Before his recent passing, the late Pinetop Perkins was scheduled to perform late this month with his longtime friend Willie “Big Eyes” Smith at Jazz Alley in Seattle. That of course won’t happen. What will happen though, is a Tribute to Don’t be fooled. It’s April 1st, Pinetop Perkins, featuring long time Howlin’ otherwise known as “April Fool’s Wolf Band guitarist Hubert Sumlin who will be Day”. Not much happening for performing with Willie “Big Eyes” Smith. the first few days of the month, That will take place at Jazz Alley at Sixth & but on Thurs Apr 7th, a former Lenora in Seattle on Tues Apr 26th and on member of Buddy Guy’s Band, Weds Apr 27th. I fully expect these shows will Scott Holt will be at The Yale sell out in a hurry so if you’re thinking about with his own band. Showtime is going, better make a reservation quick! 9 p.m. On Tues Apr 12th there’s a great double Blues bill at The Vogue Theatre in One of the Blues genres Vancouver featuring David Lindley and Harry finest slide players and one Manx. Speaking of Chicago Blues Legend incredible act, Joe Louis Buddy Guy, he’s at the Red Robinson Show Walker & the Bosstalkers Theatre in Coquitlam on Fri Apr 16th. Blues have been booked into singer & guitarist Coco Montoya & his band Dimitriou’s Jazz Alley in return to these parts for 3 shows starting with Seattle. They’re there on th Mon May 9th & Tues May Weds Apr 20 at The Yale in Vancouver, th followed by Thurs Apr 21st at The Triple Door 10 . Walker’s career is on a in Seattle, then Sat Apr 23rd at the Lincoln roll. He’s been nominated for Theatre in downtown Mount Vernon. three Blues Music Awards including Dwelling on Mount Vernon, Harry Manx plays Instrumental – Guitarist of the Year, McIntyre Hall in that community on Fri Apr Contemporary Blues Male Vocalist of the Year, 29th. That same night, Fri Apr 29th The Triple and BB King Entertainer of the Year. Door plays host to The Asylum Street Competition is fierce as Joe’s up against some Spankers. April wraps up with two nights of strong contenders in each of the categories. th astonishingly sultry Blues-infused rock with the The awards will be held this coming May 5 in Dana Fuchs Band at 10 pm on Fri Apr 29th & Memphis, Tennessee. Sat Apr 30th. A strikingly beautiful and tall ppearing on their home woman at something like six foot two, Dana A starred as Janis Joplin in the off-Broadway Hit turf in Seattle, Too Slim & “Love, Janis” and also starred in the major the Taildraggers will be appearing at Highway 99 on motion picture “Across the Universe”, so you th know she’s got some serious vocal ability. Sat May 14 . Tim, Polly, & Tommy have a brand new CD coming out on April 19th, ou could probably call this Y but you can pre-order via the band’s website, Blues across the border. www.tooslim.org and can also listen to Highway 99 Blues Club in samples from the album. The CD’s called Seattle presents a double dose “Shiver” and the samples online sure makes it of Canadian Blues from good old sound like a sure fire winner, certainly one of Vancouver, with Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne th the band’s best. I know I’ll be picking up a and The Twisters on Sat Apr 15 . copy. Album cover art by Tim’s wife Nancy. 1 Just announced, funky, hip, R&B, Soulstress Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings will be performing “Live” in the great out-of-doors on Fri May 27th. They’ll be at Malkin Bowl in Stanley Park with their equally funky special guest opening act of Black There’s more Funk on the horizon with R&B Joe Lewis & the Honeybears. hipsters, The Lowrider Band who will be ridin’ Jones has a fabulous new album out, into Jazz Alley for four consecutive nights from “I Learned the Hard Way”, full of old school Thurs June 30th to Sun July 3rd. This septet sounding Soul & plenty of funk, recorded at the has been dishing out the Funk, Latin, R&B, Dap Kings “House of Soul” studio in New York. Rock, contemporary Jazz, & Reggae rhythms Their last appearance here was at the 10th for forty years, since 1969. At their core, the Annual Burnaby Roots & Blues Festival in band features four multi-platinum singer- 2009. A solid smash at this year’s SXSW songwriters including Howard Scott, Harold Music Festival in Austin TX, Black Joe Lewis & Brown, B.B. Dickerson, and native Seattle son the Honeybears are one of Austin’s original Lee Oskar. Their original hits have included garage soul ensembles. Well worth seeing. “Lowrider”, “Why Can’t We Be Friends”, “Spill the Wine”, and “The Cisco Kid”. Have seen New Orleans Music these guys twice and they’re a whole lot of fun. Legend, composer, singer, songwriter, Watch for Alligator producer, and pianist, Records recording artists Allen Toussaint has Rick Estrin & the lined up two dates at Jazz Nightcats to be prowling Alley in Seattle. This is the stage at Highway 99 your rare opportunity to Blues Club in Seattle in catch one of the greats in an intimate setting. early July. Nominated for Toussaint will be there Tues May 31st & Weds st a Blues Music Award for Best Blues Band, this June 1 . Allen has had a stellar career, fun, high-energy quartet will be at this Seattle having produced, written & arranged for, and Blues hot spot on Thurs July 7th. They’ve also had songs covered & performed by many of th st been nominated for other BMA’s including music’s giants of of the 20 & 21 centuries Contemporary Blues Album of the Year for including Paul McCartney, Patti Labelle, Dr. their Alligator release “Twisted”, plus Rick John, Paul Simon, Joe Cocker, The Band, The Estrin has been nominated for Instrumentalist – Stones, Etta James, & many more. Harmonica, and also for BB King Entertainer of If you like your music the Year. rooted in Gospel & infused with Blues, The ole space cowboy himself, Hip-Hop, Funk, Rock, Steve Miller & the Steve Miller Band Jazz, Country & Will be touching down at the Red more, then please Robinson Show Theatre at the give me an “Amen”. One of America’s finest Boulevard Casino in Coquitlam African-American Sacred Steel groups, The on Fri July 15th. They normally Lee Boys, will be raising spirits up at The Yale play much larger venues, so this is th on Thurs June 30 . This will be a presented your chance to catch them in a smaller more by the Canadian Pacific Blues Society. intimate setting. Showtime is at 9:30 pm. I saw this inspired group of young men a few years back at the Fairview Pub on Broadway. 2 Preliminary line-up for Another well-known the 12th Annual Bluesman recently passed Burnaby Roots & Blues away. Big Jack Johnson Festival has been died of an undisclosed announced. This year, illness this past March 14, the one day festival will feature John Mayall & 2011. According to family the Bluesbreakers, Imelda May, East Coast members, Johnson had Canadian Bluesman Matt Andersen, and K.D. struggled with health issues Lang. Guess Ms. Lang fits into the “Roots” in his final years, worsening to the point that category. The festival will take place at Deer there were a number of erroneous reports of Lake Park in Burnaby on Sat Aug 13th. Early his death several times in the weeks leading up bird tickets are on sale from now to June 30th to his actual death. at $55.00 per person or a Party Pack of 4 for $170.00. They increase in price on July 1st. Johnson was born in Lambert, Mississippi. His father was a local musician playing both blues Stop the presses! I always wanted to and country ditties at local functions. At the say that. Kim Simmonds & Savoy age of 13, Johnson junior was playing guitar Brown are confirmed for Sun May 8th at with his father's band. By 18, Jack took up the The Yale in Vancouver. electric guitar. His break came when he sat in with Frank Frost and Sam Carr at the Savoy Grammy-winner Joe Theatre in Clarksdale, Mississippi. The trio Willie “Pinetop” were seldom apart for the next 15 years, Perkins, one of the recording for Phillips International and Jewel last of the old-school Records with Frost as the bandleader. bluesmen, died at his In 1979, Rockin' the Juke Joint Down, was home in Austin, released (as by the Jelly Roll Kings) and Texas on March 21, marked Johnson's first recordings as a singer. 2011. He was 97. Johnson's subsequent 1987 album for Earwig His manager said Pinetop woke up with chest Records, “The Oil Man”, included his recording pains and died of cardiac arrest. of "Catfish Blues." He recorded both solo and Perkins, who played The Yale in Vancouver on as a member of blues groups The Jelly Roll a number of occasions, was a fixture in the Kings and Big Jack Johnson and the Oilers. blues clubs of Austin Texas, playing regular gigs up to last month. He played the piano Big Jack Johnson performed and wrote "Jack's with an aggressive style and sang with a Blues" and performed "Catfish Medley" with distinctive gravelly voice. Samuel L. Jackson on the Black Snake Moan, film soundtrack. Born in Belzoni, Mississippi, Pinetop began his musical career as a guitarist until an unfortunate run-in with a chorus girl armed with a knife, who severed tendons in Perkin’s left arm. Not one to give up, he soon decided to take up piano playing with Robert Nighthawk & That’s it for the latest in Blues!!! then Earl Hooker, & a few years later replaced pianist Otis Spann in the Muddy Waters Blues So hopefully May will see more Band. After more than a decade with Muddy, hot Blues news coming our way Perkins, along with other Muddy Waters band and warmer temperatures. ‘Til members left en masse to form the Legendary then… “Later Gator”!!! Blues Band. It wasn’t until he was 75’ in 1988’ that Pinetop Perkins finally released an album under his own name. Another 13 followed. www.canadianpacificblues.com 3