Michele D’Amour is a born storyteller and award-winning songwriter who penned her first song at the age of 6 and became a published poet in her early 20s. Her lyrics treat difficult topics with a sense of soulful whimsy and wry humor. Michele sang in her church choir, wrote songs and sang lead for some local bands […]
There are few artists whose names are synonymous with one instrument and how it’s played in service to an entire genre. Utter the phrase “young blues rock guitarist” within earshot of anyone with even a cursory knowledge of the modern musical vanguard and the first name they are most likely to respond with will be […]
As with many events scheduled for this coming summer, the Waterfront Blues Festival has been cancelled this year due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Though this was surely a hard decision, it is the correct one and the Cascade Blues Association agrees with it. Since it is unknown now how long the pandemic will endure and […]
At the time of this writing, the 2020 Sunbanks Music Festival is still scheduled to occur, depending on Washington Governor Inslee’s decision whether the state’s stay-at-home and limited gathering size order is lifted beyond May 4. Please check with the festival website, sunbanksfestival.com or Facebook page for updated information including possible date rescheduling.. The Sunbanks […]
Book Review by Greg Johnson: The Promise of the Blues Anthony Proveaux Pro-Arts Production 2020. 181 pages “The Promise of the Blues” is a work of historical fiction that offers more than you’d expect from such a genre of writing. It does revolve around the central character of Cyris Jordan, a writer for the Chicago […]
Swamp King Aural Music Little Albert is a side project for Italian heavy-doom-metal guitarist Alberto Piccolo that stands apart from his band Messa. Piccolo has always held a fascination for the blues, and before you start pointing out his metal background, remember that he is a graduate of jazz guitar studies. His playing, as expected, […]
Every Day Of Your Life Delmark Records “Every Day of Your Life” is Blues Hall of Fame inductee Jimmy Johnson’s first recording for the Chicago-based blues label Delmark in forty years, and it’s actually his first in the past ten years. As was the case previously on Delmark, including the classic 1979 release “Johnson Whacks,” […]
Run Get My Shotgun Big Legal Mess Records I’m a sucker for the Mississippi Hill Country Blues of R. L. Burnside, Junior Kimbrough, Fred McDowell, Ranie Burnette, and of course, Jessie Mae Hemphill. This particular genre of blues possesses an urgent intimacy that can not be faked. Its mesmerizing pulses of rhythm and stripped-down musical […]
The Cascade Blues Association’s signature event, the Journey To Memphis competition to select acts to represent the organization and region at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, has been postponed due to the current coronavirus pandemic. This wasn’t something we had envisioned, but the situation is out of our control. Restaurants and bars have been […]
Gary Burford, perhaps one of the best-loved members of the Salem and Oregon music community, passed away this past month after a long-term battle with cancer. He had worked with a number of the Northwest finest bands, including the Boyd Small Big Blues Band, The Terraplanes, the Bob Beck Band, as well as a leader […]