Bluesnews 28 Feb 2009

Feb 28 2009

Hello again. Here is another edition of a newsletter setting out all the blues news for South East Queensland.

And don’t forget, you can see this newsletter plus a whole lotta interesting blues history stuff originally broadcast on the 4ZZZ Nothin’ But the Blues show (Tues nights, 10pm 102.1 FM), on the net. Click here

Cheers

Mark Hipgrave
0418 556048


NEWS
RADIO/TV
FESTIVALS
CD LAUNCHES & REVIEWS
REGULAR STUFF AND GIG GUIDES


NEWS

New Orleans guitarist Snooks Eaglin dies at 72

Snooks Eaglin, the idiosyncratic New Orleans rhythm & blues guitarist with fleet-fingered dexterity and a boundless repertoire, died Wednesday afternoon. He was 72.

"He was the most New Orleans of all the New Orleans acts that are still living," said Mid-City Lanes owner John Blancher.

Even in a city and musical community known for eccentric characters, Mr. Eaglin stood out. Extremely private, he lived with his family in St. Rose. For many years, he refused to perform on Friday nights, reportedly because of religious reasons.

The digits on Mr. Eaglin's right hand flailed at seemingly impossible angles as he finger-picked and strummed a guitar's strings. A set by the so-called "Human Jukebox" could range from Beethoven's "Fur Elise" to Bad Company's "Ready for Love."

More here from the Times Picayune

The NY Times wrote in its obit:

“He played with a certain finger style that was highly unusual,” said the pianist Allan Toussaint, who was 13 when he formed a band with Mr. Eaglin. “He was unlimited on the guitar. Folks would assume, ‘I can do this or I can do that,’ but Snooks wouldn’t. There was nothing he couldn’t do. It was extraordinary.”

Mr. Eaglin was scheduled to perform this year at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, where he was a popular draw. Quint Davis, the event’s producer, said his death leaves a hole in the festival and also in the city’s music scene.

“His death is like losing a Dizzy Gillespie, a Professor Longhair, a Johnny Adams or a Gatemouth Brown,” Mr. Davis said. “He’s one of those unique giants of New Orleans music.”

Here is Snooks live, courtesy of Bob Corritore


Hi Fi Bar & Cloudland to open in Brisbane

Located at 123 Boundary St, West End, (near The Music Kafe) the Hi Fi Bar people from Melbourne plan to open on Wed 29 April, with a venue that will rival the Tivoli and The Zoo in its ability to handle larger audiences. (well at least that’s what I read in the Courier Mail, so it must be true…..)

...The Hi-Fi is on its way to West End. Who you say? Well we have been running Melbourne’s iconic live music venue, The Hi-Fi, for over 10 years and like all Mexicans we’re looking for any excuse to get well up north of the border. Our pledge is great live music and an insane amount of rhythmical largesse.

Details, including a gig guide for May, are here

And after lots of delays, a new bar/restaurant/venue called Cloudland will open at the city end of the Valley at the end of March – details here and here.


Bushfire and Flood Benefits

Lori Lee ran a bushfire benefit raffle at the Rockabilly Bop on Feb 21, and others too have swung into action:

Byron Bay Beach Hotel auction and raffle
The major event will be held at the Beach Hotel on Sunday the 8th March from 2pm to 6pm. Pub goers on the day will be encouraged to donate a minimum of $10 on the door as an entry fee to start the fundraising. The day will feature special guest performances, raffles and an auction.

I can’t find a lineup yet, but one might appear soon here.

And there is a big concert coming up in Melbourne on March 14, and there is also one at the Tivoli on Fri 6 March, but the website sways it is sold out.

There’s also one coming up at The Jubilee on Sun March 22 – see below.


2009 Blues Hall of Fame Inductees Announced

The Blues Foundation recently announced the inductees for the Blues Hall of Fame in 2009, …..

including "Soul Queen of New Orleans" Irma Thomas and multiple GRAMMY Award winner Taj Mahal, as well as late Chicago bluesman Son Seals and the Reverend Gary Davis.

Austin club owner Clifford Antone, discographer Mike Leadbitter and radio programmer and producer Bob Porter will be the non-performers inducted this year. The book I Hear You Knockin' by Jeff Hannusch was selected as a Classics of Blues Literature. The induction ceremony will be held at The Blues Foundation's Charter Member Dinner on Wednesday, May 6, at the Memphis Marriott Downtown in Memphis, Tennessee, the night before the 30th Blues Music Awards. Taj Mahal and Irma Thomas will both attend the induction ceremony.

The following singles or album tracks will be inducted during the ceremony: “Boom Boom” by John Lee Hooker; “Caldonia” by Louis Jordan; and “Sitting on Top of the World” by the Mississippi Sheiks. These albums were also chosen for induction: Amtrak Blues by Alberta Hunter; T-Bone Blues by T-Bone Walker; and the 2 CD set Blues With a Feeling (Newport Folk Festival Classics) by Various Artists.

More here


Press Articles – Various

Kelly Groucutt: bass player with the Electric Light Orchestra dies, from TimesOnline
The Annual UMiss Blues Symposium Approaches, from BC Music
Retro Redux: Tommy Cash - Singin' In The Shadow, also from BC Music
Acclaimed jazz drummer Louis Bellson dies at 84, from the Houston Chronicle
Joe Cuba, Bandleader and the Father of Latin Boogaloo, Dies at 78, from the NY Times
Molly Bee, 69, Country Music Hit Singer, Is Dead, also from the NY Times
Dayton blues musician Piney Brown dead, from Dayton Daily News
Lux Interior, 62, Singer in the Punk-Rock Era, Is Dead, from NY Times
Head Butler on Van Morrison’s Astral Weeks, Live at Hollywood Bowl………..and a review from Pop Matters here
Gatemouth Brown to Get Historical Marker, from the Blues Foundation
Will the real reunion band please stand up?, from the Guardian
Dallas building where legendary Robert Johnson recorded could face wrecking ball, from Dallas Morning News
Remembering Odetta, from the NY Times

If you haven’t had enough Leonard Cohen articles, here are a few more:

Pop Music’s Perpetual Old Man, Now 74, Is Back on the Road, from the NY Times
On the Road, for Reasons Practical and Spiritual, also from the NY Times
Leonard Cohen Dazzles at NY Tour Warmup, from Billboard
Head Butler on Leonard Cohen (with a video clip)


RADIO/TV/YOU TUBE

Arthur Elliot reports on his upcoming Sidestream shows– for Brisbane listeners 99.7 FM, Wed 7pm to 9pm.

There’s a wide variety of music in the 4 March edition of ‘Sidestream’. We play tracks from the new unreleased album by Toowoomba’s Jimmy Watts Band. Other music in the first hour includes the Celtic sounds of Grada, a mix of Indian and Canadian music from Harry Manx, great playing from locals Dan Rumour & The Drift, bluegrass from Widow Maker, a song from Bon Iver, a classic from Jorma Kaukonen, and more.

In the blues hour at 8pm, we showcase the mighty skills of Joe Bonamassa, with other blues coming from Caloundra’s Rob Tognoni, an award-winning album from Fiona Boyes, new music from Mark Easton, a great new track from Sean Taylor, and others.


Sidestream on 11 March features a new release from Byrds’ founder Roger McGuinn, including his version of ‘Waltzing Matilda’.
We also have music from Old Crow Medicine Show, a new CD from Danny Schmidt, Australia’s Melanie Horsenell, new music from Jorma Kaukonen, and top guitarist Tony McManus.

The blues hour at 8pm has great music from Phoebe Snow, Blackie & the Rodeo Kings, Mia Dyson, Doc Span, Rory Gallagher, local Suzannah Espie, and more.


The Daily Planet, Weekend Planet and Music Deli (ABC Radio National)

The Daily Planet website, the Weekend Planet website and The Music Deli website all have links to shows broadcast over the past few weeks.


Coming Up On ABC2 TV

Montreux Jazz Festival 2003 - Masters of Jazz
7:00am Sunday, 01 Mar
Classic Albums - Lou Reed: Transformer
5:10pm Sunday, 01 Mar
Classic Albums - Elvis Presley: Elvis Presley
5:10pm Sunday, 08 Mar
John Lennon: Live In New York City
4:15pm Sunday, 01 Mar
Montreux Jazz Festival 2003 - Women of Song
7:00am Sunday, 08 Mar
Elvis Costello: Live In Memphis
8:00am Sunday, 08 Mar
Gimme Some Truth: The Making Of John Lennon's Imagine Album
9:00am Sunday, 08 Mar
Ray Davies: The World From My Window
3:30pm Sunday, 08 Mar




Full program details are here


You Tube Selections

You can spend (waste?) your whole life looking for music on You Tube. Here are a few that have come to me recently:

Lux Interior and the Cramps - http://www.arthurmag.com/2009/02/10/lux-eternal/
RL Burnside – Poor Black Mattie - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8RtayjqqIw
Shemekia Copeland on the David Letterman Show, 20 Feb
http://www.3030fm.com/2009/02/21/shemekia-copeland-david-letterman-show-22009/

And I know this is ‘off-the-topic’ but my brother (who lives in Beijing) sent me this. He knows this guy. It’s good. Trust me:

Dear Friends,

You have received this email because you are in my address book. I do not question how you got there but you are and so I am sending you this email.

You may have heard/read that Tourism Queensland have advertised for the post of Island Caretaker on Hamilton Island dubbed "the best job in the world" http://www.islandreefjob.com/en/

I have submitted an application video which is now online:
http://www.islandreefjob.com/applicants/watch/H0X_R1K1wUs

The video was filmed in Beijing and I hope you will take the time to click on the link and watch it (run time: 60 seconds).

At the end of the video there is a special appearance by former Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke filmed specially for the video!

Hopefully the application is good enough for inclusion in the final selection of 50 shortlisted candidates.

The shortlist, from over 34,000 applications, will be announced on 2 March


FESTIVALS

Blue Mountains Music Festival

The 2009 Festival is on March 13, 14, 15. Details are here.


Kiama Jazz & Blues Festival

This festival runs on the same weekend as the Blue Mountains festival - Friday 13th March to Sunday 15th March. Details are here.

Back to the top


WINTERSUN 2009

It’s a while off but,

Australia's Leading Rock & Roll Nostalgia Retro Event....

Wintersun 2009 starts on Friday 29th May and ends with the huge Best of Wintersun Concert on Monday 8th June. Wintersun is Australia's leading annual Retro Nostalgia Festival. Featuring almost 1500 Hot Rods, Custom and Classic Cars, more than 100 bands and performers, dancing, movies, and competitions.

The festival is held in the border coastal towns of Coolangatta and Tweed Heads on the New South Wales & Queensland border. Many events are free, some are in the streets while others are in the local clubs and shopping centres.

There is no artist listing yet ….


Blues on Broadbeach

The lineup for this festival, at Broadbeach on the Gold Coast from Wed 27 May to Sun 31 May has been announced

No big overseas names that I can see, but a solid lineup none the less


CD LAUNCHES & REVIEWS

The people at Allmusic provide a good list of blues albums released in the USA during the past two weeks

You can also check out the Arizona USA based Blues Bytes review site for reviews of recently issued albums.

The Rhythms Magazine website also features reviews of locally available albums.

Back to the top


REGULAR STUFF AND GIG GUIDES

There is more blues at the Palmwoods Hotel in March:


Entering the 3rd month of 2009 and with the worldwide recession in full swing, the Palmwoods Hotel is providing a stimulus package tailored for dancing, carousing and partying the economic woes into submission.

Kicking off march on Saturday the 7th (at 8pm) will be a band that has gone from journeyman pub rockers to a drawcard at major festivals across the country. Blind Lemon were judged SE Qld’s favourite blues band in 2008 and with packed houses clamouring for more at Woodford and the Australian Blues festival at Goulburn, nobody is in any doubt that they are more than ready for their debut performances at the East Coast Blues & Roots festival at Byron Bay over Easter

Then on Sat March 21, from 5.30pm, the Palmwoods triples the value of your blues & roots dollars

With no less than 3 of the East Coasts premier blues and roots acts on the bill for the all inclusive price of $0, maybe K Rudd should be jumping the courtesy bus and shaking out the cabinet cobwebs at the sunshine coasts home of quality blues & roots

Mark Easton likes to sing about the skeletons in his closet. Back in the 80’s he was the hard living frontman of Sydney rockers “The Candy Harlots”. These days, he’s a little more considered in his lifestyle choices but no less hard core when it comes to performing his blues. His new album “Money Is The Root Of Evil” is the realization of his musical and philosophical vision and will be available for the first time at the show

Long regarded as one of the sunshine coasts finest singer/songwriters, Asa Broomhall will be returning with his rocking 3some to continue the high quality roots rhythms as day turns to night and the bar staff start to run

The last time Mojo Webb played Palmwoods, he was recovering from a shocking motorbike accident which left him in intensive care. After 3 months of 7 nights a week playing in Thailand, its hard to know if he’s recuperated but there’s no doubt that he’s playing better than ever and with his roadhardened band in tow, the joint will be rockin…if not reelin

And K Rudd? Well he’ll just have to wait for the courtesy bus like everybody else!!


Doug McLeod is visiting Australia in March (for the Port Fairy Folk Festival and the Mossvale Music Festival in Leongatha,) but only doing one show in Qld – on Fri 13 March – at St Bernards Hotel 101 Alpine Tce, Mt Tamborine P: 5545 1177

Doug was last here in 2005 where he played two nights in Brisbane (at The Piney, I recall) and also at the Blues on Broadbeach Festival.


At the Jubilee Hotel in the Valley, every Sunday afternoon, commencing 2pm:

· Sun 1 March Mick Hadley & the Atomic Boogie Band
· Sun 8 March Mike Frost & The Icemen
· Sun 15 March 1 Natural Ball
· Sat 21 March BASEQ Rent Party with Blind Lemon
· Sun 22 March Bushfire Fundraiser

And mark your diaries for:

· Blues Harmonica Blowout Sat April 18, featuring Ian Collard, Mojo Webb, Jamie Symons, Mark Gibbons, Greg Baker & more to be announced. Ian Collard will be back the next day running a harmonica workshop
· Even Divas Get The Blues Sat 2 May 09 with Kate Meehan & Skip Landy, Mama Voodoo + More
· Fortitude Valley Festival of Blues Sat. 25 Jul 09, with Muddy Waters' Number 1 Boy Child - Mud Morganfield + more

And while we are here, Mark Doherty’s regular Monday night jam – Blue Monday with Mark D’s Big 3, which until Oct last year was held at the Music Kafe in West End, is recommencing at the Jubilee, every Monday from March 2, at 7.30pm


Coming up at The Troubabour

Sat 21 March Dallas Frasca, Blackwater Fever and Texas Tea
Sun 22 March Martin Martini


At Joes Waterhole, Eumundi

Look out for:

· Thurs 5 March Preston Reed (Ireland)
· Fri 6 March Matt McHugh
· Sat 7 March Paul Greene
· Fri 20 March Bill Chambers
· Sat 21 March Martin Martini
· Thurs 26 March Luka Bloom
· Sat 28 March Dallas Frasca
· Fri 3 April Ruthie Foster



At The Tivoli you can catch

· Thurs 12 March Cat Emoire
· Thurs 19 March Eric Bibb
· Sat 28 March Luka Bloom


At the Cooly Hotel

· Sun 21 March Mason Rack Band


And at The Judy.

I feel bad that I didn’t highlight the Mary Coughlan show here last Wed, where the Irish singer performed songs from her latest album – The House of Ill Repute. If you were there – good. If you missed it, well, as they say in the USA ‘my bad’

Here is what Timesonline said about it

Coming up:

· Sat 21 March Dhafer Youssef
· Thurs 2 April Ruthie Foster


At The Zoo

· Sat 21 March The Gin Club


At The Powerhouse

· Wed 4 March Preston Reed


At The Soundlounge, Currumbin

· Sun 1 March Mia Dyson
· Fri 6 March Tommee Trio
· Fri 27 March Dallas Frasca, Blackwater Fever & Texas Tea


Margret RoadKnight is visiting from Victoria, exactly a year after her last Brisbane concert

Sat night, March 7th, 7.30 - 11pm @ Brisbane Jazz Club (1 Annie St, Kangaroo Point)
Blues, Jazz, Gospel, Ballads, African songs ....& more
She will be supported by keyboardist Mary Jane Carpenter and percussionist Kym Ambrose


And look out for Lori Lee’s next outings:

· Saturday March 14 Rocket to Memphis Warren Earl & The Atomic Rockers Paulie & His Crazy Rhythm Boys DJ Lori Lee The Troubadour, Brunswick St Mall, Fortitude Valley

More details here

In her latest newsletter, Lori writes:

Loud, Punchy & Meaningless?

The Noosa Regional Gallery is holding an exhibition from February 27 - March 28 to showcase a collection of music posters. The exhibition with the debatable title of "Loud, Punchy and Meaningless?" is being held to explore the culture of music events and festivals in Australia and how this is represented in poster design.

The exhibition will include a couple of rockabilly posters designed by Lori Lee, including the recent Rockabilly Xmas Party poster and one of the Rockabilly Psychosis posters. Mimi Kersting will also have a poster featured in the display.

I'm a bit curious over the title of the exhibition, as I don't consider any of the shows I hold to be 'meaningless', but let the gallery and the public come to their own conclusion about that.

Noosa Regional Gallery, Pelican Street (behind the Noosa Council) Tewantin, Feb 27 – Mar 28

I agree with Lori. If you are in Noosa over the next few weeks, have a look yourself.