Category Archives: Blues

Blues, Music Calendar

Today: Bessie Smith passed away in 1937 – 75 years ago

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From Wikipedia:

Born April 15, 1894
Chattanooga, Tennessee,United States
Died September 26, 1937 (aged 43)
Clarksdale, Mississippi, United States
Genres Blues, Jazz
Occupations Singer, actress
Instruments Vocals
Years active 1912–1937
Labels Columbia
Associated acts Ma Rainey, Alberta Hunter,Ethel Waters

Bessie Smith (April 15, 1894 – September 26, 1937) was an American blues singer.

Nicknamed The Empress of the Blues, Smith was the most popular female blues singer of the 1920s and 1930s. She is often regarded as one of the greatest singers of her era and, along with Louis Armstrong, a major influence on subsequent jazz vocalists.

She scored a big hit with her first release, a coupling of “Gulf Coast Blues” and “Downhearted Blues“, which its composer Alberta Hunter had already turned into a hit on the Paramount label. Smith became a headliner on the black T.O.B.A. circuit and rose to become its top attraction in the 1920s. Working a heavy theater schedule during the winter months and doing tent tours the rest of the year (eventually traveling in her own railroad car), Smith became the highest-paid black entertainer of her day. Columbia nicknamed her “Queen of the Blues,” but a PR-minded press soon upgraded her title to “Empress”.

Smith was gifted with a powerfully strong voice that recorded very well from her first record, made during the time when recordings were made acoustically. With the coming of electrical recording (circa 1925), the sheer power of her voice was even more evident.

She made 160 recordings for Columbia, often accompanied by the finest musicians of the day, most notably Louis Armstrong, Coleman Hawkins, Fletcher Henderson, James P. Johnson, Joe Smith, and Charlie Green.

Selective awards and recognitions:

Grammy Hall of Fame
Recordings of Bessie Smith were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. This special Grammy Award was established in 1973 to honor recordings that are at least 25 years old and that have “qualitative or historical significance.”

Bessie Smith: Grammy Hall of Fame Award
Year Recorded Title Genre Label Year Inducted
1923 “Downhearted Blues“ Blues (Single) Columbia 2006
1925 “St. Louis Blues“ Jazz (Single) Columbia 1993
1928 “Empty Bed Blues” Blues (Single) Columbia 1983

National Recording Registry

In 2002 Smith’s recording of the single, “Downhearted Blues“, was included by the National Recording Preservation Board in the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry. The board selects songs on an annual basis that are “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

“Downhearted Blues” was included in the list of Songs of the Century by the Recording Industry of America and the National Endowment for the Arts in 2001. It is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of the 500 songs that shaped rock ‘n’ roll.

Inductions

Year Inducted Category Notes
2008 Nesuhi Ertegun Jazz Hall of Fame Jazz at Lincoln Center, NYC
1989 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award
1989 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame “Early influences”
1981 Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame
1980 Blues Hall of Fame

St. Louis Blues (1929):

Baby Won’t You Please Come Home (1923):

Album of the day – The Essential Bessie Smith (1997):

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Blues, Memphis, Music Calendar

Today: B.B. King is 87

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From Wikipedia:

Birth name Riley King
Also known as B.B. King

King of the Blues
Born September 16, 1925 (age 87)
Origin Itta Bena, Mississippi, United States
Genres Blues, soul blues, jazz, blues rock, electric blues, rhythm and blues, soul
Occupations Musician, songwriter, producer
Instruments Vocals, guitar, piano
Years active 1949–present
Labels Geffen/Interscope/Universal,Bullet Records, RPM Records,Crown, ABC, MCA,Reprise/Warner Bros.,Virgin/EMI
Associated acts Bobby Bland, Eric Clapton,Pappo, Big Krit

 

Riley B. King (born September 16, 1925), known by the stage name B.B. King, is an American songwriter, vocalist, and famed blues guitarist.

Rolling Stone magazine ranked him at No. 6 on its list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. and No. 17 in Gibson’s Top 50 Guitarists of All Time. According to Edward M. Komara, King “introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending and shimmering vibrato that would influence virtually every electric blues guitarist that followed.” King was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. He is widely considered one of the most influential blues musicians of all time, because of this he is often nicknamed ‘The King of Blues’. He is also known for performing tirelessly throughout his musical career appearing at 250-300 concerts per year until his seventies. In 1956 it was noted that he appeared at 342 shows, still at the age of 86 King appears at 100 shows a year.

Over a period of 63 years, King has played in excess of 15,000 performances.

The Thrill Is Gone (Live at Montreux 1993):

Everyday I have the Blues:

How Blue Can You Get (Legends of Rock ‘n’ Roll):

Album of the day – Live At The Regal (1965):


 

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Blues, Memphis, Music Calendar

Today: R.L. Burnside passed away in 2005

“He was a happy-go-lucky nihilist…. he took things exactly as they were. No more, no less.”
~Matthew Johnson, the founder of Mr. Burnside’s record label, Fat Possum.

From Wikipedia:

Birth name Robert Lee Burnside
Born November 23, 1926
Harmontown, Mississippi, Lafayette County, United States
Origin Oxford, Mississippi, United States
Died September 1, 2005 (aged 78)
Memphis, Tennessee, United States
Genres Blues, garage rock
Instruments Guitar, vocals
Years active 1960s–2005
Labels Fat Possum
Associated acts Calvin Jackson
Jon Spencer

R. L. Burnside (November 23, 1926 – September 1, 2005), born Robert Lee Burnside, was an American blues singer,songwriter, and guitarist who lived much of his life in and around Holly Springs, Mississippi. He played music for much of his life, but did not receive much attention until the early 1990s. In the latter half of the 1990s, Burnside repeatedly recorded with Jon Spencer, garnering crossover appeal and introducing his music to a new fanbase within the underground garage rock scene.

One commentator noted that Burnside…. were “present-day exponents of an edgier, electrified version of the raw, uncut Delta blues sound.”

In the 1990s, he appeared in the film Deep Blues and began recording for the Oxford, Mississippi, label Fat Possum Records. Founded byLiving Blues magazine editor Peter Redvers-Lee and Matthew Johnson, the label was dedicated to recording aging North Mississippi bluesmen such as Burnside and Junior Kimbrough.

Burnside remained with Fat Possum from that time until his death.

Burnside’s 1996 album A Ass Pocket of Whiskey (recorded with Jon Spencer) gained critical acclaim, earning praise from Bono and Iggy Pop. 

Style:

Burnside had a powerful, expressive voice and played both electric and acoustic guitars (both with a slide and without). His drone-based style was a characteristic of North Mississippi hill country blues rather than Mississippi Delta blues. Like other country blues musicians, he did not always adhere to 12- or 16-bar blues patterns, often adding extra beats according to his preference. He called this “Burnside style” and often commented that his backing musicians needed to be familiar with his style in order to be able to play along with him. 

Burnside collaborated in the late 1990s with The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion on the album A Ass Pocket of Whiskey. Consequently, he gained the attention of many within this underground music scene, cited as an influence by Hillstomp and covered on record by The Immortal Lee County Killers.

Burnside’s “Skinny Woman” was also interpolated into the song “Busted” by fellow Fat Possum musicians The Black Keys, who have listed Burnside as an influence on their music.

Shake ’em on down – Live:

Album of the day – Too Bad Jim (1994):

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Blues, Music Calendar

Today: Stevie Ray Vaughan passed away in 1990 – 22 years ago

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He was the greatest blues guitarist of his generation.
~ Mick Jagger

From Wikipedia:

Birth name Stephen Ray Vaughan
Also known as SRV
Born October 3, 1954
Dallas, Texas, United States
Died August 27, 1990 (aged 35)
East Troy, Wisconsin, United States
Genres Rock, blues, blues rock,electric blues, Texas blues
Occupations Musician, singer-songwriter, record producer
Instruments Guitar, vocals
Years active 1965–1990
Labels Epic, Legacy, Sony
Associated acts Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble, Jimmie Vaughan, Doyle Bramhall,David Bowie, Lonnie Mack,Albert King, Jeff Beck
Website srvofficial.com

Stephen “Stevie” Ray Vaughan (October 3, 1954 – August 27, 1990) was an American guitarist, singer-songwriter, and record producer. Often referred to by his initials SRV, Vaughan is best known as a founding member and leader of Double Trouble. Together with drummer Chris Layton and bassist Tommy Shannon, they ignited the blues revival of the 1980s. With a career spanning seven years, Vaughan and Double Trouble consistently sold out concerts while their albums frequently went gold.

I remember when he first came out, he was doing that Hendrix song [Voodoo Chile], and I heard all these people going, “Ah, he’s just trying to do Hendrix. But he went a lot further than that. He was absolutely 100-proof, pure blues. Albert Collins, Muddy Waters – the essence of that was in everything he played. More than the Allman Brothers, he was straight-down-the-line blues.
~Gregg Allman
–
Stevie was always playing. After he’d get offstage, he’d get on his bus. And he had all these Stratocasters hanging there. He’d grab one and start goin’.
~Gregg Allman

–

From allmusic.com (Stephen Thomas Erlewine):

With his astonishingly accomplished guitar playing, Stevie Ray Vaughan ignited the blues revival of the ’80s. Vaughan drew equally from bluesmen like Albert King, Otis Rush, and Muddy Waters and rock & roll players like Jimi Hendrix and Lonnie Mack, as well as the stray jazz guitarist like Kenny Burrell, developing a uniquely eclectic and fiery style that sounded like no other guitarist, regardless of genre. Vaughan bridged the gap between blues and rock like no other artist had since the late ’60s. For the next seven years, Stevie Ray was the leading light in American blues, consistently selling out concerts while his albums regularly went gold. His tragic death in 1990 only emphasized his influence in blues and American rock & roll.    …read more @ allmusic

Texas Flood – Live:

Pride & Joy – live at the Montreux 1985

Album of the day – Texas Flod (1983):

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