Tuesday, June 18, 2013

What Did You Miss This Week? (Week 316 #360)

Rumba!!!

Next up in the groove lessons, and once again well-represented by our man Slim Harpo, is the rumba! Joe's transcription of rumba basslines is again a terrific resource for understanding what the bass player is doing in these songs and it gives you a chance to launch a tune like this by playing the bass line for the band to hear.

Rumbas you should check out:
  • Rambler's Blues by Tampa Red with Big Walter (note the unusual quick V)
  • My Baby Don't Love Me No More by Jimmy Rogers with Little Walter
  • My Baby Caught the Train by Howlin' Wolf
  • Come On Home by George Smith (note that the drummer is not playing the rumba)
  • Got Love If You Want It by Slim Harpo
  • Mailbox Blues by Slim Harpo - this is the archetypal blues rumba, complete with the usual rhythmic treatment of bar 12 (this song essentially copies Crosscut Saw)
  • Midnight Blues by Slim Harpo (atypical form)
  • I'm Waiting On You Baby by Slim Harpo

Chicago Blues Harp Bash #6!!!

Announcing the lineup for the sixth annual Chicago Blues Harp Bash!

September 22, 2013 in Szold Hall at the Old Town School of Folk Music

Johnny Sansone from New Orleans will headline! Sansone is a powerful singer, low-down blues harp player and a well-respected songwriter. As a matter of fact, his song The Lord Is Waiting and the Devil Is Too was a Blues Music Award Song of the Year winner. He isn't often in Chicago and we're proud to be bringing him here for you!

Our terrific local harp players are Zoe Savage, Tall Paul Sabel, Scott Dirks and Grant Kessler.

The bandleader this year is Shoji Naito and he's lined up Mike Scharf on bass and Mark Fornek on drums.

Mark your calendars - it's going to be a hot show!

SPAH!!!

You should be getting your act together to travel to St. Louis in August for the 50th Anniversary of the SPAH Convention. Dates are August 13-17; the lineup is terrific and for those of you in Chicago, we have a hot tip there are Big Bus roundtrip tickets going for as little as $28 right now! Plan your transportation, get your hotel room and don't miss this amazing event - learning, camaraderie and insanely late night blues jams - what more could you ask for?!
Rie "Lee" Kanehira!!!

Yes, it's a harp class, but we had a pretty special guest in B1 last night. Lee Kanehira is a pro piano player from Japan who's been in Chicago a month or so sitting in with an amazing array of bands - Morry Sochat, Billy Flynn, Erwin Helfer, Barrelhouse Chuck and now even the B1 Band! She and Shoji did a duo version of After Hours last night that we will not soon forget!

Thanks Lee for coming to see us and playing with us - hurry back to Chicago!

Born In Chicago!!!

- film review from our own Barb Selvaggio

"I saw the documentary “Born in Chicago” at the Gene Siskel Film Center last Monday night. I was blown away. The story of how Mike Bloomfield and Paul Butterfield, young white teenage boys from the north suburbs of Chicago in the mid 1960’s found their way to Muddy Waters changed the blues culture forever. The respect and reverence Bloomfield and Butterfield showed for the great Chicago blues artists impressed the musicians as well as the clientele in the almost completely black blues clubs on the Chicago’s South Side. The blues greats were the teachers of these young artists who were already great musicians in their own right. The black and white footage of those days gone by were brought to life on the big screen with the likes of Junior Wells, Howlin’ Wolf, Mick Jagger with Muddy, Corky Siegel, Willie Dixon, Sam Lay, Harvey Mandel, Barry Goldberg, Steve Miller, Elvin Bishop, Nick Gravenites, Charlie Musselwhite, Eric Burden … like a checkerboard of down and dirty blues.

The movie came and went just like its era and some of the greats that are playing the blues in the sky. I don’t know where it is now or when it will be shown again, but I treasure the experience. If you find out when and where you can see it, go! I’ll probably be there again too! There is a Facebook page for it so maybe there will be more info on that."

(a production of Out The Box Records)

Class Notes

  • Sign up now for the next session at Old Town - new classes start next week!
Party for Carlos!!!

Hey, our good buddy Carlos Orellana has landed a post-doc job in Atlanta and is leaving us before long. We're sad to see this killer harp player go, but we're happy to have an excuse to throw a party!

Linda and Leo Gordon have graciously agreed to host at their home in Winnetka: pot-luck-blues-jam-going-away-party!

Sunday, June 30
4:00 pm
RSVP to: Linda Gordon

New Releases!!!

Joe wants you to know about:

    Jelly Roll Johnson - Come Rain Or Come Shine
    Greg Izor & the Boxkickers - Close To Home


- Grant Kessler, B1 Blues Crew