If you have not heard yet I’m sorry to inform you of the passing if blues guitarist Lil Dave Thompson.  Dave was killed in an automobile accident on February 13th while touring with his band. The other band members were not seriously injured.

Lil’ Dave is survived by Susan White, his wife of 15 years; his children: David Jr. (20), Danielle (19), Shequeena (18), Shirleiah (16) and Destiny (13); sisters Patricia, Barbara Denise, Jennifer and Pasty Thompson, Zenovia Henderson and Rose Marie Richmond; and brothers John, Sam, Elijah Allen and Tyrone Thompson. Please keep them and his band members in your prayers.

When I interviewed Lil Dave Thompson back in December he was in good sprites and looking forwarded to working on a new live record.  Dave will be greatly missed.

Mike Zito’s new CD came out this week and he will be telling us about it as well as letting us hear some of the new songs from the CD Pearl River.
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 106 - Mike Zito - Pearl River [40:52m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

You may remember that last December Mike Zito was on the show talking about his then current CD, Today. Well he’s back with an even better one. If you missed that show you may like to go back to listen to Mike talk about how he got started in music as well as songs from the Today CD. Click here to go to that show.
This week you’re going to hear a really great show. Mike talks about how he and Cyril Neville wrote the title track “Pearl River”. Every time I hear this song and look at the CD cover’s art work it’s like I’m in the deep south. The atmosphere that Mike creates in this song along with the lyrics that Cyril wrote can’t help but make you feel transported to another time in the swampy lands of the south. This is just one of many wonderful songs your going to hear on this weeks show. “Change My Ways” is a beautiful song where Mike demonstrates how in one song he can do some very beautiful guitar work then turn around and do a raw guitar solo that works just as well. Anders Osborne joins Mike for a nice acoustic duet on Anders’ “One Step At A Time” the song’s lyrics could be as much about Mike’s past life as Anders’ life. Then there is another duet but this time it is with Susan Cowsill, yes the same Susan Cowsill from The Cowsill who did “The Rain, the Park and Other Things”, and “Hair.” They do a fun song called “Shoes Blues” besides Mike’s good guitar solo, Reese Wynans plays some good piano. On the George Smith song, “All Last Night,” Mike really gets down to some tasty guitar playing. Wow, great job. Mike even does a good version of the old Sonny Boy Williamson song “Eyesight To The Blind,” which makes The Who’s version on Tommy sound like The Cowsill’s were doing it. Mike decried this as a kind of a New Orleans style version of the song. Then there are the great raw blues songs that Mike does so good, like “Dirty Blonde”, “Natural Born Lover” and “Big Mouth.” The types of songs that draw me to his concerts.

Having heard some of Mike’s older self produced records I can really see how he has grown as a guitarist, songwriter, and vocalist. Pearl River is a diverse record with heart-felt vocals as well as touching guitar work. There is something here for everyone and then some. Please buy a copy of Mike Zito’s Pearl River and don’t forget see him in concert.

Be sure to listen to the whole show, because at the very end Mike has a funny story to tell about his fellow Eclecto Groove recording artist Jason Ricci.

Songs heard in this weeks show:
Dirty Blonde
Change My Ways
Natural Born Lover
Pearl River

Buy Mike Zito CD’s at Eclecto Groove Records

Mike Zito’s Pearl River from Amazon.Com

Buy Mike Zito’s Today CD from Amazon.Com

Mike Zito’s Website

Mike Zito’s Myspace

Mike Zito’s page at Eclecto Groove Records

See other great artists on Eclecto Groove Records
Like Ana Popovic and Jason Ricci & New Blood and many others.

Thanks to Mike Zito for such a fun interview and as always thanks to Jody Best for all her help in setting everything up.
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Blues Music and Interviews
A1Blues.Com
formerly A1 Artist Spotlight. Com
by A1 Mark

Hear Joanne Shaw Taylor talk about her debut record White Sugar as well as hearing some great songs from White Sugar.
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 097 - Joanne Shaw Taylor - White Sugar [38:46m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Joanne Shaw Taylor has released her first record its called White Sugar and it’s on Ruf Records. This record was cut from the same plastic vinyl as Led Zeppelin I. They have a raw English, blues-rock style that is often copied, but very seldom is done this well.

Joanne grew up in Birmingham, England where Black Sabbath and half of Led Zeppelin are from. At eight years of age she started playing classical guitar, but it wasn’t until around thirteen when she got into her dads blues record collection and picked up his electric guitar that the sparks started fly. First and foremost, Joanne said it was Stevie Ray Vaughan that got her interested in the blues. Albert Collins was another big influence on her. Joanne said it was important for her to go back and study the blues, and listen to blues artists like B.B. King, Jimmie Vaughan, Luther Allison and Buddy Guy. This was a way for her to really understand the genre and become a better player.

Joanne started her own band in high school and was lucky enough to have older musicians around town that would help and encourage her. Then one night a friend of Dave Stewart (formally of The Eurythmics) saw Joanne playing and passed a demo on to him. Dave liked Joanne’s playing so much he had her play in his touring band. In the off time from touring she had her own band to play in. Then there was the time she met Bill Wyman of The Rolling Stones but hey, listen to the show and she will tell you all about it.

Joanne Shaw Taylor’s White Sugar is going to be one of these records people are going to be looking back on for years to come as the one that got her career started. This record is full of great raw blues-rock. The song “Going Home”, Joanne said, is her swampy dirty blues song. “Kiss The Ground Goodbye” she said is her homage to Hendrix. Somewhat like “Castles Made of Sand”. This is also her reply to all the record companies that told her you can’t do blues it’s a dead genre. The only song on White Sugar that Joanne did not write is “Bones” it was by a band called The Hoax. She liked their music and wanted to tip the hat to them. The title track’s name comes from an instrumental Joanne had written, but she had never named the song. Coming home from Bill Wyman’s house one day Dave Stewart turned to her and said you should write a song called white sugar as opposed to “Brown Sugar”. No joking, that’s how the name came about. Then there are the four songs I’m going to play for you. They are all great songs, but I bet you can’t play “Time Has Come” just one time.

“Time Has Come” should be a big hit, but Joanne needs your help. When you’re done listening to the show and your all fired up please call your loco radio station. You know the one that plays Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Led Zeppelin. Tell them you hear this great new artist named Joanne Shaw Taylor and you want to hear more of her songs. We both know they will have no idea who you’re talking about but tell them to Google her name and go to her MySpace page or this website to hear what she sounds like. Call them throughout the week and request Joanne Shaw Taylor, (you do have a cell phone with you, right) maybe you will be the one to get the rock radio stations to play her music. Remember when people started asking for Stevie Ray Vaughan? The stations had to play it and there was a blues revival. Joanne Shaw Taylor’s music is the type of blues-rock that radio stations would play if you just don’t use the “B” word.

One last thing please buy Joanne Shaw Taylor’s White Sugar, if for no other reason than that it’s one of the GREATEST blues-rocks records to come out this year.

Songs played in the show:
Who Do You Want Me to Be?
Time Has Come
Blackest Day
Watch ‘Em Burn

Joanne Shaw Taylor’s Website

Joanne Shaw Taylor’s MySpace

Buy Joanne Shaw Taylor’s Cd from Amazon.Com

I’d like to thank Joanne for taking the time in the middle of her quick tour of the U.S. to do this interview. I know she had a lot of things going on in such a short time. Thanks also to Mark Pucci for reading my mind in knowing this was someone I really wanted to do a show on. He did a great job setting everything up.
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Blues Music and Interviews
A1Blues.Com
formerly A1 Artist Spotlight. Com
by A1 Mark

Hear an interview with Bobby Jones and music from his new CD Comin’ Back Hard.
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 093 - Bobby Jones - Comin' Back Hard [31:06m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Bobby Jones was born in 1940 in Louisiana where he grew up on a farm. As he grew up he worked long hard hours in the cotton fields. In order to get away from the farm he joined the U.S. Army, but when his time of service was over he was back in the same place.
Bobby’s dad and uncles’ lived in Chicago, so Bobby moved there. Bobby start winning talent shows by singing at a small clubs. This led to him doing shows at legendary places like Pepper’s Lounge, Theresa’s, and Trocadero where people like Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Junior Wells, and Buddy Guy hung out. Pepper’s Lounge is where he met the Aces who had been led by Little Walter then by Junior Wells. Junior was missing shows because he had a big hit out at the time called “Missing With The Kid.” Bobby Jones was asked to join the Aces, which led to the Aces playing in better and better clubs.

In the mid-sixty, Bobby got into a band called Chicago Blues Union. This band had a young Harvey Mandel, Barry Goldberg, Charlie Musselwhite and Mike Bloomfield. Today that would be a extremely all-star band. Only one record was made, but they did a fair amount of concerts. They played in the Catskill Mountains as an opening act for people like Johnny Carson, Jerry Lewis, and Red Foxx. Man, now that’s what I call an opening act. Forget the headliners, just let the Chicago Blues Union play. Later Bobby made some solo records, that he produced himself. Then he started to drift away from the music business for a few years.

In 2007, the Mannish Boys were working on their Big Plans CD. Pianist Leon Blue brought Bobby Jones to the session. After hours of working on the CD there was a brake and Leon introduced Bobby to the band members. Leon explained that Bobby was a gifted singer and they should listen to him. To say they liked his singing would be an understatement. They already had two fine singers but they asked Bobby to join the band on the spot. Remember this isn’t some bar band it’s the Mannish Boys they are one of the top blues bands out there today. They chose Bobby Jones to join them.

Now you’ve being chosen to hear Bobby Jones’ new CD Comin’ Back Hard. This is a man that has years of experience playing with some of the most gifted artists around. This is his first solo record in many years and he has everyone from the Mannish Boys as his back up band. You will get to hear the driving sound of the Willie Dixon’s song “Two Headed Woman”. You’d swear B.B. King was singing “She’s the One.” Nope, it’s Bobby. That lead guitar must be B.B. King, nope it’s Kirk “Eli” Fletcher. Then you have “Get It Over Baby.” In it Bobby sings, “I know you don’t love me no more.” You would think this would be a sad song, but it’s up beat and fun. You can’t help but think that Bobby has a big smile on his face as he sings this song. He’s just having a great time doing what he likes best, singing. Comin’ Back Hard ends with the Ike Turner song “How Long Will It Last.” Bobby sounds like a man half his age, with a very strong voice filled with emotion. Kid Ramo’s lead guitar playing is outstanding on this, too. Even though this is a Bobby Jones record I could listen to this just to hear the band. They are incredible. This is Bobby Jones first solo record for Delta Groove Productions, and he hit a home run. Below is a link to buy Bobby Jones Comin’ Back Hard from Delta Groove Productions, you’ll love it.

Songs in the show are:
Get It Over Baby
She’s The One
Two Headed Woman
How Long Will It Last
I Must Be Crazy

Bobby Jones Website

Buy Bobby Jones CD from Delta Groove Productions

Check out other great blues artists at Delta Groove Productions

Thanks to Bobby Jones for the taking time to do the interview.
Thanks to Jody Best for all her help over at Delta Groove Music.

Buy Bobby Jones Cd’s from Amazon.Com

Blues Music and Interviews
A1Blues.Com
formerly A1 Artist Spotlight. Com
by A1 Mark

This week you will get to hear an interview with Cash Box Kings’ Joe Nosek and songs from their CD The Royal Treatment.
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 090 - Cash Box Kings - The Royal Treatment [33:03m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

As Joe will explain in the show, Cash Box Kings are a band that pays tribute to the blues sounds of the nineteen-forties and fifties. Bands like Little Walter, Howlin’ Wolf, Big Walter Horton and Muddy Waters. Muddy Waters’ band has an extra closeness, because Kenny “Beedy Eyes” Smith, the drummer for Cash Box Kings, is the son of legendary Willie “Big Eyes” Smith. Willie as you know was the drummer for the Muddy Waters band in the late sixties and through out all of the seventies. When Joe Nosek first met Kenny Smith, he wanted to put together an old school blues band. Kenny said he would like that too, because most of the artists he was playing drums for were in their seventies or eighties. As luck would have it Joe finally did meet more younger blues artist that had the same kind of vision as Joe and Willie. While it is always exciting to see the old timers that are still around like Hubert Sumlin, Byther Smith, Magic Slim, and Big George Brock. They have been around a long time and just don’t have the strength or energy to put on the kind of show they did when they were much younger. The Cash Box Kings are young guys giving it all they’ve got, just like the originals did when they were starting out. Joe does whatever it takes to get his audience up and having a great time. Whether it’s sliding across the stage, dancing on the bar top, or just laying down great harp.

Cash Box Kings current CD The Royal Treatment sounds so much like a blues record of the fifties that if you didn’t know better you would swear they were some lost band from Chess and Sun Records. Out of the fifteen songs on this record, Joe or Travis Koopman (lead guitar & some vocals) wrote eight of them. Some of the other songs are Elmore James’ “Please Set A Date”, Sonny Boy Williamson I “My Little Machine”, Muddy Waters’s “Gypsy Woman”, Little Walter’s “Can’t Hold Out Much Longer”, and the classic Big Bill Broonzy song “Baby Please Don’t Go”. The songs, whether originals or covers, all fit together really well. At one point they do a Little Walter song and then go into a very beautiful original ,“Lou & Roxie’s Rhumba”, that features Joe’s harp playing. You would have thought Little Walter had picked these two songs to go together. If you’re ready for some old time stripped down raw blues, Cash Box Kings record The Royal Treatment is just what you want to pick up. Below is a link to where you can pick up this Cd as well as their other CD’s Black Night Fallin’ and Live! At The King Club.

Songs played in the show:
Don’t Go Drinkin’
Why Did I Start?
Lou & Roxie’s Rhumba
Gimmie Some of That
Life Is Tough

Cash Box Kings CD’s are all available at CD Baby Website

Cash Box Kings’ Website

Cash Box Kings’ MySpace

Buy Cash Box Kings’ CD The Royal Treatment from the CD Baby’s Website

Buy Cash Box Kings’ CD Black Night Fallin’ fromthe CD Baby’s Website

Buy Cash Box Kings’ CD Live! At The King Club from the CD Baby’s Website

I would like to thank Joe Nosek for taking the time to do this interview, enjoy the show.

This was made by A1 Mark for A1Blues.Com