A tribute to legendary blues guitarist Hubert Sumlin

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 14:34:43 GMT

Hubert Sumlin smiles down on me everyday. I’ve lived in 8 different houses since I first met Hubert in 2004. All of them have had a music space of some sort, with guitars and gear spread about. At the centre of this – my special place in any house – is a writing desk where I sit Hubert’s photo, bedecked with Mardi Gras beads, and he beams and shakes his finger at me. Everybody says it, but Hubert really did have an uncanny knack of making you feel special. When he smiled at you, you really felt smiled at. Few people have the gift of giving something, or someone, their full attention in the manner that Hubert did so effortlessly. His pronouncements were special, even when they apparently consisted of nothing but evocative noises… ‘Mmmmm…hmmmm…ah…ha…yeah...mmmm…that’s what I’m talking about….uh…all right!’ Although we once jammed for the best part of a day – more about that a bit later! – I only played one short tour with Hubert. I did my best to try and make him feel at home. The band sat back and waited in some songs – it was wonderful; the sense of suspension. A few choruses would go round and just when you wondered if he was really going to go for it, he would take soaring musical flight. Sudden swooping licks would fall from his fingers; jangling notes with syncopated phrasing. For many of us guitarists there is a visual correlation between ‘what you see and what you get’. You can sometimes pick up a lick or phrase by watching to see what the other musician is doing on the fret-board – but somehow Hubert’s eccentric finger-style defied such facile interpretation. When Hubert took the long flight Australia he’d had one lung removed less than a year before. He was frail at times during that visit and couldn’t sing or stand up to play. It was wonderful when I caught up with him the following year. His body had adjusted somewhat to his condition and he looked much stronger. My heart rejoiced to see it. Somewhere amongst a stack of stored boxes, the legacy of so many house re-locations, I have notes, photos – maybe even a journal - where I recorded some of the stories that Hubert told me. Many of the stories have been oft-told: how he first met The Howlin’ Wolf, how he ‘put down them picks’ and developed his finger-style technique of playing. How he ran off briefly with Muddy Water’s band, how he and Wolf knocked each others teeth out. The excitement of hearing a warped Charlie Patton record, found on the side of the road. His brother, AD, making music by plucking the wire strung on the side of their house. But there were lots of other stories – about swimming as young boy, getting into difficulties and almost drowning while ‘showing off to them young gals’. Striking it rich at a slot machine (located in the Gents bathroom, no less), scooping the coins off the floor into the legs of his pants, the bottoms tied with his shoe laces. Playing behind the blues behind The Iron Curtin. Getting robbed at the train station on his arrival in Chicago. Wolf bailing him out of jail, but leaving another other band member behind. ‘I’ll just take my boy!’ A tough life: on the road, playing music and ‘coming up the hard way in the South’. Some of these tales I heard during a remarkable weekend in August, 2006. My road manager and dear friend, Suzanne Holmes, and I visited Hubert in Milwaukee. It was one of the rare times he was off the road and relaxing in his own home. The first day we mostly just sat and talked. In the little front room, cluttered with Howlin’ Wolf memorabilia sent by fans, there was a slot machine with a pile of quarters just inside the front door. At one stage the phone rang. After a brief pause, Hubert beamed and exclaimed, ‘Hey, Cotton!’ For someone like me, a blues fan long before I ever dreamed of becoming a blues player, it is hard to describe how astonishing it was to find myself in this situation. Sitting in an old armchair; enveloped by a welcoming domestic atmosphere, while Hubert Sumlin chatted on the phone to James Cotton. Later we went out to the garage and cranked up Hubert’s old Cadillac. Unused to vintage American vehicles, it seemed absolutely huge to me – and it had no mirrors – but, no matter, we were drove to the local store in style! We ate fried chicken and watermelon around the kitchen table, carefully leaving a respectful space around the Bible that sat near one corner. The Bible belonged to Hubert’s beloved wife Bea. Over the years, it had remained where she last placed it, not long before she succumbed to a heart attack in the next room. I have scraps of memory about the tiny room where I slept on an old bedstead surrounded by framed family photos and trinkets. We had a Southern style breakfast with biscuits and grits. Was it the first day or the second? I gave Hubert a copy of my recent American release, ‘Lucky 13’, and he excused himself and went outside. Somewhere I have a photo of him sitting on the swinging chair in his yard, where he promptly plugged in a portable CD player and listened to the whole album. Then he looked at me very intently and said, ‘that’s a good album…I’m jealous!’ We went downstairs to the basement, which was partially in disarray. The basement had flooded or leaked at some point, so some things had been rescued and left in random piles. There were still lots of family photos and old show posters, some of them partly water damaged, on the walls along with Hubert’s ‘Keeping the Blues Alive’ Lifetime Achievement Award and a framed photo of Bea looking young and winsome. It seems amazing, but apart from the two electric guitars that I was traveling with, there was not a single instrument or amp in the house. Despite that, we wanted to jam, so Hubert plugged one guitar into his home stereo system and I played the Telecaster unplugged. The legendary electric guitarist reduced to such semi-acoustic volume and scope! It didn’t matter; we played anyway. While his lead guitar performance on Howlin’ Wolf’s many hits is deservedly revered, I told him that I also loved the ensemble idea behind much of the classic Chicago blues. Intertwining guitar parts like the way he and Jody Williams played together. Hubert seemed very pleased by this and he played a very simple lick on my borrowed Maton guitar. I did my best to play it back to him and he added a variation over my part. We played together like this for a long time, with small variations and adjustments to the basic theme. It was absorbing; fascinating. Monday morning: Hubert seems so sad that we are leaving…we pack our things and call for a cab. While we are waiting for the taxi to arrive, Hubert wandered off and got some tools and started tinkering in the bathroom. Next thing we know, he is scurrying at top speed out the back… He’d taken the top off one of the taps in the hand basin and it is gushing like a fountain everywhere! I think he thought if he ran and turned it off and didn’t say anything, then maybe he’d get away with it! He came back drenched and sheepish with water splotches all over his glasses while we shrieked and giggled and mopped up the water before it got onto the living room carpet. Suddenly the taxi arrived and it was time to go – maybe it was good that all the silliness broke our sadness. Back in that little house in Milwaukee, Hubert widened his eyes as if he was willing me to understand what he was about to say. He had gone to Austin, TX, to pay his respects to Clifford Antone. Clifford, always so vital and larger-than-life, had suddenly, incredibly, passed away. Club owner, blues fan and a great benefactor, Clifford had always been supportive of the older blues players, Hubert in particular. Clifford’s sister, Susan, asked Hubert to move Clifford’s truck from where it was parked – and Hubert swore that the engine started before he turned the key. For bluesmen, just like everyone else in this tradition, the spirit is never far away. I am waiting for Hubert to make his own sign to me, as he has before and I am certain he will again.

Out of Africa + Debbie Davies Aussie tour

Sun, 05 Dec 2010 09:30:37 GMT

Another action-packed few months for me! With blog activity LONG overdue, I’ll give you a quick catch up…from a South African blues festival to touring Aussie gigs with Deb Davies, while moving house (again!) and LOTS of traveling across the Hay Plains…

Plans for a delightful song-writing hiatus from the road disappeared swiftly upon my return to Australia in the middle of the year. With The Preacher on the move again much time, energy and road-miles were expended in the search for the ‘next big thing’. (Clever segue: go and check out my Facebook ‘Aussie Big Things’ photo album!) This lead to our latest relocation to Australia’s national capital Canberra…a far cry from our previous residence in the little town of Auburn (population: 200) in the Clare Valley, South Australia.

As we considered options for our 8th move in 8 years, I combined playing shows in various South Australian locales with trips to Melbourne and several 12-hour drives to Canberra. Why aren’t there frequent driver miles programs?
Things have receded into a blur of manic activity so I’ll just share a couple of highlights:

Durban International Blues Festival, South Africa
What an unexpected pleasure to be invited to perform in Durban! Big thanks to festival directors Will, John, Themi – and super-organized publicity manager Tanya – for a wonderful festival experience. Although I have traveled a fair bit, this was my first trip to Africa – and it was a fascinating mixture. While everything felt very exotic here, the quality of the light and the beach front reminded me a little of being home in Australia.

Diary note: 4.30am rise for Safari Game Drive
Hmmm – morning is not my strong suit, but this day-long trip to Hluhluwe Game Reserve was well worth the effort; an absolute highlight of the trip. Situated several hours north of Durban in Zulu lands, this nature reserve is South Africa’s oldest. There is some thing fantastic about seeing animals in their natural environment, not just in a zoo: to go round the corner and find a whole mob of zebras – or an elephant. Great! (see pix here) The overseas guests - myself, Liz Mandeville (USA) and Tassos, George and Tonnie from Greek blues band ‘Down and Out’ – all had a ball.

Everyone associated with the event was very friendly and hospitable. We were even assigned people from the Dept of Arts and Culture, to help us get around and get a feel for the place! (Thanks Chris and Eben.) Between sightseeing, I spent some time rehearsing with my Durban band: musical director Callie on keys, Jason (bass), Bruce (drums) and young Johno (sax). These local musicians did a fantastic job; definitely one of the best prepared ‘pick up bands’ that I’ve ever had the pleasure to work with. The festival show was a blast, situated in a funky venue on Wilson’s Wharf with a large decking overlooking the harbour. The band and I played a set of mostly original material from New Orleans, Chicago to Mississippi Hills stuff, which was very well received - even threw in a Louisiana-style tune to get Liz Mandeville and her rub-board up for a guest spot!

From the splendid colonial charm of the Royal, one of Durban’s oldest grand hotels, including views over the city’s busy harbour, to browsing for bargains in the Victoria Street Indian spice markets, sampling ‘Zulu beer’ brewed from sorghum, local ‘Moskanti’ music at the festival (as well as lots of Blues, of course!)...I can say my first South African visit was a great experience – and I sincerely hope I am invited back!

Debbie Davies at Wangaratta Jazz Festival
I got home from South Africa with barely enough time to drive back to South Australia, pack up my house, relocate to Canberra and get unpacked…in time for USA guitarist Debbie Davies to arrive. First guest in the new guest room!
With the current (constant) rebuilding of our capital’s new international airport, it was a minor miracle that I found my way in to pick her up…but that’s another story.

For those of you who have been following the news, Debbie won ‘Traditional Female Artist of the Year’ at the 2010 USA Blues Music Awards – an award for which we were both nominated. Although I knew Deb via her reputation as a fine guitarist who had played for many years with Albert Collins, is wasn’t until we were on the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise together last year that we had a chance to meet properly and jam. I’ve tried to adequately explain the ‘Blues Cruise Experience’ in previous blogs…it really is a trip. An alternative reality is created where Blues and blues lovers rule the world for a floating week of mayhem.

Deb and I enjoyed our jams on the boat so much it seemed like a great idea to make plans to get together and play some more! Here in Australia - after our first show at local venue, The National Press Club - I also had a little time to show Deb around Canberra before heading down the iconic Hume Highway. It might not be big game like South Africa, but it is lovely to be able to show off our cool Aussie birds to visitors, so we stalked a few mobs of galahs, cockatoos and rosellas in the city streets.

Our main destination, Wangaratta International Jazz Festival, has a dedicated Blues venue as part of its program, and luckily the site was still above water…just. The Wangaratta township, in central Victoria, had been hit with heavy flooding in the weeks preceding the festival so when it started raining again people started getting a bit worried. My Aussie band The Fortune Tellers - Dean Addison (bass), Marky Grunden (drums), Tim Neal (Hammond, piano) and Niels Rosendahl (sax) - had just rehearsed with Debbie and were raring to go…but by the time it was our turn to play on Saturday night, the heavens had well and truly opened. Everything was literally ankle deep backstage – and just as wet out the front - but (bless them!) the audience was there and ready to party. So we cut loose! Showing above-average bravery in the wet conditions, a film crew from Retro Films captured the moment.

We found out later that the stage was supposed to have been closed because of the weather early in the evening – thank goodness the stage manager had their phone turned off.

So wet! So much for the long-term Aussie drought of recent years. We still hadn’t dried out by Sunday’s gig, but nothing really mattered but the music and that was great! Debbie proved to be not only a great guitarist but also fine company during the tour. We rounded off the last night of the festival with a dinner party where we ate pasta, crafted in the hotel room by bassist Dean Addison (a man of many hidden charms!). Plenty of wine, good food and a chance to talk trash…

…nearly the end of the year now, folks, so I’ll leave you with Seasons Greetings for the weeks ahead and get back to my plans for 2011.

What’s coming up in the New Year?
For starters: Back to the USA and my first tour to France in January and February…and then…well, I’ll keep you posted!

'Bigger Than Texas' - USA touring May/June 2010

Fri, 16 Jul 2010 12:10:11 GMT

This blogging thing has got out of hand, dear reader… In my last blog, I was looking forward to the fabulous 2010 Blues Music Awards ceremony. (That was held in MAY, folks.) So we start in Memphis… The Preacher and I arrived one day early for the Blues Hall of Fame Dinner. Imagine the thrill of looking for my seat, only to find Howlin’ Wolf guitarist, Hubert Sumlin, already sitting at ‘our’ table?! With Hall of Fame inductees Bonnie Raitt, Charlie Musselwhite and Lonnie Brooks in attendance, plus Bobby Rush and many other blues celebrities, the gathering was a splendid exercise in blues star-gazing. Good practice for the following night! My favorite speech of the night came from the strong women of Gus Cannon’s family, accepting his induction in the ‘Performer’ category. The Awards day began early for me and my mandolin-meister friend Rich DelGrosso. In a moment of craziness, we volunteered to play live on Memphis Morning television. Lots of fun! From the Peabody Plaza TV set, I raced to the Center for Southern Folklore to perform at the Yellow Dog Records showcase. Label-mate Eden Brent also performed and there was a wonderfully appreciative audience. After an already busy day, The Preacher and I got into our finery and hit the Awards pre-party drinks… Always one of the best parties in the Blues world, this years’ BMA’s featured stunning performances by various nominees – Buddy Guy, Maria Muldaur, Rick Estrin, Louisiana Red, Joe Louis Walker, Jason Ricci….and many more. It’s a fantastic social occasion; I caught up with Pinetop Perkins, legendary ‘King Biscuit’ radio presenter Sonny ‘Sunshine’ Payne, all the gals from Saffire the Uppity Blues Women, ‘Bluesville Radio’s Bill Wax… I even got to talk with Bonnie Raitt! The evening was a whirl. All that, PLUS, I got dressed in a sparkly long halter-neck dress, little feathered heels and bling – you do not get to see that every day, my friends. Koko Taylors’ daughter Cookie presented the ‘Traditional Female Blues Artist of the Year’ category, now known as the ‘Koko Taylor’ Award, in her mothers’ honor. Cookie’s introduction speech was very moving; Koko’s last performance was at last years Awards event. The gracious Debbie Davies won the inaugural award. Debbie is a fine guitarist, honing her craft over many years playing with Albert Collins. We had fantastic fun when we met and jammed last year on the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise (see Blues Cruise blog). By the end of the night we had started making plans to tour together – check my tour dates for the results!!! The Awards night finished sometime around 5am, when a bunch of us were finally thrown out of a bar somewhere in Memphis… Time for The Preacher and me to go ‘home’ to Portland, Oregon, and recuperate? Portland again welcomed us with open arms. We caught up with lots of friends. I played a few local shows, including one of my favorite venues ‘Duff’s Garage’ (the juke joint of PDX); there was jamming – and I scored a funky ol’ Supro lap steel guitar. What a buy…just got to learn to drive the thing now… Next destination: Houston, Texas. Rich DelGrosso and his wife Sweet Lisa looked after me and showed me round town. Along with the business - a visit to radio KPFT and a fantastic gig with Rich and his band at ‘The Big Easy’ - I was generally wined and dined and introduced to the Houston scene. Thank you! I joined Rich for a few days in Austin where he had a session booked at Wire Recordings. As luck would have it, this is where I recorded ‘Lucky 13’ and ‘Blues Woman’. Rich was also working in the studio with my mate Kaz Kazanoff and the Texas Horns, so it was another wonderful opportunity to reconnect with friends. Rich is collaborating on a project with guitarist Jon Del Toro Richardson (a fellow Category 5 amp endorsed player). What I heard of their new material sounded great, so keep an eye out for the album release. My Austin highlight was being invited to spend the night with legendary piano player Pinetop Perkins and his ‘minder’ Barry at their regular local haunt ‘Nuno’s’. Pinetop was in fine form; holding court at his special table, smoking steadily and nodding sagely as admirers came to talk. He played half a dozen songs with the house band, singing and playing strongly, checking out the women and nodding at the tip bucket…old habits die hard. Happy 97th birthday, Pine! Craig Speer, from San Antonio, TX, was my first American fan. He was there at the ‘Pig on Beale Bar’ when I played my first gig at the International Blues Challenge, in Memphis 2003. And he’s kept turning up at my gigs ever since – even some in Australia! With San Antonio just down the road, I went to visit with him and his extended family. Maine blues singer/saxophonist Pat Pepin was also in town, so we had a ball exploring the ‘Walk on the River’ and other touristy things. Despite being a Yankee, Pat is a ‘real mess’ - she even had me singing ‘Deep in the Heart of Texas’ (Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!) outside The Alamo. The Speer family organized a yard party in our honour. Craig’s dad, Donald, cooked his famous brisket and me and Pat and various neighbors got the music happening. Some real down-home hospitality – and y’all come back now! Good old Craig gave me a ride to Kerrville, TX, to join the teaching staff at the Kerrville Folk Festival Roots/Blues Guitar workshop. I am not sure if ‘Texas Hippy’ is an oxymoron, but this festival not what you might expect… Most people camp – the festival goes for 18 days! – and everything is accompanied by a pioneering attitude and lots of tie-dyed clothing. The all-night jam sessions are legendary. Some campers even set up their own stages, complete with PA’s, sign-up sheets, upright pianos….quite mind-boggling! Guitar Workshop coordinator Steve James and I did not camp, however. We were ensconced in the refined atmosphere of the YO Resort Hotel, hanging out with as many stuffed beasts and antlers as I’ve seen on any wall before! In addition to his prodigious musical talents, Steve James is a funny guy and has a wealth of droll stories. He tells me about his long association with the Kerrville Festival. ‘Look!’ he says, ‘There’s Pampell’s…’ as we pass a local joint in town. On one of his early visits to Kerrville, he says, he met a local ‘old duffer’ who had once seen ‘The Singing Brakeman’ Jimmy Rogers jamming with Lonnie Johnson out the front there. ‘Imagine that!” For the next few days Steve, fellow-instructor Brooks Williams and I were busy with our students. The weather was hot and lessons were held in the happy, informal setting of the outdoor theatre at Quiet Valley Campground. Until the weather turned! I had the first spot at the Blues faculty concert scheduled for Wednesday night. Two or three songs into the set, huge wind and rain squalls started pelting through the open sides of the venue. Suddenly the sound guys began running to unplug and cover gear. I abandoned my ‘old trouper routine’, rescued my guitar from the now-driving rain, while the whole audience poured onto the back of the stage seeking shelter. Soon the power went off as the storm raged on… Eventually the concert continued: an impromptu acoustic jam, with us musicians seated round a few tea-light candles, circled by an appreciate crowd. A strange performance, but a special one. The next day my guardian angel, Craig Speer, braved the mud and picked me up from the festival and drove me to Austin. I had a 24 hour dash to make my next commitment - Fur Peace Ranch in Pomeroy, Ohio, last stop on this tour. It was lovely to see two of my students from last year back again, JR and the talented young Eli Catlin. Fur Peace is a guitar Mecca. Each workshop weekend schedule has lots of playing, teaching, jamming, a Saturday night concert (open to the general public) and access to a fantastic library of music, books, DVDs and various teaching materials. It’s the sort of place that makes you feel inspired about guitar, so everyone leaves with their heads spinning, fingers burning, saying ‘I can’t wait to get home and play!’ As well as hanging out with the ranch’s ‘Captain’, Jorma Kaukonen (of ‘Jefferson Airplane’ and ‘Hot Tuna’ fame), the other instructor for the weekend was my mate Geoff Achison. Geoff is also from Melbourne, Australia, although the two of us have been so busy touring in recent years, it was great to have the opportunity to see each other. We also took the opportunity to jam during the Saturday concert at the ‘Fur Peace Station’ - you can get a little taste on my YouTube page. Look out - the Aussie’s are coming! And who knows where they’ll turn up next? I let you know…in my next blog episode…

March 2010

Sun, 04 Apr 2010 09:00:00 GMT

The South Australian desert of my last blog seems so long ago…
There’s been a lot of traveling, gigging, jamming and making new friends since then!
(Click here for photos)

It’s been a time of huge contrasts. The long hot Aussie Summer giving way to minus 9 degrees Celsius in Saskatoon, Canada, for example. In mid-February, I flew back to America. As luck would have it, I arrived in Portland, OR, the day that Blues Music Award Entertainer of the Year Janiva Magness was playing at classy downtown venue Jimmy Mak’s. Accompanied by my friend and loyal blues supporter, Betsy McBride, we hit the town! It was a great show – and to my complete surprise, Janiva invited me to join her on stage during the encore. Many thanks go to her guitarist, Zack Zunis, who very graciously lent me a guitar to play and took some time to chat after the show (as did the lovely Janiva).

Big fun! Surprise, surprise…I went from being jetlagged to completely energized, so despite the lateness of the hour, our next stop was Portland’s own juke joint, Duff’s Garage. And Duff’s did not disappoint…with harmonica-ace Jim Wallace and the House Cats playing, there was more wonderful music as well as the opportunity to jam with my favorite drummer Jimi Bott and guitarist Franck Goldwasser from The Mannish Boys.

Jimi joined me again a couple of days later to play one of Jim Flynn’s House Parties. I think of these parties as a modern, Portland expression of an old-school fish-fry. A big crowd of friends getting into party-mode; drinking, hanging out and dancing like crazy to loud, live bands in Jim’s living room. My wonderful mate Dave Kahl on bass and Dover Weinberg on keys (oy vey!) and we were ready to rock this crazy scene. People here sure know how to have a goooood time!

My next round of travel once again showed a healthy disregard for North American geography and time zones. There were also far too many days that started at 6am at an airport! I had brought Aussie Summer weather with me to Portland, which was surprisingly balmy, but it was snowing by the time I arrived in Detroit. Luckily, I was given a warm welcome by my next host, Bill Reiser. Bill invited me and blues mandolin-meister Rich DelGrosso to be part of his KBA award-winning ‘Black History Month Blues Series’. Held in a beautiful old building in downtown Monroe, the show was my first chance to catch up with Rich in a while. We always have a lot of fun playing together, especially for an appreciative audience, and tonight was no exception. The evening culminated with rough red wine and pasta at an Italian joint that was the only thing still open – and as far as I can see, the only down-side was the next days’ 6am start at the airport…

Now that I was almost used to the idea of snow, what better place to jet off to next than the Saskatoon Blues Festival in Canada? Festival organizer Gordon MacAulay and I first met in the steamy atmosphere of the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise to Mexico last October, but even though my body was somewhat shocked by the Saskatoon temperature, the hospitality at this festival was definitely hot! My festival show was a double-bill acoustic concert with Alvin Youngblood Hart. The last time I saw Alvin we were on a bill together at a festival in Toronto and he was playing with his band ‘Muscle Theory’. Tonight he was solo and playing in great form. For me both the playing and the listening were equally enjoyable! Earlier that day I’d also played at a lunchtime concert for people at a local disabilities workshop – the audience there really got into the swing of things and there was even some dancing before we were done! Here’s the view from my ‘stage’ in the lunchroom. I definitely made some new friends in this town – including local gun guitarist Trevor Findlay (see photos) - now living and playing in Nashville – who gallantly chaperoned me the previous night as I enjoyed the rest of the festival. Then….you guessed it…6am at the airport…

… I made my way, eventually, through US customs and immigration just in time make my flight to Columbus, OH. It was a really near thing. My legs, still getting over the early start and a few hours sleep were literally like jelly as I ran…ran…to my gate. It was a great relief to arrive safely and catch up with mates from the Columbus Blues Alliance for their Traditional Blues Festival. Rich DelGrosso had skipped my insane detour via Canada and driven down from our previous show in Detroit. Although the snowy weather posed challenges for the organizers on the night, our gig had an enthusiastic and dedicated crowd and was a heap of fun. Spurred on by extra wine and panhandled pizza, acquired by fabulous local blues singer ’Long Tall’ Deb Landolt, I threw caution to the wind and joined the late, late post-festival jam. Hell, I was already tired and delirious, what did I have to lose? Heaps of jamming going on; OK – it was all a bit of a blur by then but I definitely played with IBC solo/duo winner Little Joe McLerran and local young guitar-whiz Micah Kesselring, caught up with the lovely Teeny Tucker, had a drink with CBA president Kevin Gregory (thanks for having us, mate!) and at least said ‘g’day’ to guitarist and fellow Category 5 Amps endorsee Sean Carney…

I took a week off to ‘recover’ in Portland before the long flight home to Australia. There were lots of shows during that week that I regretfully missed. It took quite a lot of discipline. Still, Portland is such a great town for blues music that even during a week of so-called recuperation, I went out and jammed on at least 4 nights…hmmm…but that’s another story!

Coming up next time: news from Memphis & the Blues Music Awards, guitar workshops at Kerrville and Fur Peace ranch…and…???

Long Hot Aussie Summer

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 14:14:17 GMT

5,500 miles. That’s 8,800 kilometers, folks, for those of us who are metric. And that’s how far I have driven over the last 6 weeks, rambling between festivals and gigs during this long hot Aussie Summer. I’ve traversed an amazing range of country: from the humid semi-tropical north, the high mountain country and deep outback desert… My latest adventures started somewhat tentatively at Sydney International airport, while I waited for my GPS to work out that it was no longer in Portland, Oregon. I’m not sure if I told you the story; the GPS was a snap purchase, bought while I waited for a rental car in downtown Manhattan. It was the move of a desperate woman who had no idea of how to get to the next show. A toffy English accent seemed to give an impression of reliability, so I named her ‘Miss Moneypenny’ after James Bond’s famously efficient secretary. Now loaded with additional maps for Down Under, she’s been invaluable. Right now, I am home. At last! My orchard is full of fruit, the swimming pool beckons in the balmy weather and my little Clare Valley town is as sleepy as ever. It’s quite a contrast to the stark beauty of the South Australian desert, where I spent a few days last week staying in one of Coober Pedy’s famous cave houses. Called ‘dug-outs’, dwellings like this are designed to beat the unrelenting outback heat. This fascinating outback town is a traditional centre for opal mining and we met some real characters! But, I am getting ahead of myself… My New Year began at ‘Woodford Folk Festival’, some 2000 kilometers to the north-east. This is one the biggest and most diverse festivals in the Southern hemisphere – 6 days & 6 nights, more than 2000 performers and 580 programmed events, held on 500 acres of environmental parkland. Music, sculpture, comedy, workshops, dance, freak shows; it’s got the lot… You have to experience it to grasp the idea fully – and of course, it’s held at the hottest, wettest time of the year for a proper pioneering feel. My next performance was at the ‘Coolart Jazz Festival’ in the grounds of a genteel historic mansion, right down south in Victoria. Situated next to protected wetlands, one of the venues is a bird observatory and two beautiful blue-feathered Fairy Wrens danced at the window as I played. After so many solo shows, it was huge fun to meet up with my regular Australian rhythm section Dean Addison (bass) and Marky Grunden (drums) at the next festival. ‘Thredbo Blues Festival’ is a boutique event, held in the alpine village adjacent to Australia’s tallest mountain, Mt Kosciuszko. Joined by legendary Melbourne Hammond player Tim Neal, and special guest Niels Rosendahl (sax) for our final show, the band rocked! The Preacher and Dean, both being keen cooks, busied themselves between gigs by testing Steve’s Christmas present: a pasta making machine. Hmm…fresh pasta makes a happy band. We awoke the next morning to find a steady sprinkling of snow on the ski run outside our chalet’s back deck. Talk about a Summer of contrasts! The Hunter Valley’s ‘Folk in Broke Festival’, a flight to the West Coast for ‘Blues in Bridgetown’ – even a gig at Prominent Hill copper mine in the Woomera Rocket Range prohibited zone – I tell you, I have been getting around. Which brings me back to those 5,500 miles I have just driven… What can I say? It’s all bit of a blur, but I have some photos here to jog the memory. Hope you enjoy them until next time. Back to the USA and Canada in a week or so!

Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise!

Mon, 14 Dec 2009 10:40:12 GMT

First, I have to say – the Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise lives up to its’ name. The gigs, line-up, audience and atmosphere are fantastic. And that’s not just for a day or two, everyone keeps up this standard (and pace) for a WEEK. Nothin’ but a veritable ship of bluesin’ fools… The Preacher and I started well; straight to the Lido deck bar to soak up the sunshine and bustling ambience over drinks with Aunt Carol and Ellie. Getting everybody aboard is an exercise in itself, but eventually the ‘boat to nowhere’ (explanations later!) left San Diego harbor shrouded in a sudden, spooky sea-mist. Once at sea, next order of business is finding your cabin, working out your bearings and taking part in the lifeboat drill. Half-tanked, wearing bulky orange life jackets, we are all herded like cats into our correct emergency stations. The party vibe is palpable and God help us if we ever really need to evacuate! Unpack a few things in the cabin – very nice, with a door and view out onto the Promenade deck – then off to play my first shipboard gig, to a wonderful appreciative crowd in the Ocean Bar. Yippeee! The adventure has begun… Things get crazy in the ‘alternate reality’ of the Blues Cruise…a week-long extravaganza of music, experiences, conversations…so I absolutely promise myself that I will (a) keep a daily diary and (b) pace myself by starting gently and going to bed reasonably early on the first night. After all, there’s a week of this madness and I’ve just flown from Australia, right? Ha! In the wee, wee hours, ‘tween midnight and day, I am in the piano bar with my trusty acoustic guitar. Kenny ‘Blues Boss’ Wayne’s invitation to jam had proved irresistible. Day 2 (technically a ‘day off’ for me) Hmmmm…yes – after several days I look at my diary and have written NOTHING – so we move now to jumbled recollections… An uplifting start: Gospel brunch with Mel Waiters, Chandra Calloway and Mike Finnigan (Phantom Blues Band). Break out my electric guitar and go play at the Pro-Am Jam in the Crow’s Nest with Pacific Northwest trombone-meister Randy Oxford. Drinks and dinner with new friends! G’day Jimi the Chef, wife Leslie and mate Ken. It’s ‘Soul Blues’ theme tonight and these guys are dressed. Catch the smooth stylings of Mel Waiters in the show room, then Mavis Staples - what a wonderful feeling in the house! Tonight Tommy Castro is hosting the Pro Jam, by 3 am: I’m jamming with Debbie Davies, Lionel Young, Shane Dwight… 4.30am: I’m calling room service for a snack…time change…clocks forward one hour Day 3 (Port of call: Cabo San Lucas, Mexico) It’s too rough to go ashore. In fact, our Captain informs us that Hurricane Rick will shortly hit the Mexican coast where we are anchored. The ship will have to abandon its itinerary and turn tail northwards. *Thus, we become the ‘boat to nowhere’, cruising lazy circles in the calmest Pacific waters available for the next 6 days. With this news, we decide the best thing to do is to invent more gigs!!! The Preacher and I take over the Ocean Bar and put together a 4 hour jammin’ show with new friends: Debbie Davies (guitar), acoustic IBC winner Lionel Jones (violin & guitar), along with his band mates Jay Forrest Jnr (drums) and Kimet Stone (bass), a talented young cruiser Kyle Rowlands (harmonica), Kenny Wayne (piano & melodian), Leon Blue (piano), David Kide from Rod Piazza’s ‘Mighty Flyers’ on drums – whew! Day 4 (I think it must be Tuesday – lost at sea) Rescheduled show for me in Crows Nest venue. Play a ‘concert’ acoustic set to a very attentive, listening crowd. Wonderful! Bantering about young harpist Kyle before my saucy song ‘Young Rider Blues’, it was fitting to have his blushing harmonica accompaniment on ‘Old Time Ways’ (which I recorded with 96 year old Pinetop Perkins). First of the Lido deck ‘Autograph Parties’ today. The Preacher & I share a table with the delightful Little Joe McLerran and his wife, and have a grand time hanging out and chatting with everybody. Thank you, cruiser Mel for my lovely handcrafted ‘Blues Cruise’ necklace! Impromptu guitar jam with lovely blues-rock guitar slinger Laurie Morvan at the Big City Blues magazine booth – big fun!. Go catch some other acts – then, back to the Pro-Am Jam, tonight hosted by pianist Steve Wiggins, a friend from my Panama City Beach days... Day 5 (still lost at sea – Elvin Bishop’s birthday – ‘Day of the Dead’ theme) Take part in the Blues Songwriting presentation in the main venue. All participants play an original song & discuss aspects of songwriting. It’s a fascinating insight to the creative process. And I got to hang on stage with Tommy Castro, Jeff Turmes (bassist with Mavis Staples & Janiva’s husband), Susan Tedeschi, Rod Piazza and Mel Waiters! It’s the first time I’ve met Susan and I really enjoy her playing and sassy attitude. We’re invited to Michele Lundeen’s birthday dinner (she’s one of the Blues Festival Guide party folks). Tonight I start my gig with Debbie Davies & me on electric guitars, Larry Fulcher (Phantom Blues Band) on bass – and me kicking my trusty ‘stomp’ box in lieu of a drummer! It’s great to play again with Larry; that’s him playing electric bass on my ‘Lucky 13’ album… I finish up the show solo acoustic – then run like hell to see the end of the Phantom’s set on the back deck where I DANCE…(yes, I‘m not usually much of a dancer. Generally I do that musician thing of sitting sagely at the bar carefully observing.) Too much fun already? NO! Straight off to see Susan Tedeschi in the main venue… Day 6 (still lost at sea – going delirious – ‘Mardi Gras’ theme) Thing are really getting sketchy now…some of this might have happened yesterday – or tomorrow. I know I saw Elvin Bishop’s cooking demonstration – hilariously droll! Also, the cruisers’ outfits for both these theme nights are fabulous. You really need to check out Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise’s website for some visuals. Yes – I will post some pix too! I know I was part of the musicians dinner with ‘Captain’ Roger Naber, and sat next to the handsome guitarist Olivier from Buckwheat Zydeco’s band. DANCED like crazy to Buckwheat’s set…had the second autograph party somewhere in there. Late in the night I have a great jam with Coco Montoya, Debbie Davies and an extended horn section…what is superlative about the cruise is the chance to meet, hang, jam and be musically inspired by all the other fabulous musicians!!! Acoustic jam with Little Joe McLerran, ditto… Waaaaay too little time in bed…time change, clocks go backwards? And when exactly was that 'Tequila Tasting Party' hosted by Aunt Carol in her ocean-view stateroom?! Day 7 (is that…..land?!!! Port of call, Ensenada, Mexico) Almost crack of dawn photo shoot with Robert Jnr Whitall & Sugar Mae, from Big City Blues Magazine, who manage to round up some of the considerable female talent aboard: Susan Tedeschi, Roach Carruthers (Café R & B), Laurie Morvan, pianist Taryn Donath, the beautiful Cookie Taylor (Koko’s daughter) and myself… Then – after so many days at sea – let’s go ashore! The Preacher & I have never stepped foot in Mexico, but we are taken in hand by ship comptroller Mardi Silva, along with ‘Scrap Iron’ (a veritable character, and Little Miltons’ road manager of 31 years). We hit a restaurant and feast on fish tacos, octopus and prawns, whilst being serenaded by a semi-toothless trio of local musicians. Even Scrap Iron is impressed….’’what….they don’t got no dentists in this country?!” After lunch, Steve and I wander and even do a little shopping before heading back to the Boat, and our lives’ purpose – more gigs! Quick slashin’ electric guitar guest spot with Shane Dwight’s band (more fun!) before I run off to my last show in the Ocean Bar. More jamming with Little Joe and Debbie Davies – I just love both these guys, and have really enjoyed getting the chance to meet and play with them. It’s a late night (no kidding?) and there’s barely time to pack and grab a little sleep before the 7am customs and disembarkation call for we non-US citizens! Eventually we find ourselves, vaguely overwhelmed but strangely blissed, wandering around the San Deigo airport awaiting our flight ‘home’ to Portland… To finish the story – I ‘teased’ you in the last blog with a special outback Aussie purchase that was destined for the Silent Auction aboard the Blues Cruise. I felt it was important to have something a little different…something that the folks wouldn’t get at home…so, my offering of a beautiful little leather pouch fashioned from a tanned kangaroo scrotum turned out to be quite a hit! On that note I leave you, fair reader. More news soon!!! Photo album for this blog here.

Outback adventures & moving experiences...

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 18:25:47 GMT

I am SO far behind in my blog, gentle reader, that I resolve to do a ‘double blog’ to catch up! Last time…fabulous New York City…now – after a couple of quick last minute gigs in the US - it was off to Canada for a flying visit! Edmonton Labatt’s International Blues Festival is a wonderful festival – great organization (thanks Cam & Carol!), great line-up, and really great audience. These folks pride themselves on a high quality ‘no repeat’ programming style, so I was thrilled to be back on the bill – this time with my band-mates from the ‘Live From Bluesville’ album: Rich DelGrosso (mandolin) and Mookie Brill (bass & harp). Although, as I said, it was a flying visit, we had a BALL and it was lots of fun seeing the guys again and playing in this laid-back acoustic blues trio format. Check out some pix here! Speaking of catching up with mates, I then flew straight to the first of the Australian Summer season festivals and fell into the open arms of my long-lost Aussie band. Reunion photos! The Gympie Muster, held in a state forest in Queensland, has a particular out-back flavour and we had an absolute hoot playing to enthusiastic and rowdy crowds. I’ll include the local Bundy rum campsite photos for Mookie, who became quite a fan during our Boyes, Brill, DelGrosso Down-Under Tour! After 10 weeks in America, there was a sweet waft of nostalgia to be ‘home’ - along with the scent of gum trees, Bundy rum and bull-dust. Well, when I say ‘home’, things prove to be trickier than that… During my long stint on the road, my lovely husband Steve ‘The Preacher’ Clarke got a new job, necessitating yet another shift of residence. His job is in the countryside a couple of hours north of Adelaide, so – suddenly & unexpectedly – I have become a ‘city-born country gal’. The song on the new album says: ‘I’ve never lived in the country and maybe I never will!’ Life imitates art, eh? Anyway, my three and a bit weeks of ‘relaxing’ between tours are spent packing boxes, shifting furniture, scrubbing houses and attempting to unpack again. The good part? Our new place is in a lovely little town on the ‘Reisling Trail’, Clare Valley, a famous and pretty wine-producing area. It’s got an inviting wide porch, heaps of fruit trees and a swimming pool. I’m looking forward to some holiday-style living when I get a bit of time off in Summer! With some of the boxes unpacked, I am just beginning to feel ‘at home’ when it is time to leave… The siren call of the road. The Preacher is going to join me on the next US jaunt. Who could miss an opportunity to get on the ship for the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise?! But, first, I have a real out back Aussie show. Back at the Gympie Muster, a couple of years ago, I met David Blackett from Riversands Winery. He and his marketing manager Dana were taking a break from their festival booth and dancing up a storm at the Blues Venue. These country people really know how to have a good time! He’d been after me ever since to do the annual ‘Jazz & Boots’ show at his winery in St George, but I had always been out of the country. I think I’ve established that I am a city girl, so I'd always assumed that St George was ‘not far out of Brisbane’. It turns out to be closer to 7 or 8 hours drive west into the wilds of outback Queensland. With little time and a rather long drive on my hands, I needed youth and enthusiasm on my side. Luckily, I found some local lads who are game enough to jump into a vehicle with a strange blueswoman for a 48 hour adventure. Aaron and Mick Luciow: drummer & bass-player, also happen to be twins and good-natured company. Thank goodness! The boys really did a great job at the gig and happily shared the driving - although there was that little issue of heading North instead of East for an hour or so on the return journey… Anyway, I did make my flight out of Brisbane – hooray! And…in my suitcase…is a little treasure that I bought at a tourist haunt in the outback. Something ‘special’ for the Silent Auction on the Blues Cruise. Something that I KNOW the folks won’t get anyplace else! So you better read the next blog…

Bright Lights, Big City - New York City!

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 16:49:27 GMT

From last blog...

We left our intrepid traveler lost in the wilds of Northern Pennsylvania, in picturesque Wellsboro – a town that looks like the setting of the movie ‘Groundhog Day’.

The pretty town of Wellsboro has a main street lined with working heritage gas lamps and is home to my gracious host Steve Belcher, bassist with Bluegrass band ‘The Hickory Project’. After our great gig at ‘The Barn’ - see last blog - I was invited to hang with Steve & the rest of the ‘Project’ and check out one of their shows. This invitation/wild goose chase took us to an overnight stay in upstate New York with great crazy company (thanks Laz & Linda!), a ‘Spinal Tapp’ moment where the band couldn’t find the gig, unplanned detours through Hassidic Jewish compounds and a chance to play with the Bluegrass maestros themselves! Local identity, Poppa Chubby, also dropped by to say ‘hello’. All wonderfully surreal and great fun – but I still had to get to New York City and, much like ‘Groundhog Day’, somehow found myself back in Wellsboro...

In the end I got a ride back across the state-line to Elmira airport, where, with some trepidation, I picked up a rental car equipped with one of those new-fangled GPS things and started driving. Received wisdom indicated that arriving in New York for the first time whilst driving solo was possibly crazy, or at least, unwise – so I was thrilled to successfully negotiate my way to the Belvedere Hotel in the Theater District, my new ‘home’. Waiting for me was my mother, Margaret, who had arrived from Australia the previous day. An experienced and intrepid traveler, my mum calculated that her frequent flyer miles plus the lure of NYC galleries, architecture and Broadway shows equaled a great holiday idea!

I am extremely grateful, because usually the musicians’ lifestyle is strictly delineated by financial and business concerns – you never get time to actually ‘see’ things, which drives me crazy sometimes. Now with Margaret’s stunning tour-planning skills on hand, we were both in for a treat.

Don’t get me wrong – I did actually have gigs in NY too! – but first, a few days of touristic bliss. We walked round the corner to the bustle of Times Square, ate a Rueben sandwich at Junior’s Café, saw the Empire State Building from the ‘Top of the Rock’ and had our photo taken with a Rockette at the Radio City Music Hall. The beautiful artworks of the Frick Collection, housed in a mansion across the road from Central Park, the stunning Museum of Modern Art and a Broadway show – a spankingly energetic production of ‘Chicago’ - rounded off our first lot of activities in the City. Good show!

Back to business…Tues – Friday lunchtime shows in various public locations as part of the ‘River to River Festival’. My first show was just round the corner from famous Bryant Park, so I went there for a coffee with New York International Guitar Festival director, David Spelman. David and I met at the Adelaide International Guitar Festival a couple of years ago – he’s a very interesting bloke (actually, he’s ‘a dag’ in Aussie parlance) and we enjoyed his genial company several times over the next few days. See photos here!

The next day, I took the PATH train over to Jersey City for my second show – surprisingly easy, certainly easier than trying to drive & park there! After, it was time to make my way down to Bleecker St, Greenwich Village to a little club called ‘Terra Blues’. I’d visited the venue previously to see Brooklyn guitarist Michael Hill. Michael is a very talented and gentle man; we met years ago at an Australian festival and have kept in touch. He has quit full-time touring with his band Michael Hill’s Blues Mob, for family reasons – but he is still keeping the music fresh with various projects. Check out his ‘Funky Fritter’ outfit here! He graciously invited me to join his set and play, so by the time I returned the following week for my own show, manager James greeted me like an old friend.

Despite a Summer thunderstorm which caused an absolutely torrential downpour, I had a most appreciative crowd – including audience member Don Handel, who had traveled from Atlanta, GA to see me! If you scroll down to the comments on my main blog page you can find a glowing review of the show – thanks, Don!!!

Adelaide radio presenter/podcaster/blogger Tess Coleman turned at my next gig, along with her partner local blues guitarist John Earl Walker. More photos, anyone? It was great to see Tess & meet John – and as a bonus, I could just glimpse the Statue of Liberty as I played. The stage was right on the Hudson River, outside the ‘Winter Garden’. From the plaza behind there is a sobering view of ‘Ground Zero’.

On Friday, one last lunchtime show – all different venues – all great fun - and a big thank you to the tech crew who looked after me so well all week: Kris, Sam, Leif and sound engineer, Jeff.

Although Margaret had been indefatigable in support of my work, it was now time to get back to some serious sightseeing…look out, New York! Lunch in Chinatown, the ‘Down Town Loop’, Grand Central Station. The Metropolitan Museum of Art - if I lived here, I reckon I’d visit once a month for several years - the Guggenheim Museum, the Statten Island Ferry (for better views of the Statue of Liberty) and – yes – another Broadway show! Mum was initially concerned that ‘Avenue Q’ may not be suitable for her delicate sense of propriety, with its’ advertised warnings of ‘live puppet sex scenes’…but, honestly, it was as funny as hell and we both enjoyed it immensely. I’ll leave you with that mental image of me and my mother at a somewhat saucy show…but, remember, there’s plenty more adventures to come!

Next time…GPS to Fabulous Thunderbirds, Edmonton with Boyes, Brill & DelGrosso, and ‘home’ to a moving experience…

July festivals in the US...and other stories!

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 13:26:00 GMT

How cool is it to hear your one of your songs played on the in-flight Blues channel while flying from Australia to America?! (Thank-you Bill Wax, host and programmer at XM Sirius ‘Bluesville’!) It’s the first of July and I am headed back to the US for more Summer… After interminable hours of travel, I found myself singing - ‘Chicago! Chicago! It’s a helluva town!’- as I watched a game of gridiron football at the O’Hare ‘Hooters’ Sports Bar. Yes, sometimes the quick change of cultures can be confusing! Picking up a rental car in Chicago, I drove to the Mississippi Valley Blues Festival in Davenport, Iowa. What a great festival! Although I was only there for a day, I managed to catch ‘Saffire – the Uppity Blues Women’ (currently on their farewell tour) before doing my guitar workshop. The enthusiastic crowd gave me a wonderful reception for my solo acoustic set and I got to hang out and see 94-year old birthday boy ‘Honey Boy’ Edwards and, later, the sassy antics of ‘Sugar Pie’ DeSanto. Late that night when I got back to the accomodation, a helpful festival volunteer warned me that my floor of the ‘The Lodge’ was haunted (!). I didn’t believe it - well, not until the alarm clock – which I definitely did not set! – woke me at 5am. The weird thing was I really needed to be up then, as my second crazy tour day required me to drive the hire car back to Chicago, get on a plane and fly to Portland, Oregon, and be on stage at the Waterfront Blues Festival by 9pm PDX time. These travel plans were made with a healthy lack of respect for American geography and time zones. Miraculously, all went well and after the festival, I even went off to my favourite local haunt - ‘Duff’s Garage’ - to jam with BMA- nominated band ‘The Insomniacs’ until the wee hours. The 2003 Waterfront Blues Festival was my first visit to the Pacific Northwest –and I loved it so much, that when I got the chance, I moved to Portland! The final day of festivities was all I could fit into my schedule this year, but that included a great electric set with my mates Dave Kahl (bass), Jimi Bott (drums – who also plays on the new ‘Blues Woman’ album), Dover Weinberg (keys) and special guest Terry Hanck blowing some old-school sax. Caught up with lots of friends – check out some photos here – and was part of the traditional ‘final night’ all-star jam at the Marriott Hotel along with Lloyd Jones, Magic Slim’s band, Dave Gonzales (Ex-Paladin’s) new outfit The Stone River Boys, Too-Slim and the Taildraggers….whew! We had a ball! Squashed into a lounge room, with heaving dancers packed tight round the band, Jim Flynn’s legendary ‘house parties’ are a real Portland experience…sweaty, funky and too much fun! I was thrilled to be invited back to play ‘In the House’, which was my final Portland engagement before heading off to West Virginia for the Augusta Heritage Center ‘Blues Week’. ‘Blues Week’ has a legion of regular fans as well as newcomers. It features a week of various instrument classes, jams, concerts and events, with enthusiastic participants and, usually, very little sleep! This year I taught finger-style guitar classes in the mornings and ‘Songwriting in the Blues Tradition’ later in the day. Both went really well – thank you to all my students! It’s very exciting to see people exploring all facets of the Blues... I learned a lot too; my growing class inspired me to write guitar tablature for a few of my original tunes. Some quick coaching from fellow-instructor Stan Hirsch and I made the attempt - there’s a first time for everything... Sadly, I missed the final student concert on Friday, as I was whisked away on my next adventure…in the wilds of northern Pennsylvania. Some years ago I met US bluegrass band ‘The Hickory Project’. In fact, they played at Lil’ Fi (songwriter of ‘Celebrate the Curves’ fame) and Dirk’s QLD country wedding and later stayed with me & The Preacher down in Melbourne, Aust. Bassist Steve Belcher, accompanied by his lovely partner Adrienne, drove all the way down to West Virginia to pick me up and drive me back to Wellsboro, PA. Check out a map to see the distance and you’ll know how nice and hospitable these folks are! Steve and fellow ‘Hickory Project’ member Anthony Hannigan (a shreddin’ bluegrass mandolin player) grabbed a drummer and backed me for a show just across into New York state, at a venue called ‘The Barn’. ‘The Barn at Hillspring’ is a unique venue, with old fashioned hospitality from host John Donne and family, and a great crowd. People came out of nowhere - some brought their campervans to park and sleep in a nearby field - and there was really gooood BBQ. John’s father-in-law, Norm, aka the BBQ chef, also took me on a four-wheeler ride around Hillspring Farm. We got chased by a large herd of cows as we careered down the hill to the sound-check – fantastic! Check out the pix here. More cross-country adventures with ‘The Hickory Project’ – and the exciting pilgrimage to New York City in the next episode….

From Fur Peace Ranch to Bacon-infused Cocktails!

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 13:19:19 GMT

Picking up the story from our last episode….

I am driving in the gathering dusk, towards a teaching gig at Jorma Kaukonen’s Fur Peace Ranch, Ohio. Suddenly I realize...I am quite lost! Night has fallen and I can’t seem to find the final turn-off to my destination. At last, a light looms in the apparent wilderness – a place to ask directions?

Pulling into the car park, I see a sign: ‘Rock Springs Rehabilitation Hospital’. When I open the front door, however, the reception desk is deserted. There is a surreal ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ sort of calm. Long corridors...wafts of antiseptic…and then, unexpectedly, a gaggle of geriatrics in wheelchairs are upon me!

‘My name is Gracie’, says one elderly lady. ‘Can you get me some soap for my teeth? They come out, you know’ she added, helpfully offering me her false teeth. This situation is getting frankly weird and I’m relieved to eventually discover an employee, who directs me to an exit. I still don’t have any idea where I am, but decide it’s better to drive around aimlessly in the dark than remain here.

My luck changes shortly after, when I spot a local family out for a spin on a 4 wheel trike/paddock bike. What the hell they are doing riding around at that time of night, I have no idea – they, in turn, are fascinated to find a lost Aussie at large in Meigs County and they graciously lead me down to the Fur Peace turn-off. They take pictures of me on their cell phone; I feel both exotic and very grateful. Thanks, Jay & family!

Fur Peace Ranch at last! This place is like a cool ‘ashram’ for guitarists, with a happy, musically stimulating vibe. Great folks, great food, great music...all in a beautiful setting with lots of inviting ‘pickin’ porches for evening jams. In addition to our classes, fellow teacher Chris Smither and I also have a concert on Saturday night at the Fur Peace Station venue. The weather is very rowdy – cue dramatic thunder claps - which Chris uses to great effect during his set! Thanks to all my students, especially the youngest, 13 year old Eli Catlin, who I reckon is going to be a player to watch out for in the years to come. It was a very rewarding experience and I’m excited to already be invited back to teach in 2010 – look out for dates soon! (Check out some photos here.)

My next stop is Columbus, OH, where I am shown extraordinarily fine hospitality by my hosts Herb Sollars and his wife Sharyn. They also hosted fellow-Aussie guitarist Lloyd Spiegel many years ago! (He’s one of my Melbourne ‘homeboys’). Mike Berichon from ‘Bear in the Chair’ productions, along with the support of folks from the Columbus Blues Alliance, helped put together a wonderful show for me at the Vonn Blues Lounge. I feel I have truly made a bunch of new blues friends here and can’t wait to get back to town…

My last tour commitment takes me into Canada for the Luminato Festival, Toronto, where I am part of a Blues Guitar concert put together by New York Guitar Festival director David Spelman. I first met David in Australia where he helped curate the first two Adelaide International Guitar Festivals – incidentally that’s also where I met Jorma Kaukonen. The Toronto concert has a fantastic line-up and I get to play solo acoustic to an enthusiastic crowd, between Alvin Youngblood Hart’s ‘Muscle Theory’ and Taj Mahal’s Band.

And now the long flight home. As I settle down to read the in-flight magazine, I am amazed by the following recipe. I don’t know about my American readers – but, as an Aussie, I thought this was bizarre, so I offer it to you all here. Everyone feel free to try it and let me know how it tastes!

RECIPE: BACON INFUSED BOURBON COCKTAIL
On a low heat, melt 1 ¼ oz bacon fat in a small saucepan. Stir fat until it liquefies (3-4 min). Pour liquid fat into large container and add 750 ml Bourbon. Stir. Cover and let stand for 4 hours, then scoop solidified fat off top and strain bourbon twice thru cheesecloth or cotton shirt.

2oz bacon-infused bourbon
¼ oz maple syrup
2 dashes Angostura Bitters
Add to mixing glass with ice, stir and strain over ice with a twist of orange.

OK! That’s all for now – enjoy!

Next time…..July festivals, Augusta Heritage Blues Week and more….

Blues Music Awards, Memphis and more!

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 03:35:00 GMT

I am driving through Ohio, heading east towards West Virginia. Slowly the flat country turns to rolling hills, hung with scraps of late afternoon mist. Etta James is blasting through the rental car stereo and life is good!

It’s been a long time since my 4.30 am wake up call in Portland, OR. Whoops…better slow down…almost hit a startled deer which is now running along the edge of the roadway. It’s dusk; the time of day I would be instinctively looking out for kangaroos if I was driving at home. Instead, I’m driving towards Jorma Kaukonen’s Fur Peace Ranch…but, enough of that. I will tell you about my Fur Peace adventures in the next blog!

Instead I want to back-track over the last few weeks...

This trip began in our ‘other’ hometown of Portland, OR; check out the photos of Sunday afternoon at Duff’s Garage. For those of you who are not hip to Portland’s scene there are some really fantastic players here - Dave Kahl (bass), Jimi Bott (drums) with special guests Suburban Slim, Jim Wallace and Lloyd Jones – that’s a great line-up! Thank you to everyone who came out to welcome me and The Preacher back... It was a really fun show, despite the fact that I was missing some gear. Somewhere between LA and PDX, the airline redirected my guitars to Beijing – yes, you read that right, that’s China – but I did get them back eventually.

Next stop: the 2009 Blues Music Awards. We took the long route to Memphis, flying from Australia to Portland and then Houston, Texas (!) where we joined ‘Live from Bluesville’ band-mate Rich DelGrosso for the 10 hour drive across to Tenessee. Suckers for punishment, eh? It was more than worth it. This years 30th anninversay Blues Music Awards (BMA’s) was one of the most enjoyable and star-studded events ever hosted by the Blues Foundation. What great people watching! Everyone gets ‘dressed’ and over cocktails in the foyer, there’s lots of mingling and legend-spotting. BB King, Koko Taylor, Bonnie Raitt, Pinetop Perkins, Marcia Ball, Taj Mahal, Maria Muldaur, IrmaThomas…seriously this is just the beginning of the special guest and nominee list!

Some highlights? Witnessing ‘The Queen’ of the Blues, Koko Taylor, belt out ‘Wang Dang Doodle’ backed by The Mannish Boys; Portland’s own Curtis Salgado, in excellent voice, singing BB King’s ‘3 O’Clock Blues’ accompanied by BB himself, Christie Healey’s touching speech on behalf of her late BMA-winning husband Jeff; hanging out with Junior Watson (a master of guitar AND tall stories!) - and getting a good hug from Hubert Sumlin at the Blues Hall of Fame Dinner.

The Hall on Fame dinner is presented the night before the BMA’s and honours significant songs, albums and artists such as this years’ inductee Taj Mahal.
A quick getaway from that event meant I was just in time for a late-night guest spot with Watermelon Slim & The Workers at the Ground Zero club just off Beale St. Incidently, the maverick Slim features on my new album ‘Blues Woman’ as a Hell-fire and brimstone Southern preacher – a role he was born to play!

Congratulations to my Yellow Dog Records label-mate Eden Brent, who beat us to the post to win BMA ‘Acoustic Album of the Year’ - and also to our own ‘Live from Bluesville’ bassist Mookie Brill who won ‘Bass Player of the Year’. Mookie wasn’t there to receive his award in person, but he wrote a poignant speech honouring the memory of his friend and musical college Sean Costello. Sadly, it wasn’t presented on the night, but Mookie would love you all to check out the Sean Costello Foundation for bi-polar research and give it your support.

That’s it for now - Fur Peace Ranch lies ahead and there will lots more stories soon… Don’t forget that my brand new album ‘Blues Woman’ is just out and should be available at my webstore in the next week or so – I am really proud of this album & can’t wait to hear what you all think!

New album release date - plus Summer festival round-up

Sun, 22 Mar 2009 12:06:44 GMT

It’s been a whirlwind of activity over the past several months in Australia…finally I have a chance to catch up with you all! I’m very excited to announce my brand new album ‘Blues Woman’ on Yellow Dog Records is due for release on 5 May, a couple of days before the Blues Music Awards. ‘Blues Woman’ features 15 tracks – 13 original tunes plus a couple of intriguing covers – and was recorded at Wire Studio in Austin, TX just before I left the States for my Summer festival season down-under. (See previous blog.) Produced by Mark ‘Kaz’ Kazanoff of The Texas Horns fame, the session included some very special guests: Pinetop Perkins (see photo page!), Watermelon Slim and Marcia Ball. Bassist Ronnie James Weber and drummer Jimi Bott did a fantastic, dynamic job of laying down the rhythm section parts. Jimi’s been nominated, again, for ‘Best Drummer’ at the BMA’s. I’m hoping he gets the nod this year after something like 9 previous nominations. And I can’t wait to hear what you all think of the album! Speaking of the Blues Music Awards, The Preacher and I’ll be back in Memphis for the event. Who could miss such a cool party? I’ll be joining Rich DelGrosso and Mookie Brill, my ‘partners-in-crime’ from the ‘Live From Bluesville’ album, nominated in the Acoustic Album of the Year category. I have great shoes; my only dilemma is what to wear with them… To get you up to speed: my festival season started late last year in Narooma, Australia, where our Blue Empress International Women’s Revue (with myself, Sue Foley and Diunna Greenleaf) headlined at the Great Southern Blues & Rockabilly Festival. Our performances were the hit of the festival! Fast forward to Wangaratta International Jazz & Blues Fest, where I found myself swinging with Duke Robillard and then getting very down-home with Mississippi bluesman Robert ‘Wolfman’ Belfour. There’s nothing like a mixed musical diet, I reckon. Adelaide International Guitar Festival hosted me with my band the Fortune Tellers, with young Tassie guitarist Pete Cornelius as my guest. In other festival highlights, I also had the delightful experience of being official ‘Ambassador’ to the Australian Blues Music Festival. There were lots of jokes about me waving from a limo like the Queen, but the reality proved more practical and rewarding. The festival has developed into a truly national blues event, nurturing both emerging and established Aussie blues talent. In early February, I took a quick trip to Memphis for the International Blues Challenge, putting in some time judging in the competition as well as performing, bar-hopping, networking and jamming…whew! Along with the BMAs, this is the time of the year when ‘everybody is in Memphis’. Special thanks to John Henry Hyde for the photos on legendary Beale Street, by the way. Looking forward to the rest of the year, with a belated New Year’s resolution to blog more often…more news as it comes to hand!

Brand New Recording - and other news!

Wed, 22 Oct 2008 13:49:18 GMT

While ‘The Preacher’ drove steadily south from Portland, OR, with a load of gear destined for the studio, I busied myself writing new songs and colluding with producer, Mark ‘Kaz’ Kazanoff. A brand new recording project was taking shape! Now, just a few short, intense weeks later, we’ve packed and relocated for the Summer Festival season in Australia - and I now have a new post as Official Ambassador for the Australian Blues Festival! But let me back-track for a moment… Hurricane Ike was approaching the south coast of Texas as we nervously planned our first day of recording. I split my time between musical discussions with Kaz and the weather channel. Although the session boasted a fantastic line-up of local Austin players – guitarist Derek O’Brien (long-time member of Antone’s house band), Nick Connolly (Grammy nominated keyboard player) and upright bassist Ronnie James Weber (most recently of ‘The Fabulous Thunderbirds’ & ‘Little Charlie and the Nightcats’) – we were relying on drummer Jimi Bott to fly in from Portland, OR. Would he make it? As it turned out, Jimi’s initiative (via a quick itinerary change) saw him successfully arrive at Austin airport - ironically the only airport still open! Hurricane Ike drove a lot of evacuees into town, but Austin didn’t even get a drop of much-needed rain… My last studio recording, ‘Lucky 13’ - also on Yellow Dog Records - was a wonderful opportunity to explore various blues influences. It was described as ‘a musical road-trip from New Orleans to Chicago’. I wanted this new recording to reflect my experiences of playing in America over the last couple of years. Amongst other things, I’ve had the chance to play with and be inspired by some great guitarists, so this new album is more guitar-oriented. I think it contains some of my most forthright guitar-playing yet! Even in the middle of the session I took a chance and tried some brand new stuff. There’s some solo resonator guitar, some slide playing, ‘dirty’ electric trio material – right through to some luscious tracks with bigger instrumentation. Special guests, the wonderful Marcia Ball and gritty bluesman Watermelon Slim join me on a couple of gospel-inflected tunes – and legendary Delta pianist Pinetop Perkins also dropped by Wire Studio to play on a song called (appropriately?), ‘Old Times Ways’. Needless to say, we all had a hell of a time! As a blues songwriter, my songs are based on stories and emotions. This new recording, consisting of 15 songs, is like a collection of short stories from the road. The traditional blues themes of travel and yearning for home and family get a personal perspective - as befits a gal ‘long ways from home’ – but my trademark ‘sassy’ songs from the female perspective are never far away. Although we haven’t decided on a final track order, the session yielded 13 original tunes and two covers; one from JB Lenoir and from Australian blues icon Chris Wilson. More news soon – and look for a release date early in the New Year!

New Projects, Partners & Plans!

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 05:00:00 GMT

Well - It's happening, folks! I am recording a new studio album in September, again joining forces with Memphis label, Yellow Dog Records. Following the success of the ‘Lucky 13’ album, I plan to continue the fruitful collaboration with my mates Mark ‘Kaz’ Kazanoff (producer) and Stuart Sullivan (engineer) at Wire Recordings in Austin, TX. The recording session has been brought forward to fit around a busy touring schedule in the later part of the year. With several major festivals booked in Australia, I've decided to focus on Southern Hemisphere commitments from October to early 2009. There will still be opportunities for the odd showcase US performance during this time - and I'll still be maintaining my 'home away from home' in Portland, Oregon USA. Portland is a great town, filled with talented musicians - and the blues community here has been very welcoming and supportive. Thank you PDX! Steve ‘The Preacher’ Clarke is going to continue my personal management (of course!) and I have a new booking agent - the lovely Sara Negri-Whitmer of Washboard Productions, Memphis, who will be looking after my USA/Canada and European bookings. You'll find her on my contact page. I'll be back for the Northern Spring/Summer and looking forward to seeing friends and making new ones everywhere they let me loose during 2009! As well as performing solo acoustic, and electric with The Fortune Tellers band, I'll also be performing in an acoustic trio format with ‘Boyes, Brill and DelGrosso’. Blues mandolin-master Rich DelGrosso and BMA-winning bassist Mookie Brill, (who is also a fabulous vocalist and harmonica player) joined me on the recently released BlueEmpress/VizzTone album ‘Live From Bluesville’, recorded last July at XM Satellite Radio in Washington DC - see photo at the top of the page. The album is now #15 on the Living Blues charts. So - that's the latest news - and my first blog! Now, it's time to keep writing material for the studio next month and pack up my house for a long stretch on the road.... *Also - for my students there is a new page behind this blog called Teaching which will give you info on material we covered in class - enjoy & happy playing!