Named by his ex boss of 15 years as 'possibly the greatest Bluesbreaker of them all'. When the boss is John Mayall and the 'all' includes Eric Clapton, Peter Green, Mick Taylor, Walter Trout and Coco Montoya, this is no lightweight accolade.

 

Texan blues guitarist Buddy Whittington has only stepped out as the leader of his own band in recent years; it's one thing polishing your reputation as a great blues guitarist but it's quite another to take on the responsibilities of writing the material and singing it, and on the evidence of this record, it's a wonder that Buddy Whittington didn't make the jump sooner.

 

 

 

The sixth annual Crescent City Blues & BBQ Festival (www.crescentcitybluesfest.com) takes place Oct. 14-16 at Lafayette Square Park in New Orleans. Admission is FREE.

 

The outstanding lineup includes Shreveport guitar shredder Kenny Wayne Shepherd, legendary soul singer Bettye LaVette, R&B soul man Mel Waiters, Louisiana blues activist Tab Benoit, honky tonk piano queen Marcia Ball, sacred steel heroes The Campbell Brothers, roots supergroup the South Memphis String Band and Mississippi blues original Super Chikan, along with many others.

 

 

 There will also be dozen vendors with the greatest assemblage of home-style barbecue to be found in New Orleans. A huge crafts fair showcases the hand-made works by artisans from throughout the Gulf South. And an interview stage gives fans an opportunity to hear from our performers about their influences.

 

The festival also features a “sports bar,” where fans can keep up with all the latest action on large-screen TVs while enjoying the music. Community radio station WWOZ-FM will broadcast the festival live on the air and on the internet at wwoz.org.

 

 

 

On Friday, Oct. 14, locals and visitors will have the chance to pitch in to the rebuilding of the Crescent City, with a house-building work day organized by the St. Bernard Project.

 

There’s also a contest to submit drawings of original artwork that will be used to grace the festival’s official t-shirt.

 

For complete details, see the festival web site, www.crescentcitybluesfest.com.

 

The Crescent City Blues & BBQ Festival is presented by the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation (www.jazzandheritage.org), the nonprofit that owns the world-famous New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell (www.nojazzfest.com). The Foundation uses the proceeds from Jazz Fest, and other revenues, for year-round programs in education, economic development and cultural events. For info, see www.jazzandheritage.org.

 

The Crescent City Blues & BBQ Festival is sponsored in part of the Louisiana Office of Tourism. Visit LouisianaTravel.com.

 

 

 

 

You Choose who you want 100% of your purchase dollars to go to:

 

A variety of Rock, Christian, County, Blues and Americana.

A little bit of something for everyone! 

All songs written for 9/11 and Military Appreciation.

Did you know that I do Custom Comic Strips and Comic Pages as gifts?

 

 

 

Forgive us for taking a self-congratulatory moment.....but we wanted to share some great news!

 

The Blues Festival E-Guide newsletter now has 26,455 subscribers!

 

And additioally we have 12,413 Facebook Friends.....!

 

Feeling pretty good about right now!  

 

Learning his return to Earth from the International Space Station might be delayed for possibly up to two months, NASA astronaut Ron Garan sings the blues from the Soyuz spacecraft that will take him home. Eventually. It's all in good fun, so enjoy. (Note: Since Ron and the Expedition 28 crew made this video during some weekend downtime, return options have been under review by NASA).

 

The members of Expedition 28 are Andrey Borisenko, Alexander Samokutyaev, Ron Garan, Mike Fossum, Satoshi Furukawa, Sergei Volkov.

 

 

CLICK IMAGE ABOVE FOR THE VIDEO

 

 

HOUSTON PRESS: By William Michael Smith and Chris Gray Wednesday, Aug 31 2011

 

Midnight, The Big Easy Social & Pleasure Club, cover charge is five bucks. A blast of heat from the gaggle of horns onstage rushes out of the momentarily open door of the Kirby Drive nightclub, as a writhing mass of sweaty Friday-night humanity works it out on the dance floor. Dressed to the nines, saxophonist Grady Gaines and his band the Texas Upsetters are cooking up some nasty, big-beat blues.

 

As the song ends, the crowd erupts in yells and catcalls, whistles and wild applause. This scene could be reminiscent of Houston's blues heyday in the '50s and '60s, except that the audience is predominantly white and middle-aged rather than black.

 

Dapper singer Patrick Harris, who resembles a smaller version of Snoop Dogg, waits for the noise to subside. "We love you and the Big Easy," he gushes. "It's people like you and clubs like this that make Houston the hottest blues town in the country."

 

More whoops and hollers...but what? Hottest blues town in the country?

 

Oldest blues town in the country might be closer to the mark. A cluster of Houston musicians continue to draw healthy crowds to their monthly or even weekly gigs well into their 70s and even 80s. Although the domestic audience for blues and R&B of this vintage has all but dried up except in a few major cities, those who are able to withstand the rigors of international travel still play to healthy audiences at clubs and festivals in Europe.

 

 

 

 

 

Chicago, Illinois, August 31, 2011 — Electro Glide Records has signed Memphis blues vocalist and harmonica player Brandon Santini to join their growing roster of exciting artists. The deal will provide worldwide internet distribution of Santini’s current album “Songs of Love, Money, and Misery” as well as another full length album to be expected by 2013.  

 

Blues vocalist and harmonica player Brandon Santini has been a staple on world famous Beale Street in Memphis for nearly a decade with his exciting live performances and raw passion for blues music. Having co-founded and toured with the Blues Music Award nominated band Delta Highway, Santini has stepped out on his own and proven that he has what it takes to stay on the scene. With his debut solo release “Songs of Love, Money, and Misery,” Santini shows his diverse tastes in blues with incredible songwriting and craftsmanship. The album is currently on track to be a “Pick to Click” on XM Sirius Satellite Radio’s Bluesville (Channel 70) and can be heard on numerous other stations that report to The Roots Music Report charts.

 

 

 

On September 13th, Alligator Records will release a 78-minute Live DVD/CD from JJ Grey & Mofro entitled BRIGHTER DAYS. 

 

Shot and recorded at the Variety Playhouse in Atlanta, Georgia in stunning HD and boasting 5.1 surround sound, the Brighter Days DVD captures an inspired performance of smoldering swamp soul and funky southern rock from one of the most dynamic artists in the country. Singing and telling stories with preacher-like conviction, JJ Grey breaks down the wall between the audience and the performer. Brighter Days is a must hear and see!

 

Directed by filmmaker/musician Spookie Daly, the film intersperses riveting concert footage with the stunning beauty of Grey's north Florida home, the inspiration for so much of his music. The film also follows Grey and company into the studio and features band interviews along with insightful commentary from Grey and others, recalling the format of classic "rockumentaries." The accompanying CD captures almost eighty minutes of crowd favorites taken from the night's performances.

 

Both as a film and a live concert CD, Brighter Days perfectly captures Grey's power as a performer and writer, as well as the talent of his heavy-hitting band Mofro. As old fans know well and new ones keep discovering, a JJ Grey & Mofro show is a musical celebration shared between Grey and his audience, with each driving the other to greater heights.

 

      

 

Labor Day again!  That means barbecue and blues.  And beer.  Elwood features blues salutes to alcoholic beverages from the Blues Brothers, Koko Taylor, and Memphis Slim.  He is joined by the maker of Sam Adams beer, Jim Koch, to discuss the beer/blues connection.  Beer will be served, along with Mitch Woods, the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Jimmy Witherspoon, George Thorogood, John Lee Hooker, and Popa Chobby.  Plus great music from the unlikely duo of Doors piano man Ray Manzarek and slide guitar master Roy Rogers.  Here on the website: discount coupons for hellomusic.com, providing awesome opportunities for musicians.  And Catfish Records has some CDs to give away – Memphis Jewel, classic soul music from Jackie Johnson.  All right here.

 

More on our radio and video streams can be found here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 House of Blues Streaming Audio Here