Blues News December 2016
Host Band Interview:
Bob Frank of “Blue Lunch”
For most members, Bob Frank needs no introduction. For
some newbies, Bob was not only a founding and board
member of the Blues Society, but he also set up the Blues
Society Cleveland Hall of Fame, to celebrate and
acknowledge some of the great blues artists from right
here in the Cleveland area. The profiles and films were
developed by Bob with media help from John Bon. Bob
encourages everyone to check out those profiles at the
website, especially one of the lesser known players, David Griggs, who Bob says, got Robert Lockwood Jr to start
playing again.
A lifelong resident of Cleveland, Bob eventually went
"electric," and spent eighteen years as the leader of the
Hotfoot Quartet, touring throughout North America and recording several albums. As a side man
he has worked with Robert Lockwood, Wallace Coleman, fiddler Howard Armstrong, the Falls City
Ramblers, and British bluesman, Long John Baldry.
Bob has played many different kinds of music including bluegrass, old-timey, swing, rock, reggae
and Caribbean soca, but is known these days as an expert in a wide variety of blues styles.
Bob joined Blue Lunch in 1995.
As well as playing guitar and serving as one of the band’s lead vocalists, Bob contributes as the
primary song writer in the band. He also acts as producer for the band's recordings.
During the day Bob works through Young Audiences, performing traditional American music assembly programs for children. He has done over 3,000 of these programs in schools throughout
the United States.
Bob continues to perform locally, and at many blues festivals out of town, with national recording
artist Blue Lunch, which was formed with bandmate Pete London. The band is on the RIPCAT Label, and has many recordings available on many different sites, including iTunes.
Bob first got the blues bug when he heard the first few "Blues Bag" programs on WRUW, where
he heard artists such as Muddy Waters and Paul Butterfield. He went out and bought a harmonica,
and played in various band through high school. While in college in Boston, he was able to accompany David Bromberg and Vassar Clements on his harmonica. In 1975 he began playing in Bluegrass bands, continuing for about 20 years.
Bob also enjoys solo work and writes his own music, with many of the songs played in Blue Lunch.
Since many places have dried up where he used to perform his solo work (like the Barking Spider!),he is currently look for new places to gig...Let him know if you have any ideas!!
Bob and his wife Ellen have two grown children. They live in Shaker Heights. During the day Bob
works through Young Audiences, performing traditional American music assembly programs for
children. He has done over 3,000 of these programs in schools throughout the United States. In
his spare time, Bob also has a small side business managing commercial buildings. Bob lists his
influences as Muddy Water, Blind Blake, Ry Cooder, and most early country blues. A special favorite is T Bone Walker. This drove him to purchase his favorite guitar (one just like T Bone
owned—drool, you guitar players)....a 1949 ES 5! Bobs says there were only 22 made that year,
and he prefers to plug the guitar in directly with no effects to appreciate the wonderful sound and
tone of the guitar.
Lately Bob has been listening to classical music, on-line guitar lessons, and Bo Carter, who he
highly recommends we listen to.
Since the Blues Society was formed, Bob feels it is important to remember that it's not just about
the jams... the most important aspect of the Society is to be a professional organization which furthers Blues Music as performance art, and will continue to bring in more interest in the arts and
new artists as well.
Members of Blue Lunch:
Pete London-Harmonica and vocals
Mike Sands- Piano
Ray DeForest- Bass
Scott Flowers- Drums
Chris Burge- Sax
Bob Michael-Trombone
Mike Rubin- Trumpet
Bob Frank- Guitar and vocals
Bob has a wonderful knowledge of Blues Music and Blues Music history, and I could go on and
on. Thanks much, Bob, for sharing, as Jr Wells would say.... "just a little bit."
by Doug Schunick
Get Out to the Jams
The monthly Blues Society Jams are a great opportunity for Blues players and Blues listeners to
get together to create and share some wonderful music. You not only get to hear the great host
bands, but many other fine musicians in the area. The jams are a great place for younger and older players to get together and express themselves, learn from others, explore new ideas, make
friends, and support the great establishments that support the Cleveland Blues Society. All players are welcome....you do not have to be a Society member. Many great bands and friendships
have formed from these informal gatherings! So, as they used to say in Detroit... "Kick Out The
Jams".... get out to the jams...it's a great way to connect!
Upcoming Monday Jams
December 12– Wilbert’s
“Real Deal Blues Band”
January 9 —Parkview
“Cats on Holiday”
SPOTLIGHT
Susanne Mayer is a native Clevelander, currently living in
Sagamore Hills with her two Italian greyhounds, Bella and
Lola. Proud mother of a wonderful daughter, she has spent
her career in healthcare, lab equipment and industrial sales.
Her many interests include volunteering, walking, horseback
riding, comedy clubs, movies and spending time with family
and friends. She has had a lifetime love of blues music and
played an integral role in the founding of the CBS Blues
Cruise. She sees CBS as a group of dedicated people who
love music and want to use their individual talents to promote local music. She hopes to see members increase their
involvement so that the group can expand its positive community influence and offer scholarships. She says, “Blues
becomes part of your soul, your being. This drives you to
want to help share that love of music.”
Blues You Should Know
The purpose of this column will be to pull your coats to some of the influential and notable blues
artists who have contributed mightily to our genre. I won’t be writing about the folks you probably
already know about: Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, BB King and the like, instead we’ll explore the
lives and music of some of the greats who have either become forgotten or perhaps never quite
made the “A list.”. The blues has a deep and rich history and the more you broaden your listening
scope the more you’ll appreciate and understand this music we all love so much.
We’ll begin with Robert Lee McCollum, known professionally as Robert
Nighthawk. The Nighthawk was born in 1909 Helena, Arkansas, just across
the big river from Friar’s Point, MS, birthplace of Robert Johnson. His first
instrument was the harmonica and he began to build his reputation performing throughout the Delta and Eastern Arkansas. In 1937 he began his recording career in Chicago, first with Victor, then Bluebird, the record company that best captured the early, acoustic instrument pre-war Chicago blues
sound. Around that time he changed his official name to Robert Lee McCoy,
the impetus for that being some difficulties of the legal variety.
In 1947 Nighthawk recorded again, for Aristocrat (later Chess) Records, this
time playing in the modern electric style. He had developed his proficiency with the slide and
played a beautifully clean slide style somewhat derived from Tampa Red’s playing. Nighthawk was
a close friend of Muddy Waters (he even played at Muddy’s first wedding in 1932) and the two developed very similar styles of slide playing. Muddy was a far more exciting performer however, and
while his career skyrocketed in the early ‘50s, Nighthawk managed to record only sporadically during those boom years for Chicago-style blues. The closest Nighthawk came to a hit record at that
time was the double-sided, “Sweet Black Angel/Anna Lee”. “Sweet Black Angel” was later taken
and adapted by BB King as “Sweet Little Angel”.
Nighthawk was a far better guitar player than Muddy and his slide styling is exquisite, with a sweetly controlled vibrato and like Muddy in his later years, he played slide almost exclusively in standard tuning. He also sang beautifully, with a wry, plummy tone that matched his slide playing exactly. Nighthawk managed to match his vocal phrasing with his guitar phrasing like no one else I’ve
ever heard.
As the rock & roll era began, and performing jobs became harder to get, Nighthawk became a regular performer at Chicago’s outdoor Maxwell Street Market, known to the locals as “Jewtown,” as in
its early days, the market was located in a Jewish neighborhood and featured the Jewish push-cart
vendors common in the early part of the 20th century. A documentary film from 1964 titled “And
This Is Free,” shows Nighthawk and his bandmates in top form. There is also a live album, “Live
on Maxwell Street” on Rounder Records.
Nighthawk returned to Helena to take over the “King Biscuit” radio show after Sonny Boy Wilson
died, but soon his own health began to fail and in 1967 he died of congestive heart failure. He’s
buried near his Helena home, but like Robert Johnson, the exact site of his grave is unknown.
Thanks to the miracle of the interwebs Nighthawk’s music is not hard to find. YouTube has a lot of
his recordings posted and I’m listening to him on Spotify as I write this. Ronnie Earl has a wonderful tribute to him he calls the “Robert Nighthawk Stomp” which is based largely on Nighthawk’s
version of “Kansas City.” There are also some great mid-60’s era recordings for Delmark and
Testament. Great stuff. Happy listening.
by Bob Frank
CBS CABIN FEVER
Members Indoor Picnic
WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR:
SUNDAY, February 26, 2017
Time: 2pm to 6pm
Parma Elks – 2250 Snow Road, Parma
(Behind McDonald’s in Midtown Shopping Center)
BAND: Colin Dussault (This is not a jam session)
Band will play from 3pm to 6pm
Free to Members/$10 for non-members
Food, pop and water are provided. Cash bar available for beer & wine.
(In this location, you cannot BYOB)
CD Review: The Chicago Way
by Jim Bell
This month’s artist is another gentleman I have had the
pleasure to see in live performance. Toronzo Cannon
may not be a name with which you are familiar, but he is
a bluesman coming into his own. Mr. Cannon hails from
Chicago, where his day job is wheeling a city bus
through the Windy City. At night he plays out in the clubs
and joints, honing his craft. Like most blues artists, Toronzo was exposed to the music while spending time with an older mentor. In this
case, Toronzo remembers listening with his grandfather to blues, rock, and R&B
on the local radio stations. At age 22 Toronzo bought his first guitar and quickly
learned to play. Among Toronzo’s influences he sites Buddy Guy, Albert King, Al
Green, Jimi Hendrix, and Lil Ed Williams as some of his early heros.
In 2001 Toronzo formed his first band, Cannonball Express. Over the next
11 years he rose to prominence in the national and international blues scene, including nine appearances at the Chicago Blues Festival. Toronzo is known for an
up-tempo, high energy show. And that energy shows on his most recent CD.
Toronzo’s current disc is entitled The Chicago Way, and is a compilation of
all Cannon-written songs. The first cut is called The Pain Around Me. It is a look
at the conditions within the darker side of Chicago.
‘Six kids on the corner up to no damn good
That’s six broken homes struggling in my neighborhood
We got liquor stores everywhere on my side of town
I don’t want my kids to go outside, ‘cause the thugs are hanging around’
You get to hear some of the reason Toronzo is a rising star. Heartfelt lyrics,
along with his fast paced finger-work, make this a memorable song.
The second song is a little more light-hearted, even as it discusses a situation many of us have endured…..divorce. Titled Bad Contract, this piece offers up
his insight to the ending of a bad marriage.
Read about it, heard about it, now it’s me
I shoulda seen it coming—would have stayed free
Big fancy wedding for her friend’s jealousy
The house was mine, now she got the key
I signed a bad contract
Sign on the line
You only get half back
I signed a bad contract’
This South Side, Fedora-wearin’, southpaw, throws out some great riffs and finger-picking.
You got to check him out! For all you Guitar Geeks: Toronzo plays Gibson Guitars (Les Paul,
Flying V and ES) and he gives credit to Victoria Amplifiers for his custom system, as well as
Function FX for his custom pedals.
SHOW ALERT! Toronzo Cannon will be playing
Music Box Supper Club on Friday February 3rd, 2017.
Jammer Spotlight:
Pat Murphy
Cleveland native and frequent Blues Society Jam attendee, Pat
Murphy was born in Lakewood, and was raised in Lyndhurst. He
joined the Navy and served on a nuclear attack sub in the Atlantic. After a few years, he joined the Lyndhurst Fire Department
and worked there for over 28 years, retiring as Fire Chief in 2003.
Proud father of two sons, Pat has lived in the Sagamore Hills
area for 38 years.
Pat got his first guitar about seven or eight years ago. He found an old Peavy guitar in the
trash, had it fixed, and played it. Now he mostly plays a Fender Strat or Gibson Les Paul. He
has taken lessons from Tony Basirico and Butch Armstrong. Downplaying his skills, Pat says
he is working to move from adequate to good. He has been working as a Roadie for the Burnt
River Band and loves doing it. He says he has learned a lot, especially from Stan Nicholas. "In
addition to being a great guitar player, Stan is also a real student of the Blues, who not only
plays, but researches all the legendary blues artists, and passes that on to other people."
Pat likes the older artists like Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy, and John Lee Hooker, but also Bonnie Raitt and Joe Louis Walker. His favorites also include Tab Benoit and Kenny Wayne Shepard. Pat is married and has five grandchildren and vacations in the Caribbean on the island of
Bonaire, near Aruba. He enjoys scuba diving and formed a vacation island band there with
fellow vacationer Chuck Yarborough from Cleveland, and Bill Manley from Nashville. They call
themselves the Nashville Legends.
He likes the Blues Society Jams, and rarely misses a jam. "The jams are not super meeting
oriented, where you have to have the meeting first. Thanks to the internet, we can spend more
time meeting and playing with people you know.“ Pat does attend other jams around town,
and says the Blues Society Jam is always the best... where he has "met some really good,
helpful people.”
by Doug Schunick
CBS Board of Directors
President—John Adams
Board Members at Large :
Vice President - Michael Henighan (Honeycomb)
Susanne Mayer
Treasurer - Elaine DeStephano
Robert Dickow
Secretary - Becky Francen
Mike Kormos
Diane Mocniak
Wishing you a warm and wonderful holiday season from
the Cleveland Blues Society Board of Directors
Merry Christmas!
Volunteers Needed
Please consider volunteering with CBS. It’s a great way
to meet people and support your blues community.
Please contact Elaine if interested at (216) 212-0007 or
email at [email protected].
Newsletter Contributors:
Elaine DeStephano, Doug Schunick, Jim Bell, Lloyd Braun and Caroline Martlew
Do you have an idea for an article—email Doug at [email protected]