Ottawa BLUES Society Fall/Winter 2007 Drive Your Winter Blues Away … Plan a Summer Bluesfest Getaway! Check out reviews of some favourite 2007 In this issue: festivals … OBS AGM 3 Blues Heart Awards 4 then use our 2008 Electro-Fi Anniversary Show 5 Festival Calendar to Summer Festivals 2007 6 make your plans! Festival Calendar 2008 10 Cisco Ottawa Bluesfest 2007 11 Reviews 14 Postcards From The Road 18 Corporate Directory 22 New & Renewing Members Jagoda & Eugen Bacic, Gerald Bailie, Alex & Cathy Bell, David Brennan, Ross Brown & Lori Kerfoot, Bob Cavan, Paul Coffey, Kat Danser, Brent Diab, Louise Dontigny, Ken & Elizabeth Fraser, Vince Halfhide, Jack Logan, Murray MacIntosh, Elyssa Mahoney, Fraser Manson, Tom Morelli, Neil Newton, Claire O'Connor, Denis and Helen Paquin, Joanne Pilon, Roxanne Pilon, Tom Rowe, Jim Roy, John Savage, Ursula Scherfer, Mike Shea, Brian Slack, Michael Smith, Ken Stasiak, Liz Sykes, Diana & Stephane Thibodeau, Debra Thornington, Ian Tomlinson, Patrick Watters, Mark and Esther Weatherbee, Diane Wells, Marc Whittingham, Ross Wilson, Linda & Pat Yarema 2 OBScene Deadlines OBS CONTACTS Issue Copy Deadline Distribution Date Website: www.OttawaBluesSociety.com OBS Mission Spring March 15 Mid-April E-mail: Please use feedback form on website Summer May 30 End of June CORRESPONDENCE AND ADDRESS CHANGES To foster appreciation, Ottawa Blues Society promotion, preservation P.O. Box 708, Station “B” and enjoyment of the Ottawa, ON K1P 5P8 From the Editor … blues in all of its forms OBS EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE AND DIRECTORS Unfortunately the best laid plans don’t President:: Liz Sykes always work out and our intended switch to Vice President: Brent Diab an electronic newsletter with the Fall issue Secretary: vacant of the OBScene didn’t happen. Directors : Brent Diab, Louise Dontigny, Ken Fraser, OBS Mandate Mike Graham, Debra Thornington, Linda Yarema Our plans to ’go electronic’ are still in the Treasurer: Mike Graham works, so this issue contains both the To bring together the blues com- Legal Advisor: Alan Hirsch intended electronic Fall issue as well as the munity in Ottawa through participa- OBS COMMITTEES AND CHAIRS Winter issue. We hope that we’ll be on tion in blues events and activities. schedule with the Spring electronic issue. Corporate Liaison: Ken Fraser To work with the blues community These things always take much more time Membership: Rob Dufresne than we expect! in expanding awareness and ap- Merchandise: Brent Diab preciation of the blues. Volunteers: Linda Yarema Our new website is still ’under construction’; we anticipate that it will be To publish a newsletter to inform OBScene STAFF functioning by early spring at the latest. the blues community of all aspects Editor: Liz Sykes of the local blues scene and events Although our highlights from last Summers Layout & Design: Commeleon Inc. as well as some highlights of the Festivals are later than we planned, they Writers: Louise Dontigny, James Doran, Ken Fraser, will provide you with an overview of several Canadian and international blues Mike Graham, JW-Jones, Jim Roy, Liz Sykes, Linda scenes of interest to OBS mem- Yarema. festivals we’ve attended and enjoyed. bers. Photographers: Eddy B (blueheartarchive.com), Perhaps you might include one or more of Louise Dontigny, Liz Sykes, Linda Yarema these festivals in your summer plans for To provide timely blues information 2008 … we’ve even included a calendar of to OBS members by a website & e- 2008 Festival dates to help you plan! OBScene is published quarterly by the Ottawa Blues mail. Society, and is available via membership in the Ottawa Blues Society. The opinions expressed in the The Blues community continues to lose To develop, maintain and increase many of its pioneers … and some of its reviews and critiques contained in this newsletter its membership as a means of fos- are those of the individual reviewers and do not younger members as well. If you are not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Ottawa Blues familiar with those listed on our back tering and supporting blues. Society. If you have a different opinion, please cover, please search their names on-line to To stage or assist in staging events share it with us. learn about their contributions to blues. that will foster appreciation and ADVERTISING RATES Please check the OBS website regularly for awareness of the blues. Business card size $ 25.00 updated information regarding upcoming Quarter page $ 50.00 To present a "Blues Heart" award Third page $ 75.00 newsletters and other OBS news, and to an individual who has made an Half page $ 100.00 please do not hesitate to contact me if you outstanding contribution to the Full page $ 200.00 have any questions. blues. 30% discount for institutional members. Liz Sykes 10% discount for four issues paid in advance. [email protected] OBS News — Website and Newsletter Changes Our website ’renovation’ is in progress and we hope to unveil our new site within the next month. Our new design will make the website more current (and easier to update), more user-friendly, and more attractive. We hope to debut the new electronic version of The OBScene with the Spring 2008 issue. The OBScene will continue to be issued quarterly, but two issues will be available electronically (via our website) and two will be printed and mailed as usual. Our electronic issues will have colour photos and links to related websites. Of course, members will be free to download and print the electronic issues, if they wish. Stay tuned to our website -- www.ottawabluessociety.com -- for further info! OBS Annual General Meeting Report 3 Irene’s Pub Thursday, December 12, 2007 Volunteers/Bluesfest Membership Please see pages 11-14 for a full report. The new look website should attract more Website members. The OBS is investigating the possibility of membership renewal via the website. Also being A new website is under development and expected considered is offering a multiple (2- or 3-year) to be online in early 2008. renewal. Newsletter OBS Involvement The Board proposed that the OBS produce two The OBS nominated Holger Petersen for the Blues paper newsletters (Summer & Winter) and two Foundation’s ‘Keeping the Blues Alive’ Award for electronic issues (Spring & Fall). Both types will be Pubic Radio and Holger was the recipient of this in the same format but the electronic issues will be award. Congratulations. available as pdf files form the OBS website and members will be welcome to download and print The OBS provided a letter of support for the Cisco them if they wish. The electronic issues will Ottawa Bluesfest application for fundging from the emphasize colour photos; the paper issues will be Canadian Heritage Foundation. made available as pdf files in a ‘past issue’ archive. Mike Graham represented OBS in supporting the This proposal, originally scheduled to begin with the DAWG FM radio license applications for all-blues Fall 2007 issue, has bee postponed to 2008. FM radio stations in Ottawa/Gatineau and Merchandise Peterborough. Mike has assisted DAWG’s Todd Bernard in obtaining a large number of letters of OBS merchandise prices were reduced this year at support from OBS members and local blues fans Bluesfest and a considerable amount of the OBS and musicians. Hearings for the Peterborough inventory was sold. Future merchandise items will license took place in December and the Ottawa/ be ordered in smaller quantities and we will Gatineau hearings, originally scheduled for endeavour to sell out merchandise from year to December, were postponed to late winter/early year and offer new/fresh items each year. spring 2008. A date has not yet been announced. Events OBS Board Elections - 2008-09 term There has been considerable discussion among The OBS Charter provides for a Board of not less Board members as to what types of events, if any, than 3 nor more than 8 Directors. The AGM the OBS should be involved with. A proposal has attendees supported the addition of two members been tabled, to be discussed by the incoming to the Board, bringing the total number of Directors Board, that the OBS will set an event budget each to six. year and will use event promotion funds to provide support to events already being planned by other Mike Graham was re-elected. Louise Dontigny and organizations rather than spending limited OBS Debra Thornington were elected as new Directors. funds on promotion/production of a few large The Board appointed Linda Yarema at the January events. OBS funds will thus give partial support to meeting of the Board of Directors. several events/organizations. Liz Sykes, OBS President OBS Blues Heart Honorees 4 1998 Rainbow Bistro Maria & Greg accept the 1999 Mark Monahan, Ottawa Bluesfest 2005 Blues Heart Award 2000 Brian Murphy 2001 The late Larry ‘The Bird’ Mootham 2002 Not presented 2003 John Tackaberry, CKCU-FM 2004 Jim Roy, Ottawa Blues, Jazz & Swing Guide 2005 Maria Hawkins Sunday Blues, soul, R&B, funk & Maria’s 2006 Tucson’s original material at the Atomic Rooster: Maria & Greg Blues Heart 2005 - Maria Hawkins It’s difficult to imagine there’s an Ottawa blues fan who doesn’t know Maria Hawkins. She is a renaissance woman (if there isn’t such a thing, there should be and Maria would be her!) To quote from her website, she is “a singer and arts program designer, facilitator and tutor, member of Leadership Ottawa, Ottawa Blues Society Co-founder, bandleader of The Maria Hawkins Band, member of the Social Planning Council, City of Ottawa – Arts Advisory Committee, Choirmaster Ottawa University’s Tabaret Hall and Algonquin College Alumni.” She’s also mother of three adult children and grandmother of three. Her involvement with the fledgling ‘Blues in the Schools’ program, sponsored by the Ottawa Bluesfest, led to her own programs, “Blues 4 Kids”, “Sing Thing” and “Sing Out”, year-round music entertainment and education projects which stimulate and engage individual and community awareness and appreciation of the arts and especially music.