Author Archives: Mike

Reprise Records takes us back out Riding with the King with expanded, remastered 20th anniversary edition of King/Clapton collaboration

Posted on May 22, 2020 by Mike

I guess you could say that we’ve been on a bit of a hiatus since the start of this coronavirus lockdown. It’s certainly not that we haven’t been paying attention to what’s been going on in the blues world during this … Continue reading →

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11 Guys Quartet delivers big sound on Small Blues and Grooves

Posted on March 13, 2020 by Mike

While we’re on the topic of great new releases from the VizzTone Label Group, here’s another one well worth checking out. Although their names may not be as familiar as those in the band about which we told you in last week’s post, the members … Continue reading →

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Blues supergroup the Phantom Blues Band is Still Cookin’ with hot new album

Posted on March 5, 2020 by Mike

There aren’t many blues bands today that can compare with the Phantom Blues Band in terms of either talent or longevity. They may be best known for their role backing the legendary Taj Mahal on several projects — earning two Grammy Awards along … Continue reading →

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Tune into the Weekend: no need to wait ’til the Midnight Hour for Handsome Jack’s rocking cover of Wilson Pickett classic

Posted on February 28, 2020 by Mike

You, like us, may not have known Jack… New York-based rock trio Handsome Jack, that is. But the latest single from the band has certainly helped put them on our radar, and will likely do the same for you. It’s an absolutely smashing version of … Continue reading →

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Forrest McDonald Band puts some of its best Blues in a Bucket on latest release

Posted on February 15, 2020 by Mike

We liked the Forrest McDonald Band‘s earlier album Turnaround Blues so much that we wondered if we’d ever hear another one quite that good from them. Not that the band’s 2017 follow-up album Stand My Ground was anything to sneeze … Continue reading →

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Times are Getting Tougher

Posted on February 5, 2020 by Mike

Here’s another talk-free edition of our BluesPowR Radio Hour to help keep your new year rolling, featuring a trio of classic tracks off Earwig Music’s Cadillac Baby’s Bea & Baby Records: The Definitive Collection from Little Mack Simmons, Sunnyland Slim, … Continue reading →

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Before you cast your votes for the Blues Music Awards, be sure to check out Best Emerging Artist nominee Ben Levin’s Before Me

Posted on January 17, 2020 by Mike

Just before Christmas, we told you about young blues pianist Ben Levin‘s holiday song “Forgot Mrs. Claus“. Between that single and the recent unveiling of this year’s Blues Music Awards nominees, which included Ben among its Best Emerging Album candidates, we figured … Continue reading →

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Georgia bluesman Eddie 9V hits the ground running on debut album Left My Soul in Memphis

Posted on January 8, 2020 by Mike

Among the most pleasant of surprises to cross our desk in 2019 was the debut release from a young Georgia bluesman who goes by the name of Eddie 9V. Don’t let his mere 23 years of age fool you: this guy has a sound much deeper than his … Continue reading →

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Tune into the Weekend, Christmas edition: Ben Levin reveals the one person Saint Nick forgot (don’t be that Santa!)

Posted on December 21, 2019 by Mike

Well, this might just be the real story behind “The Year Without a Santa Claus”: it looks like jolly ol’ Saint Nick may have left someone very important off his lists — someone very close to home (and we ain’t talking Rudolph, … Continue reading →

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Heartaches and Pain

Posted on December 18, 2019 by Mike

We couldn’t let the year come to a close without sneaking in another talk-free edition of our BluesPowR Radio Hour, this time featuring music from John Mayall with Larry McCray, Lurrie Bell & the Bell Dynasty, The Nick Moss Band featuring Dennis … Continue reading →

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