Blues Republic News

Guitar Center's King of the Blues

Tom Kaminski — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 14:35:00 GMT

Westlake Village, CA, April 1, 2010 - Continuing its support of aspiring artists, Guitar Center the world's largest musical instrument retailer, today announced the launch of its fourth annual King of the Blues the nationwide search for the next great undiscovered blues guitar player. Starting today, guitarists can sign-up at any of Guitar Center's 214 stores across the country for the chance to compete for thousands of dollars in prizes and the opportunity to perform at the King of the Blues finals at the House of Blues in Los Angeles, and play on the same stage as Grammy Award-winning guitarist Derek Trucks. All store, district and regional finalists will win impressive prize packages including top gear from Gibson, Epiphone, Ernie Ball, Egnater and Boss. The guitarist crowned Guitar Center's King of the Blues will receive $25,000 cash, endorsement deals form Gibson, Ernie Ball, Boss, and Egnater and more!

Local competitions will be held at each of the 214 Guitar Center locations nationwide, beginning May 13th. Each contestant will be required to give a live guitar solo, performed over one of thirty original backing tracks, developed by Grammy Award-winning producer/guitarist, Pete Anderson. One winner from each store will be chosen to move up to district competitions (25 locations), followed by regionally hosted semi-finals (5 locations), which culminate in the aforementioned King of the Blues finals competition on September 2nd. Here, the five finalists will perform in front of a live audience and a panel of celebrity judges, and share the stage with world-renowned guitarist Derek Trucks, leader of the Grammy Award-winning Derek Trucks Band and member of The Allman Brothers Band. Trucks' extensive list of accolades and accomplishments includes being tapped by Eric Clapton to join the guitar legend's 2006/07 world tour as a featured soloist and appearing on the cover of Rolling Stone's "New Guitar Gods" issue, as well as being the youngest musician to make the magazine's "100 Greatest Guitar Players of All Time." More info ...

Benefit for Bobby Alexis in Houston Texas

Tom Kaminski — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 14:45:00 GMT

All guitar players, musicians, blues fans, or general music fans are invited to a Benefit for Bobby Alexis to be held at the Big Easy Social and Pleasure Club in Houston Texas on Sunday April 11. From 2:00 till at least 7:00 you will have the opportunity to see and hear some of the finest Blues musicians in Houston performing in honor of long time Albert Collins Keyboard man, Bobby Alexis.

Bobby passed away recently. He toured with Albert for over 20 years. He also played and toured with Bo Diddly, BB King, Freddie King, Guitar Shorty and many others in the professional Blues world. Bobby used Fender amps when he played live and recorded with Albert Collins and up to the time of his death. Bobby can be heard and seen on the recent Albert Collins DVD releases and appeared on most of the Albert Collins recordings over the years.

The above benefit will be for his family and is open to anyone that wishes to attend and honor his memory and music. It is expected that the line up will include Texas Johnny Brown, Trudy Lynn, Little Stanley and the Executives, Mojofromopolis, Lady D, and many other old school Houston BLUES musicians.

Bobby got his start with the Duke and Peacock record labels in Houston and was playing with Albert Collins when he was rediscovered by Canned Heat in the 3rd ward of Houston in the 60's.

These types of events USUALLY turn into a jam at the end so bring your instruments, just in case.

MMRF Musician Brings Joy to Earthquake Victims

Tom Kaminski — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 15:05:00 GMT

Music Maker artist Harvey Arnold recently lifted the spirits of several Haitian burn victims who were airlifted to Chapel Hill after the devastating earthquake. MM musicians have always been generous in their support of deserving individuals, families, and other worthy causes, but this effort was especially poignant.

Eric Louis, who is pictured on page one of the 2/13/10 edition of the Durham Herald-Sun, is one of three Haitians who are being treated for burn injuries at UNC- Hospital in Chapel Hill. He was terribly burned when a taxi in which he was a passenger was parked at a gas station when the earthquake hit. The gasoline tanks exploded all around the vehicle.

More ...

BUDDY GUY to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award

Tom Kaminski — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:55:00 GMT

On May 6th, 2010 at the 31st Blues Music Awards, The Blues Foundation will honor blues legend Buddy Guy with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Buddy Guy will be at the ceremony to receive this honor. The Blues Music Awards are universally recognized as the highest honor given to Blues artists. For tickets, please visit www.blues.org or call (901) 527-2583. More ...

Truckin’ My Blues Away

Tom Kaminski — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 14:14:00 GMT

“Truckin’ My Blues Away” is a music-rich hour-long special that introduces listeners to the stories and sounds of four older Southern bluesmen—and to the efforts of Tim Duffy, founder of the Music Maker Relief Foundation, to help lift these musicians from poverty and obscurity.

The musicians cover a wide swath of the South: Boo Hanks from Virgilina, Va.;Captain Luke from Winston-Salem, N.C.; Eddie Tigner from Atlanta; and Little Freddie King from New Orleans. In their own words and performances, these men bring us the story of a music, an era and a culture that are uniquely American.

The program is co-produced and co-written by Richard Ziglar and Barry Yeoman, who traveled around the South collecting interviews and field recordings of the musicians. Yeoman, who co-produced our Gracie Award-winning program “Picking Up the Pieces,” narrates.

“Truckin’ My Blues Away” was engineered by Dave Tilley of Bogue Sound Studios in Durham, North Carolina, where the narration was recorded, and by Ben Pizzuto of AARP Radio.

More ...

The Blues Foundation December Ebay auction

Tom Kaminski — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 22:24:00 GMT

The Blues Foundation December 10-day Ebay auction item is a white Fender Squier Strat autographed by many of the top women and men of Blues music, as well as Rolling Stone members, Keith Richards and Ron Wood. Blues artists who autographed the guitar number in the dozens and include, among others, Hall of Famers Robert Lockwood, Jr. J...immy McCracklin, Pinetop Perkins, Bobby Rush, Hubert Sumlin, Irma Thomas, as well as current stars like James Harman, Janiva Magness and Kim Wilson. Add in actors Morgan Freeman and Steven Seagal and you definitely have a one of a kind memento.

The guitar was donated by Peter Carlson, Sagebrush Productions, and all proceed will go to the HART Fund.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180443517727S

Buddy and Hopkins Week One

Tom Kaminski — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:03:00 GMT

Bluesrepublic.org is proud to announce the addition of a new blog, Blues Comics, featuring the comic strip "Buddy and Hopkins" by Jason Nocera. Buddy and Hopkins started their "Tour" back in 2003. Since then, the comic strip has been appearing on websites and in print magazines all around the world!

Laurie Morvan Band - Red Hot Blues Rock

Tom Kaminski — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 15:27:00 GMT

This lady can rock! Check out Laurie Morvan, the winner of "2008 Blues Artist on the Rise". Here's a recent review on Blues Source of here latest Fire it Up! CD ...

"Plenty of jaw dropping guitar work...She not only can lay down a boogie or shuffle with the best of them; she can also rock or play with tasteful restraint..."

"A highly talented guitarist, singer and songwriter...Keep your eyes on Laurie Morvan, she’s likely already thinking about the next step in her conquest of the blues world."

8th Annual Fishin’ Blues Tournament

Tom Kaminski — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 22:31:00 GMT

The Music Maker Relief Foundation is proud to announce the 8th Annual Fishin’ Blues Tournament, February 15th – 20th 2010 at the Casa Vieja Lodge in Puerto San Jose, Guatemala. This popular event guarantees world-class billfish angling, new friends and the world’s best Blues.

For more information and registration forms ... more ...

The Blues Foundation on Facebook & Twitter

Tom Kaminski — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 21:50:00 GMT

Social Networking seems to be a growing industry. Not to be left in the 20th century, The Blues Foundation has stepped up our social marketing, please join our fan page on Facebook at http://tinyurl.com/ykv85g3 and you can also follow us on Twitter at BluesFoundation.

For those of you that are active on these networks, please help us spread the word and become active on our sites. We are all in this thing together! Just think, if each one of your friends on Facebook became a new member of The Blues Foundation, how fast could we double our membership? Each new member helps us keep our miss ... more

Garden State Wine Growers Association Blues & Wine Weekend

Tom Kaminski — Fri, 01 May 2009 19:00:00 GMT

The Garden State Wine Growers Association will hold its annual Blues & Wine Weekend Saturday and Sunday, May 23 and 24 at Natirar Park -a 411-acre preserve set in the scenic hills of Somerset County.

This year's festival brings together a weekend celebration of hundreds of award winning wines, live blues, artisan vendors, gourmet food and kids activities. Special treat will be the appearances of the Craig Thatcher Band Saturday from noon to 4:30 p.m. and the Matt O’Kee Band Sunday from noon to 4:30 p.m.. The Craig Thatcher Band has a well earned reputation for blending classic rock and blues standards with impressive original tunes, all with a joy of playing that's up front and bold. Blues performer, Matt O’Kee, is a Blues guitarist who has performed and shared the stage with such legends as BB King, Buddy Grey, Leslie West and Mountain, the Marshall Tucker Band and The Outlaws.

More information at http://www.newjerseywines.com/blues-wine.html

Alex Dixon Band, New CD Release

Tom Kaminski — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 12:58:00 GMT

What do you get when you put together a blues legend’s legacy with amazing keyboarding skills, a vocalist with chart toppers in the UK, a drummer who has played on over 300 gold records, a bassist who is known for the funky grooves in his bass lines, a guitarist that can rival the best of them, and another vocalist who can belt out a gritty sound on one tune and then change it up to a more relaxing soulful groove? You get the new CD, RISING FROM THE BUSHES by The Alex Dixon Band, of course! This is the most anticipated album to come out of the Dixon catalog since his grandfather’s 1970 classic “I Am The Blues”.

http://www.dixonlandingmusic.com/

Digital Cafe Tour and the Luck Brothers

Tom Kaminski — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 15:10:00 GMT

Have you seen Digital Cafe Tour? They feature live performances by top rate indie bands and artists, including many blues based groups. Check out the Luck Brothers with "Comin' Back Home". Finalists in Boru Vodka's Defend the Bar Band, Luck Brothers (Tim Gleeson and Art Austin) have been performing, writing and recording together to create a unique blues/pop/soul sound that can be heard on the radio as well as in person throughout the Philadelphia region. They have shared stages with the likes of Rory Block and Levon Helm, and have co-written, produced and recorded some tracks with Kathy Sledge of Sister Sledge. Their single ""Mojo In My Coffee,"" from their debut album Coming Back Home, is often featured on WXPN's blues show. The Luck Brothers have also been selected to appear at B. B. King's night club for the Memphis Blues Stock Festival and they have received a distribution deal with Biograph records.

First Round Of Performers For 30th Blues Music Awards

Tom Kaminski — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 11:04:00 GMT

The Blues Foundation has announced the first round of performers for the 30th annual Blues Music Awards. B.B. King will present the award named in his honor, the B.B. King Entertainer of the Year Award and Pinetop Perkins will present the Pinetop Perkins Piano Player of the Year Award. These performers are just the first to be announced as part of a six-plus hour blues marathon May 7 in Memphis, TN representing a supreme diversity of blues talent, often in all-star collaborations.

March 2nd: On this Day

Tom Kaminski — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 12:40:00 GMT

2008, Canadian guitarist, singer, Jeff Healey, died of cancer. Healey lost his sight to retinoblastoma, a rare cancer of the eyes when he was eight months old, resulting in his eyes being surgically removed. After living cancer-free for 38 years, he developed sarcoma in his legs. Despite surgery for this, the sarcoma spread to his lungs and ultimately was the cause of his death. Healey released over 12 albums, presented a long running radio show and worked with many artists including Stevie Ray Vaughan, Buddy Guy, BB King, ZZ Top, Steve Lukather, Eric Clapton and Ian Gillan.