Tag: Blues

Saturday Matinee – The Danielle Nicole Band, Funky Mojo Daddy & Laurie Wright

“Nicole brings it, bakes it, and serves it up blazing on a silver soul-rocking platter.” –Blues Music Magazine
From Kansas City, Missouri, southpaw bass player Danielle Nicole has some pipes. She was inducted into the Kansas Music Hall of Fame and has been the recipient of Eight Blues Music Awards.

Blues, funk/soul and roots rock group from Gary, Indiana, Funky Mojo Daddy‘s cover of Robert Johnson is a good ‘un.

Laurie Wright went from an alcoholic crackhead street bum to a sober rocker. If Johnny Rotten could shred guitar and had a tight backup band, this is him.  (The Beeb covered Wright’s recovery in April 2020 during the covid lockdowns.)
[h/t Chuck S.]

Let’s see… what’s on the itinerary for tomorrow… oh yeah. Porch Time. We can sit and discuss the latest Xwitter soap opera, or we can just sit. See you at sometime o’clock.

Saturday Matinee – The Seatsniffers, Seratones, Eliza Stark & The Dappers, and Sue Foley

The Seatsniffers are a Belgian roots rock band with a large following throughout Europe.  Unfortunately they don’t seem to have a website. [h/t Chuck S.]

They’re part rock, part psychedelia, part R&B and part soul, but mostly Seratones is lead singer and guitar player A.J. Haynes. When asked what inspires her, she responded, “Afrofuturism.”

Eliza Stark & The Dappers:
“The only rockabilly band based in Montenegro. A classic trio of guitar, drums and hot chick slapping double bass and regular guests of national TV and festivals, they also well-known for their true and original music far beyond the borders of Montenegro.” – ES & The D Facebook Page

Sue Foley covers Clarence Gatemouth Brown’s classic Okie Dokie Stomp with style (and her trademark pink paisley Stratocaster). She’s been performing and recording since she was 21, has won many awards since [bio here].

Memorial Day

Arlington National Cemetery (via Google Maps Street View)

For those of you in the Memorial Day BBQ crowd, wrapping up your roadtrips, or just chillin’ on the porch, here are some random unrelated tunes posted in May of the years 2020 – 2025, ordered by year of release.

[Caveat: I don’t own the copyrights to any of the recordings. They are presented here for entertainment purposes only.]

Saturday Matinee – R.L. Burnside, Ray Beadle, and Robert Jon & The Wreck

R.L. Burnside was born in Lafayette County, Mississippi, learned from Mississippi Fred McDowell who lived in the next county over. Burnside and his family, tired of the life of sharecroppers, moved to Chicago in the early 50s. Subsequently his father, two uncles and two brothers were murdered there. In 1959 he returned to Mississippi, was convicted of murder himself, and served time at the Mississippi State Penitentiary, aka Parchman Farm.

Australian guitarist, singer-songwriter Ray Beadle, with Jonathan Zwartz on double bass and Andrew Dickeson on snare play Diamonds At Your Feet, a 1956 Muddy Waters tune. A former member of The Foreday Riders, Beadle plays original compositions and covers of blues and jazz standards in his own style.

Formed in 2011 in southern California, Robert Jon & The Wreck has earned a following playing southern rock with a 1970s flavor. They decided to visit Pioneertown for this recording session.

Memorial Day Weekend is upon us. Somewhere in between road trips, BBQ (and Porch Time), pause to remember the meaning of the holiday and give thanks to the fallen soldiers who gave up everything for the people of this Great Nation.

Saturday Matinee – Redbreast Wilson, Robert Randolph & The Zac Schulze Gang

Sam Redbreast Wilson (with the Mad Dog Margaritas) rolls a nice 2-way highway roadtrip vibe.

Pedal steel guitarist Robert Randolph did an amazing interpretation of Blind Lemon Jefferson‘s That Black Snake Moan (1927). In 2010, Rolling Stone ranked Randolph at 97 in their list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. Unfortunately the videos from this session don’t give credit to his partner (I’m guessing that’s his brother).

What if SRV had a younger step brother in the UK?
The Zac Schulze Gang cranks out some serious speed blues/rock.

Bad news: I didn’t trap the skunk that’s been roaming the back yard. Good news: Haven’t seen or heard the skunk in two weeks. Better news: porch time happens tomorrow. See you then.

Saturday Matinee – Jovin Webb, Sonny Gullage & The Melbourne Ska Orchestra

Lionel Richie once described his voice as “the sound of barbecue sauce.” Luke Bryan remarked, “I could sit and drink a lot of bourbon listening to that voice.” Louisiana blues and soul singer Jovin Webb made it to the final ten performers on the 2020 season of American Idol and moved on from there.

Singer, songwriter and keyboardist  Kevin ‘Sonny’ Gullage has earned much acclaim despite his young age (26 years old this year), and combines the sounds of New Orleans roots blues, boogiewoogie and gospel with modern styles.

The Melbourne Ska Orchestra covers a tune from the 1927 Broadway show Good News.

Been pretty busy this week. A lot of time and effort goes into pretending to be busy, and I’m definitely getting better at it. Free lessons tomorrow on the porch. See you there.

Saturday Matinee – The Lowdown Saints, Artur Menezes & The Pat McManus Band

The Lowdown Saints, formed in 2020 in the Old Town of Stsh(?), Sweden, and consists of Tommy Moberg / drummer & vocals, Hannes Mellberg / lead guitar, Félix Matthiessen / 2nd guitar, Karl Ivert / upright bass, and Torbjörn Eliasson / piano & scissors.

Brazilian guitarist Artur Menezes discovered the blues as a teenager, headed off to Chicago and jammed with the bar bands. He’s now an international performer, touring South America, the UK and the US. Unfortunately his website (www.arturmenezes.com) triggers a not secure warning.

The Pat McManus Band are Celtic rockers from Northern Ireland, described as an “Irish Power Trio led by former Mama’s Boys and Celtus guitarist/violinist, singer and songwriter Pat McManus.”

Anything burn down this week that I missed? Stop by tomorrow and we’ll talk about skunk bait options. Meet you on the porch at half past whenever.

Saturday Matinee – Playing For Change, Kenny Brown, JT Coldfire & The Killborn Alley Blues Band

Playing For Change x Visit Mississippi. Nice variations on Robert Johnson’s classic.

Born in 1952 on Craig Air Force Base near Selma, Alabama, slide guitarist, singer and songwriter Kenny Brown plays in the North Mississippi Hill Country blues style. He was taught by some of the best, including R.L. Burnside, who claimed him as his adopted son.

Born in Corpus Christi, Texas, James Thomas Uvalle (1980 – 2015) taught himself to play guitar at the age of 11. At 16 he adopted the moniker JT Coldfire and began his songwriting and performing career. He passed away suddenly at 35 years.

“The Killborn Alley Blues Band kills. Picture a deep-dish Chicago version of the Fabulous Thunderbirds back 30 years ago.”
Tom Clark, review of Tear Chicago Down, Hittin’ the Note • Issue 55, 2007.

Stock market up, stock market down, stock market up, and shake it all around. Been happening forever, seems a lot of people with TDS just began to notice. Meanwhile, the porch will open tomorrow promptly at whenever and we’ll discuss the best methods of trapping a skunk. See you then.

Saturday Matinee – Ginger St. James, Hollow Souls w/ Jared James Nichols, and the Anthony Krizan Band

Ginger St. James began her career singing in small town Ontario bars and now headlines shows as one of Canada’s top roots rock / rockabilly / country artists. Good stuff.

Hollow Souls is a spinoff project created by British blues rock guitarist and former pro MMA fighter Kris Barras. Their debut single features yankee guitarist Jared James Nichols and the vocals of Phoebe Jane.

An original member of Amfibian, former Spin Doctors lead guitarist and owner of Sonic Boom Studios, Anthony Krizan runs his own show now.

Egg shortage. Signal group chat leak. Retaliatory tariffs. Wall Street. Space meebas. Porch time. Tomorrow. Be there.

Saturday Matinee – The Peddlers, 16 Horsepower & David Gogo

Elmer Bernstein‘s theme to Walk On The Wild Side (1962) as performed by The Peddlers in 1971. Tight jazz rock from the UK, with Roy Phillips on Hammond organ & vocals, Tab Martin on bass, and the amazing Trevor Morais on drums.

16 Horsepower was a Denver-based group that mixed rock, bluegrass and Appalachian gospel. They released four studio albums before egos got in the way: they disbanded in 2005, citing “mostly political and spiritual” differences.

“David is a great blues player. I like his style!” – Johnny Winter
Canadian singer, songwriter and bluesman David Gogo began playing guitar at the age of five; at 15 he met and was encouraged by Stevie Ray Vaughan; a year later he formed his first band. He’s won numerous awards, including three JUNOs (despite EMI spiking his solo album in the US).

Been watching a lot of police body cam videos lately, and after a while I began noticing behavioral patterns of those who eventually get hauled off to the hoosegow. The ones who squeal the loudest are usually guilty of more egregious crimes than just expired license plate tags.

I also notice that the same applies to politicians when they’re exposed as unethical grifting frauds. Keep that in mind as you watch current events unfold.

Porch time tomorrow? Yup. See you there.