SEND OLD BESSIE HOME. Local blues musician Paul Kaye is looking for his 1979 Guild F-30guitar (left handed), nicknamed Old Bessie by bluesman Larry Cox. It was taken on Feb. 20 in the Portage Park/Belmont Cragin neigborhood. If you have seen the guitar or know where to find "her," please contact Paul Kaye at 773.274.8126 or at pkayeblues@gmail.com. No questions asked.
HONORING EDDIE TAYLOR. Nola Blue Records has signed local blues musician Larry Taylor and will be releasing Generations of Blues: West Side Legacy on June 16, first as a CD and then a vinyl recording. The recording is a tribute to Chicago guitar great Eddie Taylor by his children for his 100th birthday. The recording has 13 old-school songs performed by second and third generation members of the Taylor family. Eddie Taylor Jr. plays on nine of the tracks, which were recorded before his untimely death in 2019. Larry Taylor, Tim Taylor, Demetria Taylor, Edna Taylor and Brenda Taylor all perform in the Chicago area. LEARN MORE
MYSTERY MAN. The Smithsonian and Folkways are releasing a new Robert Johnson biography,Biography of a Phantom, on April 4. It is based on the research of the late folklorist Mack McCormick. They also plan a three CD/six vinyl LP release, Playing for the Man at the Door, on Aug. 4. The recordings were all made between 1958 and 1971 in an area that encompasses western Louisiana, East Texas and parts of Oklahoma and Arkansas. There are 66 never-before-heard performances that include musicians such as Lightning' Hopkins and Mance Lipscomb. LEARN MORE
GRAMMY RECAP. If you skipped the Grammys, here are the winners we care about: BEST AMERICAN ROOTS PERFORMANCE – Stomping' Ground – Aaron Neville with the Dirty Dozen Brass Band BEST AMERICANA PERFORMANCE – Made Up Mind – Bonnie Raitt BEST AMERICAN ROOTS SONG – Just Like That – Bonnie Raitt BEST TRADITIONAL BLUES ALBUM – Get on Board – Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder BEST CONTEMPORARY BLUES ALBUM – Brother Johnny – Edgar Winter SONG OF THE YEAR – Just Like That – Bonnie Raitt
And for those who said, "Who even is Bonnie Raitt?"
🙄
ONE MORE THING
The In Memoriam part of the show was particularly well done. Although I loved the Tribute to Christine McVie by Mick Fleetwood, Bonnie Raitt and Sheryl Crow, I actually think McVie's version is better.Here's Christine performing the song.
REST IN PEACE
Sammy Fender
Local guitarist Sammy Fender passed away in February, but I unfortunately have no other information.
Charlie Thomas, 85
4.7.37–1.31.23 Member of the classic doo-wop group The Drifters, who recorded memorable songs like There Goes My Baby and Under the Boardwalk. NY Times obit
OTHER NOTABLE PASSINGS
FEB 20 Bruce Barthol, 75
Original bass player for Country Joe and the Fish
Victor Brox, 81
British blues musician who was the lead singer and keyboard player for The Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation
FEB 22 Jesse Gresse, 67
Todd Rundgren guitarist
FEB 16 Chuck Jackson, 85
American R&B singer
FEB 13 Spencer Wiggins, 81
American soul singer
FEB 12 Truly the Dove, 54
American rapper for De La Soul
FEB 8 Burt Bacharach, 94
Six-time Grammy winning singer/songwriter
FEB 2 Butch Miles, 78
American jazz drummer who played with the Count Basie Orchestra (1975–1979 and 1997–2007))
FREE TICKETS!
If you didn't know, Reggie's Music Joint has been having a BLUES BRUNCH monthly for the last few months. You have already missed the first two (or did you?), but there are two more scheduled––and I have ONE PAIR OF TICKETS to giveaway for each show. The tickets also include a free breakfast brunch buffet! See the AROUND TOWN section to see how much fun the brunch was last month with Billy Flynn and Friends.
MARCH 19 BRUNCH
featuring Big Ray &
Chicago's Most Wanted
11am–2pm
Reggie's Music Joint
HOW TO ENTER SUBJECT LINE: Big Ray Brunch EMAIL BODY: Your name, email and phone ONLY ENTER RIGHT NOW
DEADLINE TO ENTER MON, MAR 13 2023 @ 5pm Winner contacted on
TUES, MAR 14
APRIL 16 BRUNCH
featuring Smiley Tillmon
Bandwith Kate Moss
11am–2pm
Reggie's Music Joint
HOW TO ENTER SUBJECT LINE: Smiley Brunch EMAIL BODY: Your name, email and phone ONLY ENTER RIGHT NOW
DEADLINE TO ENTER MON, APR 10 2023 @ 5pm Winner contacted on
TUES, APR 11
GET OUT!
Here are just a few ideas to get you off the couch. Use the online calendar if you need more.
FRI-SAT, MAR 3–4 BIRTHDAY BASH: John Primer
Rosa's Lounge When you are as cool as John Primer, of course you get to celebrate your birthday for two days
FRI, MAR 3 Freddie Dixon Band
Fernando Jones
Epiphany Center for the Arts
SAT, MAR 4 The West Madison Kings
Bailey's Bar & Grill, Tinley Park This is the great band that got me to trek all the way to Westmont.
Of course, they were backing Bob Stroger, so...
Check out the photos from Westmont in the AROUND TOWN SECTION
THURS, MAR 9 Ruthie Foster
City Winery
FRI, MAR 10 Vanessa Collier with
special guest Lil Ed
FitzGerald's, Berwyn
THURS, MAR 16 Larkin Poe
Thalia Hall
FRI, MAR 17 Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Hard Rock Casino, Gary
FRI, MAR 24 STEPPIN' INTO SPRING
Brian Lupo Band
FitzGerald's, Berwyn
SUN, MAR 26 Tommy Castro & The Painkillers
The Venue, Aurora
TUES, MAR 28 Sonny Landreth and
Cindy Cashdollar with
The Suitcase Junket
SPACE, Evanston At press time, there was only one table seat, but seated and standing tix were still available.
FRI, MAR 31 Tad Robinson
Hard Rock Casino, Gary
OBVIOUSLY... CHECK THE ONLINE CALENDAR (Didn't I just say that?) chicagoBLUESnews Online Calendar
We've got blues just about every day and every night so it's pretty easy to get your blues fix.
Know about a gig I don't?Give me a heads-up.
Updates to the calendar are made regularly––not just once a month. The listings include shows in nearby states and festivals all over the map that just look fun to me.
BE FULLY VAXXED AND GO HEAR LIVE MUSIC!
AROUND TOWN
IMO, there is no better way to spend a Sunday than going from one blues event to the next and being in bed by 9pm (don't judge)––and that is exactly what I did last month. The brunch is 11am–2pm and the jam is 3–7pm. You would almost think it was planned that way. After you take a look at the photos, you should be thrilled to know that you can do this too––on March 19 and April 16. Try it. You'll love it. SIDE NOTE: The Woodlawn Tap Blues Jam is also on the 1st Sunday of the month––in this case, this sunday!
FEB 19 2023 BLUES BRUNCH
Billy Flynn and Friends THE PHOTOS
FEB 19, 2023 BLUES JAM
with the Woodlawn Four
Woodlawn Tap THE PHOTOS
I won't say I wasn't disappointed to find out that The Headcutters were not going to make it to Chicago for this gig. But, when Bob Stroger told me that he was going to have One Touch Willie and Rockin' Eddie with him instead, I knew I would be whining about the suburbs and cheerfully making the trek. It was wonderful––just like when they were part of the Tribute to Bob Stroger at the 2022 Blues Fest. THE PHOTOS
SIDE NOTE: As suggested in the GET OUT section above, you can catch the West Madison Kings (aka Willie and Eddie and friends) Saturday at Bailey's in Tinley Park. I highly recommend it.
GET YOUR WALLETS OUT
There are a lot of great ways to part with your hard-earned cash this month that doesn't involve green beer.
Mike Zito and Albert Castiglia Blood Brothers RELEASE DATE: March 17
(Gulf Coast Records)
Van Morrison Moving on Skiffle RELEASE DATE: March 10
(Virgin Music International) Two CDs with 23 songs
Nick Schnebelen What Key Is Trouble In? RELEASE DATE: March 10
(VizzTone Label Group) In case you forgot (or never knew), this is Danielle Nicole's brother.
Ally Venable Real Gone RELEASE DATE: March 24
(Ruf Records) Here's the song she did with Buddy Guy–Texas Louisiana
The Cadillac Kings
featuring Mike Thomas Crash and Burn RELEASE DATE: February 9
(33 Jazz)
Tas Cru RIffin' The Blue RELEASE DATE: February 23
(Anne Bello Productions)
GA-20 Live in Loveland RELEASE DATE: March 17
(Karma Chief) Recorded at Plaid Room Records in Loveland, OH. Not that it matters, but am I the only one who didn't know Ohio had a Loveland? I highly recommend seeing this band live anywhere you can.
Eric Bibb Ridin' RELEASE DATE: March 24
(Stony Plain Music)
Brandon Santini Songs of Love, Money, and Misery RELEASE DATE: March 17
(Electro Glide Records)
Lousiana Red and Carey Bell Having Fun RELEASE DATE: March 24
(Jsp Records) A few years ago there was a great Tribute to Carey Bell CD released by Lurrie Bell & The Bell Dynasty, but this one, recorded in 1990, also has a bunch of Bells (Steve, Lurrie, Tyson and James) and dad Carey with Louisiana Red and Lucky Lopez Evans.
Omar and the Howlers Classic Live Performances, Vol 1: 1990s RELEASE DATE: February 10
(Big Guitar Music)
Various Bands West Florida Rhythm & Blues RELEASE DATE: March 10
(Jasmine Music) Rare recordings from when Tampa and St. Petersburg apparently had a hot scene
Skip James The Complete 1931 Sessions RELEASE DATE: March 3
(ORG Music) This is a vinyl release.
Billy Flynn and Friends Blues Today RELEASE DATE: 1997
(Easy Baby Music) OK...you will have a very hard time finding this one online or in any store. But...if you go see Billy Flynn live, you can buy one (until he runs out). Apparently his brother Mike found a pile in his closet when he was moving. It's definitely worth tracking down a copy. Billy has a LOT of talented friends and, in 1997, those friends included Pinetop Perkins, Ted Harvey, Nick Charles, Bob Stroger, Willie Kent, Dave Waldman (who you can see at the Woodlawn Tap jams), Ken Saydak and Brady Williams. Who knows? Maybe a reissue is in order.
Furry Lewis Live at the Gaslight at the Au Go Go RELEASE DATE: February 16
(Liberation Hall)
James Booker Behind the Iron Curtain plus... RELEASE DATE: March 23
(Richard Weize Archives) Five CDs with three full solo concerts from 1976 and 1977 (more than five hours of music) plus a 60-page hardcover book
The next chicagoBLUESnews
FRI, APR 7– THURS, MAY4 (Mails on THURS APR 6)
