprint this article please email jssrecords@aol.com

CHICAGO: Cool River Thursday Night Jam

The following is a re-post.
Thursday night Jams are still happening.

Thursday Night Jam in the Blues Capitol

Chicago.

Twist & the Groove Machine “House Band”

A new blues club has opened in the southwest suburbs of Chicago called the Cool River Draught House and Eatery. www.myspace.com/coolriv The “Cool Rivers” as it is referred to by the blues artists that frequent its stage is the hippest, coolest blues place ever! Mike Maracich AKA “Wizard” is the proprietor. He has turned an area of suburbia into a Mecca for blues performing artists and fans. Yours truly Included. I first found out about the CR through a listing on Craigslist. I answered an ad for blues bands and within 10 minutes the phone rang. It was the manager. We spoke at length about the club and the various artists I have played with. Two days later I walked in the door and was pleasantly surprised by the friendly ambiance and staff. The walls are covered with photos of the Wizard posing with hundreds of different artists.

The club is large and can hold about 300 people. The stage is very accommodating for most size acts. It may become a little cramped if the act has a full horn section though. CR has full sound and light systems. It even has a bullet microphone for the Mississippi saxophone players. Al Ortega handles the duties of sound engineer and also establishment manager. If you play there and need something ask Al. If he doesn’t have it he’ll get it, including spare batteries for my digital camera. Thanks Al.

The CR has an open jam session every Thursday night. It was intended for all levels of musicianship, but it quickly turned into an almost all pro session. I have been to every jam session except two and I can attest to that. I see semi-pro to professional players there and somehow I don’t think the semi pro player cares about giving their spot to the pros. I do not know of any other venue that has this many pro players hanging out and rubbing elbows with fans and musicians alike.

Last Thursday night, May 14, was no exception. LV banks and I arrive to “Twist and the Groove Machine’s” blues version of “Spooky”. At the risk of them asking the Wizard for a pay raise, I have to give them their kudos. They are an excellent band. We sat at the usual table in front of the sound board. It’s either Trisha or Theresa that brings us cranberry juice. LV has me stuck on that stuff. The band starts pumping out an excellent arrangement of Sweet Home Chicago when through the side door walks Eddie C. Campbell http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FDY-7vokPE&feature=related . Twist handles the vocals with ease. Jeff on drums and Doug on bass lay down a strictly down home groove while Al on guitar and Jimmy on keys accent the groove. At the conclusion of Sweet Home Johnny drummer makes his appearance. http://www.johnnydrummermusic.com/ . Johnny sits down at the table with us.

Around 10:30 Billy Branch comes in through the front door. http://billybranch.com/

LV and I are called up and pound out a couple of songs. We had Bobby Baker on bass a recent transplant from the east coast. Frank held the beat on drums. They both are also excellent players. Bobby Baker is also a very accomplished vocalist.

After our session Twist’s band reassembles to back up Eddie. Eddie rips off a version of summertime that was extraordinary. He utilized his incredible vocals and cutting melodic guitar riffs with great ease. Summertime is one of my all-time favorite songs and his version is now in my top ten.

Billy Branch took the stage next and with one stomp of his foot the place exploded. Billy Branch is one of the top five harp players in the world. He coaxes sound out of a harp that I can only wonder how in the world he does it. I know he was educated by the best, Big Walter Horton, James Cotton, Junior Wells and Carey Bell, but he takes the Mississippi saxophone to an entirely different level. Big Dog Mercer handled some excellent slide guitar work. Al Spears was graciuos enough to give him his spot for a few tunes.

Some of the other artists in attendance were, Tenry Johns, Billy King, Big Dog Mercer, Marc Flanagan, Mike Gorosh, Clem Bashir, Johnny Isit and many more.

If you ever get a chance to go to the “Cool Rivers” GO!

Cool River Is Located at 12622 west 159th Street Homer Glen, Illinois 60491 708-301-8006

Blues Me Or Lose Me,

Terrance "Gatorman" Lape

http://www.livebluesworld.com/profile/TerranceLape
My Cd "Mark of The Gator" is available for digital download at:
http://mp3.rhapsody.com/terry-lape/feeds.html