July 2013 www.torontobluessociety.com Published by the TORONTO BLUES SOCIETY since 1985 [email protected] Vol 29, No 7 Shemekia Copeland will set the main stage on fire at Morgan Davis plays Waterfront Blues on Sunday the Kitchener Blues Festival June 2 and the Gladstone First Thursday on June 6 Saturday afternoon, August 10 CANADIAN PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT #40011871 Sugar Brown Loose Blues News Summer Blues Festivals Event Listings John’s Blues Picks and more TORONTO BLUES SOCIETY 910 Queen St. W. Ste. B04 Toronto, Canada M6J 1G6 Tel. (416) 538-3885 Toll-free 1-866-871-9457 Email: [email protected] Website: www.torontobluessociety.com MapleBlues is published monthly by the Toronto Blues Society ISSN 0827-0597 2013 BOARD OF DIRECTORS Derek Andrews (President), Jon Arnold (Executive), Gord Brown, Lucie Dufault (Secretary), Sharon Evans, Sarah French, Michael Malone (Treasurer), Ed Parsons (Executive), Norman Robinson, Paul Sanderson, Mike Smith (Executive), John Valenteyn (Executive) Musicians Advisory Council: Lance Anderson, Brian Blain, Gary Kendall, Al Lerman, Lily Sazz, Mark Stafford, Suzie Vinnick Membership Committee: Mike Malone, Lucie Dufault, Gord Brown, Sarah French, Mike Smith, Debbie Brown, Ed Parsons, Norm Robinson, Rick Battiston Volunteer Committee: Ed Parsons, Sharon Evans, Lucie Dufault Membership Coordinator: Jordan Safer Honorary Membership Coordinator: Rick Battiston Office and Event Coordinator: Jordan Safer Grants Officer: Barbara Isherwood Sponsorship Coordinator: Dougal Bichan Webmistress: Janine Stoll Publisher/Editor-in-Chief: Derek Andrews Managing Editor: Brian Blain Contributing Editor: John Valenteyn Mailing and Distribution: Ed Parsons, Donald Loney Advertising & Sponsorship: Dougal & Co. For rates & specs call 416-645-0295 Email: [email protected] or visit www.torontobluesociety.com/newsletters/rate-card Printing: UCC Press (416) 545-0277 The Toronto Blues Society is a member of The Toronto Blues Society acknowledges the annual support of the following agencies: Project support is provided by: The Toronto Blues Society is committed to the principles of the Personal Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) in safeguarding the collection, use, and disclosure of personal information. CANADIAN PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT #40011871 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Toronto Blues Society, 910 Queen St. W. Ste. B04, Toronto, Canada M6J 1G6 Email: [email protected] 2 MapleBlues July 2013 www.torontobluessociety.com The Toronto Blues Society has moved from a "group" to a "page" on Facebook! "Like" the page right away to not MARK YOUR CALENDAR miss any announcements made on Facebook! https:// Thursday July 4 TBS First Thursday with Fraser/Daley www.facebook.com/ at Gladstone Hotel. TorontoBluesSociety The Toronto Blues Society presents the best in blues talent the first Thursday of each month at the Melody Bar in For those on Twitter, The Gladstone Hotel. Catch Fraser/Daley on July 4 and follow us @tobluessociety mark your calendars for upcoming Gladstone series shows including Danny Marks (Aug 1), Jerome Godboo (Sep 5) and Michael Pickett (Oct 3). http://www.gladstonehotel.com. Communication Survey Please take a few minutes to fill out this survey on TBS's communication to help serve you better: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/YZT8P5X The Toronto Blues Society is a Registered Charity! Make a donation beyond membership and merchandise, and get your charitable tax receipt in time for this year! (Charitable # 87487 7509 RR0001). You will be helping to support events like the annual Women's Blues Revue at Massey Hall, The Blues in the Schools program, The monthly Gladstone Blues Series, numerous workshops and carreer development activities for the musician community as well as the Maple Blues Awards and the Blues Summit conference, the most important blues industry gathering in Canada that occurs every other year. The TBS has lost our friend and long-time, dedicated volunteer Rick Battiston who Networking events within this conference passed away at the age of 71. One of his proudest moments was being presented allow for industry discussion alongside with the Maple Blues Award for his contribution to the Toronto Blues Society for his artist discovery through the showcase many years of volunteer service. Rest in peace, Rick. program. www.torontobluessociety.com MapleBlues July 2013 3 ---------------- THE BRUCE TELECOM MAINSTAGE BRUCE STEAKHOUSE ----------------- FRIDAY JULY 12 DOORS OPEN 5:00 PM ANTHONY GOMES, BILL DURST, DELTA MOON, LUMBERJUNK, CHUCKEE AND THE CRAWDADDIES SATURDAY JULY 13 DOORS OPEN 4:00 PM VICTOR WAINWRIGHT AND THE WILDROOTS, JP SOARES, MACKENZIE BLUES BAND, BRANDON SANTINI, BRYAN LEE AND THE BLUES POWER BAND, IRENE TORRES --------THE SATURDAY FREE BIA STREET FESTIVAL ON QUEEN ST. 11-4:30PM -------- SOCIETY OF ENERGY PROFESSIONALS STAGE CHRIS MURPHY, TIM TYLER, THE BREAKWATER BLUES BAND, RIVERSIDE BLUES BAND, THE BLUETONES BRUCE POWER STAGE RICK TAYLOR, SUZIE VINNICK, BLUEBELLES, JOSH GEDDES, ANDREA MATCHETT, DALE RAVEN, ASHLEY ANDERSON, HIM & HER, OUR SHOTGUN WEDDING, PATRICK MAIN ENBRIDGE STAGE BRONTAE HUNTER, BEN TURCOTTE, ALESSANDRA & FRANCIS LOZADA, CODY ZEVENBER- GEN, KENDALL & DANICA, SERENA RUTLEDGE PLUS TD CHILDREN'S ART ZONE, MOTORCYCLE SHOW AND SHINE, VINTAGE BRITISH SPORTS CAR DISPLAY, ARTISTS' ROW MAIN STAGE TICKETS: SINGLE NIGHT $25.00; WEEKEND PASS $40.00 AVAILABLE AT: THE BRUCE STEAKHOUSE, JEROME'S FLOWERS AND GIFTS, SNIP 'N CLIP (KINCARDINE) ERNIE KING MUSIC (GODERICH) A& R MUSIC (WALKERTON), RALPH'S MARKET (PORT ELGIN), FROMAGER MUSIC (OWEN SOUND) AND ONLINE AT TICKETSCENE.CA PROCEEDS IN SUPPORT OF THE KINCARDINE LIONS PARK IMPROVEMENT PROJECT-BUILDING A PREMIER DESTINATION FOR FAMILIES | BRING YOUR LAWN CHAIRS; NO COOLERS OR OUTSIDE BEVERAGES PRESENTED BY THE LIGHTHOUSE BLUES FESTIVAL INC. 4 MapleBlues July 2013 www.torontobluessociety.com Introducing Sugar Brown The winner of this year's Talent Search was Sugar Brown (aka Ken Kawashima), an artist with an interesting story, so we asked him to tell it himself. Bowling Green, Ohio, that’s where I was born on June 5, 1971. Bowling Green is an hour south of Detroit. My father was born in Tokyo, Japan and my mother was born near Pyongyang, Korea. They met in Seoul in the mid-60s and then my father did a PhD at Harvard to study ancient Korean history. He became a professor at Bowling Green State University and that’s why I was born there. When I was sixteen in Ohio, I started listening to blues music on NPR’s radio show, “Blues before Sunrise,” hosted by Steve Cushing in Chicago. Then, when I became an undergraduate student at the University of Chicago, a great blues harmonica player in Chicago named David Waldman took me under his wing, so to speak, and introduced me to great classic blues records and legendary Sugar Brown (aka Ken Kawashima) will be joined by Montreal harpmeister Bharath Rajakumar for gigs at blues musicians in Chicago. He introduced Dominion on Queen (July 6 and Aug 31) and Axis Bar and Grill on July 27. He plays The Local on July 9 with Mr. me to the music of Little Walter and everything Rick. And the gig of a lifetime will be joining blues legends Junior Watson and Fred Kaplan (as well as Bharath) changed. I practiced harmonica every day for a gig at The Paddock Tavern on July 13 and bought used records every week. I couldn’t get enough. I started learning basic Chicago in small bars and clubs like the 5101 common ground between us; it forms a core blues guitar in the style of Jimmy Rogers. I Club and the Delta Fish Market, formed the understanding of what we believe must be was long gone into the blues at that point. core of my musical life down to the present done to execute this blues live, today, both While many of my close music-loving friends day. I’m forty-two years old and pretty on stage and in the studio. He’s done amazing from university listened to contemporary much the only music I’ve played since I was work with a great band (Bharath and his bands like Fugazi, the Pogues, Dinosaur Jr., nineteen years old is the blues that I learned Rhythm Four) over the past fifteen years in and Sonic Youth, my favorite records were by in Chicago. Maybe some day I’ll play music Montreal, and I feel lucky to play with them Little Walter, Muddy Waters, Jimmy Rogers, that isn’t blues, but I’ve realized—especially all—Ben, Costa, and Colin. Robert Nighthawk, Robert Jr. Lockwood, with the help of my friend in Montreal, So for the past couple of years, I’ve been T-Bone Walker, and Lightnin’ Hopkins. Every Bharath Rajakumar—that the blues I listened driving back and forth between Toronto and week I saw incredible blues musicians to, learned, and play is my automatic-go-to Montreal to play these blues. I’ve composed perform live: Sunnyland Slim, Jimmy Rogers, music, my ‘default setting’, and no matter endless verses to an endless song called, Willie Smith, Pinetop Perkins, Dave and Louis what instrument I play, whether it’s the guitar, predictably, the “401 Blues.” But all the time Myers, Jimmie Lee Robinson, Big Wheeler, harmonica, piano, or whatever, it’s the music driving back and forth between the 416 and Little Mack Simmons, Byther Smith, Johnny that I always play and want to play. It’s taken the 514 has been worth it in order to play B. Moore, Anson Funderburgh, Sam Myers, me a while to realize this fully, but at least I these blues that we play and sing. Fortunately, Junior Watson, and the singer I used to play know now and don’t have to think too much Bharath is now coming more and more to with on the West Side, Taildragger. Eventually, about it. Now, it’s only a question of how Toronto as well, and it’s great to play blues Taildragger asked me to be in his band, The deeply I can plumb its depths and actualize with him in Toronto.