Maple Blues Online - Loose Blues News

Bob Vespaziani’s Snake Oil Revue (Vespaziani pictured at right) features Danny Marks, Julian Fauth, Gary Kendall, Dr. Nick. They perform at the Silver Dollar Room on Saturday, Aug.18th at 9:30 p.m .

Danny Brooks releasing new CD: There’s no doubt that Danny Brooks knows better than many that there is no easy way out - he’s paid an awful lot of dues but, boy, he has put his trials to great use - this wonderful recording, released on Gadsden, Alabama-based label, Rockin’ Camel Music, is testament to the many miles he’s traveled and to how far he’s come. Produced by the legendary Johnny Sandlin (original drummer for the Hourglass along with Gregg & Duane Allman), the recording is stamped with his highly original musical ideas and of course Danny’s remarkable voice. The session musicians read like the who’s who of Muscle Shoals - David Hood, Spooner Oldham, Bill Stewart, Scott Boyer to name just a few! Also adding musical heft are vocalists such as Bonnie Bramlett, Carla Russell and Tina Swindell.

No Easy Way Out pays tribute to Danny’s musical mentors, Hank Williams, Solomon Burke, Otis Redding, Taj Mahal, John Lee Hooker and Blind Boys of Alabama all of whom helped shape this album. On Thursday, September 6 at Hugh’s Room, he will unveil this new recording accompanied by an all-star band that includes: Bucky Berger (drums); Dennis Pinhorn (bass); Papa John King (guitar); Martin Aucoin (keyboards); singers, Steve Ambrose, Amoy Levy and Hiram Joseph; Ed Zankowski (sax) and Rocky Verweel (trumpet). The Hugh’s Room gig follows his U.S. release in Gadsden, Alabama on August 18. Danny welcomes another great Canadian singer/songwriter, Dean McTaggart as special guest to kick off the evening.

Hamlet (solo): Popular blues harmonicist/vocalist/guitarist Raoul Bhaneja has a double life as an actor as most have seen. In the mid 1990s he saw two productions that would later inspire him to create Hamlet (solo) with director Robert Ross Parker.
Hamlet (solo) began to take shape in 2000 while Robert and Raoul were members of the Soulpepper Young Company. After some initial meetings and work with former class mate and National Theatre School Alum Chris Abraham, Robert and Raoul began developing a vocabulary and a plan for the future production.
In 2002 Raoul was awarded the Christopher Plummer Fellowship, to study at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London, England. There he worked with Mark Rylance, himself a former a Hamlet and tested out many of the theories they had been working on in rehearsal. Through that informative time he discovered that many of the aspects of their developing production were supported by the “architecture” of The Globe. The biggest realization was that with Shakespeares plays performed in natural light, the actors on stage could clearly see the faces of audience members. Unlike the “black boxes” of the modern theatre, “The O” lent itself to a more interactive and intimate experience where the audience was an essential aspect of the storytelling and experience.

After back surgery that side lined Raoul for over a year Robert and Raoul continued to plan for a future production and in fall of 2005 rehearsal began for the debut in January 2006 at Theatre Passe Muraille in Toronto. Through the arduous process of rehearsal where over 15,000 words had to be learned, 17 different characters discovered and an experimental show had to be produced, documentary film director Jeff Stephenson continued to chronicle the process as he had began back in the summer of 2000.
After the run in Toronto, Hamlet (solo) went on tour in 2006 including stops at The Banff Centre as part of the Summer Arts Festival, Center Stage New York and The Montreal New Classical Theatre Festival, where the show went on to win the MECCA for Best Visiting Production. 2007 has proven to be a busy year with much excitement ahead...
Hope and Hell Theatre Company was formed in 1995 by Raoul Bhaneja and Birgitte Solem. it is based in Toronto and is currently developing The Blues Project with The Banff Centre. For more information on Hamlet (solo) and Hope and Hell Theatre go to www.hamletsolo.com

Nominations: The Steve Rowe Band is very proud to announce three upcoming nominations for Lys Blues Awards at www.lenetblues.com.
For Steve, Alec McElcheran and David Paul Neil (Best Original CD - Composers), Dominic Legrand (Best Performance - Drums) and Eric Khayat (Best Performance - Saxophone). Also coming soon for Steve and Alec are their roles as the “Blues Brothers” in the popular YTV Television series, Prank Patrol.

The Nanette Workman French House, is a Mississippi State-owned four-bedroom residence that provides a cultural immersion experience for students taking French courses. Whenever the six students chosen to live at the house do anything there this fall, they’ll do their best to communicate exclusively in French. “They will try to speak French as much as possible,” said Robert Raymond, an MSU graduate from Columbus who has served as a departmental instructor for many years. “This will be a fun and easy way to help augment their French studies.”
Raymond said the foreign languages department chose to name the house after a Mississippian to show students they can learn French and succeed in whatever field they chose. Montreal-based Nanette Workman was reared in Jackson, where her performing career began as a teenager. Inducted into the Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame in 2000, Workman additionally has recorded some 16 albums and was a backup singer with the Rolling Stones, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, and George Harrison. Workman plans to visit Mississippi State and the house named in her honour later this year.

Melvin Taylor and the Slack Band. Zap Records Cobourg is proud to present 3 shows with blues guitar virtuoso Melvin Taylor and the Slack Band featuring Felton Cruise on bass formerly of Miles Davis...we have a long history of presenting great live blues from Mississippi and Chicago and are looking forward to many more in the future. For more info. call toll free 1-877-562-2222
Friday Sept 14th Bancroft Village Playhouse, 5 Hastings St Bancroft 8 pm
Saturday Sept 15th Bohemian Social Club 248 Front Street Belleville 8 pm
Sunday Blues Matinee Sept 16th 2pm Cobourg Legion, 136 Orr St. Cobourg
Blackie & The Rodeo Kings

Train from Toronto. Tickets are on sale for the VIA Rail Blackie & The Rodeo Kings Train from Toronto - Vancouver, November 10 - 13, with Barney Bentall, Sass Jordan and Jimmy Rankin.
Seventy avid music fans and amazing musicians make a non-stop rolling music festival on board a private section of Via Rail’s legendary Canadian from Toronto to Vancouver. Three days and nights of music on board the last great long-distance streamline train still operating in North America - Open mics and workshops every afternoon from each member of BARK, on-board concerts every evening in the intimate Performance Car, where the scenery and music never stop. Tickets are $2689.00 CN per person. Includes all BARK Train activities, all meals on board, sleeper accommodations, shower in each car, private dome car/lounge, 24-hour access to Performance Car, hotel room at the Fairmont Royal York in Toronto. For more information go to www.rootsontherails.com

Guitarist Bill Perry (left) Dies At Age 49. It is sad to have to report that New York guitarist Bill Perry passed away from an apparent heart attack on July 17th. Perry had a solid reputation as a sterling guitar player, Guitar One magazine calling him a “six-string superman more powerful than a locomotive”. His gravelly vocals added an important dimension with its emotional range.

Raised in Chester N.Y. with a heritage half African-American, half Native American, Perry grew up immersed in music. His initial breakthrough occurred in the 80s when singer Richie Havens discovered him in a Greenwich Village club and made him the band’s featured guitarist for 4 years. During this period, Perry also did some touring with Garth Hudson and Levon Helm.

His debut 1996 release on Pointblank was “Love Scars”, and in 1999 he also did a recording at New York blues spot Manny’s Car Wash. Guitar Player said, “Bill Perry has it all - hip songs, a gritty, emotion-charged voice, devastating tones, and a powerful phrasing delivered with a stranglehold vibrato and knockout attack.”
In 2001, he released the first of his 4 releases on Blind Pig Records, with Jimmy Vivino of the Conan O’Brien show serving as producer of the first 2 cds. His most recent Blind Pig releases, including his latest one 2006’s “Don’t Know Nothing About Love” were produced by good friend and labelmate Popa Chubby who had this to say after hearing the terrible news: “The best thing about Bill was that his talent was effortless. He was a natural. He could sing the phone book and draw you in. He didn’t have a mean or a bad bone in him. I never heard him say a bad word about anyone. He was a brother and I’ll miss him dearly.”

Tributes, accolades, and fond remembrances have been pouring in from all quarters, including Richie Havens, Buddy Fox (Perry’s manager for 4 years), and Blind Pig president Edward Chmelewski who called Perry a “truly a unique artist that will be missed”. There is a video tribute to Bill Perry at http://thrnewmedia.com/assets/BillPerry.swf
Perry is survived by his only son, Aaron, 25, three brothers, and a sister. Details of a memorial service have not been announced.
A message from Sawdust Alley Records. We like to stay in touch with our friends & supporters, so that you know you are appreciated. We could not do it without your continuous air play.
We also want to let you know that Sawdust Alley Records has 4 nominations for, The Blues Music Awards 2007. In the categories of Best Blues/Soul Album of The Year for Ms. Trudy Lynn’s “I’m Still Here’ & Calvin Owens “Ain’t Gonna Be Your Dog No Mo”, are both nominated.

Calvin Owens is also nominated as Best Instrumentalist of The Year (Trumpeter) and Ms Trudy Lynn rakes in a Nomination as Best Blues/Soul Female Artist of the Year.

Tate's Vintage Gallery

Here is another in our ongoing series of revealing portraits of relatively obscure artists who dared to be different written by Blues aficionado and reporter Gary Tate. Gary welcomes your comments at gmtgt@yahoo.com.

Pee Wee Crayton: Connie “Pee Wee” Crayton established a solid profile on the 50s California Blues scene, alongside contemporaries T-Bone Walker, Johnny “Guitar” Watson, Lowell Fulson, Phillip Walker, and many other legendary guitarists.

Crayton’s work reflected a typically sophisticated and fluid guitar approach, while his relaxed and friendly vocals suggested such smooth practitioners as Nat King Cole and Charles Brown.

Pee Wee took up guitar seriously at 30 years of age, after witnessing T-Bone Walker playing a 1944 Oakland gig. Sideman duties with Ivory Joe Hunter followed, but Crayton’s career hit its stride after signing with Modern, and he continued doing excellent work with sides on Aladdin and Imperial Records. Some of his classics include “You Know Yeah”, “Wine-O”, “Do Unto Others”, “Every Dog Has His Day”, ”Texas Hop”, “Rosa Lee”, “Blues After Hours”, and “Runnin’ Wild”.

T-Bone enthusiasts desirous of hearing a different groove happening can’t do much better than by tuning into Crayton whose influence on the emerging 60s West Coast Jump Blues scene was profound. Everyone from Rod Piazza, Hollywood Fats, Junior Watson, Kid Ramos, William Clarke, to Rick Holmstrom absorbed his lessons.

After a 1960s career lull, Crayton made a superb “comeback” album in 1973 with “The Things I Used To Do”, demonstrating his innate ability to adopt others’ songs and turn them into his own. Pee Wee Crayton was short in stature, but huge in talent.

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