June 2024 – Adam Karch
Published June 1, 2024 in John's Blues Picks
Adam Karch is a Quebecois acoustic guitarist and singer, proven and expressive, who tells stories, life facts in a panorama of Americana and blues music.
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.
June 2024 – Anthony Geraci
Published June 1, 2024 in John's Blues Picks
Anthony Geraci is an experienced pianist and organist born in New Haven, Connecticut and residing in Boston.
May 2024 – Glenn Marais & the Mojo Train
Published April 30, 2024 in John's Blues Picks
It’s not easy to settle on a genre that defines Red, Hot and Blue the latest album from Newmarket, Ontario’s Glenn Marais & the Mojo Train. Is it blues? Funk? Rock? R&B? Yes.
May 2024 – Rick Vito
Published April 30, 2024 in John's Blues Picks
Rick Vito, born in 1949 had, I must say, escaped my attention, like an invisible man who has nevertheless played on over a hundred records, including a dozen releases, CDs and DVDs under his own signature.
May 2024 – Eric Bibb
Published April 30, 2024 in John's Blues Picks
After five decades of a fruitful career and thirty-six albums behind him, Eric Bibb, in the tireless pursuit of his musical journey of blues, folk, gospel and Americana represents for me a style, a genre in itself.
April 2024 – Jack de Keyzer
Published April 1, 2024 in John's Blues Picks
During the pandemic shut-down, what better way for a seasoned blues guitarist and singer to keep his spirits up and stay in top form than delving into performing and recording a new CD, mainly in the acoustic and traditional style.
April 2024 – Mike Goudreau Band
Published April 1, 2024 in John's Blues Picks
Just want to Have Fun is the 23rd album by the prolific Mike Goudreau. It includes twelve originals by the artist and is co-produced and recorded with his long-time friend, Dany Roy, the brilliant saxophonist and arranger who also plays trumpet and flute on this opus.
March 2024 – Danielle Nicole
Published February 29, 2024 in John's Blues Picks
With the release of The Love You Bleed, Danielle Nicole’s career continues to soar. Her previous album was nominated for a Grammy and topped the Billboard blues chart, and this current CD — her third since becoming a solo artist — has hit number one on the Billboard, iTunes and Amazon blues charts.
March 2024 – Ndidi O
Published February 29, 2024 in John's Blues Picks
Ndidi Onukwulu submitted a three song demo to the TBS Talent Search as an early first step in her Toronto career, twenty years ago. She didn’t “compete” in the session as the submission came in too late, however the tracks were so compelling, she got an invite to the Women’s Blues Revue in 2004 at Massey Hall
December 2023 – André Bisson
Published December 1, 2023 in John's Blues Picks
It has been largely under the radar, but Canadian soul/blues/roots singer/songwriter André Bisson has been a prolific recording artist over the past two decades. Latchford is rather a milestone album, as it is the 10th entry in his discography.
