Maple Blues Online - Loose Blues News

Larry Goodhand Tribute: New Year's Day 2006, in Brantford, Ontario, a tribute is scheduled at the Liquid Lounge where Larry performed over the years. Guests include Chuck Jackson, John Dickie, Mike Fitzpatrick, Michael Pickett, and more. Proceeds go to the John Goodhand trust benefiting Larry's son. Visit www.larrygoodhand.com for more information. Toronto Blues guitarist Larry Goodhand passed away on October 30 at the Trillium Hospital after a lengthy illness. Larry was a 35-year veteran of the Toronto music scene, having played across Canada and the USA with artists including Willie Dixon, Jimmy Witherspoon, Carey Bell, Sonny Rhodes, Michael Pickett, the Livin' Blues Band, and more.

WinterCity Blues: "Cool Blues" is a mini bluesfest at Nathan Phillips Square on Sunday Jan. 29th. It will feature Ndidi Onukwulu, a new voice in Toronto's blues community (12:30 p.m.), pianist-vocalist Tyler Yarema (2 p.m.), TBS Talent Search winners Wickens-Knight (3:30 p.m.), Toronto rock 'n' soul band Reuben Cherry (5 p.m.) and harmonica-meister Carlos del Junco (6:30 p.m.). DJ's will spin between sets and following the final band (until 10 p.m.)

"The Jackie Washington Story": Congratulations to this deserving artist for the world television premiere last month on Bravo!. For nearly a century, 86-year-old Hamilton-born Jackie Washington has been playing jazz, swing, blues and folk music. The Jackie Washington Story, produced and directed by Ari A. Cohen and produced in association with Bravo!, recounts the life of the legendary musician who has overcome many obstacles, both personally and professionally, who has built a repertoire of nearly 1300 songs, and who has encyclopaedic knowledge of music history. One of 15 children, Washington's roots date back to slavery, when his grandfather escaped Virginia to Hamilton, Ontario. Throughout the "Big Band" era, the Washington home was the gathering place for touring black musicians like Duke Ellington, Fats Waller and Count Basie. By the time he was five, Washington and his brothers were part of The Washington Quartet, playing through the '20s and '30s. When his eldest brother drowned, Washington went solo and subsidized his income with various "day" jobs. He made history in the late '40s by becoming the first black radio DJ in Canada, hosting a jazz show. Today, the charismatic singer and guitarist is a recent recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Ontario Arts Council. From his Hamilton area seniors' home, he candidly recounts stories about his life, his passions and hard work. The camera also follows him on a cross-Canada tour with his trio mates, Mose Scarlett and Ken Whiteley.

Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards: The winner of Best Blues Album is The WolfPack for their CD "Family Thang." The WolfPack is a family of siblings, aged 23-30, from Six Nations, Ontario; they have previously been finalists in the Toronto Blues Society's Talent Search.

Keeping the Blues Alive in Canada: The Blues Foundation has honoured 20 individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions to Blues music with their 2006 'Keeping The Blues Alive' Award, to be presented January 28, 2006 in Memphis Tennessee. The KBAs are awarded to non-performers on the basis of merit by a select panel of Blues professionals, and this year include, for Promoter, Ted Boomer of Windsor, Ontario. "Ted Boomer is the first Canadian in the 22-year history of the Keeping the Blues Alive Awards to be awarded Promoter of the Year. Ted has been promoting the Blues for over 30 years, as an independent promoter, as owner of four nightclubs, as founder of Bluesfest International Windsor in its 12th year, and the 7th annual Bluesfest London, and as co-founder (along with Barry Streib) of the 5th annual Thunder Bay Blues Festival. Five years ago, Ted and his wife Louise started the Canada South Blues Society, which has grown to over 800 members in Windsor and London, and has presented 85 shows". Some other notable 2006 recipients include Antoine Fuqua, Director, Alex Gibney, Producer, and Martin Scorsese, Executive Producer (New York, NY), for Film, Television, or Video: Lightning in a Bottle; and Dick Waterman, Oxford, Mississippi, for Literature: The B.B. King Treasures.

2006 Blues Music Awards Nominees: The renamed W.C. Handy Awards lists its nominees for the awards scheduled for May 11, 2006 at the Cook Convention Center in downtown Memphis. Among the veterans and newcomers nominated for the first time are Tab Benoit, Elvin Bishop, Tommy Castro, Rich Del Grosso, Sonny Landreth, Doug McLeod, Big James Montgomery, Sista Monica Parker, James "Blood" Ulmer and The Mannish Boys. Many artists racked up multiple nominations, but Marcia Ball, Magic Slim, Hubert Sumlin and the late Little Milton topped the list with four nominations each. Shemekia Copeland, Bobby Rush and Kim Wilson each had three nominations among the 25 album, artist, band and instrumentalist categories. For the first time, category names honour two living blues masters: the B.B. King Entertainer of the Year, and the Pinetop Perkins Piano Player of the Year. Canadian connections in the nominees include Stony Plain recording artist Maria Muldaur (Sweet Lovin' Ol' Soul), NorthernBlues recording Rise by Eddie Turner, NorthernBlues recording artist Janiva Magness, Electro-fi recording artists Bob Stroger (bass) and Willie "Big Eyes" Smith (drums), Stony Plain recording artist Ronnie Earl (guitar), and NorthernBlues recording artist Mem Shannon (I'm From Phunkville).

And the Grammy Awards: Maria Muldaur is again nominated for a Grammy Award, this time for "Sweet Lovin' Ol' Soul", her second album of classic blues material for the Canadian label Stony Plain. Other albums nominated in the best traditional blues category include releases by Marcia Ball, John Hammond, guitarist Hubert Sumlin, and B.B. King, whose most recent album features appearances from a number of contemporary pop stars, and was released to mark his 80th birthday. Stony Plain artist Jay McShann was also nominated for a Grammy Award for his CD "Goin' To Kansas City".

Pat Rush & The Bluesharks: At Mayday's, a new bar at 965 Bloor Street West (1/2 block west of Long & McQuade's), the Bluesharks have reunited for Saturdays in the new year, every 2 weeks in January, then weekly subsequently, 10pm to 1am, with special musical guests

Still Big Daddy G: "After a seven fun-filled and very rewarding years, Big Daddy G is undergoing some changes for the future. Bandleader, founder, and guitarist Dave Glover reports that Tortoise Blue and the remainder of the band are following separate paths, moving on to participate in their own musical directions. Big Daddy G will stay rooted in the blues, and Dave notes that a new Big Daddy G release is slated for the recording studios in early 2006, using a completely renovated line-up of musicians and some noteworthy guests, as is Big Daddy G tradition." www.bigdaddyg.com

Travels of the JW-Jones Blues Band: In March, as part of a blues cruise also featuring Little George from the UK, the band will be in in Oslo, Norway, and, in May 2006, they'll return to Europe. The new recording, "Kissing in 29 Days", JW's fourth with NorthernBlues Music, will feature legendary 72 year-old saxophone player David "Fathead" Newman, and is scheduled for release in April 2006.

Electro-Fi News: Coming in March 2006 are 3 new releases including guitar Legend Mel Brown's first new studio CD in 5 years, "Blues: A Beautiful Thing", Motor City Mojo Master Harmonica Shah's "Listen At Me Good", and Mark Hummel's "Harmonica Blowout 2006 Edition". Electro-Fi recording artists Billy Boy Arnold was very well received at this year's Lucerne Blues Festival. Singer/songwriter/harmonica player Gary Primich has signed with Electro-Fi - Watch for a June 2006 release date.

Stony Plain News: Due March 14 is the Duke Robillard release, "Guitar Groove-a-Rama", and, in April, a new Jay McShann CD, "Hootie Blues", a live recording cut in Toronto with the pianist and singer backed up by Jim Galloway (soprano and alto sax), Don Vickery (drums) and Rosemary Galloway (bass). Also in April, Jeff Healey's debut release for Stony Plain features his passion for the classic jazz of the '20s and '30s with his band The Jazz Wizards in which he leads the band on trumpet, but there is lots of his guitar playing with the jazz band, and Jeff also sings on half a dozen numbers in this up-tempo and swinging collection of great songs that give classic jazz the joyful energy that's kept the idiom alive since the tunes were originally recorded. Plans call for a special event at Jeff's Toronto club in mid-March.

KW blues news: This month marks the 13th anniversary of Kevin Doyle's 'Voodoo Healin' on CKMS FM in Waterloo (100.3 FM, www.ckmsfm.ca). More recently, Kevin has become partners at the Boathouse in Kitchener's Victoria Park. This year, he takes over the Boathouse, and has planned numerous anniversary events. Beginning in January, Shawn Kellerman will perform every Thursday night with special guests - legendary blues man Bobby Rush on the 5th, and UK's Matt Scoffield on the 19th, among others. Sundays are a matinee piano house, with January 1st as John Lee's "hangover party", featuring young KW area guitarist Mike Wilkinson, Sunday the 22nd with Toronto Blues Society Talent Search finalist Charlene 'Chuckee' Zehr, and upcoming dates with Julian Fauth & Wayne Charles. Carlos del Junco will perform on Friday January 27, and February has Mel Brown every Thursday night, and Doug Cox & Sam Hurrie on Tuesday February 21.

The Bayou in Ottawa: Jed Rached advises that blues bands planning on visiting Ottawa in the new year should contact him at jedrached@yahoo.ca, as the Bayou has re-opened following renovations, and has returned to continue with live music with a new look, stage, P.A., and management team. Open 6 days per week, there is live music Wednesday to Saturday, ranging from funk to rock, jazz to folk, and R'n'B, to, of course, blues. Located at 1077 Bank Street, just over the Bank Street Bridge, down from Lansdowne Park at the corner of Bank and Sunnyside, 613.738.1709.

Dale Boyle 2005: Following the release of "In My Rearview Mirror: A Story From A Small Gaspé Town", an acoustic concept album intertwining folk, country, and blues traditions and featuring songs arranged in order like chapters in a book that together tell a bigger story that gives voice to a small community, Boyle won the 2005 Lys Blues Folk/Blues Artist of the Year award in a category also including nominees Michael Jerome Browne and Ray Bonneville. The January 2006 issue of the Journal Culturel Graffici lists "In My Rearview Mirror" in the "Best Albums of 2005". Set to be released in winter 2006 is Boyle's 3rd album release, "Small Town Van Gogh: Songs from along the Unsung Story Arc", celebrating various "unsung" people of Quebec and Canada. For more info, visit www.daleboyle.ca.

Looking forward to summer: Advance notice for the Festival International De Jazz De Montréal - B.B. King, Wednesday, June 28, and Bonnie Raitt, Friday, July 7, both at 8 pm in the Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier at Place des Arts.

Vancouver's Blue Voodoo tour Europe: Commencing January 25, 2006, a 5-week tour will include the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium France, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Austria. www.thebluevoodoo.com.

Blues for the Winter Blahs

Roots, country and blues guitarist, Steve Payne has been variously described as "one of the UK's finest guitarists" and "one of rock's fallen angels". he'll be in town for Winterfolk and hopefully some other other appearances in the area.

Today's concept of the Blues has come along way from the acoustic stylings of Odetta or Leadbelly, yet as the circle of music genres often included in Blues festivals has grown, so has Blues become an accepted part of musical gatherings calling themselves Jazz, Roots or Folk festivals. One example of such an inclusive event, Toronto's annual Winterfolk Festival, is gearing up for its 4th edition Feb. 3-5, 2006. Started by singer-songwriter and Blues/Roots picker Brian Gladstone in 2003 and now produced by the non-profit Association of Artists For A Better World, the event, which takes place in several clubs on Danforth Ave. within a stone's throw of the Broadview subway station, includes plenty of Blues performers among the over 80 who will be featured.

U.K. bluesman Steve Payne has been a frequent visitor to our town and exemplifies the many songwriters today who combine stylings from Blues, Country and Roots influences in their own music and who are equally at home in any of those genres. Not to be missed, maritimer Matt Andersen is a new musical force poised to erupt to the world stage, local favourites Be Bop Cowboys and Mr. Rick and the Biscuits and newcomers such as Nancy Dutra, whose smoky, bluesy vocals and poignant music evoke a passionate response. For the fully updated lineup and advance tickets, go to www.winterfolk.com. Ticket sales are limited by venue capacities - get your weekend passes early to avoid disappointment. Day passes will be sold pending availability.

Down the road a piece, the 2006 Blues on the Rideau Concert Series presents some great blues getaways which include world class blues entertainment and fine dining at two of Eastern Ontario's nicest country inns.

January 13 features the Curly Bridges Trio with multi-talented Chris Whiteley on guitar, vocals & trumpet and Bucky Berger on drums ($5 from each ticket goes to the Lucy Drysdale Memorial Scholarship Fund). On February 3, Toronto favourites Fathead take the stage for a rockin' good time ($5 from each ticket goes to the Lions Club Handicapped Bus). And on March 17, The Rick Fines Trio performs (with $5 from each ticket going to Friends of Foley Mountain). All these shows are $45 and take place at the Cove Inn, Westport www.coveinn.com 1-888-268-3466. All Buffet & Blues Concerts on Friday nights in the Dining Room/Bar.

At the Baldachin Inn on Merrickville (www.baldachin.com (613) 269-4223), the Buffet & Blues Concerts take place on Saturdays in the Ballroom. Featured performers include Jack de Keyzer on January 28 and Mike Goudreau and the Boppin Blues Band on February 18th. Watch for more great shows throughout the spring and if you're in that area, check out this great series. Reservations are required and should be booked directly with the venues. Watch www.choosetheblues.ca for updates.

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