Jimmy Adler Grease Alley Sprucewood Records Jimmy Adler is from the Pittsburgh area. His early influences included Eric Clapton and The Rolling Stones and that led to discovering the music of B.B. King, Elmore James, and Jimmy Reed. He later discovered T-Bone Walker, Duke Robillard, and Little Charlie Baty. Guitarist Adler formed his own band […]
Anthony Geraci (and The Boston Blues All-Stars) Fifty Shades of Blue Delta Groove Music Anthony Geraci, piano; is a founding member of Sugar Ray and The Bluetones and has been with them for thirty-five years. He appears on all of the Bluetones recordings beginning with 1989’s “Knockout” on the Varrick label produced by Ron Levy. […]
Gary Clark, Jr. Live Warner Brothers Records The Blues has found another young gunslinger guitarist to take our genre to a new and younger audience and his name is Gary Clark Jr. Clark is steeped in the Texas Blues tradition that includes Stevie Ray Vaughan and Freddie King. Clark is a thirty year old Austin […]
Billy Boy Arnold The Blues Soul of Billy Boy Arnold Stony Plain Records This new album produced by Duke Robillard features The Duke Robillard Band backing up the legendary singer, songwriter and harmonica master Billy Boy Arnold. In Chicago 1948 a nervous thirteen year old Arnold knocked on the front door of his idols home and […]
Rachelle Coba Mother Blues Mono Records This album is an introduction to Rachelle Coba. These are band performances but Coba’s voice and guitar are upfront as she fingerpicks her Stratocaster. The results are an intimate look at an emerging artist. All of the songs except one were written by Coba who is one helluva songwriter. […]
Liz Mandeville Heart ‘O’ Chicago Blue Kitty Music This is Liz Mandeville’s sixth album and second on her own Blue Kitty label. Mandeville’s first four albums were on Earwig Records including 2008’s “Red Top”. Her last recording was 2012’s “Clarksdale”. Mandeville was bitten by the Blues bug when she moved from Wisconsin to Chicago in […]
The Chris O’Leary Band Live at Blues Now! Basel, Switzerland Fidellis/Vizztone Chris O’Leary spent his early career as a vocalist for Levon Helm and The Barnburners. The Chris O’ Leary Band’s first cd “Mr. Used to Be” received a 2011 Blues Music Award nomination for Best New Artist Debut. They won the Blues Blast Award […]
Otis Clay and Johnny Rawls Soul Brothers Catfood Records Soul Brothers Otis Clay and Johnny Rawls are quite a pair. Otis Clay has recorded for Cotillion, Hi-Records, Bullseye, Blind Pig, and the Echo record imprints. He is a 2013 Blues Hall of Fame inductee. Rawls was O.V. Wright’s musical director and guitarist and his last […]
Marcia Ball The Tattooed Lady and The Alligator Man Alligator Records Marcia Ball is a Texas and Louisiana roots music icon. This new album is her fifth for Alligator Records and seventeenth album overall. Ball has been nominated for 42 Blues Music Awards and has won nine times. She has been “Piano Player of The […]
Johnny Hoy and The Bluefish The Dance Self-produced In the 1990’s Johnny Hoy and The Bluefish recorded three great albums for Tone-Cool Records; 1995’s “Trolling The Hootchy”, 1996’s “You’re Going To Loose Your Head”, and 1998’s “Walk The Plank”. Their last album was 2006’s self-produced “Film Noir Angel”. Johnny Hoy and The Bluefish are from […]
My Darling Clementine The Reconciliation ? Five Head Entertainment My Darling Clementine is a Birmingham, England based country music group lead by the husband and wife duo of Michael Weston King and Lou Dalgleish. They are inspired by the music of George Jones and Tammy Wynette; Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton; and Johnny Cash and […]
Ruthie Foster Promise of a Brand New Day Blue Corn Music Ruthie Foster, the former gospel singer turned Blues singer, won the 2010 Blues Music Award for Contemporary Blues Female Artist of The Year. She followed that up by winning Traditional Blues Female Artist of The Year in 2011, 2012, and again in 2013. Her […]
Duke Robillard Calling All Blues! Stony Plain Records In 1967 Duke Robillard formed “Roomful of Blues”. Ten years later their self titled first album was released, and although Duke Robillard left in 1979, he began the band that is still in existence today. Count Basie once called them “the hottest blues band I’ve ever heard.” […]
Monkey Junk Tiger in Your Tank Stony Plain Records Monkey Junk is an Ottawa, Ontario based blues band that won the 2010 Blues Music Award for Best New Artist Debut. This album is a re-issue of their debut recording originally released in 2009. They have three albums on Stony Plain Records their latest being 2013’s […]
Rob McCoury The 5 String Flame Thrower McCoury Music Rob McCoury is the son of Del McCoury and the banjo player in The Del McCoury Band. “Kansas City Railroad Blues” is the hard driving vehicle that sets the stage for this album of mostly banjo instrumentals. The song credits include Earl Scruggs, Don Reno, J.D. […]
Grady Champion Bootleg Whiskey Malaco Records This is Grady Champion’s sixth studio recording and first for Malaco Records. Malaco is the southern soul blues label that brought us Bobby “Blue” Bland, Little Milton, Johnnie Taylor and others. Producer Tommy Couch Jr. heads up the Jackson, Ms. Studio and has given Champion the full Malaco treatment. […]
Rob Stone Gotta Keep Rollin’ Vizztone Label Group In 1993 Rob Stone, harp and vocals, began touring with veteran Chicago bluesman Sam Lay. They toured worldwide for four years. Also included in Lay’s band were Chris James, guitar; and Patrick Rynn, bass; and they have been with Stone ever since. Stone’s last release “Back Around […]
Rod Piazza and The Mighty Flyers Emergency Situation Blind Pig Records The Mighty Flyers are the award winning Chicago styled blues band originally formed in 1980 by Rod and Honey Piazza. In 1998 Rod won the Blues Music Award for Best Instrumentalist – Harmonica. My favorite Mighty Flyer recordings are the three albums they recorded […]
Jim Byrnes St. Louis Times Black Hen Music Jim Byrnes is an actor (the Wiseguy and Highlander television series) and a musician. Born in St. Louis he developed a strong appreciation for the blues ever since he first picked up a guitar in 1964. Since relocating to Canada, Byrnes has worked numerous times with Steve […]