Eric Johnson with Kyle Brock and Tommy Taylor in 1988. Lot of technique packed into a pretty instrumental.
Born in Serbia and now residing in the US, Ana Popović has earned seven Blues Music Award nominations and performed as the only female guitarist of the 2014 -2018 all-star Experience Hendrix lineup, a nationwide tour celebrating the music and legacy of Jimi Hendrix.
In 2015, The Sonics performed at the KEXP studio to record a set of their proto-punk garage band classics (along with some covers). Four of the five original members were there: Gerry Roslie / vocals, keyboard; Larry Parypa / Guitar; Andy Parypa / Bass; and Rob Lind / Saxophone. The entire session can be heard here and it’s pure awesome.
We had some actual weather this past week, with high winds, thunder and lightning, sheets of rain, avalanches, starvation, disease, pestilance. Now I hear that there are extra terrestrials on the way so we’ll have a surplus if we don’t waste them. I think there’s room in the shed.
See you porchtime-ish.
Short, Fat and Ugly, Lucy Malheur (2021) Lucy Malheur is a German singer/songwriter/producer who, with very few exceptions, only publishes her own songs.
Trad jazz band Tuba Skinny features bandleader Shaye Cohn on cornet. Performing and recording for over a decade, they’re branching out into jug band music, spirituals, country blues, string band music, ragtime, and New Orleans R&B.
Malcolm John Rebennack Jr., aka Dr. John (1941-2019), was known for his mix of jazz, blues, R&B and soul flavored with New Orleans Mardi Gras, swamp rock and a pinch of voodoo. Gitcha gris gris gumbo ya ya.
The Dirty Dozen Brass Band formed in New Orleans in 1977, playing traditional jazz mixed with bebop, funk, R&B and soul, and resurrected classic Second Line rhythms.
New Orleans’ famous Preservation Hall Jazz Band was founded by Pennsylvanian Allan Jaffe in the early 1960s as a dixieland revival group, aimed at reviving the careers of the early jazz greats and preserving traditional jazz.
Nope, I didn’t forget. Here’s a story of Valentine’s Day in 1933.
While the missus is knocking down the remaining little heart-shaped confections tomorrow, I’ll be knocking back you know where.
Porch Time commences at porch time.
Moonlight Shuffle, Les Elgart & His Orchestra (1959)
After successful runs with several big bands of the 1940s, Les Elgart and his brother Larry formed their own orchestra with a distinctive brass-heavy sound. Their most recognizable recording, Bandstand Boogie, became the theme song to Dick Clark’s American Bandstand television show.
Shaggy Dogs play a blues/R&B/rock/soul mix they call Fiesta Blues ‘n’ Roll. Performing and recording since the late 1990s, their album Pinball Boomers was “the most streamed French album in 2025 on the blues radio collective.”
Monster Mike Welch has been performing and recording for over 25 years. The bluesman from Boston was only 13 when Dan Akroyd gave him the nickname.
The Black Keys (Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney) have recorded their 14th studio album Peaches, due to be released in May. It was written while Auerbach was caring for his (late) father on the basis that “it would be good for Dan to have something to do.”
Lotta things we’re supposed to be outraged about these days, but most of them sound like little stampy feets and made up cuss words to me, while the real monsters are pounding on the door trying to get out of the basement. I’m not worried. I’ve got more important things to do, like getting the Superbowl Chili burbling and the corn breading. See you tomorrow, same porch time, same porch channel.
The True Loves are an Afro-beat funk and soul group out of Seattle. Formed in 2014 by Jabrille “Jimmy James” Williams / guitar, Bryant Moore / bass) and David McGraw / drums, they’re backed by Iván Galvez / congas, aux percussion, Gordon Brown / tenor sax, Greg Kramer / trombone, and Skerik / baritone sax. [h/t Chuck S.]
An amazing version of Motörhead’s classic by Brass Against, a collective led by guitarist Brad Hammonds for purposes of protesting everything you can imagine with song covers. (Fun Fact: They are banned from playing at NASCAR events and Daytona Speedway’s Rockville Festivals because of an “incident” in 2021.)
I see that the winter storm isn’t done messing with you folks east of the Mississippi and south of everything. I don’t envy you – I did my time long ago. Remember to steer in the direction of the skid, and we’ll see you on the other side. For the rest of us, heavy porchtime is expected to blow in by noon o’clock tomorrow. See you then.
I Can’t Stop Dancing, Archie Bell & The Drells (1968)
Soul / R&B group from Houston, Texas, Archie Bell & The Drells had a string of hits in the late 60s-70s. They are best known for their 1968 dance hit Tighten Up which shot to No. 1 on the charts while Bell was recuperating from a leg injury he suffered while in the U.S. Army.