Posts Tagged ‘blues’

As Joe Bonamassa grows his reputation as one of the world’s greatest guitar players, he is also evolving into a charismatic blues-rock star and singer-songwriter of stylistic depth and emotional resonance. His ability to connect with live concert audiences is transformational, and his new album, Black Rock, brings that energy to his recorded music more powerfully than ever before. The tenth solo album and eighth studio release of his career – as well as his fifth consecutive with producer Kevin Shirley (Led Zeppelin, Black Crowes, etc.) – the disc adds an enlivening dose of ‘world’ vibes to Bonamassa’s virtuoso mix of ‘60s-era British blues-rock (à la Beck and Clapton) and roots-influenced Delta sounds.

The album was recorded at Black Rock Studios in Santorini, Greece. “With this album, we wanted to explore a ‘world’ feeling, and this was the inspiration behind going to record in Greece and using some of the best Greek musicians to add a little flavor to a couple of the tracks. But it’s by no means a ‘world’ album. We wanted Joe’s usual youthful and energetic tones to play alongside the worldly vibes of the Greek bouzouki and clarino,” said Shirley. Bonamassa adds, “It was the kind of record Kevin and I wanted to make. We needed to rock again a bit like on my first album. It’s youthful, like going back to your childhood.” Throughout, Bonamassa is again backed by the stellar players Carmine Rojas (bass), Anton Fig, Bogie Bowles (both on drums) and Rick Melick (keyboards).

2009 was a big year for Bonamassa. He was awarded the Breakthrough Artist of the Year Award at the U.K.’s prestigious Classic Rock Roll of Honour Awards and Classic Rock magazine has said, “They’re calling him the future of blues, but they’re wrong – Joe Bonamassa is the present; so fresh and of his time that he almost defines it.” He was also named Best Blues Guitarist in Guitar Player Magazine’s 2009 Readers’ Choice Awards for the third consecutive year. Guitar Player writer Matt Blackett has said, “He’s an old soul, and that comes through in his bends, vibrato, singing voice, and note choices, which – which each passing year – get more restrained and refined.”

In May ’09, he played to a sold out crowd at London’s Royal Albert Hall, arguably the most prestigious concert venue in the world. During the show, Bonamassa’s hero, Eric Clapton, joined him on stage for a joint-performance of Clapton’s hit “Further On Up The Road.” London’s The Independent said about the show, “The man has arrived, and there’s no turning back.” Shortly after, Bonamassa released a 2-DVD live set – Joe Bonamassa – Live From The Royal Albert Hall – which captures the night in full. Guitar Edge gave it five stars and also said, “It is the wallop of his emotional expression, fueled by the rocking energy he derives from that trans-Atlantic connection and driven by his devastating technical ability, that elevates him about his peers and makes him a certifiable blues guitar hero and the face of his blues generation.”

Last year also coincided with Bonamassa’s twentieth year as a professional musician, an extraordinary timeline for a young artist just into his ’30s. A child prodigy, Bonamassa was finessing Stevie Ray Vaughan licks when he was seven and by the time he was ten, had caught B.B. King’s ear. After first hearing him play, King said, “This kid’s potential is unbelievable. He hasn’t even begun to scratch the surface. He’s one of a kind.” By age 12, Bonamassa was opening shows for the blues icon and went on to tour with venerable acts including Buddy Guy, Foreigner, Robert Cray, Stephen Stills, Joe Cocker and Gregg Allman.

Bonamassa reunites with King for a duet on Black Rock. The song they perform together is a rendition of the Willie Nelson-penned song, “Night Life,” which appeared on King’s 1967 album Blues Is King. Shirley says about the experience, “This is a rollicking Stonesy-vibe version of the Willie Nelson song on which B.B. duets with Joe, both vocally and on his famous Lucille guitar. What a joy and an honor to work with the legend who is possibly the pivot point and unifying musician between blues and rock.”

Other tracks appearing on Black Rock include Jeff Beck’s “Spanish Boots,” a lively version of Leonard Cohen’s poetic “Bird On A Wire,” Otis Rush’s “Three Times A Fool,” as well as Bobby Parker’s “Steal Your Heart Away,” a song recommended by Robert Plant, who said Led Zeppelin rehearsed it in their earliest days. Also, Blind Boy Fuller’s “Baby, You Gotta Change Your Mind,” John Hiatt’s “I Know A Place,” and James Clark’s “Look Over Yonder’s Wall,” as well as the Bonamassa-penned originals “When The Fire Hits The Sea,” “Wandering Earth,”

“Athens To Athens,” and “Blue and Evil.”

Bonamassa’s recording career began in the early ’90s with Bloodline, a hard-charging rock-blues group also featuring Robby Krieger’s son Waylon and Miles Davis’ son Erin. His 2000 solo debut, A New Day Yesterday, was produced by the legendary Tom Dowd; Bonamassa’s rendering of the title track, originally a Jethro Tull hit, was called, “a jaw-dropping performance” by allmusic.com.

His last studio album, The Ballad Of John Henry – with no shortage of its own jaw-dropping moments – debuted at #1 on the Billboard blues chart and stayed there for six months. The album marks a more confessional approach to songcraft than he’s previously employed. “Making the first half of the album,” Bonamassa says, “I was in the happiest place I’d ever been in my life. The second half found me in completely the opposite state. I’ve come to the conclusion that experience makes for better art. I had more to say, and it’s the first time I’ve personally opened up the book on my life.”

Previous studio sets include 2007’s Sloe Gin, which debuted at #1 on Billboard’s blues chart and received a 2008 nod for Album Of The Year from the Classic Rock Roll Of Honour Awards. Sloe Gin careens between heavy electric blues-rockers and acoustic, folk-etched cuts in a flow that Bonamassa says was partly inspired by Rod Stewart’s classic 1969 solo debut LP. Modern Guitars Magazine wrote, “If calling Sloe Gin a Bonamassa sampler isn’t graphic enough, think of the album as a musical buffet in which unrelated entrees share a single trait: they taste good.” The Boston Phoenix called it, “an elegant and brawny guitar-hero album.”

In 2008, he released the 2-CD set Live From Nowhere In Particular, which Guitar Player said, “finds Joe playing with soul, intensity and savage tones.” It features 13 songs recorded live in concert on the artist’s 2007 North American tour – at shows like the one at New York’s Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center reviewed for www.hamptons.com by Lon S. Cohen: “In a thousand years, when archeologists dig out Joe Bonamassa’s guitar from the strata of the earth, it will still be smoking…He holds the guitar like a shotgun but what comes out of it is poetry, color, and a story is told in notes.” A review of a show at Alexandria, VA’s Birchmere drew similar sentiments from writer Paul Roy on blogcritics.org: “I have flirted with the opinion that Bonamassa may be the overall best guitarist on the planet these days, and after seeing him perform live again…I am now totally comfortable with that opinion. He is simply mesmerizing to watch.”

Bonamassa circles the globe playing an average of 200 shows a year, and his mind-blowing guitar wizardry and electrifying stage presence are selling out progressively larger venues all the time. The OC Register’s Robert Kinsler has written, “Whether in a club or outdoors at a festival, something magnetic happens when Bonamassa steps to the front of the stage, leans his head back and simply lets loose.”

Ongoing journeyman touring is a given, and looking beyond Black Rock, Bonamassa will continue his recording collaboration with producer Kevin Shirley, who says, “It’s great working with Joe and seeing him enjoy the discovery of all these places he can go. He’s an artist who can play anything, there are so many facets to him.” Bonamassa adds, “Kevin comes up with fantastic ideas outside the box. He appreciates the blues, but pushes me, the only person besides Tom Dowd who’s done that.”

On top of touring, recording and overseeing the independent label J&R Adventures with his entrepreneurial partner and manager Roy Weisman, Bonamassa is a spokesperson for the Blues Foundation’s respected Blues In The Schools program, volunteering his time during tours to speak with groups of high school students about the heritage of blues music – the first pure American music form. Recently, he was chosen by Channel One, the largest in-school news network, to host an ongoing segment called “Know Your Roots with Joe Bonamassa” in which he traces the musical roots of Channel One’s weekly “Hear It Now” featured artist.

And, 2010 has already started with a bang – Guitar World dubbed Bonamassa “The Blues Rock Titan” and his song, “Lonesome Road Blues,” is a part of Guitar Hero V’s New Blues Masters Track Pack. Keeping with his blues roots but fluently moving between rock n’ roll and international sounds, 2010 is not only a new decade but a new era for Bonamassa.

May 9th 8pm, Freede Little Theater @ Oklahoma Civic Center Music Hall

This will be the Robben Ford Trio with Travis Carlton, son of Larry, bass guitar and Toss Panos, drums

May 10th Masterclass/clinic Open to the public limited seating available.

ACM@UCO Performance Venue 323 East Sheridan Ave

The Clinic will be open to the general public with very limited seating tickets available through Ticketstorm.com

Students of ACM will be the guests of The Oklahoma Blues Society limited to the first 50 to sign up contact your teacher or administrator.

The class will focus on the basic building blocks of music theory, chord progressions, the use of voicings, listening and improvisation.
There will be an emphasis on the importance of the blues in building a strong musical foundation, as well as the understanding and usage of advanced harmony to add dimension to simple music forms and chord progressions. The guitar will be featured, but beginning and mid-level students of any instrument would
benefit from this class.

Robben Ford is one of the premiere electric guitarists today, particularly

known for his blues playing as well as his ability to be comfortable in a

variety of musical contexts. A five-time Grammy nominee, he has played

with artists as diverse as Joni Mitchell, Jimmy Witherspoon, Miles Davis,

George Harrison, Phil Lesh, Bonnie Raitt, Claus Ogerman, Michael

McDonald, Bob Dylan, John Mayall, Greg Allman and many others. (See

Discography)

Born in 1951 in Woodlake, California, and raised in Ukiah, Robben was

the third of four sons in a musical family. His father Charles was a

country and western singer and guitarist before entering the army and

marrying Kathryn, who played piano and had a lovely singing voice.

Robben’s first chosen instrument was the saxophone, which he began to

play at age ten and continued to play into his early twenties. He began to

teach himself guitar at age thirteen upon hearing the two guitarists from

The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Michael Bloomfield and Elvin Bishop. In

the late 1960’s, Ford frequented the Fillmore and Winterland Auditoriums

in San Francisco to see Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Cream, Led Zeppelin,

Albert King, B.B. King and all of the progenitors of blues. “It was an

incredible time for electric guitar,” Robben recalls.

On his interest in jazz, Robben says,” I fell in love with the sax-playing of

Paul Desmond and The Dave Brubeck Quartet, and before long found

Ornette Coleman, Archie Shepp, Yusef Lateef, Roland Kirk, John Coltrane,

Wayne Shorter, and of course, Miles Davis.” These influences have stayed

with Robben, playing a large part in his particular blend of jazz and blues

that define him as a guitarist and allow him to play in a wide variety of

settings.

After high school, Robben and his brothers Patrick (a blues drummer) and

Mark (a blues harmonica player) formed The Charles Ford Blues Band

(named after their father), and recorded for the Arhoolie label. Robben

(on sax and guitar) and Patrick went on to tour the U.S. with Chicago

harmonica player Charlie Musselwhite, again recording for Arhoolie.

Robben’s first attempt at forming his own jazz quartet was picked up by

legendary blues singer Jimmy Witherspoon, which brought Robben to L.A.

He toured the U.S. and Europe with Witherspoon and was seen by Tom

Scott and members of The L.A. Express, who were about to begin a

promotional tour with Joni Mitchell for her recording “Court and Spark.”

Robben was invited to play guitar on the tour and played on two

recordings with Mitchell and The L.A. Express. “The two years I spent with

Joni were the most formative of my musical life. Joni was just brilliant and very accessible, and the members of The L.A. Express became good

friends and teachers. It was great.”

Beatle George Harrison invited Robben to join him on his “Dark Horse”

tour of the U.S. and Canada, raising his musical profile even further.

Shortly after the two month stint with Harrison, Robben moved to

Colorado to take a much-needed break from music and to study with

Buddhist teacher Chogyam Trungpa. In 1977, he was approached by

Elektra Records, which produced his first solo recording “The Inside

Story” with a group of musicians who went on to become The

Yellowjackets.

Elektra closed their doors in the early 1980’s, leading to a time of

uncertainty.  Robben moved to San Francisco to be close to family and his

early musical history. Soon his career would take another upward swing,

recording and touring with Michael McDonald, securing a recording

contract with Warner Brothers Records, and meeting his soon-to-be wife,

actress Anne Kerry. After moving to New York with Anne, he was called to

play with musical icon Miles Davis. “Producer Tommy LiPuma played Miles

my work with the Yellowjackets, then three days later, Miles called me

personally to join his band. Shocking!” Robben lamented having to leave

Miles after only six months because of recording commitments with

Warner Brothers, but was told by Miles that if he ever wanted to come

back, “just come back.”

Robben’s 1988 release for Warner Brothers, “Talk to Your Daughter”

brought his first Grammy nomination (Best Contemporary Blues

Recording) and he started touring the world under his own name. Still

based in New York, he backed David Sandborn on the television show

“Night Music,” in which Sandborn hosted a variety of musical acts.

Robben toured with Sandborn in 1990, then moved back to southern

California shortly thereafter to be closer to his own band.

After leaving Warner Brothers, Robben signed with Stretch/GRP records,

where he finally found a real home for his creativity, recording three CDs

for them with his band “The Blue Line” (Tom Brechtlein on drums and

Roscoe Beck on bass). After a very fruitful eight years, Robben disbanded

the group and recorded two more CDs for the label which had then

become Stretch/Blue Thumb: “Tiger Walk” (an instrumental recording

produced in New York with Keith Richard’s rhythm section) and

“Supernatural,” his most accomplished work up to that point as a

songwriter.In 2000 Robben was invited to tour with Phil Lesh and Friends on a cobill with Bob Dylan, reuniting him with Billy Paine and Paul Barrere of

Little Feat, as well as drummer John Molo. “This experience gave me new

respect for Jerry Garcia as a musician and songwriter. The songs and

musical context were pure pleasure–real guitar music!

When his contract expired at Stretch/Blue Thumb, Robben signed with

Concord Records, the largest independently-owned record company at

the time. In 2002, he released “Blue Moon” and in 2003 “Keep on

Runnin,” a recording full of the 60’s blues/R&B feeling with which he

grew up. His third release for Concord was entitled “Truth”. “I feel this is

the best work I have done in terms of a solo recording. It is my most

realized work as a songwriter, and I feel like I am reaching higher ground

as a guitarist. “Truth” represents the blues as they are today; some of the

songs are sociopolitical in essence, but not without humor, and the

musical setting is fresh.”

Robben’s fourth release for Concord, Soul on Ten” is a “live” recording

performed in San Francisco. “People had been requesting a live recording

for years and I had the right band, music, and venue to pull it o”.” The

CD also includes two studio tracks which feature Larry Goldings on B3

organ and John Button on bass.

Most recently (2010) Robben released “Renegade Creation,” with a group

of musical friends who have played in di”erent combinations and

contexts over the years and decided to focus on a project together

recording for Mike Varney’s Shrapnel label. This is a rock band, Robben’s

first, and the results have people talking: “Dare I say everyone who hears

it, loves it!” The other members are guitarist Mike Landau, bassist Jimmy

Haslip and drummer Gary Novak.

Robben has been touring the world o” and on with the legendary

guitarist Larry Carlton, the two producing “Live in Tokyo”, and an

“unplugged” DVD from Paris. Collaboration seems to be the current M.O.

– projects with John Scofield, Michael McDonald, and touring and

recording with fellow Miles Davis alumni saxophonist Bill Evans, as well as

Randy Brecker and Rolling Stones bassist Darryl Jones.

Robben also collaborates with his wife Anne on various musical projects

including her recent CD “Weill”, which Robben produced on their own

Illyria label.

Nov 16th Charlie Musselwhite Tickets   Blues is tough,” Charlie Musselwhite explains. He could just as easily be talking about himself. Described by the San Jose Mercury News as, “the second coming of Led Zeppelin, with Tom Waits on vocals,” Charlie and his band embody the direct and timeless power of the blues. Charlie continues to deliver that hi-wattage intensity on stage, testifying to the truth of living in real America night in and night out. Whether it’s the rough river town of Memphis of his childhood, the rough South Side Chicago juke joints where he cut his teeth as a performer or the disillusioned Twenty First Century New Orleans, Musselwhite’s music still speaks - loud and clear - to the soul with passion and grace. When Charlie released his first record, 1967’s defiant Stand Back, the country was in the midst of an unpopular war and entering the slipstream of rapid cultural and political change. Fast forward four decades and not much has changed. Neither has Musselwhite’s musical wanderlust nor his creative ambition. His hunger to explore new sounds and possibilities resulted in an acclaimed 2007 collaboration with alt-rock institution Eddie Vedder on the Golden Globe-nominated soundtrack to the film Into The Wild. Vedder’s haunting vocals and Musselwhite’s aching harp strains added to the movie’s already powerful story. Charlie recalls the sessions as a mutual admiration society. “It was great. Sean Penn was there, too. They were fans and knew a lot of my records. We hit it off right away and had great rapport.” Charlie describes this give and take between himself and performers from other generations and different genres as, “a conversation.” It is an ongoing one that has been a key reason why his music remains so vital. “Every situation has something to offer and can spark new ideas,” he explains. “Something new comes out of it.” Musselwhite sums up: “It’s like… I know what I know. What do you know that can make things even more interesting?” Charlie also finds inspiration in diverse cultural experience. An avid traveler, Charlie loves to investigate all music “with feeling / music from the heart.” He and his band go wherever the gigs are - including China, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Brazil. Even though Charlie has already racked up thousands of miles on tour buses and still spends a great deal of time away from his current Sonoma County, California home, he still books tour itineraries that would wear out performers half his age. Charlie finds that these journeys allow him, “to get beneath the surface of the place.” These treks reinforce Musselwhite’s belief in music’s universality. No matter that they were half a world away from the American stages that gave birth to the genre, Charlie remembers hearing, “people playing blues in their own way, their own version.” Like some Jungian archetype, Musselwhite calls this a global “music of lament from the heart,” with, “different takes,” from country to country. Musselwhite’s most recent album, 2006’s critically praised Delta Hardware (released by Peter Gabriel’s Real World imprint), runs a wide emotional gamut from the hip-shaking boogie of, “Church Is Out,” to the haunting Katrina lament, “Black Water.” Charlie’s electric brand of roots music, drawing equally from rock and blues traditions, permeates the disc. But, in addition to the traditional, Delta Hardware finds Musselwhite stretching out and exploring new sounds, including bits of samples and drums loops. When asked if he is writing any new material, Charlie replies, “I’m constantly working on new stuff. It’s an ongoing process.” As if touring the globe, releasing acclaimed albums and embarking on major collaborations wasn’t enough for Musselwhite’s to-do list, he even found time to act in his first feature film, Pig Hunt. A bold, jarring and independent slice of horror dubbed, “cinematic punkabilly,” Pig Hunt isn’t for the faint of heart. But, for Charlie, whose part was created specifically with him in mind by script writer Robert Mailer Anderson, the shoot was, “Very professional… fun, serious work.” Musselwhite was born in the Mississippi - the cradle of the blues. He spent his formative years in another musical hothouse, Memphis, Tennessee. Fortuitously, he arrived during its burgeoning postwar ascent, a vibrant cross-pollenization of down-home country, swinging jazz and soulful R&B. Charlie remembers, “I just figured every place was like Memphis. In the neighborhood, I could take a walk a couple blocks in any direction and come across some guys playing blues, hillbilly, gospel or rockabilly literally on the front steps, or in the yard. You could hear the music, and follow the sound.” Some of the young hotshots just getting their start in the city’s nightclubs at the time were Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash. Charlie often found himself at Elvis’ parties or watching Johnny and Tommy Cash styling through the Memphis streets. Heck, Johnny and Dorsey Burnette lived right across the street from Charlie. Slim Rhodes lived only a couple blocks away. Music had sunk its teeth deep into Charlie, but economic necessity made him move to Chicago in the mid 60’s. Now on his own as a young adult, Musselwhite looked for a good job and a better life. But, inevitably, the South Side scene, filled with legendary players like Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf and John Lee Hooker, drew him in. Soon, Charlie was living in the basement of Delmark records with Big Joe Williams and meeting the era’s greats. Musselwhite’s prodigious talent and laidback attitude soon won him a place at their sides both on stage or sharing a bottle in the alley out back of the bar. During the course of the remarkable career that followed, Musselwhite has collected a treasure trove of awards and accolades, including 18 W.C. Handy trophies, and six Grammy nominations. Amazon.com named Delta Hardware the best blues album of 2006. Musselwhite has also been honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award from The Monterey Blues Festival, the Mississippi Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts and a prestigious Brass Note plaque on Memphis’ Beale Street (prominently placed outside B.B. King’s Club). The latest in this list is the Mississippi Trail Marker on the square of his birthplace, Kosciusko Mississippi. However, probably more meaningful for a true bluesman like Charlie has been the love and respect from his fellow musicians, which he has received in spades. The artists that Musselwhite has worked with reads like a veritable Hall of Fame honor roll: In addition to Eddie Vedder, Charlie has collaborated with Tom Waits, Ben Harper, Bonnie Raitt, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Gov’t Mule, INXS, Mickey Hart, George Thorogood and personal friend and best man at his wedding John Lee Hooker. Ultimately, though, for Charlie Musselwhite the thrill and challenge of engaging an audience fuels his artistry. “It’s about the feeling, and connecting with people,” he explains, “And blues, if it’s real blues, is loaded with feeling.” Charlie continues that, “it ain’t about technique either, it’s about truth, connecting to the truth and communicating with people.”             “

 

 

 

 

October 4th 9:00 PM Oklahoma City Limts

Click Here For Tickets

 

 

Mato Nanji’s always provided the heartbeat of the band Indigenous — along with the warm dusty voice and the soaring, spirited guitar fireworks that have earned the group from South Dakota’s Nakota Nation a place among roots rock’s elite. But with the emotionally charged and musically visceral Broken Lands, the band’s second album on Vanguard Records, Nanji makes a transformation from sparkplug to visionary.

“I’ve wanted to make an album like this for years,” Nanji explains, “but to a certain extent my hands were tied. Now I feel like I’ve achieved so many things I’ve wanted this band to be. The songs I’m singing are more personal. The sound of the band has broadened, and we were able to explore all the influences that are woven into that sound – blues, soul, R&B, and even country — more than ever. And the guitar playing is more controlled, to really let the songs speak for themselves. On top of all that, I’ve grown as a singer. After being frustrated for a while, all of this makes me very happy.     “What it amounts to,” Nanji announces, “is that Indigenous is a brand new band.”

He means that literally. From the group’s beginning in his parents’ basement through the release of 2006’s Vanguard debut Chasing the Sun, Indigenous was a family band. But after that disc was recorded Mato’s bassist brother Pte, his drummer sister Wanbdi, and his percussionist cousin Horse left to pursue other musical paths.  “Everybody decided to go their own way, leaving me to carry on Indigenous,” Nanji says. “Playing with my family for 10 years was a lot of fun, but it was time to grow.”

So Nanji recruited guitarist Kris Lager, keyboardist Jeremiah Weir, bassist Aaron Wright, and drummer John Fairchild to tour behind Chasing the Sun. They also appear on Broken Lands, joined by drummer Kirk Stallings, percussionist Chico Perez, and Mato’s wife Leah Nanji on backing vocals. Producer Jamie Candiloro (Ryan Adams, R.E.M., Willie Nelson, the Eagles) completed the studio team.

“Jamie shined on bringing out the energy and honest sound we had going on,” Nanji says. “He had us set up and play live in the studio as if we were on stage. Some of the songs, like the acoustic-guitar shuffle ‘All Night Long,’ went down with even the vocals recorded live while the band played. Others, like ‘Should I Stay,’ are more textured, but benefit from the energy that comes with playing the basic tracks live.”

Nanji’s big-toned guitar on Broken Lands’ dozen songs about romance and destiny continues to demand comparison to his idols Stevie Ray Vaughan, Los Lobos, Jimi Hendrix and Carlos Santana. His burnished style — full of ringing sustained notes and artfully bent strings — elevates the emotional appeal of numbers like the romantic soul-searcher ‘Should I Stay’ and the brooding blues-rock masterpiece ‘Waiting.’   Nonetheless, Nanji kept his gear for the sessions trim: a couple amps, including the distinctive organ-like whir of a Leslie speaker, and his trademark Stratocasters augmented by a Guild acoustic.

“I wanted to get more slide guitar into the album, too,” he says, “which gave me and Kris, who’s an exceptional slide player, new ways to have interplay.” So Lager added bottleneck to ‘All Night Long,’ the sweet ballad ‘Eyes of a Child’ and other numbers. “I’ve loved slide ever since I found Elmore James in my father’s collection of old blues albums when I was a teenager,” Nanji says.     The other sonic addition is Leah Nanji’s harmonies on much of Broken Lands, “I’ve always been a big fan of women singing backing vocals,” Nanji says. “Leah was able to do some of that on Chasing the Sun, but to me her voice is an essential part of Broken Lands.”

Leah was also essential as a songwriter, co-authoring all of the songs with Mato except his self-penned ‘Just Can’t Hide.’ “This is the first time I’ve had a hand in writing every song for an Indigenous album,” Nanji says. “It’s very liberating, because I feel like I’ve truly invested myself. Leah and I have been writing songs together for years, and we had written about 20 for this album and narrowed it down to the best dozen.”

One of the most compelling is ‘Place I Know,’ a riff-rocker that decries the poverty and isolation of Reservation life and gives the album it’s title in the line, “all is lost in these broken lands.”  “I love the way all of these songs came out, but ‘Place I Know’ is one of the closest to me,” Nanji says. “It’s important to bear witness about the things that inspire love in your life and about the things that make you sad. “But working on these songs at home with Leah in Sioux Falls was really fun,” says Nanji. “I got to just sit and play them again and again on acoustic guitar without pressure, and that helped me develop my vocal melodies and grow as a singer. Because of that, Broken Lands has my best vocal performances.

“Broken Lands makes me feel like I did when Indigenous was just starting out,” Nanji says. “We were excited about making music and making records, and maybe getting to tour all over the United States, which we did.

“Now Indigenous is a new band again and I feel that same excitement,” he continues. “But this time — when we start touring in August — I want to take these new songs and this great sounding band all over the world.”

Promoting the blues is a difficult task that has sometimes paid dividends and sometimes only disappoints. I’m a blues fan by default. The music I really like just happens to be rooted in the blues. Because of this I have a taste for blues but it must be seasoned with a bit of rock to really grab me.

 

As a promoter I have tried to brand the type of show I do so that I could build a relationship with my customers. I have with a few exception booked acts that I want to see. An act that I feel will impress people whether they have heard of them or not. Hopefully they trust my judgment and will attend because they have discovered artists by virtue of attending one of my shows. I began this venture under the title of Route 66 Blues Project. I later changed the name to 79^th Street Sound Stage so as to not limit myself to promoting the blues exclusively.

 

I recently booked Ana Popovic who is a blues based female guitar player from Europe. I had heard of her through blues societies and through the Blues Foundation when she was nominated for a Blues Music Award I had only heard some of her albums and explored her website. I liked the fact she had many influences both Jazz and Rock but it was bluesy.

 

I had a decent turnout targeting the blues community for the show. The problem is a decent turnout is under 100 people. If the show had sold 100 or over I would have been ecstatic. The blues I have found has a limited audience. I think I made a mistake promoting her as a blues artist. I was asked believe it or not to refund the ticket price to someone who thought Ana wasn’t the blues. The rational was when asked why she wasn’t the blues the best they could come up with was because she used a wah wah peddle. Sacrilege I suppose.

 

Now I don’t pretend to be the authority on what is and isn’t blues. I don’t promote blues acts exclusively. In fact my most well attended shows have not been considered blues acts at all. I think the problem with trying to define the blues hurts the genre by limiting its appeal and dividing the fans that already exist. Instead of being able to depend on a supportive fan base of a genre you have hope to appeal to a certain segment of the genre’.

 

How do you overcome the pitfalls that come with promoting the blues? I guess the answer is distancing yourself from the genre’. I promote music. You call it what you want. I hope you call it good. You can call it blues if you want but all you’ll get from me is that it is bluesy.

 

  Ana Popovic

Appearing live at Oklahoma City Limits Saturday night June 20, 2009

Ever since her debut album was nominated for a BMA for best new artist in 2003 American’s have embraced this Belgrade Serbia native, who now resides in Amsterdam, Ana Popovic will be making her first Oklahoma appearance Saturday June 20^th at Oklahoma City Limits 4801 South Eastern.

 

Ana is yet another European heavily influenced by American blues artists but melds with her own Jazzy style developed listening to her fathers record collection filled with western popular music. Although she played professionally in Eastern European festival at an early age she came in to her own after moving to Amsterdam to continue her studies in graphic design. There she formed a Dutch band and became a fixture on the local music scene. She was signed to Ruf records and from there her career took an international course.

 

She is now touring in support of her newest release Still Making History on American label Delta Groove records. She has been lauded by such publications as Guitar Player Magazine “Ana is a superb singer and songwriter who can flatpick fluid jazzlines, and deep string bends with SRV-style and emotion.” She stands poised to shake your foundations.” Guitar One magazine.

For the second time Ana and her European band are invited to play at the Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise. On high sea Ana jams with Susan Tedeschi, Larry McCray, Bob Margolin and many more. Ana is part of Robert Radler’s guitar documentary ‘Turn it up’ aka TONE, about the worlds best guitars and guitar players.

Read the rest of this entry »