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Blues News Update: Gregg Allman Biopic, Blues Bites Column

Fri, 24 May 2013 07:01:49 +0000

Variety magazine is reporting that roots 'n' blues legend Gregg Allman's critically-acclaimed 2012 biography, My Cross To Bear, is being turned into a movie. The biopic will be directed by Randall Miller from a script written by Jody Savin, with the story focusing on Allman's struggles through the early years of the forming and subsequent stardom of the Allman Brothers Band and the loss of band members Duane Allman (Gregg's brother) and Berry Oakley.

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Watermelon Slim and the Workers CD Preview

Wed, 22 May 2013 07:01:06 +0000

Good news, everybody! After five years apart, popular roots 'n' blues giant Watermelon Slim has reunited with his talented, road-tested, award-winning band the Workers to record a brand new album! On June 25th, 2013 Northern Blues Music will release Bull Goose Rooster, the first album of new Watermelon Slim and the Workers music since 2008's No Paid Holidays. During his hiatus from the band, Slim recorded two critically acclaimed albums of twang-infused honky-tonk gems, 2009's Escape from the Chicken Coop and 2010's Ringers, as well as 2011's Okiesippi Blues, a musical collaboration with his friend and neighbor Super Chikan.

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Weekly Blues Music Report: James Cotton Debuts!

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:01:12 +0000

I have to admit that I'm a little surprised that the blues chart for the week ending May 25th, 2013 doesn't show more of a bump in sales for those artists that walked off with Blues Music Awards a week or so ago. I really thought that Tedeschi Trucks Band would jump up a few spaces with their popular, award-winning Everybody's Talkin' live album; instead it dropped out of the Top Ten altogether. Other than the welcome chart debut of James Cotton's excellent, all-star packed Cotton Mouth Man album, the chart remains pretty much the same as it has for, well, months now...

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Ironing Board Sam Documentary Film

Mon, 20 May 2013 07:01:13 +0000

Ironing Board Sam is one of those unheralded heroes of the blues, an artist who has enjoyed more success during the twilight of his career than over the course of his prime years. A talented and dynamic performer, Sam's career was mired in obscurity and poverty until he hooked up with the non-profit Music Maker Relief Foundation in 2010, the organization providing financial help and booking some high-profile gigs for the singer to launch his "comeback;" they also got Sam back into the studio to record some new tracks and will release Double-Bang!, his first studio album in 15 years, in July 2013.

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William Stout's Legends of the Blues Book

Fri, 17 May 2013 07:01:32 +0000

The odds are good that even if you don't recognize William Stout's name, that you're at least familiar with some of his work. An acclaimed artist, illustrator, designer, and overall creative genius, Stout has written and drawn both underground and mainstream comics; illustrated numerous book and album covers (including a few cool bootleg CD covers); worked on video games and theme park design (including Michael Jackson's private Neverland Ranch); and has even dabbled in film (he designed the alien Edgar for the first Men In Black movie, for instance).

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Blues News Update: 2013 Blues Festival Calendar

Thu, 16 May 2013 08:47:12 +0000

Spring has finally popped up just about everywhere in the continental U.S. which means that blues festival season is upon us! The Reverend has been compiling this annual listing of festivals for five years now, and sadly we lost more events this year than during any year previous. Some, like the acclaimed Monterey Blues Festival, simply disappeared while a few others have decided to wait out a year and see if the financial climate improves for promoting an event in the future.

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Weekly Blues Music Report: The Spin Doctors? Meh!

Tue, 14 May 2013 07:01:08 +0000

Let's face it, the blues chart for the week ending May 18th, 2013 is kind of dull...in anticipation of last week's Blues Music Awards, which usually gives winners a moderate sales boost, everything this week is pretty much the same old thing. The lone chart debut is the Spin Doctors' If The River Was Whiskey, a doubtful inclusion at best...with apologies to any Spin Doctors fans among the readership, is every hack 1990s-era alt-rock band going to "rediscover their blues roots" and release their own misguided interpretation of the music? At least Shouting Matches, an indie-rock supergroup slumming in the blues, delivered a fresh perspective on the music with their recent Grownass Man album, which manages to nicely mix new ideas with traditional blues sounds. The Spin Doctors? Meh...

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Blues Music Awards 2013 Winners

Sat, 11 May 2013 11:24:35 +0000

The Blues Foundation held its annual shindig this past Thursday night, May 9th, 2013 and handed out the industry's coveted Blues Music Awards to a slate of talented and, let's face it, deserving nominees. After all, it's not like the Grammy® people are going to recognize most of these artists, not even if the pissed-off ghost of Hound Dog Taylor came back and smacked the Grammy® nominating committee upside their collective heads...

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2013 Pennsylvania Blues Festival

Thu, 09 May 2013 07:01:53 +0000

The Pennsylvania Blues Festival has announced its line-up for the event's 22nd anniversary event, and there are plenty of good reasons to head up into the mountains in July. The 2013 Pennsylvania Blues Festival will be held over three days, from Friday, July 26th through Sunday, July 28th, 2013 at the Blue Mountain Ski Area in Palmerton, Pennsylvania.

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Delbert McClinton CD Preview

Wed, 08 May 2013 07:01:34 +0000

After 40 years of pursuing separate careers, roots 'n' blues legend Delbert McClinton has reunited with his former musical partner Glen Clark for a red-hot new album of Texas-brewed roots-rock, blues, R&B, and country twang. On June 18, 2013 New West Records will release Blind, Crippled and Crazy, a twelve-song collection credited to Delbert & Glen.

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