#574 > Bowlful of Blues Festival - 2022 (PhillyCheezeBlues.Blogspot.com)

 

Bowlful of Blues Festival – Sep 4, 2022

Fred Maytag Bowl

Newton, Iowa

 

By Phillip Smith; Sep. 5, 2022

 

Original source : phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com

 

Enjoying the Blues in Newton, Iowa at the Bowlful of Blues Festival is at the top of my list of things to do on Labor Day weekend.  There’s s not many better ways to spend the holiday.  The clouds dissipated and the sun came out, making for beautiful day to listen to music in Newton’s historic Maytag Park.

 

Presented by The South Skunk Blues Society, the Bowlful of Blues Festival celebrated its thirtieth year.  The lineup was absolutely terrific and featured Muddy Walter Band, Matt Woods Band, Ghost Town Blues Band, Kent Burnside, and Popa Chubby.  Playing between sets, were local blues artists Rob Lumbard, Bob Dorr and Jeff Peterson, Buckmiller Schwager, and The Jury.

 

I arrived just in time to catch local blue legends Bob Dorr and Jeff Petersen, aka The Blue Two.  I was so glad to be able to hear them again.  On a side note, they also performed at the very first Bowlful of Blues Festival.  Following Bob and Jeff, The Ghost Town Blues Band took the stage.  This was my fifth time this year to see this six-piece ensemble from Memphis.  Their Stax-meets-Muscle Shoals approach always means a fantastic show.  They are truly one of my favorites.     

I had reviewed Buckmiller Schwager’s debut album To Memphis and Back earlier this year, and was quite taken by it.  Meeting Brian Schwager and Tom Buckmiller in person and hearing them play live really made my day.  I was very excited to see Kent Burnside.  Bringing a big batch of real-deal Mississippi blues with him, he absolutely commandeered the stage.  I’ve been a fan of Burnside since reviewing his 2013 debut album My World is So Cold.  

The Jury, a band who I was not familiar with, stepped up next to play a thirty-minute set of all-original songs.  They were tight and sounded good.  New York bluesman Poppa Chubby headlined the show, filling in for Carolyn Wonderland who had to cancel due to health reasons.  I had seen him several times over the years, and he’s such a phenomenal guitarist. 

Special thanks go out to The South Skunk Blues Society and all the volunteers who makes this wonderful event happen every year. 

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  * All photos by Phillip Smith

Bob Dorr and Jeff Petersen

Ghost Town Blues Band

Buckmiller Schwager

Kent Burnside

The Jury

Popa Chubby

   * All Photos by Phillip Smitb

#573 > The B. Christopher Band - Snapshots from the Second Floor (PhillyCheezeBlues.Blogspot.com)

 

2022 – Guitar One Records

 By Phillip Smith; Sep. 3, 2022

 Original source : phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com

 

Snapshot From the Second Floor is the brand-new album from The B. Christopher Band.  I’ve been grooving to it all week long and savoring the sounds of its smokin’ guitar blues.  The B. Christopher Band is a five-piece ensemble with Christopher on lead guitar, Ellard James “Moose” Boles on vocals, Anton Fig on drums, Studebaker John on harmonica, and Nick Douglas on bass. 

Christopher wastes no time getting this album fueled up and launched as he lights the fuse to the instrumental “All Twisted Up”.  Accented by a healthy dose of hot harp, he gives a downright dazzling performance topped with a side of slide guitar.  “Where You At” steps up to the plate next, bringing the heat of the Mississippi delta with it.  Moose’s gravelly vocals secure the authenticity of this killer swampy tune.  It’s a superb feeling to get lost in the hypnotic rhythm of “Take it Home’ as it effortlessly transports me to a funky, sweaty juke joint somewhere in the hills of North Mississippi.  This band is so unbelievably tight and versed in the blues, it pours out on “Late Night Crying”.  The song drips with pure emotion slathered on every note.  B. Christopher Band brings this all-original thirteen-track record to its end with a beautifully haunting slide-blues instrumental called “Smoke”.  This one begs to be listened to over and over.  I absolutely love it.

As a guitar aficionado and blues fan, I totally embrace this album.  Snapshot From the Second Floor has certainly put The B. Christopher Band on my radar.

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For more information about The B. Christopher Band, visit this website :

https://www.bchristopherband.com .

#572 > GA-20 - Crackdown (PhillyCheezeBlues.Blogspot.com)

 

GA-20

Crackdown

2022 – Karma Chief Records

By Phillip Smith; Aug. 27, 2022

Original source : phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com

 

Last year, I heard GA-20’s attention-snatching tribute to the legendary bluesman Hound Dog Taylor, and I’ve been a fan of theirs ever since.  Consisting of guitarist Matt Stubbs, a fourteen-year veteran of Charlie Musselwhite’s touring band, guitarist/vocalist Pat Faherty, and drummer Tim Carman, GA-20 has been a force in the blues arena since 2018.  The trio’s latest record, Crackdown consists of ten all-original tracks seared to perfection with their raw, unbridled approach to the blues, and I absolutely love it.

From the beginning, I’m captivated by the blanket of fuzz and heavy bass forming the ominous landscape of “Fairweather Friend”.  Fueled by a driving rhythm and cast with a vintage sound, the song grabs ahold of me with a tight grip.  GA-20 calls back to the days of Howlin’ Wolf with “Easy on the Eyes”.  Steeped in swampy juke-joint blues and loaded with feral howls, the song is definitely one of my favorites.  The spirit of James Brown is summoned and cast into the funky title-track “Crackdown”.  If one can’t get down to this one, they’ve surely passed on to another plane of existence.  Short, sweet, and clocking in at just a bit over two minutes, “Double Getting”, is another cool-as-hell tune.  With a lively beat, it dances its way through rockabilly, surf-rock, and blues, culminating in retro-rock experience.

GA-20 continues to push the envelope with blues, all-while maintaining a high level of authenticity.  This is a band I really want to catch live.  I know it would be a great experience.    

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For more information about GA-20, visit this website : https://ga20band.com

T

#571 > Bourbon and Blues Festival - 2022 (PhillyCheezeBlues.Blogspot.com)

 

McGrath Amphitheater

Cedar Rapids, Iowa

 

By Phillip Smith; Aug. 23, 2022

 

Original source : phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com

 

Battling a forecast filled with rain and a last-minute lineup change, the first annual Bourbon & Blues Festival co-presented by Linn County Blues Society and Cedar Ridge Winery and Distillery hit the ground running.  The temperamental weather fizzled out early and blues fans were rewarded with a whopping dose of outstanding music.  Molly Nova and the Hawk featuring Bryce Janey took the stage first and gave a riveting performance.  Next up was bluesman Davy Knowles, a musician who Peter Frampton declared “gunslinger/guitarist of the 21^st Century”.  He was an awe-inspiring treat to say the least.  Danielle Nicole Band followed and pretty much set the stage on fire with a searing performance highlighted with a guest appearance from Kevin Burt who accompanied on vocals.  Headliner Carolyn Wonderland with Shelly King closed the show in a high-energy fashion with blazing guitars and a slathering of lap steel.  It really was a great festival, and I’m already looking forward to next year.

* All Photos by Phillip Smith

Kevin Burt

Molly Nova and the Hawk

featuring Bryce Janey

Davy Knowles

Danielle Nicole Band

Carolyn Wonderland

* All photos by Phillip Smith