Loose Blues News
Fruteland Jackson will be performing at Harbourfront Centre's Ann Tindal Stage as part of the International Milk Festival. His 30-minute Blues Break will allow selected students from the TBS Blues in the Schools programme to join in the fun. Performances are Monday, May 19, 1:30 p.m. & 3 p.m.; Wednesday, May 21, 12:45 p.m.; Thursday & Friday, May 22 & 23, 12:30 p.m. The Blues Berry Jam, part of ArtShops at Lakeside Terrace takes place Tuesday to Friday, May 20 to 23, 10 a.m. Fruteland and friends help students explore the history of blues music through interactive song, discussion and performance. Following the workshop, participants are invited to join the musicians for their performance.
It's a Tie: Congratulations to both Fathead and The Twisters who tied in the voting to both receive the INDIE Award presented as part of Canadian Music Week.
It's a Girl: Michael Jerome Browne and writing partner/life partner B Marcus are the proud parents of a bouncing baby girl, as yet untitled. Just when he was getting the hang of changing diapers, MJB heads out to New Brunswick to mix the new Glamour Puss album which he is producing, followed by some Blues in the Schools gigs in Ottawa and a western tour.
Doctor Jackie: 83-year-old blues legend Jackie Washington will be presented with an honorary Doctor of Letters (D.Litt.) by McMaster University on June 3rd in Hamilton at the annual spring convocation ceremony. Washington was reported to be overwhelmed and surprised by the honour, and considers it to be among the top awards he's received in his long musical career. Although he suffers from health problems, including diabetes and a heart condition, he will be performing at several festivals this summer, and will have a new CD released in June, along with friends Ken Whiteley and Mose Scarlett, entitled The Three Friends.
Happy Anniversary: Hugh's Room is celebrating their 2nd Anniversary on April 11 with performances from Betty & The Bobs, Eve Goldberg, Tim Harrison, Penny Lang and Gregg Lawless. Odetta returns to Hugh's on April 4 & 5 and Rick Fines releases his new CD there on April 10. The venue is the ultimate listening environment and is presenting more and more blues (let's encourage them!). Matt Minglewood makes a solo appearance there on April 3 in support of his recording The Story', a mix of original blues, folk, country and rock, with acoustic guitar, and "an array of heartfelt and funny stories of life on the road".
At the end of the month, the Matt Minglewood Band will perform at the Hard Rock Cafe in Toronto and Oscar's Roadhouse in Brampton, then in Ottawa as part of the National Arts Council's 'Atlantic Scene'. The band will then commence a western Canadian tour. For more information: www.mattminglewood.com.
Odetta's tribute to Ella Fitzgerald (on Cordova Bay) will be released in the UK only on May 12th. This live recording was recorded at the Kerrville (Texas) Folk Festival, and contains many Odetta classics such as "Black Woman", "Shenandoah", "Ol' Lady Sally", "The Fox", "900 Miles", "Poor Wayfarin's Stranger", and "Amazing Grace". On the same date, Cordova Bay will also be releasing Josh White Jr.'s tribute album to his father. House of the Rising Son" contains a wealth of great tracks including a recording by a very young Josh Jr. (3 or 4 years old) with Josh Sr. from a live UK radio broadcast in the 1950s. Cordova Bay is distributed in the United Kingdom by Pinnacle Entertainment, the leading indie distributor and part of the BMG/Zomba group.
Electro-Fi News: The label announces the signing of Detroit harpman Harmonica Shah, whose Electro-Fi debut Tell It To Your Landlord will be available in April, along with Volume 2 of Eddy B's Midnite Blues Party. Don't miss the CD release parties April 23rd at Cafe Campus in Montreal and April 26th at the Silver Dollar Room in Toronto. For more Electro-Fi news visit www.electrofi.com.
Mad Hatter Fire: Last month, the Mad Hatter Pub in Orangeville, Ontario was destroyed by fire. The Mad Hatter was the most popular bar in town, and was housed in an historic building with an art gallery (where the fire started) and a karate studio, both also destroyed in the fire, and smoke damaged the town hall and opera house across the street. Blues shows at The Mad Hatter over the past few years have included Willie Big Eyes Smith and The Northern Blues Legends, Downchild, Fathead, Michael Pickett, Jack de Keyzer, Big Daddy G, Tony D, Kenny Blues Boss Wayne, Maureen Brown, and locals Trouble & Strife. The owner of the Orangeville Mad Hatter was already actively opening another location in Georgetown Ontario.
Ronnie Hawkins and the Hawks played "West 89" in Alliston, Ontario for three nights last month, in preparation for some upcoming shows, including at the National Arts Centre at the end of March. CTV filmed some of the public rehearsals for an upcoming special.
A Salute to Canadian Music for the Benefit of Turning Point Youth Services: On Tuesday, April 8 (7:30 PM), at Toronto's Hard Rock Cafe (279 Yonge Street, at Dundas, 2nd floor - Room 279), the Salute to Canadian Music Concert will feature many of the country's top musicians performing in aid of Turning Point Youth Services. Artists include Catlin Hanford, Laura Hubert, Tony Quarrington, Richard Whiteman, Mary de Keyzer, Danny Marks, Whiskey Jack, Helen Stewart, Dan Whiteley, Eddie Baltimore, Victor Bateman, Conrad Kipping, and a host of very special guests. Tickets are $25.00 and are available at Turning Point 416-925-9250 and the Hard Rock Café 416-362-3636. Turning Point is an invaluable social service agency, which, through a number of skillfully operated programs including residences, counselling and educational assistance, endeavours to aid Toronto's disadvantaged youth.
Summer blues excursion: Take a Party Bus - equipped with a sound system, an MP8 mixer for jam sessions, a cordless mic, and a TV/VCR - to the Tremblant International Blues Festival at the Mont Tremblant resort in the Laurentians north of Montreal. Pick-ups in Toronto and in Ottawa on July 18, return on July 21. Details are available at www.canadianblues.ca/tremblant.htm.
Northern Blues set to invade Toronto: Sab, Jake Thomas & the Fundamentals will take over the Silver Dollar Room on May 3rd thanks to a collaboration between stellar guitarist Jake Thomas and Sab, the North Bay impresario who's earned the moniker "King of the North." In addition to the players, a charter bus will transport 40 people from North Bay for the event, so get ready to party, "northern Ontario style". Jake's band, the Fundamentals have just released a new album, Twelve Bars from Now that is getting enthusiastic airplay on blues radio around the province, and which was one of Bear Claw's Picks for 2002.
Dutch Mason, the Prime Minister of Canadian blues, calls Jake Thomas "one of my favourite guitar players." The band also includes vocalist/keys player extraordinaire Mike Brewes, drummer Jeff Dunford and bassman Tim Kielman. The band is a favourite amongst audiences across the North, and has a large following at festivals and events wherever they play.
Sab is one of the busiest musicians anywhere in Toronto, frontin' his own band or working as a sideman with numerous musical friends to add ace rhythm guitar and his trademark gravel road vocals (It is expected that some of Sab's musical friends will drop by to sit in - Chuck Jackson from The Downchild Blues Band has already committed) and Sab is spreading the word to make sure his many other amigos hear the invitation. The event will feature a Blues Buffet served at the Silver Dollar prior to showtime, and a chance for Toronto-area fans to meet some blues lovers from the North.
Blues-O-Rama: The Niagara Indie Filmfest fundraising event for 2003 is scheduled for Saturday April 19 (8:30 pm), at the Armenian Community Centre, 156 Martindale Rd in St. Catharines, and will feature John Mays and Al Lerman, Diana Braithwaite, Gary Kendall, Jim Casson, Lily Sazz, and Darren Poole. Tickets are $15 (advance), $20 (at the door). For advance purchase and artist info, visit www.niagaraindiefilmfest.org/blues.html.
OCFF Conference Showcases 2003: The Ontario Council of Folk festivals (OCFF) is now accepting showcase applications for the 2003 OCFF Conference in Sudbury, Ontario, October 17-19. The submission deadline is May 31, 2003. Selected artists will be notified by July 18th, 2003.
OCFF is also accepting entries for the 2003 Songs From the Heart Songwriter Awards. This Galaxie Rising Stars program of the CBC sponsored event encourages folk and roots music songwriters of all backgrounds, including Francophone and Aboriginal songwriters, to submit their entries by June 1, 2003. The winning musician will receive the opportunity to perform the winning song at the 2003 Canadian Songwriters Festival in Guelph, a prime showcase spot and registration for one person at the OCFF Conference in October 2003 and $1000 from the Galaxie Rising Stars Program. Participants must be residents of Ontario. All submissions must be post-marked by no later than June 1, 2003 and the awards will be announced by mid-August 2003. Application forms for both competitions are available online at www.ocff.ca or by calling the OCFF office at 1-866-292-6233.
Les Grandes Dames du Blues Tour 2003: In celebration of International Women's Day, the fourth edition of Les Grandes Dames du Blues raised funds and awareness for women's shelters in several cities. This year's tour featured Montreal's Dawn Tyler Watson and her band, the Dawn Tyler Blues Project, with special guests Roxanne Potvin, Manon Brunet, and Sue Foley. The March shows were held at Bourbon Street West in Pte-Claire QC, Café Campus in Montreal QC, The Rainbow Bistro in Ottawa ON, and the Maison de la Culture Rivière-des-Prairies in Rivière-des-Prairies, QC. At the shows, donations for women's shelters were collected, including books, magazines, CDs, tapes, and VHS films, in addition to cash proceeds.
East Coast Blues Benefit for Rick Jeffrey: This benefit show last month featured Dutch Mason, Matt Minglewood, Sam Moon, Ritchie Oakley, Wayne Nicolson, Joe Murphy & The Waterstreet Blues Band, Shirley Jackson & Her Good Rockin' Daddys, Teresa Malenfant, Mark Green, Rodger Howse, Phil Potvin, Andrew Gillis, and Eileen Joyce. All proceeds were forwarded to the Rick Jeffrey Family Fund, and contributions can still be made to The Rick Jeffrey Jam, account 520-4443, Branch 0036, Canada Trust, 6239 Quinpool Road, Halifax, N.S. B3L 1A4 902-422-7471.
TV Tales: West coast guitarist David Gogo was featured nationally on CTV's Canada AM last month. Gogo was also recently confirmed to support upcoming dates with renowned roots rockers Little Feat at the Western Jazz Festivals in Vancouver and Victoria in June in addition to return visits to Ontario and Quebec in May, which will include another television performance, on Open Mike with Mike Bullard in Toronto. Members of the NorthernBlues Gospel Allstars recently taped a performance for later broadcast on Open Mike, which featured Danny Brooks, Hiram Joseph, Amoy Levy, Ceceal Levy, Michael Fonfara, Richard Bell, Bucky Berger, Dennis Pinhorn, and Mitch Lewis.
Goin' to New Orleans: April 24 to May 4 is the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival You will see such names as Fats Domino, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Bob Dylan, Lucinda Williams, North Mississippi All-Stars, Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets with Sam Myers, Dr. John, Joe Cocker, Otis Taylor, Keb' Mo', Gladys Knight, Buddy Guy, and many, many many more famous names. Not only is there 10 days of incredible music, there is also a Workshop Series with many interesting themes: one being a Jelly Roll Morton Tribute with Vernel Bagneris and Morten Larsen. For more information check out the website at www.nojazzfest.com.
From the Mississauga News: "Hillside students study Blues 101 'Blues just a fact of life'," by John Stewart, March 5, 2003:
Leadbelly dropped by Hillside Senior Public School auditorium Wednesday to sing the Midnight Special. W.C. Handy strummed the St. Louis Blues. Bo Diddley did a quick little blues shuffle. Chuck Berry speeded things up to create some rock 'n roll. Berry sang ^ appropriately enough ^ School Days. (Hail! Hail! Rock 'n roll. The feeling is there, body and soul.) The heroes of the blues were out in full force for the nearly 700 Grade 6-8 students who jammed into the auditorium to take a crash course called Blues 101. The teacher was Chicago-based acoustic blues artist Fruteland Jackson, the man who recreated the personas of so many of the great blues masters. Starting with some of the surviving field hollers and work songs of 150 years ago, Jackson and his guitar, and his trusty rhythm foot, conducted a trip back in time, with stops along the way to sample the country blues, the Delta blues, the Chicago blues and just about any other blues you care to name. "The blues are the way things are, not the way you'd like them to be," said Jackson, a renowned educator who visits some 50,000 students annually through school programs. "The blues are the facts of life. Sometimes life is happy and sometimes life is serious. But whatever life is, that's what the blues is," he told students. The oral historian and winner of the 1997 W.C. Handy award for "Keeping the Blues Alive" demonstrated that the honour was not misplaced. "All the musical styles stand on the shoulders of the blues," he told students. "If you trace anything back far enough ^ rhythm and blues, jazz, rap or hip hop ^ you're going to find the blues." Fruteland (named for one of his grandfather's friends of the same name) is a musician first and an educator second, he said in an interview. In fact, he records on Toronto's Electro-Fi label. He was brought to Hillside through the Toronto Blues Society and a grant from an Ontario Trillium program. Music teacher Brian Hawryluk is a member of the Blues Society. He plays in an all-teacher band called The Blackboard Blues Band. When he heard Jackson was available to come to the school, he jumped at the chance to provide, "a very meaningful experience that enriches the curriculum." Not only that, he got to hear his favourite music during school hours. After Jackson's guided tour of the Blues Hall of Fame, he tested some Hillside students and found they'd learned their lessons well. Two student volunteers came up on stage at the end of the hour-long show and, if they didn't exactly wail the blues, they did a fair approximation. James Melville sang those "I Had Noodles For Breakfast and I Ate Them with Chopsticks" blues. Nick MacNeill, sporting a fresh cast, lamented his condition with a particularly woebegone version of the "I Broke My Leg, I Broke My Leg ^ Real Bad" blues. As the auditorium of pre-teens giggled in unison, Jackson's message had been received: "the blues is just the way things are." (Accompanied by a staff photo by Chris Horobin, captioned "Fruteland Jackson taught the students at Hillside Senior Public School a thing or two about the blues recently".)
York University's Centre for the Study of Black Cultures in Canada is sponsoring the first-ever conference to focus on the rich contributions of African Canadian musicians. To be held on the York University campus, May 1-3, 2003, the conference will feature research talks, interviews with generations of singers and musicians, little known documentaries and filmmakers, and evenings of music. Confirmed keynote speakers include Norman "Otis" Richmond, long-time historian and observer of Toronto's black music scene, Brainerd Blyden-Taylor, whose Nathaniel Dett Chorale, named after an African Canadian composer, is bringing little-known Afro-centric music to stages all over North America, Winston Smith, whose CKLN jazz show "Expressive Language" covered jazz ranging from the classical to the avant garde; and Rinaldo Walcott, scholar, cultural critic, and commentator on contemporary urban music. There will be performances from Kingsley Etienne, Joe Sealy, Archie Alleyne and Jackie and many other pan, reggae, calypso, hip hop and spoken word performers. Among the confirmed presenters are Globe and Mail jazz critic Mark Miller, whose seminal books have mapped long neglected histories of Canadian jazz; Sylvia Hamilton and Jay White, both Portia White researchers; George Elliott Clarke, poet, essayist, historian, and librettist of both Beatrice Chancy and a new jazz opera; Jackie and Joe Sealey speaking on the history of jazz and blues; Delvina Bernard, long time historian and performer of African Nova Scotian music; Ajay Heble, organizer of the Guelph Jazz Festival, and Archie Alleyne, who has been performing jazz in Canada for several decades. Genres to be discussed in research papers, oral history focussed musicians panels, and documentary films include blues, jazz, hip hop, R & B, calypso, reggae, ska, jungle, new music, gospel, spirituals and Cuban song. For more information, check out www.yorku.ca/aconline or call 416 736 5292. Registration information and full program will be available as they are finalized.
- Julie Hill, Brian Blain, Bear Claw Bob
Rick
Fines
One page in Rick Fines' press bio is entitled "Lucky In Life."
He considers that having survived as a professional blues musician in Canada for
20 years makes him one very lucky guy. We all know just how hard it is to make a
living in the blues here, so Fines' longevity has to be attributed as much to
talent and hard work as good fortune.
The Peterborough-based singer/guitarist/songwriter has earned an international reputation for his multi-faceted talents. That rep will take another major stride forward with the new CD from The Rick Fines Trio. Riley Wants His Life Back is the fourth and arguably best disc yet from Fines.
The album will be launched in Toronto with an April 10th gig at Hugh's Room, and Maple Blues chatted with the amiable 40 year-old Fines on the eve of its release. He's pleased with the results, correctly describing it as "a good album, and a fun one. It was just a bunch of friends getting together to make it, so that was a lot of fun."
The friends in question include his Trio comrades, pianist Rob Phillips and bassist Richard Simpkins, drummer Al Webster, and Chris Whiteley (trumpet and cornet). Co-producing and adding backing vocals is ace Toronto blues producer Alec Fraser, who also worked on two earlier Fines albums.
"We [the Trio] sat over here a couple of times a week for a month leading up to the recording," explains Rick. "We went over the songs we hadn't had out in front of people yet, then went into the studio. All my vocals and the Trio's parts were done live off the floor in just two days, then we overdubbed drums and the guest parts."
Rick is no stranger to rapid recording. His previous band, Jackson Delta, once recorded an album in the legendary Sun Studios in just one hour! "That was out of financial necessity," he laughingly recalls. "It still is, just not as bad."
Riley Wants His Life Back neatly showcases Fines' fluent and subtle guitar picking, impressive songwriting, and laid-back, warm vocals (think a less raspy Dr. John). The fine playing of his colleagues adds a jazzy lilt to Fines' take on traditional acoustic blues (Simpkins and Phillips also play in jazz groups).
Rick aimed to make a classic-sounding trio album with Riley. "Because my trio is guitar, upright bass and piano, I had been listening to a lot of the old trios in that format, like Willie Dixon's Big Three trio, Charles Brown, Nat Cole and some of the people who also blended some of that jazz and pop in there. I wanted to write a whole album in that format."
Whereas earlier Fines albums (1996's Arcadia, 1998's Out Of The Living Room and 2001's Rick Fines And Friends - Live At The Harvest Festival) featured covers of tunes by such inspirations as the Rolling Stones, Lightnin' Hopkins, and Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee, Riley features all originals. "In the blues, there are a lot of common lyrical themes that are classic because they say something to everybody, but there are also a lot of attitudes perpetuated that aren't relevant to my life. I really get tired of that."
Musically, Rick was careful to draw from, but not mimic, the sound of those classic trios. "I didn't want to do a lesser job of covering territory that had already been covered. It is better to let your own influences just spill out."
The critical praise sure to be lavished upon Riley Wants His Life Back won't be a novelty to Fines. His 15 year stint as leader of Jackson Delta saw that group nominated for both Juno and Handy Awards, while Rick won the Maple Blues Award for Acoustic Act of the Year in 1998 and 1999.
He has played extensively in North America and Europe, both on his own and as a sideman for the likes of Penny Lang, Pinetop Perkins, Colleen Peterson and Carlos del Junco.
"I love to play with other people. One of the downfalls of doing so much stuff under your own name is that people don't think of calling you for gigs! Playing with Penny is a big treat I love her music and admire her personally."
Rick is also a key supporter of Blues in Schools programs. "I just finished one for the TBS and I have been doing them in Ottawa too. I get along well with the really young kids. I'll teach them songs, we'll write songs and sing them and invariably by the end of the week with a class, they will put on a performance at the school. A lot of the kids have heard blues music, but if you ask if they have, they'll say no. If you play some signature riffs, they'll yell out the name of the ad or TV show they know it from. I explain that blues was the rap or hiphop of the day."
Rick's own blues education came via two older brothers. "They got into the British blues invasion and started tracing it back. Soon I got the connection and I had access to all their albums. Both my brothers played guitar, and Matthew guests on the album [on dobro]."
Fines also finds continued inspiration in the now thriving roots music scene in his hometown. "It is something else here now. We've got Joe Hall, Willie P. Bennett, Serena Ryder, Buzz Thompson, a great r'n'b singer, [country band] The Silverhearts, Washboard Hank and Reverend Ken. I could continue the list all afternoon, and everyone helps each other out."
In turn, Peterborough can take real pride in claiming Rick Fines.
- Kerry Doole
Time to start recording that Demo!
2003
TALENT
SEARCH
Deadline for submissions:
5pm Friday, May 9th
Of concern to the online blues community:
The TBS has recently sent out two email broadcasts to members announcing special events. If you are a TBS member and you have not received any email correspondence from the office, please send an email to info@torontobluessociety.com so that we can update our records.
Mapleblue-l, the email list that the TBS launched a few years back is returning to its original role as a medium for distributing blues news and announcements. Moderator Ian Angus reports, "Because there are now other lists that encourage freewheeling discussion, Mapleblue-L can refocus on its original objective of distributing blues news and announcements of interest to the Canadian blues community." Subscribers to MapleBlue-L have received the new List Description and explanation of the changes. Click here for the full description.
Toronto Blues Society Copyright _ 2003