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.
Guy Bélanger continues his journey to take the humble harmonica to new places, to Eldorado, and he takes a superb band with him: Rob McDonald on lead guitars, Marc-André Drouin on bass and Michel Dufour on drums.
The premise of the Cobalt Prize is to reward songs that ‘creatively utilize blues traditions within the broad contemporary musical landscape’. Son Roberts has taken this to heart for his third album. He certainly has stretched the boundaries with his song structures and his subject matter is very much in the here and now: he’s very concerned about some of the things he sees around him here in Toronto.
Wide Mouth Mason impressed a lot of people in the mid 90’s when this young trio from Saskatoon emerged. I remember a packed house at the Horseshoe Tavern for their CD launch, a self-titled release on Warner Music. They soon left the blues part of their blues rock behind for six more albums, earning several JUNO nominations along the way. They are back now as a duo and diving deep into the blues.
It’s been ten years since the passing of Mel Brown in Kitchener. The legendary guitarist found a home here after a lengthy career as a solo artist for the Impulse label and a mainstay in the band of Bobby Blue Bland, an in-demand session guitarist and the leader of the house band at Clifford Antone’s famous club in Austin TX. He also found a home with Electro-Fi Records, where the guitarist made a late career move as a vocalist with a warm, expressive baritone voice.
Toronzo Cannon is as good a representation of Chicago blues today as you’re likely to find: born and raised in the projects on the south side near Theresa’s Lounge, playing in blues bands behind local players Tommy McCracken, Wayne Baker Brooks, L.V. Banks and Joanna Connor, the singer/guitarist formed his own band in 2003. He sees a Chicago that few people see because he’s CTA bus driver.
Arsen Shomakhov’s last album, Dynamic, got him a nomination for New Artist in the Maple Blues Awards. For his new one, this Russian-born Vancouver resident went to one of the hottest studios in blues today, Kid Andersen’s Greaseland in San Jose CA.
The name Jennis combines Jen Gillmor and Dennis Gaumond. Gillmor is a veteran of our Indie scene and Gaumond is a veteran Guelph-based guitarist with several pre-Jennis releases in his discography.
As our first bluesman made a member of the Order of Canada, Big Dave McLean’s new album was highly anticipated. It turns out that it is the first one devoted almost entirely to his own songs.
Myles Goodwyn has been busy: celebrating the 50th Anniversary of his band April Wine at the Ex in August, an appearance with his blues band at the Southside Shuffle and now with the release of his second blues album.
Diana Braithwaite & Chris Whiteley will be releasing Gold Cadillac on September 20 at Hugh’s Room and the album seems tailor-made for that space.
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