Antone’s 50th Presents

Chicago Bound

Blues Till 2 Recording Company

When Antone’s called upon their family of blues legends to put together a four-disc set to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Antone’s Nightclub, Antone’s 50 Years of the Blues (New West Records, 2025), of course they came up with more blues than they could possibly fit into one glorious Libera Award–winning collection. It soon became clear this embarrassment of blues riches was the start of their next project.

Set for release on August 28, 2026, Antone’s 50th Presents Chicago Bound: Honoring Muddy, Cliff & Blue (Blues Till 2 Recording Co.) caps the club’s 50th anniversary celebration while pointing toward its future. The album cover, illustrated by longtime club illustrator Diana Ray, shows a lively Chicago-bound tour bus packed with musicians racing to the next gig.

Live-to-tape recordings produced by Jacob Sciba and Zach Ernst include tracks by blues heavyweights John Primer, Doyle Bramhall II, Kim Wilson & the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Anson Funderburgh, Lurrie Bell, and “Miss” Lavelle White. Other highlights feature a Bobby “Blue” Bland classic cut in Memphis by powerhouse Houston vocalist Kam Franklin and backed by Bobby’s son, drummer Rodd Bland; and a deep cut, a walloping shuffle, led by Louisiana torchbearers Ivan Neville and CC Adcock with Keith Richards and Ron Wood, featuring Jimmie Vaughan.

Fittingly, album co-producer Zach Ernst conceived the project the night John Primer recorded a duo version of Jimmy Rogers’ classic “Chicago Bound.” As Ernst explains, beyond the song’s deeper meaning — the journey through music cities by African American artists seeking a better life and better pay than they could find in the South at the time — a road-trip record felt like a creative way for Antone’s to honor the great musicians who live on the road. It also traces a spiritual route from central Louisiana, home of Clifton Chenier’s music, through Houston, Austin, Memphis, and on to Chicago.

Mississippi native John Primer first visited Antone’s Nightclub in 1979 as the new guitarist for Muddy Waters, whose band at the time included guitarist Jimmy Rogers, also a member of the primal group in the early ’50s. Primer salutes Rogers here via the title track, “Chicago Bound,” backed on harmonica by Steve Bell, son of Muddy’s longtime harp player Carey Bell, as guitarist Primer sings, “When I left out of Georgia in 1934. my baby, she begged me, Daddy please don’t go. But I left that town, you know I left that town, when I left out of Georgia, I was Memphis bound. When I stayed in Memphis in 1939, the woman I was lovin wouldn’t pay me no mind, I left that town I left that town, when I left Memphis you know I was St. Louis bound. I didn’t need no steam heat by my bed, the little girl I had, she kept it charry red, I left that town, I left that town, I left St. Louis, you know I was Chicago bound.”

“One Step at a Time,” sung by Henry Walker in the 1950s, features organist Ivan Neville and producer, guitarist, and vocalist CC Adcock, joined by guitarists Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood on slide; accordionist Steve Riley; Jimmie Vaughan on harmonica and backing vocals; bassist Chuck Bush; rubboard player Curley Taylor; and drummer “Big” Robert St. Julien, as Adcock chants, “All I need from you…one step at a time, gimme your love, I’ll give you mine, one step at a time.”

“I Wouldn’t Treat a Dog the Way You Treated Me” was first sung by Bobby “Blue” Bland in 1974. Written by Michael Price, Dan Walsh, Steve Barri, and Michael Omartian, the song is sung by vocalist Kam Franklin, with guitarists Zach Ernst and Brad Stivers; organist Archie “Hubbie” Turner; bassist Scott Bomar; drummer Rodd Bland (the son of Bobby); and a horn section including Marc Franklin, trumpet and horn arrangements; additional trumpeter Alex Schuetrumpf; and saxophonists Art Edmaiston and Tom Link, as Kam chimes, “Well, mm-hm, listen, when I was up, you would always come around, but when I needed a friend, you were nowhere to be found, I got a hole, where my heart used to be, I wouldn’t treat a dog, Oh no, the way you treated me.”

On “Give Me Back My Wig,” written by Hound Dog Taylor in 1971, the song features Doyle Bramhall II, guitarist Derek O’Brien, and drummers J.J. Johnson and Jay Moeller, as Doyle wails, “Give me back my wig, honey, let your head go bald, give me back my wig, honey let your head go bald, I really had no business, honey, buyin’ you a wig at all.”

“I’m Not Ashamed” was written by D. Robey in 1961 and appeared on the debut album from Bobby “Blue” Bland, Two Steps from the Blues. Included is a vocal from Kim Wilson, with guitarists Johnny Moeller and Billy Flynn; organist Bob Welsh; bassist Steve Kirsty; and drummer Rudy Albin. Horn arrangements include trumpeters Marc Franklin and Alex Schuetrumpf and saxophonists Art Edmaiston and Tom Link, as Kim howls, “I’m not ashamed, I’m not ashamed although you saw me cryin’, beggin’ you to take me back, although you lie, I still love you…I’m not angry cause I saw you lyin’, no matter what you do I’m gonna keep on lovin’ you.”

“Backstroke” is an instrumental written by Albert Collins and performed by guitarists Anson Funderburgh and Derek O’Brien. They are joined by organist Nick Connolly; saxophonists Mark Kazanoff and John Mills of the Texas Horns; bassist Sarah Brown; and drummer Jason Corbiere.

“The Blues Is So Big” is included as an interlude, an interview with Clifford Antone, the audio captured and presented courtesy of Denise Boudreaux and the Tomblin Family, as Cliff states, “The first music I loved was the blues, the blues is so big, you always keep learning.”

On the first single released, “Hangin’ on a Cliff,” written by Billy F. Gibbons, formerly of the band ZZ Top, Gibbons draws a distinction between hangin’ on a cliff and hangin’ out with Cliff — the former is hazardous, the latter more pleasurable. Gibbons calls this band Billy F. Gibbons and the BFG’s, as he is joined by Mike “The Drifter” Flanigan and Chris “Whipper” Layton, as Gibbons growls, “I heard you drink Muddy Water…and listen to Jimmy Reed, I heard you hanging out…”

“Act Like You Love Me” was written and performed by Jimmy Rogers in 1953 on his album Chicago Bound, featuring Little Walter and Muddy. This Lurrie Bell version was first waxed in 2023, as guitarist-vocalist Lurrie Bell is joined by guitarists Derek O’Brien and Anson Funderburgh; pianist Nick Connolly; saxophonists Mark Kazanoff and Joe Sublett; bassist Scott Nelson; and drummer Jay Moeller, as Lurrie cries, “Darlin’ act like you love me, call me on the phone sometime, I believe my time has gone, but to hear your voice would ease my worried mind.”

“Baby What’s Wrong” was written by Jimmy Reed in 1962 and included on his 1964 album Ain’t That Lovin’ You Baby. This new version is covered by 97-year-old vocalist “Miss” Lavelle White, joined by guitarist Derek O’Brien, pianist Marcia Ball, and Mark Kazanoff on harmonica, as Lavelle bursts, “Oh baby, honey what’s wrong with you? Well now ya’ don’t treat me darlin, like you used to do, I’m gonna pack my suitcase, down the road I go.”

The closer, “Got My Mojo Working,” was written by Preston “Red” Foster and first recorded by R&B singer Ann Cole in 1956. Muddy Waters learned it and recorded his own arrangement, which became one of his signature songs. It is sung by guitarist/vocalists John Primer and Lil’ Ed Williams, with pianist Sumito Ariyoshi; harmonica ace Steve Bell; bassist Rodrigo Mantovani; and drummer Kenny “Beedy Eyes” Smith, as our vocal duo croons, “Got my mojo working, but it just don’t work on you, I want to love you so bad, I don’t know what to do. Going down to Louisiana to get me a mojo hand, going down to Louisiana to get a mojo hand, I’m going to have all you women, getcha under my command.”

The breadth of talent found across the album’s ten songs is a testament to the enduring legacy of Austin’s Home of the Blues and its beloved founder Clifford Antone, who passed away in May of 2006. Antone’s 50th Presents Chicago Bound is the definitive collection to honor Muddy, Cliff & “Blue.” It doesn’t get better than this.

Richard Ludmerer

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