| | | Dear John,
Sorry about the tardy newsletter. I'm still finishing up Blues Blast '16.
Speaking of BB. What a show!! It was the best one since our move to Hance Park five years ago.
The PBS board did a fine job planning and executing the event and all should be very proud of themselves. I'm sure proud of you.
Carla, Terri, Dave, Taffy, Sharon, BeBe, Toi and Jane all deserve a huge Thank You!! for your efforts. We could not have pulled the show off without your tireless work. If you know or see any of them, give them some love. I've been approached by a boatload of people during and after the show and have not heard one complaint. All we gotta do is top it next year. Easy breezy. HA!
I was particularly pleased to see the reaction our local players created. Make no mistake, we have some mighty fine players in our midst. You just saw a sample of acts that are playing the Blues in the Valley of the Sun.
I'm thinking we should do this again next year, Same time. Same place. How 'bout you?
Have a week!
Sincerely, Jim Crawford
The Phoenix Blues Society |
 | | | Walter Trout celebrated his 63rd birthday on Sunday. He survived a liver transplant and has returned to the road. He is scheduled to appear at the Rhythm Room for an early show this Friday
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Still Kickin'
by Rev. Keith A. Gordon Strangely enough, blues-rock guitarist Walter Trout remains relatively unknown in the U.S., in spite of forging a respectable career in an American blues scene that has been dominated by fiery guitarslingers since Stevie Ray Vaughan broke out in the mid-1980s. It didn't help, perhaps, that Trout toiled for years in virtual obscurity while touring with British blues legend John Mayall, or later with his own bands, or that his first stateside album release didn't come until a decade into his solo career. Regardless, Trout is an underrated talent that has managed to mix a perfect measure of old-school rock and lightning blues in creating his unique individual sound. Born in New Jersey to supportive, music-loving parents, Trout's first instrument was actually the trumpet, which he played in the school band. As a young teen, however, he came across the Paul Butterfield Blues Band and the work of guitarist Michael Bloomfield and the die was cast. Trout would pick up a guitar and decide on a life in blues music. Trout performed in several bands in a thriving New Jersey music scene during the late-1960s and early-70s, competing with artists like Bruce Springsteen and Billy Chinnock. Trout packed up the car in 1973 and headed out to the West Coast, landing in Los Angeles, where he made a living as a sideman for blues and R&B artists like Big Mama Thornton, Joe Tex, and John Lee Hooker. By 1981, Trout's reputation with the guitar was such that he was offered a job with blues-rock institution Canned Heat, replaced the late, beloved guitarist Bob "Bear" Hite. Two years later, Trout was invited to join John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, sharing the stage with fellow guitarist Coco Montoya. Trout jumped at the chance, and spent six years recording and touring with the British blues legend. Many consider the Trout/Montoya line-up of the Bluesbreakers to be Mayall's best since the mid-1960s roster that included Eric Clapton. Trout left Mayall's employ in 1989 to launch his solo career, forming the Walter Trout Band and releasing his debut album, Life In The Jungle, the following year. Constant touring across the European continent, combined with subsequent album releases (that would sell over half a million copies combined), would win Trout a loyal overseas audience. Stateside blues fans remained blissfully unaware of Trout's talents throughout much of the 1990s. With several albums under his belt, Trout returned home with a new band, the Free Radicals (later just Walter Trout & the Radicals) and his first U.S. distributed work, a self-titled 1998 album released by Germany's Ruf Records (originally released in Europe as Positively Beale Street). Trout would continue to tour tirelessly throughout the late-1990s and early-00s, releasing a string of well-received albums of guitar-driven blues and blues-rock that featured his fiery six-string style and hard living lyrics. In 2006, Trout released Full Circle, the realization of a long-held dream where the guitarist had the opportunity to work with several of his former bandmates and other musical idols like John Mayall, Jeff Healey, Coco Montoya, Joe Bonamassa, Guitar Shorty, and others. Trout's career continued to pick up steam with the 2008 release of The Outsider, a critically-acclaimed collection that earned Trout a Blues Music Award nomination. The 2009 compilation Unspoiled by Progress found Trout handpicking live tracks recorded on the road throughout his career. The following year he was back in the studio and released Common Ground. On 2012's Blues for the Modern Daze, he wrote 15 tracks based on his country-blues roots. His 23rd album, Luther's Blues, a tribute to one of his main influences, the late Luther Allison, was originally released in Europe in 2010, and finally issued in the United States in 2013. Trout had been having health problems for some time, and discovered his liver was failing in late 2013. He went on a transplant list early the next year, and on May 26, 2014 underwent successful transplant surgery. Two weeks later, Provogue issued Blues Came Callin', a recording that marked his 25th anniversary as a solo artist. Trout continued to recover with some complications that required another surgery. A series of interviews with British journalist Henry Yates resulted in the autobiography Rescued Reality: The Life and Times of Walter Trout, published in early 2015. Trout was strong enough to tour and record again. Less than a year after his transplant, he cut another album entitled Battle Scars, set for release in the fall Recommended Albums: Trout's 1990 debut, Life In The Jungle is an inspired mix of live and studio tracks that was reissued in the U.S. by Ruf Records in 2002. The hard-rockin' 2008 release The Outsider has more than enough six-string pyrotechnics to satisfy any rabid blues-rock fan. In 2012, Trout released Blues For The Modern Daze, an incendiary set that takes the guitarist's songwriting into more populist territory, becoming Trout's most acclaimed work to date. |
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| | GOT BLUES?
If you are a Blues musician, a group, or a club that features Blues music, and would like to be listed, please send your info to info@phoenixblues.org and we'll be happy to list your event in our weekly Out & About section of the newsletter
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| Moved? Changed email addresses? Please let us know of any changes in your address, email, or phone number so we can keep you informed about the Blues community in Arizona. Email us at: info@phoenixblues.org or write to: Phoenix Blues Society P.O. Box 36874 Phoenix, Arizona 85067 |
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| | | | Out & About Tuesday, March 8 Hans Olson, 7 p.m. EVERY TUESDAY, The Hall, Scottsdale Wednesday, March 9 Soulcatcher Duo, 6 p.m., Las Sendas Patio, Mesa Bad News Blues Band, Every Wed., 9:30 p.m., Chicago Bar, Tucson Thursday, March 10 Hans Olson, 6 p.m., Handlebar, Apache Junction Sugar Thieves Duo, 7 p.m., Camelback Inn Resort, Scottsdale Chuck Hall w/Herndon Bros, 7:30 p.m., Handlebar J, Scottsdale Friday, March 11 Walter Trout Band (Early Show), 5:30 p.m., Rhythm Room, Phoenix George Bownan & Badd Boyz Bluez Band, 9 p.m., Rhythm Room, Phoenix JPowers Band, 6 p.m., Dillon's, Arrowhead, Glendale Leon J & Juke Joint, 3 p.m., Ostrich Festival, Chandler Hoodoo Casters, Maverick, 9 p.m., Phoenix Sugar Thieves Duo, 10:30 a.m., Scottsdale Arts Festival, Scottsdale Common Ground Blues Band, 4 p.m., Scottsdale Arts Festival, Scottsdale Outback Blues Band, 9 p.m., The Bar, Parker Chuck Hall (acoustic), 7 p.m., Bryan's BBQ, Cave Creek Halleluujan Blues Bane, 9 p.m., Hooper's, Glendale Paris James, 7 p.m., D'Vine Wine, Mesa Paris James, 8 p.m., Wild Vine Uncorked, Chandler Saturday, March 12 Cold Shott & The Hurricane Horns, 1 p.m., el Pedregal, Scottsdale Cold Shott & The Hurricane Horns, 9 p.m., Rhythm Room, Phoenix Nina Curri w/Dan Rutland, Hans Olson, Jennifer Bone, Charity Lockhart, Andy Gonzales & The Allstars @Francine Reed CD Release Party, 7 p.m., The Hall, Scottsdale JC & The Juke Rockers, 7 p.m., Bar Vinedo, Queen Creek Leon J & Juke Joint, 6 p.m., Pappadeaux, Phoenix Hoodoo Casters, 11 a.m., Olive Mill, Queen Creek Terraplane Station (acoustic), 8 p.m., North Mountain Brewery, Phoenix Blues Review Band, 8 p.m., All American, Scottsdale BluZone, 8 p.m., Crown King Saloon, Crown King Outback Blues Band, Colorado River Blues Festival, Parker JPowers Band, 9 p.m., Hooper's, Glendale Chuck Hall (acoustic), 7 p.m., Bryan's BBQ, Cave Creek Paris James, 7 p.m., D'Vine Wine, Chandler Sunday, March 13 JPowers Band, 12:30 p.m., Turf Paradise, Phoenix Sugar Thieves Duo, 3 p.m., Minder Binders, Tempe Mike Eldred (acoustic), 7 p.m., Janey's, Cave Creek Two Flavor Blues, NOON, Copper Star, Phoenix Monday, March 14 Carvin Jones (acoustic), 6 p.m., Monastery, Mesa |
| WEEKLY JAMS Sunday Blooze Bar JAM w/Bill Tarsha & Rocket 88s, 6 p.m., Phoenix
Ray Ray & BluZone JAM, 6 p.m., Wild Willy's, Avondale Bourbon Jack's JAM w/Kody Herring, 6 p.m., Chandler
MONDAY Bam Bam & Badness Open JAM, 9 p.m., Char's, Phoenix
TUESDAY
Gypsy's Bluesday Night JAM, 7 p.m. Pho Cao, Tempe Blind Ronnie's JAM, 7 p.m., Marc's, Glendale
WEDNESDAY Rocket 88s, 7 p.m., Chopper John's, Phoenix Tool Shed JAM Party, 7 p.m., El Dorado, Scottsdale THURSDAY Tool Shed JAM Party, 7 p.m., Steel Horse Saloon, Phoenix Jolie's Place JAM w/Adrenaline, 8 p.m., Chandler Brad's Place JAM, 7 p.m., Ahwatukee (Every other Week) |
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