The Blues File from WXPN Podcast
The Blues File from WXPN, a weekly Blues profile on the genre's most important artists new and old.
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Chicago Blues: A Living History
"Chicago Blues: A Living History" is a tribute to classic Chicago blues by some of today's best Chicago bluesmen. While it suffers from some of the general shortcomings of tribute albums, it is a solid offering and a very worth-while listen.
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Lester "Mad Dog" Davenport - a remembrance
Lester "Mad Dog" Davenport has died at age 77. Davenport was a Chicago blues stalwart from over a half century. He recorded with Bo Diddley and made two excellent albums as band leader.
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Mel Brown - a remembrance
Bluesman Mel Brown has died at age 69. Brown was a funky blues guitarist and a keyboard player, and a guy who became a homebody in Ontario in his later years.
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Willie King - a remembrance
Bluesman Willie King has died at age 65. This spirited rural bluesman saw no boundary between his music and his social commentary and community activism.
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John Cephas - a remembrance
Bluesman John Cephas has died at age 78. He was one half of the world's best-known country blues act, Cephas & Wiggins, a tireless player, promoter, and educator of the blues tradition.
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Piney Brown - In Memoriam
Bluesman Piney Brown has passed away at age 87. He was a soulful singer, and a writer and performer with a wonderful sense of humor.
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Snooks Eaglin - In Memoriam
New Orleans bluesman Snooks Eaglin has passed away. His seemingly infinite repertoire led to his being called a "human jukebox" though that description, while complimentary, fails to account for his interpretive and improvisational talents.
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Guy Davis "Sweetheart Like You"
Guy Davis's new album "Sweetheart Like You" is an excellent contemporary "traditional blues" album. It includes strong new material and fresh interpretations of classics from Leadbelly and Muddy Waters. Davis talks about the music and his life as the musical son of noted theater actors in this Blues …
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Lil' Ed & The Blues Imperials "Full Tilt"
The latest album from slige guitarist Lil' Ed Williams may not be his best ever, but there's some good blues on it.
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Saffire's Final Album
Saffire The Uppity Blueswomen are disbanding. The group will bring its career to a conclusion following a final tour this Spring, and they have released a final album called "Havin' The Last Word." The album is proof that the band is still funny, entertaining, thought-provoking, and vital.
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Sam Taylor - In Memoriam
Bluesman Sam Taylor has died at age seventy-three. Early in his career he played with Joey Dee & The Starlighters of "Peppermint Twist" fame. He wrote songs for BT Express and others. Later he put out half a dozen of the finest blues albums of the past two decades. Taylor was a smart social observer …
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A Jazz & Blues Christmas from Putumayo Records
Putumayo Records offers "A Jazz & Blues Christmas," a ten-song sampler of holiday music from B. B. King, Charles Brown, Ramsey Lewis, Ray Charles, and more.
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Delmark Records Celebrates 55 Years Of Blues (and Jazz)
Delmark Records celebrates 55 Years of Blues (and Jazz). The CD-DVD combo release "55 Years Of Blues" draws on the label's extensive catalog of vital blues recordings of many varying styles, reflecting the critically important role Delmark has played in getting the blues out to new audiences and giv …
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Pristine Audio restores the sound of old 78s
Andrew Rose, a British sound engineer living in France is getting remarkable results restoring the audio of 78 rpm records by blues and jazz artists. He uses modern technology for sure, but much of his method relies on what may be called "digital elbow grease." His blues reissues on his Pristine Aud …
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Willie "Big Eyes" Smith "Born In Arkansas"
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith's new release "Born In Arkansas" is a solid blues album; Smith plays some great harmonica on it, though he leaves his drums to his son Kenny "Beedy Eyes" Smith. "Big Eyes" Smith became famous as the drummer in the Muddy Waters band for almost two decades. Smith plays both the …
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Llu?s Coloma "Boogie Portraits"
Spanish boogie woogie master Llu?s Coloma shines on a new album called "Boogie Portraits." Except for one track, all the pieces feature piano duets, and the strength of the album rests as much on the close working relationships between the duet partners on each song as on Coloma's considerable virtu …
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M For Mississippi - A Road Trip Through The Birthplace Of The Blues
The film "M For Mississippi" takes us on a seven-day trip through Mississippi. Roger Stolle and Jeff Konkel talk with a wide variety of blues artists and bring us some of their performances at home or in local clubs. The film paints a thought-provoking picture of contemporary Mississippi blues.
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Super Chikan "Sum' Mo' Chikan"
James Johnson of Clarksdale MS is better known as "Super Chikan." His unorthodox spelling of "Chicken" is hardly the only unusual thing about him. Chikan has a unique sense of humor and is a keen obsever of human nature, even though he is often politically incorrect. His latest album "Sum' Mo' Chika …
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Memphis Minnie, Queen of the Country Blues
Memphis Minnie was one of the greatest blues women. Unlike many of her female contemporaries, who sang in front of uptown, jazzy bands, Minnie played guitar - very distinctively - and gave us raw, improvised country blues. She was one of the original inductees into The Blues Hall Of Fame at its ince …
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Alberta Adams "Detroit Is My Home"
Alberta Adams is somewhere between 80 and 90 years old — various copies of her birth certificate don't agree on her year of birth. But she stays young by singing the blues. "Detroit Is My Home" finds her in the company of a number of talented blues pianists and singing some very convincing blu …
The Blues File from WXPN Podcast
