March 2020 – Adam Karch
Published March 1, 2020 in John's Blues Picks, News
Montreal’s Adam Karch returns with album number five, a most impressive set of originals and selected covers.
John’s Blues Picks is the monthly album review column originally launched by the late Toronto-based blues historian and broadcaster, John Valenteyn. Submission can be sent to the TBS office for consideration and will be circulated to a pool of journalists and others for review in the monthly Maple Blues newsletter and placed at the Spotify playlist.
March 2020 – Layla Zoe
Published March 1, 2020 in John's Blues Picks, News
With her famous ability to improvise lyrics, Layla Zoe would probably prefer to record live albums and this one is her fifth. With that title, this one does indeed look back at most, but not all, of her albums.
March 2020 – David Clayton-Thomas
Published March 1, 2020 in John's Blues Picks, News
Say Somethin’ is David Clayton-Thomas’ call to action on a number of social issues. From a failed justice system to gun control to climate change and immigration, we get his bluesiest album in some time.
Sass Jordan – March 2020
Published March 1, 2020 in John's Blues Picks, News
Veteran rocker Sass Jordan has won numerous awards and sold over a million albums. She maintains that all her work is influenced by blues and has decided to go all in for her new album, her first for Stony Plain.
February 2020 – Dwane Dixon
Published February 9, 2020 in John's Blues Picks, News
Montreal-based blues rocker Dwane Dixon calls his style ‘rocking roadhouse blues’ in the manner of Stevie Ray Vaughan and Billy Gibbons. The idea for his third album came from a story he heard about his father.
February 2020 – Jimmy & The Sleepers
Published February 9, 2020 in John's Blues Picks, News
Jimmy and the Sleepers is a new band for me out of Edmonton and yet it is their third album and it’s been out for almost a year such are the regional difficulties we work with.
February 2020 – Sussex
Published February 9, 2020 in John's Blues Picks, News
Singer/songwriter/guitarist Rob Lutes has numerous nominations at the MBAs: several times for Acoustic Act of the year and as male vocalist of the year and as songwriter of the year.
February 2020 – Rott’n Dan and Lightnin’ Willy
Published February 9, 2020 in John's Blues Picks, News
Rott’n Dan may be better known to you as the front man/harp player for the excellent blues rock outfit Boogie Patrol, based out of Edmonton. Lightnin’ Willy (Ryan) is not in that band but is a very good singer and acoustic guitarist, with a background in folk as well.
February 2020 – Fuel Junkie
Published February 9, 2020 in John's Blues Picks, News
Fuel Junkie is a young, Montreal-based horn band, none of whose players have featured in this column before.
Mark Hummel – January 2020
Published January 9, 2020 in John's Blues Picks, News
Harmonica ace Mark Hummel sets the wayback machine to Chicago in the 1940’s to re-introduce us to the “Bluebird Beat”, the sound that producer Lester Melrose developed that was hugely popular at the time.
