No matter how many times one listens to Crystal Shawanda, one will always taken with the many colours that make up her work. Although she’s considered one of the top blues vocalists on the scene today, her palette is broad and multi-hued.
The prestigious Alligator label out of Chicago is renowned for its blues roster. With the exception of Mavis Staples’ ’04 release on the label and the injection of strong elements of soul into the blues of some of their artists (Shemekia Copeland, the Holmes Brothers, Curtis Salgado), authentic Chicago blues remains its mainstay. Southern Avenue – named for the famous Memphis street that leads straight to the Stax Studios – is a marked foray into soul country. While elements of the blues are present (Southern soul is, by definition, a component of Memphis blues), this is a soul release underlining the notion of ‘family’: Tierinii, Tikyra (“T.K.”) and Ava Jackson are sisters, while the band’s fourth member, guitarist Ori Naftaly, married to Tierinii, is clearly part of the family.
David Toop is an Englishman who plays and writes about music. This is his thirteenth book. At close to 350 pages, it is a lot of writing for a 33-minute album. But it’s about right for a deep cultural examination of New Orleans and American music. The full title of the book is Two-Headed Doctor, with the subtitle Listening for Ghosts in Dr. John’s Gris-gris.
The seemingly secluded city of Edmonton never gets its due as a mecca for music. Oh, sure…k.d. made her massive mark as has Corb Lund and others. But the city’s rich diversity and those long, cold winters have also birthed a highly creative hotbed of musicians with time and space to woodshed until they get it right. Secondhand Dreamcar gets it more than right.
This month’s recommended listening by Brant Zwicker, host/executive producer of At the Crossroads syndicated blues radio. Website: atcblues.ca
Jammin the Blues in Toronto since 1985
Vaneese Thomas is quite a singer! Her soul is deep, authentic and rooted.
Born in Memphis, TN, she is the daughter of the legendary Rufus Thomas, whose career spanned half a century and who was a major figure at Stax Records. She is also the younger sister of Carla Thomas, the Queen of Memphis Soul and of the highly respected keyboardist Marvell Thomas (R.I.P.).
This month’s recommended listening by Brad Wheeler, music writer for the Globe and Mail Twitter: @bwheelerglobe
Escarpment Anniversary: As the TBS celebrates our 40th year, we offer a big congratulations to our neighbours, and Canada’s newest Blues Society, the Hamilton-based Escarpment Blues Society, celebrating their first-year anniversary
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TBS logo and WBR artwork by Barbara Klunder
The Toronto Blues Society acknowledges the annual support of the Ontario Arts Council, the City of Toronto through the Toronto Arts Council and the Department of Canadian Heritage, and project support from FACTOR< and the Government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage (Canada Music Fund) and of Canada’s Private Broadcasters, The Canada Council for the Arts, the SOCAN Foundation, SOCAN, the Ontario Media Development Corporation, and the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport.
